'Hill Street Blues' and 'Doogie Howser, M.D.' Star James B Sikking Dead at 90

Acting veteran James B. Sikking has died aged 90 after a dementia fight.

Best-known for his roles on TV classics Hill Street Blues and Doogie Howser, M.D., he passed away peacefully at his Los Angeles home on Saturday, RadarOnline.com today reveals.

Sikking famously played Lt. Howard Hunter, the pipe-smoking head of the SWAT-like Emergency Action Team, on the highly influential police procedural Hill Street Blues from 1981 to 1987.

He once said of joining the Hill Street Blues cast: “I'd done acres of crap. This was special.”

He again teamed with series co-creator Steven Bochco to play Dr. David Howser, the proud father of Neil Patrick Harris' pint-sized doctor wunderkind Doogie Howser, for all four seasons of the ABC medical sitcom from 1989 to 1993.

Early in his career, Sikking had guested on popular television shows including Perry Mason, The Fugitive, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., Rawhide, Bonanza, Hogan's Heroes, Starsky & Hutch, The Rockford Files, Mission: Impossible, M*A*S*H, General Hospital, Columbo, and Hawaii Five-O. In 2004, he also appeared in two episodes of HBO's much-loved comedy Curb Your Enthusiasm in 2004.

On the silver screen, Sikking played Captain Styles in 1984's Leonard Nimoy-directed Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, acted alongside icons like Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley in Von Ryan's Express and Charro!, and appeared in Point Blank, Ordinary People, Scorpio, The Terminal Man, The Pelican Brief, Fever Pitch, Made of Honor, and more.

His publicist Cynthia Snyder shared with Variety on Sunday: “In a remarkable career, Sikking's wonderfully exciting face gave us drama, comedy, tragedy and hilarious farce. His career spanned over six decades in television, film and on stage.”

Never miss a story — sign up for the RadarOnline.com newsletter to get your daily dose of dope. Daily. Breaking. Celebrity news. All free.

Born March 5, 1934 in Los Angeles, the youngest of five kids, Sikking was named after Peter Pan author James Barrie. Snyder said: “It seemed a perfect choice. There is a bit of Peter Pan in James ... his sense of imagination appeared whether playing roles on stage or screen.”

Sikking served in the military and met Florine Caplan, his wife of over 60 years, while studying theater at UCLA. He is also survived by his son Andrew, daughter Dr. Emily Sikking, and his four grandchildren: Lola and Gemma Sikking and Hugh and Madeline "Maddie" Milam.