{{Short description|American actor (1943–2025)}} {{Infobox person | name = Gil Gerard | image = 10.17.09GilGerardByLuigiNovi.jpg | image_size = | caption = Gerard in 2009 | birth_name = Gilbert Cyril Gerard | birth_date = {{Birth date|1943|1|23}} | birth_place = Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S. | death_date = {{Death date and age|2025|12|16|1943|1|23}} | death_place = Georgia, U.S. | known_for = {{nobr|''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century''}} | alma_mater = University of Central Arkansas (dropped out) | children = 1<ref name=People10.15.90/> | occupation = Actor | years_active = 1960–2019 | spouse = {{ubl|{{marriage|Connie Sellecca|1979|1987|end=divorced}}|{{marriage|Bobi Leonard|1987|1989|end=divorced}}|Janet Gerard}} | website = }}
'''Gilbert Cyril Gerard''' (January 23, 1943 – December 16, 2025) was an American actor, whose roles include that of Captain William "Buck" Rogers in the 1979–1981 television series ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century''.
==Early life== Gerard was born on January 23, 1943, in Little Rock, Arkansas, as the youngest of three sons<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/gil_gerard|title=Gil Gerard|publisher=Rotten Tomatoes|accessdate=May 16, 2021|archivedate=December 13, 2007|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071213190454/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/gil_gerard}}</ref> to a college instructor mother and a salesman father.<ref name=People4.30.79>{{Cite news|url=https://people.com/archive/arkansas-politics-were-too-small-a-pond-for-gil-gerard-but-is-buck-rogers-better-vol-11-no-17/|title=Arkansas Politics Were Too Small a Pond for Gil Gerard, but Is ''Buck Rogers'' Better?|last=Kalter|first=Suzy|date=April 30, 1979|work=People|access-date=6 April 2019}}</ref> In 1960, he attended a Maryknoll seminary in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, and played the title role in an all-male production of ''The Music Man''. He graduated from Little Rock Catholic High School for Boys,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lrchs.org/chs-foundationalumni-association/alumni_association/notable_alumni/|title=CHS Foundation and Alumni Association|website=Little Rock High School for Boys|access-date=April 6, 2019|archivedate=September 22, 2020|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922134917/https://www.lrchs.org/chs-foundationalumni-association/alumni_association/notable_alumni/}}</ref> and later attended the University of Central Arkansas but dropped out before graduation.<ref name=People4.30.79/>
==Career== Gerard traveled to New York City, where he studied drama by day and drove a taxicab at night. Gerard picked up a fare who showed a lively interest in the problems of unknown, unemployed actors. Before he left the cab, he told Gerard to report in a few days to the set of ''Love Story'', which was being filmed on location in New York. When Gerard arrived on the ''Love Story'' set, he was hired as an extra. Later that day, he was singled out for a "bit" part, but he was not included in the finished film.{{fact|date=October 2021}}
During the next few years, he did most of his acting in television commercials, almost 400, including a stint as spokesman for the Ford Motor Company. After small roles in the gay-themed film ''Some of My Best Friends Are...'' (1971), and the thriller ''Man on a Swing'' (1974), Gerard gained a prominent role in the daytime soap opera ''The Doctors'' for two years. Gerard formed his own production company in partnership with a writer-producer, co-authored a screenplay called ''Hooch'' (1977) and filmed it as a starring vehicle for himself. With ''Hooch'' completed, he traveled to California to co-star with Yvette Mimieux in ''Ransom for Alice!'' (1977) and to play Lee Grant's youthful lover in Universal's ''Airport '77'' (1977). He appeared in a 1977 episode of ''Hawaii Five-O'' ("The Ninth Step") as Marty Cobb, a former cop and recovering alcoholic. A guest appearance in ''Little House on the Prairie'' impressed producer-star Michael Landon, who cast him in the leading role in the 1978 TV movie ''Killing Stone''.
