Richard Belzer - wikipedia Richard Belzer Richard Belzer Belzer at the White House Correspondents Dinner in 2009 Birth name Richard Jay Belzer ( 1944 - 08 - 04 ) August 4, 1944 ( age 73 ) Bridgeport, Connecticut Medium Stand - up Film Television Books Radio Nationality American Years active 1972 -- present Genres Political satire Observational comedy Deadpan Subject ( s ) American culture American politics Current events Mass media Spouse Gail Susan Ross ( m. 1966 ; div. 1972 ) Dalia Danoch ( m. 1976 ; div. 1978 ) Harlee McBride ( m. 1985 ) Notable works and roles John Munch on Homicide : Life on the Street and Law & Order : Special Victims Unit Richard Jay Belzer ( born August 4, 1944 ) is an American stand - up comedian, author, and actor. He is best known for his role as John Munch, whom he has portrayed as a regular cast member on the NBC police drama series Homicide : Life on the Street and Law & Order : Special Victims Unit, as well as in guest appearances on a number of other series. He portrayed the character for 23 years from 1993 to 2016. Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Career 2.1 Stand - up 2.2 Film 2.3 Radio 2.4 Television 2.5 Author 3 Personal life 4 Filmography 4.1 Television 5 Books 6 References 7 External links Early Life and education Belzer was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Frances and Charles Belzer, a tobacco and candy retailer. He grew up in a Jewish family. He described his mother as frequently physically abusive, and declared that his comedy career began when trying to make his mother laugh in order to distract her from abusing him and his brother. After graduating from Fairfield Warde High School, Belzer worked as a reporter for the Bridgeport Post. Belzer attended Dean College, which was then known as Dean Junior College, in Franklin, Massachusetts, but was expelled. He worked at a variety of jobs, including sales and as a census taker. Career Stand - up After his first divorce, Belzer relocated to New York City, moved in with singer Shelley Ackerman, and began working as a stand - up comic at Pips, The Improv, and Catch a Rising Star. He participated in the Channel One comedy group that satirized television and became the basis for the cult movie The Groove Tube, in which Belzer played the costar of the ersatz TV show `` The Dealers. '' Belzer was the audience warm - up comedian for Saturday Night Live and made three guest appearances on the show between 1975 and 1980. He also opened for musician Warren Zevon during his tour supporting the release of his album Excitable Boy. Film In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Belzer became an occasional film actor. He is noted for small roles in Fame, Café Flesh, Night Shift, and Scarface. He appeared in the music videos for the Mike + The Mechanics song `` Taken In '' and for the Pat Benatar song `` Le Bel Age '', as well as the Kansas video `` Ca n't Cry Anymore ''. He appeared in A Very Brady Sequel as an LAPD detective. Radio In addition to his film career, Belzer was a featured player on the National Lampoon Radio Hour with co-stars John Belushi, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Gilda Radner, and Harold Ramis, a half - hour comedy program aired on 600 plus U.S. stations from 1973 to 1975. Several of his sketches were released on National Lampoon albums, drawn from the Radio Hour, including several bits in which he portrayed a pithy call - in talk show host named `` Dick Ballentine ''. In the late 1970s, he co-hosted Brink & Belzer on 660AM WNBC radio in New York City. He has been a frequent guest on The Howard Stern Show. In 1987, he hosted a morning drive program on WJFK - FM in Washington, DC. Following the departure of Randi Rhodes from Air America Radio, Belzer guest - hosted the afternoon program on the network. Television In the 1990s, Belzer appeared frequently on television. He was a regular on The Flash as a news anchor and reporter. In several episodes of Lois & Clark : The New Adventures of Superman, he played Inspector William Henderson. He followed that with starring roles on the Baltimore - based Homicide : Life on the Street ( 1993 -- 99 ) and the New York -- based Law & Order : Special Victims Unit ( 1999 -- 2013 ), portraying police detective John Munch in both series. Barry Levinson, executive