Photo credit: Associated Press

One was his comedy. He started his stand-up career in the 1970s when my interest in comedy began. I don't recall his specific jokes or routines, but I appreciated his sarcastic style. Another was his television character Detective John Munch. Not Belzer’s John Munch of the New York City Police Department as he portrayed him in Law and Order: SVU from 1999 to 2016. But the original appearance of Detective John Munch as a Baltimore City Police detective in Homicide: Life on the Street from 1993 to 1999. 

Homicide was based on David Simon’s book, Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets. As a reporter, Simon had access to Baltimore’s homicide unit for a year and wrote the book about his experience. Belzer’s character, Munch, was based on a real-life Baltimore homicide detective, and he carried his trademark sarcasm into the role. The stories, along with the ensemble cast that included Yaphet Koto and Andre Braugher, made a top-notch series. In my opinion, it is one of the best cop shows ever produced. The show isn't available on any streaming platforms. Several times over the years I came close to buying the entire season on DVD. I never watched much Law and Order: SVU, so Belzer's Munch, for me, lives in Baltimore. 

Another thing I noted about him was his writing career. Most news stories of Belzer's death qualified his literary work as conspiracy theories. Belzer, often with the help of a co-writer, wrote five books on subjects he thought the public was misled about, most notably the deaths of President John F. Kennedy, his brother Robert, and actress Marilyn Monroe. Earlier this week, I borrowed two from the library, Dead Wrong: Straight Facts on the Country’s Most Controversial Cover-Ups and Hit List: An In-Depth Investigation into the Mysterious Deaths of Witnesses to the JFK Assassination. 

I’m familiar with many of the connections and coincidences Belzer says are evidence Oswald didn’t act alone, that Sirhan Sirhan wasn’t solely responsible for Bobby’s assassination, and Marilyn’s death was a homicide not a suicide. The books are well written and organized, and detailed footnotes and appendices support Belzer's theories. His ideas are as well presented, if not better, than some history books I’ve read. But, because of the nature of the work and the stereotype that anyone who questions the facts surrounding a well-accepted version of historical events is a tinfoil hat-wearing bunker-building loon, it’s not considered history. 

Belzer’s theories may not ultimately hold up in a court of law or the court of public opinion. But people like him who question and probe the truth as defined by governments and businesses inspire others to pull back the curtains of authority. Maybe Belzer wasn't a historian, and his work academic history, but he refused to believe something just because someone in charge told him it was so. Or wasn't so. Want to talk about UFOs, anyone? 

Belzer’s last words are reported to be, “F*** you, motherf***er.”  They might have been directed at the fates that took him. Or maybe it was a message to those he thought lied and covered up to suit their purposes. Either way, you can imagine Richard Belzer and John Munch going down, middle fingers extended to anyone and everyone. 

Belzer wore the different hats of actor, comedian, writer, and researcher. But he didn’t wear one made of tin foil.     

Rest in peace Richard Belzer. Thank you for making us laugh, and through your work as Detective John Munch and your research, you taught us there's a place in this world for cynicism and questioning authority. In your honor, I finally bought those DVDs.