Richard Gilliland, ‘Designing Women’ Actor and Husband of Jean Smart, Dies at 71
He also was a regular on such series as ‘Operation Petticoat,’ ‘McMillan & Wife’ and ‘Just Our Luck.’
Richard Gilliland, a busy character actor whose credits included a recurring role on the CBS sitcom Designing Women, where he met his future wife, Emmy winner Jean Smart, died March 18 in Los Angeles after a brief illness, a publicist announced. He was 71.
The Texas native starred as Sgt. Steve DiMaggio on NBC's McMillan & Wife in 1976-77 and as Lt. Nick Holden on ABC's adaptation of Operation Petticoat in 1977-78, and he was a series regular on ABC's Just Our Luck in 1983 and the CBC's Heartland in 1989.