Kevin Dobson, ‘Kojak’ and ‘Knots Landing’ Star, Dies at 77

Actor Kevin Dobson, a star on beloved CBS dramas “Kojak” and “Knots Landing,” died yesterday of a heart attack. He was 77.

Dobson’s death was announced via Facebook by the United Veterans Council of San Joaquin County, of which the actor once served as Chairman.

Born on March 18, 1943 in Jackson Heights, New York, Dobson worked as a trainmen, brakeman and conductor on the Long Island Railroad in New York followed by a few years as a waiter before he decided to start his acting career.

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Dobson’s first acting jobs included a series of uncredited appearances on daytime drama “The Doctors” in 1969 and in the 1971 Jane Fonda film “Klute.” After a round of guest spots on dramas “The Mod Squad,” “Emergency!” and “Cannon,” he got his big break, signing a deal with Universal in 1972 which led to his five-season stint as Detective Bobby Crocker, Theo Kojak’s younger partner, opposite Telly Savalas on “Kojak” from 1973 to 1978.

Following Don Murray’s exit of CBS’s “Dallas” spin0ff “Knots Landing” in 1982, Dobson picked up the role of M. Patrick (“Mack”) McKenzie, the love interest, and eventual husband of Michele Lee as Karen. Dobson joined the show at the beginning of its fourth season and remained in the role until its cancellation in 1993. He won five Soap Opera Digest Awards for his work on the series and later reunited with his “Knots Landing” co-stars for a miniseries, “Knots Landing: Back to the Cul-de-Sac” in 1997, and again in the 2005 non-fiction special “Knots Landing Reunion: Together Again.”

He is survived by his wife Susan and his three children, Sean Dobson, Patrick Dobson and Mariah Dobson.