Walter Olkewicz, the gentle giant who stole scenes in “Twin Peaks”, “Seinfeld” and “Grace Under Fire”, has passed away at the age of 72.
The seasoned actor died Tuesday morning at his home in Los Angeles, his son Zak Olkewicz confirmed to the Hollywood Reporter.
The co-star of Steven Spielberg’s cult film ‘1941’ and Joel Schumacher’s hit John Grisham adaptation ‘The Client’ died after a twenty-year health battle with a series of knee surgeries that caused infections, resulting in disabilities that forced him into show business. .
“He was a good man who showed his love of creativity and art in everything he did,” Zak told Deadline in a statement on behalf of his family. “He passed on that passion to me, and I look forward to passing it on to the grandchildren he loved so much.”
Born on May 14, 1948 in Bayonne, NJ, Olkewicz attended Bayonne High School, St. Mary of the Plains College in Kansas and Colorado State University before making his screen debut in “Futureworld” in 1976, opposite Peter Fonda and Blythe Danner.
‘Seinfeld’ fans know him as Nick, the cable guy from a classic 1996 episode – but Olkewicz is perhaps best known for being seedy Jacques Renault on David Lynch’s ABC series’ Twin Peaks’ in 1990, as well as in the feature film ‘Twin Peaks : Fire Walk With Me. “
Olkewicz reprized his role for Lynch’s Showtime 2017 reboot, which would be his last on-screen role. “It was his first role in almost 15 years, and he did it all from behind a bar to hide the fact that he couldn’t stand,” his son told the Hollywood Reporter.
In addition to his recurring roles on ‘Grace Under Fire’ and ‘Who’s the Boss’, the actor’s numerous TV credits have included guest appearances on classic series such as ‘ER’, ‘The Rockford Files’, ‘Taxi’, ‘Barney Miller’, ‘Cheers’, ‘Newhart’, ‘Falcon Crest’, ‘Family Ties’, ‘Married … With Children’, ‘Moonlighting’, ‘LA Law’ and ‘Murder, She Wrote’.
He leaves behind his son Zak, daughter-in-law Katrina Rennells and grandchildren Sadie and Declan Robert.