Alan Rachins Dies: ‘L.A. Law’ and ‘Dharma & Greg’ Star Was 82

Alan Rachins, an Emmy-nominated actor for his work on L.A. Law, has died at the age of 82.

Rachins was at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center when he died in his sleep on November 2 in Los Angeles, his wife, actress Joanna Frank (who starred alongside him as his onscreen spouse a couple times), told The Hollywood Reporter. The cause of death was heart failure.

Rachins was best known for playing law partner Douglas Brackman Jr. on the aforementioned NBC drama (1986-1994), then three years later (1997-2002), Dharma & Greg‘s Larry Finkelstein (father to Jenna Elfman‘s titular character). He was born on October 3, 1942, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and spent two years at the Wharton School of Finance before dropping out. He then got into acting on the stage in New York with productions like his Broadway debut with After the Rain in 1967 and the musical Oh! Calcutta (in which he performed naked) in the late 1960s. He then moved to Hollywood and studied at the American Film Institute in 1972. His first onscreen roles came in TV movies such as Fear on Trial in 1975 and minor roles on shows like Barnaby Jones and Dallas. He also wrote episodes of Hill Street Blues and Hart to Hart and directed one of Paris.

Rachins then starred in the 1985 film Always (But Not Forever) with Frank playing his onscreen wife; the movie, directed by Henry Jaglom. was largely improvised and followed a couple’s impending divorce during a Fourth of July weekend with friends. Frank’s brother was Steven Bochco, who cast him on L.A. Law, a show that was one of the most-watched on television at its time, as the socially inept, parsimonious partner at the firm. (Frank recurred as his wife, Sheila Brackman.) He was nominated for both an Emmy (Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series) and Golden Globe (Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television) for his portrayal of Douglas Brackman in 1988.

Following the run of L.A. Law, he had a substantial role in 1995’s Showgirls and soon after that came Dharma & Greg, in which he played against type as the hippie father of Dharma. It was after that that Rachins reprised his role of Douglas Brackman in L.A. Law: The Movie in 2002.

Rachins’ TV credits also included episodes of The Golden Girls, Tales from the Crypt, The Outer Limits, Diagnosis Murder, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Stargate SG-1, CSI, Happy Endings, Mom, Grey’s Anatomy, and Young Sheldon. He also recurred on Rizzoli & Isles and General Hospital. His last TV role was a guest spot on NCIS in 2023.

His other film roles included his first in Time Walker in 1982, Thunder Run, Leave It to Beaver, and Any Day Now.

Rachins is survived by his wife and his son, Robert.