director of Homicide, said Belzer was a `` lousy actor '' in audition when he read lines from the script for `` Gone for Goode '', the first episode in the series. Levinson asked Belzer to take time to reread and practice the material, then read it again. At his second reading, Levinson said Belzer was `` still terrible '', but that the actor eventually found confidence in his performance. In addition, Belzer has played Munch in episodes on seven other series and in a sketch on one talk show, making Munch the only fictional character to appear on eleven different television shows played by a single actor. These shows were on six different networks : Homicide : Life on the Street ( NBC ) Law & Order ( NBC ) The X-Files ( Fox ) The Beat ( UPN ) Law & Order : Trial by Jury ( NBC ) Belzer 's appearance on Trial by Jury, which aired April 15, 2005, made him the third actor ever to play the same character in six different prime time TV series. The other two actors are John Ratzenberger and George Wendt, who played Cliff Clavin and Norm Peterson, respectively, in Cheers ( 1982 -- 93 ) ; St. Elsewhere ( 1985 ) ; The Tortellis ( 1987 ) ; Wings ( 1990 ) ; The Simpsons ( 1994 ) ; and Frasier ( 2002 ). Arrested Development ( Fox ) The Wire ( HBO ) 30 Rock ( NBC ) The characters are watching a Law & Order : Special Victims Unit episode ; a scene shot for 30 Rock Law & Order : Special Victims Unit ( NBC ) Jimmy Kimmel Live ! ( ABC ) Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt ( Netflix ), in which he played a John Munch - like character on a fictional Law & Order spinoff. In March 2016, executive producer Warren Leight announced Belzer would return to reprise the role in a May 2016 episode of Law & Order : Special Victims Unit, titled `` Fashionable Crimes ''. Belzer portrayed Det. Munch for 22 consecutive seasons on Homicide ( 7 seasons ) and Law & Order : SVU ( 15 seasons ), which exceeded the previous primetime live - action record of twenty consecutive seasons held by James Arness ( who portrayed Marshal Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke from 1955 to 1975 ) and Kelsey Grammer ( as Dr. Frasier Crane on Cheers and Frasier from 1984 to 2004 ). Belzer appeared in several of Comedy Central 's televised broadcasts of Friars Club roasts. On June 9, 2001, Belzer himself was honored by the New York Friars Club and the Toyota Comedy Festival as the honoree of the first - ever roast open to the public. Comedians and friends on the dais included Roastmaster Paul Shaffer ; Christopher Walken ; Danny Aiello ; Barry Levinson ; Robert Klein ; Bill Maher ; SVU costars Mariska Hargitay, Christopher Meloni, Ice - T, and Dann Florek ; and Law & Order 's Jerry Orbach. At the December 1, 2002, roast of Chevy Chase, Belzer said, `` The only time Chevy Chase has a funny bone in his body is when I fuck him in the ass. '' Belzer voiced the character of Loogie for most of the episode of South Park entitled `` The Tooth Fairy Tats 2000 ''. He and Brian Doyle - Murray were featured in the tenth - season premiere of Sesame Street. Author Belzer believes there was a conspiracy to assassinate President John F. Kennedy and has written four books discussing conspiracy theories : UFOs, JFK, and Elvis : Conspiracies You Do n't Have to Be Crazy to Believe ; Dead Wrong : Straight Facts on the Country 's Most Controversial Cover - Ups ; Hit List : An In - Depth Investigation into the Mysterious Deaths of Witnesses to the JFK Assassination ; and Someone Is Hiding Something : What Happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 ? Dead Wrong and Hit List were written with journalist David Wayne and reached The New York Times Best Seller list. Someone Is Hiding Something was also written with David Wayne as well as radio talk show host George Noory. Personal Life Belzer 's first two marriages were to Gail Susan Ross ( 1966 -- 72 ) and boutique manager Dalia Danoch ( 1976 -- c. 1978 ), both of which ended in divorce. In 1981 in Los Angeles he met 31 - year - old Harlee McBride, a divorcee with two daughters, Bree Benton and Jessica. McBride, who had been seen in Playboy magazine four years earlier in that year 's sex - in - cinema feature, in conjunction with Young Lady Chatterley, was appearing in TV commercials for Ford motors and acting in free theater, when she met