Patrick Muldoon, the actor known for roles on Days of Our Lives, Melrose Place and in Starship Troopers, died suddenly on April 19 after suffering a heart attack. He was 57.
Friends said Muldoon was "endlessly generous — with his poetry, his humor, and his unmistakable presence," and remembered that he "loved animals and people alike, gave unforgettable hugs, and possessed a rare quality of making others feel safe and seen." They also described him as "stylish, charismatic, and full of life," someone who lived each day with a "full-tilt, rock ’n’ roll spirit."
Born in San Pedro, California, Muldoon graduated from USC and played on the Trojans football team before his acting career began in college with a two-episode arc on Who’s the Boss?. After graduating in 1991, he landed a three-episode recurring role on Saved By the Bell, then went on to originate the role of Austin Reed on Days of Our Lives, which he played from 1992-95 and again from 2011-12. He also recurred on Melrose Place as the villainous Richard Hart from Season 3-5 and later played Zander Barcalow in the 1997 film Starship Troopers.
Muldoon’s career spanned daytime soaps, primetime soaps and TV movies, and he also worked behind the camera as an executive producer on The Tribes of Palos Verdes, Arkansas, Marlowe, The Card Counter, The Dreadful, Riff Raff and Kockroach. Kockroach is currently filming with Chris Hemsworth, Taron Egerton and Zazie Beetz, and Dirty Hands, his latest movie, is slated for release later this year.
He was also lead singer for The Sleeping Masses and was known as "Bobo" to loved ones. Muldoon is survived by his partner, Miriam Rothbart; his parents, Deanna and Patrick Muldoon Sr.; and his sister and brother-in-law, Shana and Ahmet Zappa. The question now is not what he did, but how widely his work traveled: from soap sets to a sci-fi cult classic, Muldoon left a footprint that reached several corners of film and television.