Gerard then landed his best-known role, as Captain William "Buck" Rogers in the TV series ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'', which ran from 1979 to 1981, with the feature-length pilot episode being released theatrically some months prior to the first broadcast of the series. After this, he was featured in a number of other TV shows and movies, including starring roles in the 1982 TV movie ''Hear No Evil'' as Dragon,{{sfn|Terrace|1985|page=188}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/18393/hear-no-evil#credits|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007213803/https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/18393/hear-no-evil#credits|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 7, 2022|title=Hear No Evil|work=Turner Classic Movies|publisher=Turner Broadcasting System|location=United States|access-date=March 13, 2018}}</ref>{{sfn|Terrace|2011|page=445}} the short-lived series ''Sidekicks'' (1986), and ''E.A.R.T.H. Force'' (1990).<ref name=People10.15.90>{{cite magazine |last1= Reed |first1= J. D. |last2= Alexander|first2=Michael |title= Stranded in Orbit by His Addictions, Former ''Buck Rogers'' Gil Gerard Battles His Way Back to E.a.r.t.h. |url=https://people.com/archive/stranded-in-orbit-by-his-addictions-former-buck-rogers-gil-gerard-battles-his-way-back-to-e-a-r-t-h-vol-34-no-15/ |magazine=People |volume=34 |issue=15 |page =95 |publisher= Meredith Corporation |date=October 15, 1990|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161228204118/https://people.com/archive/stranded-in-orbit-by-his-addictions-former-buck-rogers-gil-gerard-battles-his-way-back-to-e-a-r-t-h-vol-34-no-15/|archive-date=December 28, 2016|access-date=December 17, 2025}}</ref>
In 1992, Gerard hosted the reality TV series ''Code 3'', which followed firefighters from different areas of the U.S. as they responded to emergency calls. The show ran on the Fox TV Network until the following year. For the remainder of the 1990s, Gerard made guest appearances on various TV shows, including ''Fish Police'', ''Brotherly Love'', ''The Big Easy'', ''Days of Our Lives'', and ''Pacific Blue''.
In January 2007, Gerard was the subject of the one-hour documentary ''Action Hero Makeover'', which was written, produced, and directed by his then-longtime companion, Adrienne Crow for the Discovery Health Channel. The film documented his year-long progress after undergoing life-saving mini-gastric bypass surgery in October 2005. According to the program, he had been struggling with his weight for 40 years, losing weight only to gain it back.<ref name=tgboc>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sFxWAAAAIBAJ&pg=5542%2C4798522 |work=Spokesman-Review |location=Spokane, Washington |agency=Tribune Media Services |last=DuBois |first=Stephanie |title=Thinner Gerard back on course |date=March 8, 1989 |page=C2}}</ref> By the time of the program's production, his weight had risen to over {{convert|350|lb|0}}, and he had many life-threatening health issues including a severe problem with type 2 diabetes. Within five days of the surgery he had lost {{convert|20|lbs|0|abbr=on}}, within three months he had lost {{convert|80|lbs|kg|abbr=on}}, and within ten months he lost a total of {{convert|145|lbs|0|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://clos.net/ |title=Mini Gastric Bypass. The Center for Laparoscopic Obesity Surgery |access-date=2019-12-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081211092508/http://clos.net/ |archive-date=2008-12-11 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
Gerard and his ''Buck Rogers'' co-star Erin Gray reunited in 2007 for the TV film ''Nuclear Hurricane'', and also returned to the ''Buck Rogers'' universe by playing the characters' parents in the pilot episode of James Cawley's ''Buck Rogers Begins'' Internet video series in 2009.<ref name=PressRepub>McKinstry, Lohr. [https://archive.today/20130104102332/http://pressrepublican.com/0100_news/x546314660/Buck-Rogers-returns "Buck Rogers returns"], Press Republican, 9 November 2009.</ref> He guest-starred as Admiral Jack Sheehan in "Kitumba", the January 1, 2014, episode of the fan web series ''Star Trek: Phase II''.<ref>Vic Mignogna (director). [http://www.startrekphase2.de/en/4x08_kitumba.php "4x08 Star Trek Phase II: Kitumba - Download"].{{Dead link|date=November 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }} ''Star Trek: Phase II''. January 1, 2014.</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=419hNYe2OaY "Star Trek Phase 2: "Kitumba" - Episode 4x08"]. YouTube. December 31, 2013.</ref> In 2015, Gerard voiced Megatronus in ''Transformers: Robots in Disguise''.