Belzer at the suggestion of a friend. The two married in 1985. Belzer survived testicular cancer in 1983. His HBO special and comedy CD Another Lone Nut pokes fun at this medical incident as well as his status as a well - known conspiracy theorist. On March 27, 1985, days prior to the inaugural WrestleMania, Belzer requested on his cable TV talk show Hot Properties that Hulk Hogan demonstrate one of his signature wrestling moves. After being asked by Belzer several times, Hogan put Belzer in a front chin - lock, which caused Belzer to pass out. When Hogan released him, Belzer hit his head on the floor, sustaining a laceration to the scalp that required a brief hospitalization. Belzer sued Hogan for $5 million and settled out of court. On October 20, 2006, on Bubba the Love Sponge, it was claimed ( with Hogan in the studio ) that the settlement totaled $5 million, half from Hogan and half from wrestling promoter Vince McMahon. During his June 23, 2008, appearance on Sirius Satellite Radio 's The Howard Stern Show, Belzer suggested that the settlement amount was closer to $400,000. He used the incident in his HBO special Another Lone Nut in his stand - up routine. Belzer 's older brother, Leonard Belzer ( age 73 ) committed suicide in the early morning hours of July 30, 2014, by jumping from the 11th floor of his New York City luxury apartment building. Belzer 's father had also committed suicide in 1968. Belzer is a cousin of actor Henry Winkler. Filmography Year Film Role Notes The Groove Tube Rodriguez Leo Batfish The President The Hooker Independent film 1980 Fame M.C. 1982 Café Flesh Loud - mouthed audience member 1982 Author ! Author ! Seth Shapiro 1982 Night Shift Pig Scarface M.C. at Babylon Club 1986 America Gypsy Beam aka Moonbeam 1986 Charlie Barnett 's Terms of Enrollment Man Reading Paper Flicks Stoner ( segment ' New Adventures of the Great Galaxy ' ) 1988 The Wrong Guys Richard ' Belz ' Belzer 1988 Freeway Dr. David Lazarus 1989 The Big Picture Video Show Host 1989 Fletch Lives Phil The Bonfire of the Vanities Television Producer 1991 The Flash II : Revenge of the Trickster Joe Kline 1991 Missing Pieces Baldesari 1991 Off and Running Milt Zoloth 1992 Flash III : Deadly Nightshade Joe Kline 1993 Mad Dog and Glory M.C. / Comic 1993 Dangerous Game Himself 1994 North Barker 1994 The Puppet Masters Jarvis 1995 Not of this Earth Jeremy Pallin Girl 6 Caller # 4 -- Beach A Very Brady Sequel LAPD Detective Get on the Bus Rick 1998 The Bar Channel 1998 Species II U.S. President 1999 Jump Jerry 2006 Copy That Richard 2007 BelzerVizion Richard Belzer also executive producer 2009 Polish Bar Hershel Santorini Blue Richard also executive producer Television Year Film Role Notes 1975 -- 80 Saturday Night Live Juror Chevy Chase Himself Museum Visitor Season 1 episode 1 Season 2 episode 27 Season 3 episode 61 Season 5 episode 106 ( uncredited ) 1978 Sesame Street Man in Row Boat # 1 Episode : `` ( # 10.1 ) '' 1985 Moonlighting Leonard Episode : `` Twas the Episode Before Christmas '' 1986 Miami Vice Captain Hook Episode : `` Trust Fund Pirates '' 1989 Tattingers Episode : `` Ex-Appeal '' aka Nick & Hillary 1990 -- 91 The Flash Joe Kline 10 episodes 1991 Monsters Buzz Hunkle Episode : `` Werewolf of Hollywood '' 1992 Human Target Greene Episode : `` Pilot '' 1993 -- 99 Homicide : Life on the Street Det. John Munch 122 episodes, regular cast 1994 Lois & Clark : The New Adventures of Superman Inspector William Henderson Episode : `` All Shook Up '' Episode : `` Witness '' Episode : `` Foundling '' Episode : `` The House of Luthor '' 1994 Nurses Jesse Wilner Episode : `` Fly the Friendly Skies '' 1994 Bandit : Bandit Bandit Big Bob TV film 1994 Hart to Hart : Crimes of the Hart Det. Frank Giordano TV film 1995 Prince for a Day Bernie Silver TV film aka The Prince and the Pizza Boy 1995 The Invaders Randy Stein TV film Pursuits Mariano TV film 1996 -- 2000 Law & Order Det. John Munch Episode : `` Charm City '' Episode : `` Baby, It 's You '' Episode : `` Sideshow '' Episode : `` Entitled '' 1997 The X-Files Det. John Munch Episode : `` Unusual Suspects '' 1997 Richard Belzer : Another Lone Nut Himself HBO comedy special 1997 -- 98 E ! True Hollywood Story Himself Episode : `` Gilda Radner '' Episode : `` John Belushi '' 1998 Elmopalooza Himself 1999 -- 2016 Law & Order : Special Victims Unit Det. / Sgt. John Munch 325 episodes, regular cast 2000 Homicide : The Movie Det. John Munch ( NYPD ) TV film based on the television series 2000 The Beat Det. John Munch Episode : `` They Say It 's Your Birthday '' 2000 South Park Loogie Voice Episode : `` The Tooth Fairy Tats 2000 '' 2000 3rd Rock from the Sun Himself Episode : `` Dick 'll Take Manhattan : Part 1 '' 2005 Law & Order : Trial by Jury Det. John Munch Episode : `` Skeleton '' This is a crossover sequel to the episode `` Tombstone '' from season 15 of the series Law & Order. 