R.I.P. Night Court star Richard Moll
Moll played bailiff Bull Shannon on all 9 seasons of the NBC hit
Richard Moll has died. Possessed of both a massive frame and a powerful voice, Moll was best known for his work as bailiff Bull Shannon on Night Court, spending eight years in the cast of the NBC sitcom. (Before ending the series by being voluntarily abducted by aliens, as one does.) In addition to his physical performances, Moll was also a well-known voice actor. Among other credits, he was a key part of Batman: The Animated Series, playing the groundbreaking cartoon’s version of famed Batman villain Two-Face. Per Variety, Moll died on Thursday at his home in Big Bear, California. He was 80.
Born in California in the 1940s, Moll’s early work largely made use of his size and capacity for projecting menace: Early credits include such character names as “Big Thug,” “Abominable Snowman,” and “Harold, The Monster.” Interestingly, Moll was a recurring feature in the TV work of Garry Marshall: he’d ultimately appear, in various roles, on Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, and Mork & Mindy at various points during their runs (and would have a recurring part, years later, on Laverne & Shirley star Cindy Williams’ ’90s sitcom Getting By.) Mostly, though, he played bad guys, menacing heroes in films like 1982's The Sword And The Sorcerer, and 1983's Metalstorm: The Destruction Of Jared-Syn.
