{"id":501881,"date":"2026-10-20T06:02:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-20T06:02:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/501881\/"},"modified":"2026-10-20T06:02:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-20T06:02:17","slug":"richard-riehle-dead-office-space-bridesmaids-actor-was-78","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/501881\/","title":{"rendered":"Richard Riehle dead: ‘Office Space,’ ‘Bridesmaids’ actor was 78"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Richard Riehle, a prolific character actor who portrayed Tom Smykowski, the product manager with \u201cpeople skills\u201d in Mike Judge\u2019s cult classic, \u201cOffice Space<\/a>,\u201d has died. He was 78. <\/p>\n

Riehle died Thursday of natural causes in Los Angeles, his representatives from Artists & Representatives and Wright Entertainment Inc. confirmed Monday to The Times. No additional details were provided. <\/p>\n

\u201cA remarkable actor whose career in theater, film, and television spanned nearly five decades and more than 400 projects, Richard leaves behind an extraordinary legacy,\u201d read the joint statement from his talent agency and management company. \u201cBeyond his immense talent, he will be remembered for his genuine goodness, boundless kindness, and unwavering generosity, particularly toward emerging actors and filmmakers, whom he encouraged and supported at every opportunity.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur industry has lost an exceptional talent, and our community has lost a truly wonderful man,\u201d it continued. <\/p>\n

In the 1999 corporate comedy \u201cOffice Space,\u201d Riehle portrayed Tom, a middle manager who is laid off by the company before being seriously injured in a hit-and-run accident and winning a large settlement. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t have a regular effects person to put me into a body cast for my scene after the character\u2019s accident, so we hired an EMT guy to put me in a real cast,\u201d Riehle said in an interview with Notre Dame Magazine<\/a>. \u201cI couldn\u2019t get out of it for 8 hours \u2014 and when the EMT had to go to work he left a cast-cutter for the PA [production assistant]. That was fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

\""Office <\/p>\n

Richard Riehle, right, portrays a co-worker of Ajay Naidu, left, Ron Livingston and David Herman in the 1999 classic \u201cOffice Space.\u201d <\/p>\n

(20th Century Fox)<\/p>\n

Riehle\u2019s other credits include portraying the guard who lets Harrison Ford\u2019s character escape custody in \u201cThe Fugitive<\/a>\u201d (1993); the mechanic with a punny name, Bill Cozbi, in \u201cBridesmaids<\/a>\u201d (2011); and the proprietor of a local diner in \u201cPee-wee\u2019s Big Holiday<\/a>\u201d (2016). <\/p>\n

His wide-ranging resume also includes TV roles in episodes of \u201cStar Trek<\/a>: The Next Generation,\u201d \u201cStar Trek: Voyager\u201d and \u201cStar Trek: Enterprise,\u201d as well as multiple stints in shows including \u201cQuantum Leap<\/a>,\u201d \u201cMurder She Wrote<\/a>,\u201d \u201cL.A. Law<\/a>\u201d and \u201cDrunk History<\/a>.\u201d He was also a voice actor on animated projects such as \u201cThe Legend of Korra\u201d and \u201cHome on the Range.\u201d <\/p>\n

For five seasons, Riehle portrayed Walt Finnerty, the father of Donal Logue\u2019s<\/a> Sean Finnerty, in the sitcom \u201cGrounded for Life<\/a>,\u201d which aired from 2001 to 2005. <\/p>\n

\u201cRichard Riehle was an amazing human being,\u201d Logue wrote in a tribute shared Monday on Instagram<\/a>. \u201cA consummate professional, he was an actor\u2019s actor \u2014 humble, kind, and incredible at his craft.\u201d <\/p>\n

Logue said that he \u201cloved every minute\u201d he spent with Riehle and recalled how the late actor made him laugh so hard during his final audition for the show that he fell to the floor. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll always remember small details \u2014 how he always had a novel (never pulp stuff \u2014 always Hugo or Dostoevsky or another classic) stuffed into the back pocket of his old-school slacks,\u201d Logue added. \u201cHe loved the House of Pies on the corner of Franklin and Vermont (I did, too).\u201d <\/p>\n

Richard Mathias Riehle was born May 12, 1948, in Menomonee Falls, Wis. He graduated from Notre Dame with a degree in speech and drama in 1970 before pursuing a master\u2019s in fine arts at the University of Minnesota. <\/p>\n

He started his acting career in local theater. His first uncredited onscreen role was in the 1975 western \u201cRooster Cogburn,\u201d though he mentioned that he couldn\u2019t find himself in it in a 2017 interview<\/a> with the A.V. Club. His first screen role \u201cwith lines\u201d came a couple of years later, in the 1977 movie \u201cJoyride.\u201d One of his earliest breakout roles was in the 1989 Civil War film \u201cGlory.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cI always wanted the role that would bring something out of me, force me to find something extra,\u201d he said in the Notre Dame Magazine feature. \u201cAs I get older, the roles may not be there as much on high-profile projects, but I\u2019m always going to look for ways I can work and maybe even be a part of ways to change the business. When I work, I feel great. That doesn\u2019t ever have to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n