Actor Paul Burke died 13 September 2009 of leukemia and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Born 21 July 1926 in New Orleans, Louisiana, he is best known for his role as Detective Adam Flint on the television series The Naked City (1960-63, he joined the series in its second season). Burke was nominate for two Emmy Awards for that work, in 1962 and 1963.
Burke studied at the Pasadena Playhouse, and made his first appearances in 1951. His first starring role was as the title character, a veterinarian, in Noah’s Ark (1956-57). His genre appearances include: three episodes of Fantasy Island (1978, ’81, and ’83), Psychic Killer (1975), Wide World Mystery (1973), Crowhaven Farm (1970), Men Into Space (1959), The Disembodied (1957), Matinee Theatre (1956), Francis in the Navy (1955), three episodes of Adventures of Superman (1953, ’55, and ’56), and Francis Goes to West Point (1952).
In 1990, Burke was indicted on federal charges of racketeering, along with three others, in a gambling scheme. Burke and one of his co-defendants were acquitted (the others were convicted), but the indictment doomed his career. His last appearances were in an episode of Columbo, and in the foreign-made film The Fool (both in 1990). He is survived by his second wife (his first marriage ended in divorce), three children from his first marriage, six grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.