One of my favorite actors died this week at the age of 93. Louis Zorich was never the most famous actor in New York or Hollywood, but he was certainly recognizable. Why? He was the grandpa. On every show you’ve seen.

Louis Zorich has a look that was unmistakably foreign. In fact, he was from Chicago. But you believed he was from “the old country,” whatever that country was. Zorich was probably best known for playing (what else?) Paul Reiser’s dad (later Mabel’s grandpa) on the TV series Mad About You. Yeah, that one was pretty good, but if you want to see Louis Zorich being Louis Zorich you’ve got to go back a few years previous to CBS’s Brooklyn Bridge, one of the most underrated television shows of all time. Zorich, of course, plays… the grandpa. You never see Brooklyn Bridge on TV anymore which is a damn shame. Luckily I can watch any of the episodes I taped off TV in 1991 whenever I want.

Mr. Zorich had been married to Oscar-winning actress Olympia Dukakis since 1962. That’s a power couple. And a good run. Also surviving Mr. Zorich is his nephew, Chris Zorich, Notre Dame football legend and former Chicago Bear. The younger Zorich was also briefly a member of the Redskins, though will forever be a Chicago guy.

And speaking of Chicago guys…

Heaven is now one richer.