User blog:ARTaylor/RIP William Morgan Sheppard

William Morgan Sheppard has passed away. His son, Supernatural actor Mark Sheppard, confirmed on Instagram. "We went to spend some time with my father today. Though he couldn’t speak, we held hands, he laughed and was so happy to see us. We left and came home. A good day. He was rushed to hospital and passed at 6:30pm, my mother by his side. I am so grateful that he didn’t have to suffer any longer. Thank you for all your kind thoughts, love and prayers." He was eighty-six years old.

Sheppard was born on August 24th, 1932 in London, England. He started acting on stage, graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1958, and then spending twelve years with the Royal Shakespeare Company. He eventually made his way to Broadway in 1966 appearing in Marat/Sade and Sherlock Holmes. He is perhaps best remembered for his multiple roles in the Star Trek franchise, playing Brent Spiner's "grandfather" in The Next Generation, a Klingon gulag commander in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, an Ahab-like hunter in Voyager, and a Vulcan science minister in the 2009 reboot. On the animated series Gargoyles he played the father of Jonathan Frakes. He is also known for appearances on Max Headroom, Quantum Leap, Seaquest 2032, Doctor Who, NCIS, JAG, and Young Justice. Marvel fans would know him as the first to play Dum Dum Dugan outside the comics on Iron Man.