Rene Auberjonois, two-time Emmy nominated actor, famous for appearing in the sci-fi series, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, among many other prominent film and TV roles, passed away on December 8, 2019. He was 79 years old. His son Remy-Luc Auberjonois told the Associated Press that he died of metastatic lung cancer, and passed comfortably in his Los Angeles home.
Auberjonis was a heralded character actor throughout the 1970s, and continued to work on TV until his death. His best known for playing Father Mulcahy, the military chaplain in the Robert Altman directed film, M.A.S.H. He’s also famous for his role in the 1980s TV series on ABC, Benson, where he played Clayton Runnymede Endicott III, a hypochondriac and chief of staff of the governor’s mansion, for seven seasons.
Originally from New York, born on June 1, 1940, Auberjonois, a graduate of Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Institute of Technology (now known as Carnegie Mellon), spoke of his blessed success as such a wide-range actor with the Star Trek website. He said, “I am all of those characters, and I love that. I also run into people, and they think I’m their cousin or their dry cleaner. I love that, too.”
Here’s what you need to know about Robert Auberjonois…
1. He Appeared as Odo In 173 Episodes Of ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’
Rene Auberjonois in ‘Star Trek’
In the 1990s, Auberjonois continued his success on the small screen playing Odo, the shape-shifting Changeling and head of the space station’s security on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He starred on the sci-fi series from 1993 to 1998, and become a regular at Star Trek conventions, signing autographs in order to raise for Doctors Without Borders.
Auberjonois is one of only 32 actors to have starred in one of the original Star Trek series and then in one of the spin-offs. His role in the original Star Trek was uncredited as Colonel West in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country .
2. What Does It Mean When Lung Cancer Is Called Metastatic?
According to the National Cancer Association, metastatic cancer is called as such for its ability to spread quickly through the body. Cancer can spread regionally through the lymph nodes, tissues, and organs, but when it reach other distant parts of the body, it’s referred to as metastatic, or Stage IV cancer.
3. Auberjonois Once Said, ‘I’ll Never Going To Retire, I’ll Die With My Boots On’
Rene Auberjonois
True to his word, Auberjonois continued to work steadily until his passing. He appeared on hit series such as The Good Wife, Criminal Minds, Grey’s Anatomy, NCIS, 1600 Penn, Warehouse 13, and Masters of Sex. From 2004 to 2008, he starred on the popular TV show, Boston Legal, as Paul Lewiston.
In 2016, he guest-starred on four episodes of Madame Secretary, and appeared in four films, The Circuit, Windows on the World, First Cow, and played the titular role in President James Buchanan in the movie, Raising Buchanan. The final movie he worked on, Cortex, which was written and directed by Ralph Soll, is currently in post-production.
Auberjonois was also a gifted theatre actor. He won a Tony for the 1969 musical “Coco,” which he starred opposite Katharine Hepburn, and received nominations for 1973’s “The Good Doctor,” 1984’s “Big River,” and 1989’s “City of Angels.”
4. Auberjonois Was Married To His Wife Judith Since 1963
GettyRene Auberjonois (R) and Judith Mihalyi Aberjonois
In addition to his son, Remy, Auberjonois is survived by his wife, writer Judith Mihalyi Auberjonois, with whom he’s been married to for 56 years, his sisters Marie-Laure Degener and Anne Auberjonois, daughter Tessa Auberjonois; son-in-law Adrian Latourelle, daughter-in-law Kate Nowlin and his three grandchildren.
5. He Voiced Chef Louie In The Original ‘The Little Mermaid’ Movie
Auberjonois excelled as a voice actor, and memorably sang as the boisterous French chef aboard Prince Eric’s ship in Disney’s 1989 film, The Little Mermaid. He also lent his voice as the Concierge in 2014’s Planes: Fire & Rescue, McLeish and numerous other characters on the TV series Pound Puppies, and made afew guest appearances on the animated series, Archer.
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