David Janssen

American actor in films and television who starred as the title character in the series Richard Diamond, Pvt. Detective (1957-1960) as well as in the Emmy winning series The Fugitive (1963-1967). He appeared in over 100 feature films and several other TV series.

After his parents separated, he moved with his mother to Hollywood. She placed him in a home for children when he was 9 to 12, after when he began as a child actor.

Living a high-spending life style, Janssen had many affairs and two marriages. Even though he was a hard worker, Janssen was also a pent-up neurotic, highly charged. He had a dry, wry sense of humour. During his lifetime he supported his mother and left her $1 million in his will.

Janssen was married twice. A heavy drinker who smoked four packs of cigarettes a day, he died of a heart attack on 13 February 1980 at 5:55 AM PST in Malibu, California.