==Personal life and death== thumb|upright|Gerard in 2011
By the end of the 1980s, Gerard had been married five times and divorced four times. His first marriage, in the 1960s to a secretary in his home state of Arkansas, lasted just eight months. After moving to New York to pursue his acting ambitions, his second marriage to a bank executive was equally troubled though it lasted (on and off) for seven years. Following his move to Los Angeles in the late 1970s, he married model/actress Connie Sellecca in 1979. Their son, Gilbert Vincent Gerard, or "Gib", was born in 1981 but the marriage began to disintegrate following the cancellation of Gerard's show ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' and his increasing addictions to drugs, alcohol, and overeating. The marriage was formally dissolved in 1987, following a bitter custody battle which gave Sellecca main custody of their son. Gerard married again the same year, to interior designer Bobi Leonard, though the marriage lasted only a year and was then formally dissolved in 1989.<ref name=People10.15.90/> His fifth wife was Janet Gerard, to whom he was married for 18 years until his death in 2025. The couple resided in northern Georgia.<ref name="Janet1">{{Cite web |last=Barnes |first=Mike |date=2025-12-17 |title=Gil Gerard, Star of ‘Buck Rogers in the 25th Century,’ Dies at 82 |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/gil-gerard-dead-buck-rogers-25th-century-1236452804/ |access-date=2025-12-17 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}}</ref>
Gerard was frank about his battle with addictions. Although he went through recovery for his addiction to cocaine and alcohol, following his divorce from Sellecca in the mid 1980s, his compulsive eating habits increased and he would find himself devouring unhealthy portions of junk food. By 1988, he weighed {{convert|300|lbs|0|abbr=on}} and used a self-help treatment for his addiction, though he estimated that his weight problem had cost him work opportunities in the region of a million dollars. By 1990, he weighed {{convert|220|lbs|0|abbr=on}}.<ref name=People10.15.90/>
On December 16, 2025, Gerard's wife, Janet, announced on Facebook that he had died earlier that day following a "rare and viciously aggressive form of cancer". He was 82.<ref name="Janet1" />
==Filmography== ===Film=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes |- | 1971 || ''Some of My Best Friends Are...'' || Scott || |- | 1974 || ''Man on a Swing'' || Donald Forbes || |- | 1977 || ''Airport '77'' || Frank Powers || |- | 1977 || ''Hooch'' || Eddie Joe || |- | 1979 || ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' || Capt. William "Buck" Rogers || |- | 1985 || ''Fury to Freedom'' || Officer || |- | 1991 || ''Soldier's Fortune'' || Robert E. Lee Jones || Alternative title: ''Soldiers of Fortune'' |- | 1996 || ''Looking for Bruce'' || Richard || |- | 1998 || ''Mom, Can I Keep Her?'' || Reinhart || Direct-to-video |- | 1999 || ''Fugitive Mind'' || Karl Gardner || Direct-to-video |- | 2000 || ''The Stepdaughter'' || Jesse Conner || Direct-to-video |- | 2001 || ''Air Rage'' || Victor Quinn || Direct-to-video |- | 2007 || ''Psycho Hillbilly Cabin Massacre!'' || Narrator (voice) || Short film |- | 2009 || ''Dire Wolf'' || Col. Hendry || Alternative title: ''Dino Wolf'' |- | 2012 || ''Blood Fare'' || Professor Meade || |- | 2014 || ''Boldly Gone'' || Ben (voice) || Short film |- | 2016 || ''The Nice Guys'' || Bergen Paulsen || |- | 2016 || ''Surge of Power: Revenge of the Sequel'' || Harold Harris || |- | 2019 || ''Space Captain and Callista'' || Lance || Final role |}
