Robert Morse, who starred in hit US drama Mad Men, has died at the age of 90. His best-known role was Bert Cooper, the show’s advertising executive, who gave his surname to the Sterling Cooper company.
In a career spanning almost 60 years he has appeared in some 100 theatre, television and film productions, having first made his mark in a 1961 stage adaptation of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, based on the Shepherd Mead bestseller – for which he won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical.
It was an accomplishment he would continue in 1990 when he won the Tony for Best Actor in a Play for his role as Truman Capote in the play Tru. Not only did it make him one of only four actors to ever win the top acting Tonys for play and musical, but it also earned him an Emmy award three years later for televising a live performance of the show became.
His role as the eccentric founder of Mad Men’s advertising agency brought him international fame, earning him five Emmy Award nominations and a Screen Actor’s Guild Award as part of the ensemble cast. In his final episode, he used his Broadway skills for a major post-mortem musical number when he performed a song-and-dance routine to The Best Things in Life Are Free after he died peacefully during Neil Armstrong’s moon landing in 1969 .
“My good buddy Bobby Morse passed away at the age of 90,” tweeted Larry Karaszewski, writer/producer and vice president on the board of governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. “A huge talent and a wonderful spirit. Sending love to his son Charlie and daughter Allyn. Had so much fun with Bobby over the years – filming People v OJ and hosting so many screenings (How To Succeed, Loved One, That’s Life).”
My good buddy Bobby Morse passed away at the age of 90. A huge talent and a wonderful spirit. Sending love to his son Charlie and daughter Allyn. Had so much fun with Bobby over the years – filming People v OJ and hosting so many screenings (How To Succeed, Loved One, That’s Life) pic.twitter.com/H1vCD3jjul
— Larry Karaszewski (@Karaszewski) April 21, 2022