R.I.P. Michael Cole: ‘The Mod Squad’ And ‘General Hospital’ Actor Dead At 84

Michael Cole, the last surviving member of The Mod Squad, passed away “peacefully” Tuesday (Dec. 10) at the age of 84.

His reps confirmed the news to Variety, noting he passed “peacefully this morning, surrounded by loved ones, after living a full and vibrant life.”

Cole is best known for playing Pete Cochran in the 1968 crime drama The Mod Squad. Cochran, like his colleagues, got a second chance at life when he was given the chance to work as an undercover investigator on the squad instead of serving time after he gets caught stealing a car.

The late Peggy Lipton and Clarence Williams III, who respectively passed away in 2019 and 2021, also starred.

“I resisted taking the part when [Aaron] Spelling offered it, telling him, ‘[The show] sounds stupid and I hope it never gets on the air,’” Cole wrote in his 2009 memoir I Played The White Guy. “I didn’t want to play some guy who ratted on some other troubled kids.”

The show lasted for five seasons until 1973, during which Cole sustained an injury to his face during a car accident, requiring 130 stitches, per The Hollywood Reporter.

The co-stars later reunited for the 1979 film reboot, The Return of Mod Squad.

The Mod Squad proved to be Cole’s breakout role, leading to a decades-long career in television with appearances in Wonder Woman, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, It and Murder, She Wrote.

However, Cole did not land another regular television role until 1991 when he was cast in General Hospital.

He played Harlan Barrett, a ladies man who gets involved with a cartel after coming to Port Charles. He later got killed off the show after starring in over 60 episodes.

Cole’s career continued with several roles in television series such as ER and 7th Heaven. His final role was in the 2008 mystery Grave Misconduct.

Cole is survived by his wife, Shelley Funes, and his children.