Tom Troupe death: Star Trek and Cheers actor dies aged 97

Veteran stage and screen actor appeared in numerous films and TV shows throughout his decades-long career

Veteran stage and screen actor Tom Troupe, who appeared in numerous movies and TV shows, including episodes of the classic sitcom Cheers and Star Trek, has died at the age of 97.

Troupe died Sunday morning of natural causes at his Beverly Hills home, his representative confirmed, per USA Today.

Born and raised in North Kansas City, Missouri, Troupe got his start acting on Broadway, making his debut in the original 1957 production of The Diary of Anne Frank. He played Peter, the young son of the van Pels family who hid with the Franks in the Secret Annex during World War II, and later became Anne’s lover.

Primarily a stage actor, he also appeared in a few productions — The Lion in Winter, Father’s Day, and The Gin Game — alongside his wife, Sixteen Candles actor Carole Cook. The two were married from 1964 until her death in January 2023 from heart failure just days before her 99th birthday.

Throughout his decades-long career, Troupe appeared in dozens of TV shows, typically in single episodes. Some of his most notable roles included Judge William E. Grey in a 1987 episode of Cheers and Lt. Harold in a 1967 episode of Star Trek. He also had guest roles in Frasier, ER, Mission: Impossible, and Murder, She Wrote.

Tom Troupe (left) and wife Carole Cook in 2013 (Getty Images for Art of Elysium)

Some of the films he starred in were The Devil’s Brigade (1968), Summer School (1987), and My Own Private Idaho (1991).

He additionally co-wrote and starred in 1968’s Sofi, a film adaptation of the play based on Nikolai Gogol’s The Diary of a Madman.

In 2002, Troupe and Cook, affectionately known as “the Lunts of L.A. Theater,” were jointly honored with the L.A. Ovation Award for Career Achievement for their extensive stage work in Los Angeles.

Several fans on X have paid tribute to Troupe, with one writing: “Losing a generation of actors that are not being replaced.”

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“Rest in peace legend,” a second said, with a third adding: “God bless him……. Long life.”

“RIP Tom Troupe who passed away yesterday, just days after celebrating his 97th birthday,” another noted.

“Rest in peace Tom Troupe, your legacy will live on through your body of work, may you be remembered fondly by all who saw your performances,” someone else wrote on Facebook.

“I will miss Tom as much as I’ve missed Carole. They were a beautiful couple and I’m so glad I had the privilege of knowing and working with them. I’m so glad Tom is finally with his beloved Carole again,” another added.

Troupe is survived by son Christopher and daughter-in-law, Becky Coulter.