2006 Arrested Development Himself / Det. John Munch Episode : `` S.O.B.s '' ( uncredited as himself ) Episode : `` Exit Strategy '' 2008 The Wire Sgt. John Munch Episode : `` Took '' 2009 Jimmy Kimmel Live ! Sgt. John Munch Episode dated October 7, 2009 2009 Comedy Central Roast of Joan Rivers Himself 2013 America Declassified Himself Season 1 episode 1 2015 Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt A John Munch - like character One episode : `` Kimmy Goes to the Doctor ! '' Books UFOs, JFK, and Elvis : Conspiracies You Do n't Have to be Crazy to Believe, ISBN 0 - 345 - 42918 - 4 How to Be a Stand - Up Comic, ISBN 0 - 394 - 56239 - 9 I Am Not a Cop !, ISBN 1 - 4165 - 7066 - 7 I Am Not a Psychic !, ISBN 1 - 4165 - 7089 - 6 Dead Wrong : Straight Facts on the Country 's Most Controversial Cover - Ups, ISBN 1 - 6160 - 8673 - 4 Hit List : An In - Depth Investigation into the Mysterious Deaths of Witnesses to the JFK Assassination, ISBN 978 - 1620878071 Someone Is Hiding Something : What Happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 ?, ISBN 978 - 1632207289 References ^ Jump up to : `` Richard Belzer Biography ( 1944 -- ) ''. FilmReference.com. Retrieved October 7, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Richard Belzer 's Books ''. www.simonandschuster.com. ^ Jump up to : Belzer, Richard ( 2013 - 10 - 16 ). `` Munch Madness ''. The Huffington Post. ^ Jump up to : Locker, Melissa ( October 16, 2013 ). `` Farewell, Detective Munch : Richard Belzer 's Cop Character Leaves SVU ''. Time. Jump up ^ Steinberg, Jacques ( 14 January 2009 ). `` Two Funny Guys With the Same Name, but Not the Same Jokes ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 22 March 2011. Jump up ^ Sauchelli, Dana ; Fasick, Kevin ( July 30, 2014 ). `` Richard Belzer 's brother jumps to his death ''. New York Post. Jump up ^ http://www.southjersey.com/articles/?articleid=3474 Jump up ^ `` The Groove Tube ''. IMDb. Amazon. Retrieved September 4, 2016. Jump up ^ Getlen, Larry ( September 24, 2010 ). `` ' Uncontrollable Wit ' : An Interview with Law & Order 's Richard Belzer ''. AARP. AARP. Retrieved September 4, 2016. Jump up ^ `` Richard Belzer ''. IMDb. Amazon. Retrieved September 4, 2016. Jump up ^ `` ' The National Lampoon Radio Hour ' ''. NPR. November 17, 2003. Jump up ^ https://books.google.com/books?id=aNECAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA33&lpg=PA33&dq=richard+belzer+disk+jockey&source=bl&ots=lbYgEIugfq&sig=Qs1c8HlvHVk7jNjrVNdTAGlW1H4&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjllaDhsqTTAhXMyFQKHcAUBiUQ6AEILzAB#v=onepage&q=richard%20belzer%20disk%20jockey&f=false Jump up ^ http://askville.amazon.com/morning-deejays-station-wjfk-radio/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=21694991 Jump up ^ Shea, Danny ( 18 April 2008 ). `` Richard Belzer to Fill in During Randi Rhodes ' Air America Time Slot ''. Huffington Post. Retrieved 14 June 2014. Jump up ^ Mendoza, Manuel ( 2003 - 06 - 11 ). `` Revisit ' Life on the Street ' ''. The Dallas Morning News. Dallas, Texas. p. 1E. Jump up ^ Levinson, Barry ( 2003 ). Homicide Life on the Street -- The Seasons 1 & 2 ( DVD audio commentary ). A&E Home Video. ^ Jump up to : Cruz, Rachel ( March 12, 2015 ). `` Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Recap : `` Kimmy Goes to the Doctor '' ``. MovieNewsGuide.com. Retrieved March 22, 2016... she and Titus ( Tituss Burgess ) come across an old episode of Law Squiggle Order where Coriolanus Burt ( James Monroe Iglehart ) is in a scene with actor Richard Belzer. ^ Jump up to : Smith, Courtney E. ; Peterson, Jessie ( March 6, 2015 ). `` Everything We Learned From the ' Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt ' ''. Radio.com. Retrieved March 22, 2016. There was a Law & Order star, Richard Belzer, in a fake spin - off. Jump up ^ Abrams, Natalie ( March 22, 2016 ). `` ' Law & Order : SVU ' : Richard Belzer returning as Detective Munch ''. