Veteran Character Actor James Handy Stabbed to Death

Character Actor James Handy, known for numerous appearances on both the big and small screen, has been stabbed to death.

What's Happening:

• Actor James Handy, last seen in Top Gun: Maverick, and known for roles in The Rocketeer and Jumanji, has been identified as the victim of a fatal stabbing in Los Angeles, according to report in Deadline.
• The Los Angeles Police Department said officers responded Wednesday to a report of "unknown trouble" in the Tarzana neighborhood of the city and found Handy in the front yard of a residence suffering from a stab wound to the chest.
• He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. On Thursday, the LAPD identified the stabbing victime as the 81-year-old Handy.
• According to the LAPD, the suspect called emergency services and said, "I am the son of man, I just killed the man of sin."
• Investigators allege that 44-year-old Michael Gledhill, the son of Handy's girlfriend, stabbed the actor, though a motive behind the stabbing has not been revealed.
• Police said Gledhill flagged down responding officers and told them he was the person they were looking for. Gledhill, who reportedly lived with his mother and the actor, was arrested on suspicion of murder. The investigation into Handy’s death is currently ongoing.

A Handy Filmography

• Handy is best known for his work in The Rocketeer, as the FBI Agent Wooly, and Arachnophobia as Milton Briggs, one of the residents of Canaima during the spider infestation.
• In an odd twist, several years later, the veteran character actor would play "The Exterminator" in Jumanji.
• While his last appearance on-screen was in Top Gun: Maverick as Jimmy the bartender, a number of Disney fans coming to our site would know him from the aforementioned roles in The Rocketeer and Arachnophobia, and a role in Logan as the Old Doctor - all joining a filmography that features a large number of appearances on the small screen.
• While he had stints on Wings, Quantum Leap, The Young and the Restless, NCIS: Los Angeles and L.A. Law, he also appeared on several episodes of ABC's NYPD Blue as Borough Commander Haverill.
• On Fox, Handy popped up on some episodes of Beverly Hills, 90210, and even more of Melrose Place before taking on an episode of The X Files.
• In the late 90s and early 00s, he popped up again on ABC in The Practice and Alias, and later in the 2010s in Castle. More recently in the 2020s, he appeared on the Fox-turned-ABC series, 9-1-1.