Gary Graham Dies: ‘Alien Nation’ & ‘Star Trek’ Actor Was 73

Greg Evans
·3 min read
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Gary Graham, an actor who appeared in dozens of TV roles but will be best remembered for his place in the Alien Nation and Star Trek universes, has died. He was 73.

His death was announced by his ex-wife, actress Susan Lavelle, in a Facebook message posted shortly after 1 a.m. today. She did not provide a cause of death.

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“It is with deep profound sadness to say that Gary Graham, my ex husband, amazing actor and father of our beautiful only child together, Haylee Graham, has passed away today,” wrote Lavelle, who met Graham when she was 20 and he was starring in Alien Nation. “We are completely devastated especially our daughter Haley. His wife, Becky was by his side.”

Born June 6, 1950, in Long Beach, CA, Graham began making appearances on episodic TV in the mid-1970s, including one-off roles in Eight Is Enough, Starsky and Hutch, Police Woman and The Incredible Hulk.

His acting career continued steadily through the 1980s, with appearances on CHiPs, The Dukes of Hazzard, and, in one of his more memorable roles of the period, as a hitman in a 1985 episode of Moonlighting. His feature film credits of the era included a role as the brother of Tom Cruise’s character in 1983’s All the Right Moves.

From left: Gary Graham, Terri Treas and Eric Pierpoint in ‘Alien Nation’
From left: Gary Graham, Terri Treas and Eric Pierpoint in ‘Alien Nation’

His signature role came in 1989, when he was cast in the starring role of Detective Matthew Sikes in the television series Alien Nation. The series lasted only one season, but Graham would reprise the role in TV movies Alien Nation: Dark Horizon (1994), Alien Nation: Body and Soul (1995), Alien Nation: Millennium (1996), Alien Nation: The Enemy Within (1996), and Alien Nation: The Udara Legacy (1997).

Graham became part of the Star Trek universe in 2001 when he was cast in Star Trek: Enterprise in the recurring role of Vulcan Ambassador Soval (Graham had appeared as a different character in a 1995 episode of Star Trek: Voyager). He appeared as a character named Ragnar in the 2007 video Star Trek: Of Gods and Men, and reprised that role in the series Star Trek: Renegades.

Graham at 17th annual official Star Trek convention in Las Vegas (2018)
Graham at 17th annual official Star Trek convention in Las Vegas (2018)

Other of Graham’s many TV credits include Dragner, Sheena, JAG and Nash Bridges.

“Gary was funny, sarcastic sense of humor but kind, fought for what he believed in, a devout Christian and was so proud of his daughter, Haylee,” wrote Lavelle in her Facebook post. “This was sudden so please pray for our daughter as she navigates through this thing called grief. Fly high into the heavens Gar! Thank you for our journey and thank you for the gifts you left me in acting, my love of horses and most importantly, our daughter.”

Graham is survived by wife Becky and daughter Haylee.

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