Character Actor From 'The Waltons' and More Dies at 86: Tom Bower's Brother Confirms His Passing

Bower had passed away in his sleep on May 30.

By Megan Behnke

The Waltons star Tom Bower has passed away. His brother, Robert Bower, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that the actor, best known as Dr. Curtis Willard on the CBS historical drama, died in his sleep on May 30 at his Los Angeles home at 86 years old. A cause of death has not been reported.

Born as Ralph Thomas Bower in Denver on Jan. 3, 1938, Bower initially dreamt of becoming a professional baseball player but later enrolled at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in 1956 in New York when he figured he wouldn't cut it in the MLB. Additionally, he studied acting at the John Cassavetes Shadows Workshop. After working on Cassavetes' directorial debut, Shadows, in 1957, he worked as a private investigator for 15 years.

Once he landed a role in David Rabe's The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel in 1972, Bower turned his full attention to acting. He moved out to Los Angeles, where he appeared on Get Christie Love!, The Rockford Files, and Kojak. In 1975, Bower was cast as Dr. Curtis Willard for The Waltons, where he recurred in a total of 27 episodes from Seasons 4-7 until 1978. After being invited to a Sundance Institute film lab in 1981, he landed the role of Boone Choate in Robert M. Young's Ballad of Gregorio Cortez for PBS.

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(Photo:

Portrait of the cast of television drama 'The Waltons,' in costume and on the set, taken between the series' fifth and sixth seasons, August 10, 1977. Pictured are, front row from left, American actors Michael Learned (as Olivia Walton), Kami Cotler (as Elizabeth Walton), Ralph Waite (as John Walton), Eric Scott (leaning on Waite's shoulder) (as Ben Walton), Judy Norton Taylor (as Mary Ellen Walton), and Mary McDonough (as Erin Walton); back row, from left, American actors Jon Walmsley (as Jason Walton), Will Geer (1902 – 1978) (as Zeb Walton), David Harper (as Jim-Bob Walton), and Tom Bower (as Curtis Willard). (Photo by CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images)

- CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images)

Other credits throughout his career include American Playhouse, Wildrose, Murder, She Wrote, Miami Vice, Hill Street Blues, Dallas, Beverly Hills Cop II, Knightwatch, Die Hard 2, Raising Cain, Clear and Present Danger, NYPD Blue, The X-Files, Roswell, Law & Order, NCIS, Cold Case, Monk, Private Practice, The Office, Grey's Anatomy, Criminal Minds, Ray Donovan, and Double Down South.

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Tom Bower can most recently be seen in Netflix's 2023 supernatural comedy film We Have a Ghost alongside Jahi Di'Allo Winston, David Harbour, Anthony Mackie, and Erica Ash, as well as three episodes of AMC's Lucky Hank, also in 2023. According to IMDb, Bower was working on two projects prior to his death. Drama Hurricanna was in production while history flick Undaunted was in development. It's still too early to tell what will happen with both projects.

Bower is survived by his children, Viveca and Rob, and his sister, Shirley. His wife of 51 years, Ursula, passed away last August at age 75.

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