RIP Odo

I’m a big Star Trek fan. I’m an even bigger fan of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. René Auberjonois died yesterday at age 79. He’d played Odo on DS9, probably one of the most complex characters in all of Star Trek. His son, the actor Rèmy-Luc Auberjonois, said the cause of death was metastatic lung cancer.

Mr. Auberjonois moved easily among television, film and the stage, and between comedy and drama, often playing scene-stealing characters who injected comic relief or snark or a plot wrinkle into the proceedings.

Major roles on long-running television shows in three decades — “Benson” in the 1980s, “Deep Space Nine” in the 1990s and “Boston Legal” in the 2000s — made him the kind of star whose face was familiar to millions, even if they might not immediately be able to put a name to it. Across almost 60 years as a professional actor, he was rarely not in demand.

I loved him as an actor and I’ve seen all three of the TV shows he starred in. I’ve been a fan most of my life. I’m heartbroken that he’s no longer with us.