===Television=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes |- | 1973–76 || ''The Doctors'' || Dr. Alan Stewart || 162 episodes |- | 1976 || ''Baretta'' || Steve || Episode - "Dear Tony" |- | 1977 || ''Ransom for Alice!'' || Clint Kirby || TV movie |- | 1977 || ''Little House on the Prairie'' || Chris Nelson || Episode - "The Handyman" |- | 1977 || ''Hawaii Five-O'' || Marty Cobb || Episode - "The Ninth Step" |- | 1978 || ''Killing Stone'' || Gil Stone || TV movie |- | 1979–81 || ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' || Captain William "Buck" Rogers || 37 episodes |- | 1982 || ''Help Wanted: Male'' || Johnny Gillis || TV movie |- | 1982 || ''Not Just Another Affair'' || Bob Gifford || TV movie |- | 1982 || ''Hear No Evil'' || Dragon || TV movie |- | 1983 || ''Johnny Blue'' || Johnny Blue || TV pilot episode |- | 1984 || ''For Love or Money'' || Mike || TV movie |- | 1984 || ''Monsters, Madmen & Machines'' || Host || Documentary |- | 1985 || ''Stormin' Home'' || Bobby Atkins || TV movie |- | 1985 || ''International Airport'' || David Montgomery || TV movie |- | 1986–87 || ''Sidekicks'' || Sergeant Jake Rizzo || 23 episodes |- | 1989 || ''Nightingales'' || Dr. Paul Petrillo || 5 episodes |- | 1989 || ''Final Notice'' || Harry Stoner || TV movie |- | 1990 || ''E.A.R.T.H. Force'' || Dr. John Harding || 6 episodes |- | 1992 || ''Fish Police'' || Additional Voices || Unknown episodes |- | 1996 || ''Brotherly Love'' || Big Mike || Episode - "Big Mike" |- | 1997 || ''The Big Easy'' || Mickey Donelley || Episode - "A Perfect Day for Buffalo Fish" |- | 1997 || ''Days of Our Lives'' || Major Dodd || 6 episodes |- | 1998 || ''Pacific Blue'' || Raymond Annandale || Episode - "Double Lives" |- | 2006 || ''Beyond'' || General Walter North || TV movie |- | 2007 || ''Nuclear Hurricane'' || Bob || TV movie |- | 2008 || ''Bone Eater'' || Big Jim Burns || TV movie |- | 2009 || ''Reptisaurus'' || General Morgenstern || TV movie |- | 2009 || ''Ghost Town'' || Preacher McCready || TV movie |- | 2011 || ''The Lost Valentine'' || Neil Thomas Robinson Jr. || TV movie |- | 2013 || ''Star Trek New Voyages: Phase II'' || Admiral Sheehan || Episode - "Kitumba" |- | 2014 || ''Drop Dead Diva'' || George Blund || Episode - "Hope and Glory" |- | 2015 || ''Transformers: Robots in Disguise'' || Megatronus (voice) || 3 episodes |}
==References== ===General and cited references=== * {{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AKlgjBCPPnsC&q=Christina+Hart+as+Sheila+Green&pg=PA188|title=Encyclopedia of Television Series, Pilots and Specials|first=Vincent|last=Terrace|publisher=Zoetrope Publishing|location=New York |edition=1st|volume=2|year=1985|isbn=978-0918432612|page=188}} * {{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YX_daEhlnbsC&q=Mimi+Rogers+as+Meg&pg=PA445|title=Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 Through 2010|first=Vincent|last=Terrace|publisher=McFarland and Company|location=New York|year=2011|edition=2nd|isbn=978-0786464777|page=445}}
===Inline citations=== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category}} * {{IMDb name|0001266|Gil Gerard}} * {{IBDB name}} * {{Discogs artist|Gil Gerard}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gerard, Gil}} Category:1943 births Category:2025 deaths Category:American male film actors Category:American male television actors Category:American male voice actors Category:20th-century American male actors Category:21st-century American male actors Category:Deaths from cancer in Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Male actors from Little Rock, Arkansas Category:University of Central Arkansas alumni Category:Toy collectors Category:Catholics from Arkansas