Al Brown dead: The Wire actor dies aged 83 following battle with Alzheimer’s | Celebrity News | Showbiz & TV
Al Brown was best known for playing Col. Stan Valchek on the hit show from 2002 to 2008. His daughter, Jenny, said that Al had died in Las Vegas on January 13 and “loved fans of his and was happy to stop and chat with anyone who might’ve recognised him from the show over the years”.
She added that he “loved his job,” continuing to tell TMZ how he had been a 29-year-old Air Force veteran who served two tours in Vietnam before getting into acting in the 1990s.
Fans of The Wire will remember Al well as Col. Valchek, a high-ranking member of the Baltimore Police Department and proud Polish-American who sometimes made life more difficult for the main characters.
Al appeared in all five seasons as Valchek, though he was most involved in the storylines in the second season.
The actor would have roles in many other TV shows, often playing law enforcement or people in positions of power, as this was something he excelled at.
Last year The Wire celebrated its 20-year anniversary of the show’s 2002 premiere.
Many of the main actors have gone on to have stellar careers, including Dominic West, who played troubled detective Jimmy McNulty in the crime show in all five seasons.
Since he has played murderer Fred West in the 2011 ITV drama Appropriate Adult and starred in Sky show The Affair from 2014 to 2018.
Meanwhile, Wendell Pierce, 57, played detective Bunk Moreland – best friend to Dominic’s character McNulty.
He went on to star in Suits where he played Robert Zane, the father of Meghan Markle’s character Rachel.
Since playing the recurring character Wallace on The Wire, Michael B Jordan, has made a name for himself in Hollywood.
He starred in Creed II and The Fantastic Four and dated model Lori Harvey.
British actor Idris Elba, 49, played intellectual Baltimore drug dealer Stringer Bell in the show for two years.
After The Wire, he was cast in the title role of the gritty BBC detective drama Luther in 2010.
