Alan Fudge

Best known for his role as Lou Dalton on the long-running family show "7th Heaven" , actor Alan Fudge studied theater at the University of Arizona and worked on Broadway before beginning his career in television. But Fudge almost chose music over acting, appearing in the Tucson-based folk group The Ash Alley Singers in the early 1960s before changing his career course. Over his career, small screen specialist Fudge worked on some of television's most popular shows, including "Starsky and Hutch," "Charlie's Angels," and "Hawaii Five-O," to name just a few. His first major recurring role was in 1977, as C.W. Crawford on the fantasy adventure program "Man from Atlantis," starring a pre-"Dallas" Patrick Duffy. In 1979, Fudge had another notable role in the short-lived detective series "Eischied," starring Joe Don Baker. Later, Fudge played Dr. Van Adams in several episodes of the modeling show "Paper Dolls." He continued to work steadily throughout the '80s, before in 1997 taking on the role of Lou Dalton on the hugely popular series "7th Heaven," a part he would continue to play for a decade. In addition to having guest spots on a huge number of hit TV shows, from "Columbo" and "The A-Team" to "Baywatch" and "Dawson's Creek," Fudge was also a dependable supporting cast member on the big screen and appeared in movies such as "The Natural," "Edward Scissorhands" and "The Man Who Wasn't There." In 2011, Fudge died after losing his long-running battle with cancer.