Actor Dennis Weaver Dead At 81
Star Of 'McCloud' And 'Gunsmoke' Was Ardent Environmentalist
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Dennis Weaver, with his wife, Gerry Stowell, at CBS's 75th anniversary celebration in New York, Nov. 2, 2003. (AP (file))
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Dennis Weaver on the job as president of the Screen Actors Guild in 1974, at the height of his fame in the role of New York's visiting deputy sheriff, the folksy and often non-conformist Sam McCloud. (AP)
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Flowers and candles left by fans as a memorial on Dennis Weaver's place in the Dodge City Trail of Fame, Monday, Feb. 27, 2006, in Dodge City, Kansas. (AP/The Dodge City Daily Globe)
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Dennis Weaver, left, in 1956 in "Gunsmoke" in the role that first won him fame: as the slow-witted deputy Chester, seen here with James Arness, starring as Marshal Matt Dillon. (AP (file))
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Weaver had other series over the years, most of them short-lived. In addition to "Gentle Ben," which lasted two seasons in the mid-1960s, he starred in "Kentucky Jones," "Emerald Point N.A.S.," "Stone" and "Buck James."
It was Sam McCloud that Weaver called "the most satisfying role of my career." The show, which ran from 1970 to 1977, featured him as a New Mexico lawman cast on the streets of New York City with a horse, a sheepskin coat and a folksy manner that belied his shrewd crime-solving talent.
Off-screen, Weaver served as president of the Screen Actors Guild and was a vegetarian and activist for environmental and charitable causes.
He served as president of Love Is Feeding Everyone, which fed 150,000 needy people a week in Los Angeles County. He founded the Institute of Ecolonomics, which sought solutions to economic and environmental problems. He spoke at the United Nations and Congress, as well as to college students and school children about fighting pollution.
His "Earthship" home was the most visible of Weaver's crusades. He and his wife, Gerry, built the solar-powered Colorado dwelling out of recycled tires and cans. The thick walls helped keep the inside temperature even year-round.
"When the garbage man comes," Jay Leno once quipped, "how does he know where the garbage begins and the house ends?"
Weaver responded: "If we get into the mind-set of saving rather than wasting and utilizing other materials, we can save the Earth."
Weaver is survived by his wife; sons Rick, Robby and Rusty; and three grandchildren.
©MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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