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 22, 2016. Jump up ^ `` The Meanest Roast ''. Slate. Retrieved 2 December 2002. Jump up ^ Birnbaum, Robert ( November 18, 2013 ). `` JFK Is Still Dead : Another Historiographical Moment ''. Virginia Quarterly Review. Charlottesville, Virginia. Retrieved December 22, 2014. ^ Jump up to : Elias, Marilyn ( Winter 2013 ). `` Conspiracy Act ''. Intelligence Report. Southern Poverty Law Center ( 152 ). Retrieved December 22, 2014. ^ Jump up to : Castro, Peter ( March 29, 1993 ). `` Richard Belzer : His Wit Honed by Anger, He 's a Comic Who Has Gone from Stand - Up to Homicide ''. People. 39 ( 12 ). RE Ross : `` In 1971, a year before the end of his six - year marriage to Gail Susan Ross... '' RE Danoch : `` In 1976. Belzer worked himself into a second marriage with Dalia Danoch, a boutique manager, but it ended in divorce less than two years later. '' ^ Jump up to : Hiaasen, Rob ( February 20, 1997 ). `` Detective Mensch : A dark comic with a sweetheart of a soul, Richard Belzer has found a new life with ' Homicide ' ''. The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on October 7, 2012. Retrieved October 7, 2012. Jump up ^ Hiaasen, p / 3 Jump up ^ `` Sex Stars of 1977 ''. Playboy. December 1977. Jump up ^ Video on YouTube Jump up ^ Corliss, Richard ( June 24, 2001 ). `` Hype ! Hell Raising ! Hulk Hogan ! ''. Time. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved 2008 - 07 - 08. Jump up ^ HowardStern.com Jump up ^ Sauchelli, Dana ; Fasick, Kevin ( July 30, 2014 ). `` Richard Belzer 's brother jumps to his death ''. New York Post. Jump up ^ `` Henry Winkler Pictures, Richard Belzer Photos - Photo Gallery : Surprising Celebrity Family Ties ''. TV Guide. Retrieved October 31, 2014. External links Official website Richard Belzer on IMDb Richard Belzer at AllMovie NBC Biography NNDB Profile Air America ( and list of affiliates ) Programs The Al Franken Show Clout Doin ' Time with Ron Kuby EcoTalk Go Vegan The Lionel Show The Marc Maron Show The Majority Report Marc Sussman 's Money Message The Mark Riley Show The Mike Malloy Show Morning Sedition Montel Across America On the Real The Rachel Maddow Show RadioNation The Randi Rhodes Show The Ron Reagan Show Ring of Fire 7 Days in America Springer on the Radio State of Belief The Steve Earle Show This Is America with Jon Elliott The Time Is Now Unfiltered The Young Turks Related articles Sheldon Drobny Talk radio Progressive talk Evan Montvel Cohen Air America -- Gloria Wise loan controversy VIAF : 101114021 LCCN : n88060955 ISNI : 0000 0000 7824 1534 GND : 139365389 SUDOC : 136077668 BNF : cb140528113 ( data ) MusicBrainz : ae914db6 - 87ae - 4ad0 - b5d4 - 81be9186e788 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Richard_Belzer&oldid=800229999 '' Categories : 1944 births 20th - century American male actors 21st - century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors American television talk show hosts American stand - up comedians Connecticut Democrats Dean College alumni Jewish American male actors Living people Male actors from Bridgeport, Connecticut Male actors from Connecticut Testicular cancer survivors Writers from Bridgeport, Connecticut Jewish comedians 20th - century American comedians 21st - century American comedians Hidden categories : All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from October 2012 Articles with unsourced statements from June 2017 Articles with unsourced statements from November 2012 Articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases from October 2012 All articles with failed verification Articles with failed verification from January 2014 Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with ISNI identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz identifiers Talk Contents Current events About Wikipedia Asturianu Deutsch Español فارسی Français Italiano Nederlands 日本 語 Português Русский Suomi Edit links This page was last edited on 12 September 2017, at 06 : 22. 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Question: who plays munch on law and order svu
Answer: Richard Jay Belzer