Image: The Everett Collection

Richard Herd projected authority. In one of his earliest television roles, the Boston-born actor made a memorable appearance on M*A*S*H. In the episode "Back Pay," Hawkeye submits a bill to the Army for money be believes due to him ($38,215.11). The Army, in turn, sends Captain Bill Snyder (Herd) to investigate the claims. Herd has previously portrayed the real-life General Omar Bradley in the miniseries Ike: The War Years.

It was not longer before Herd landed a regular role as a boss in uniform. From 1982–84, the actor played Capt. Dennis Sheridan, the stereotypically stern cop boss of William Shatner on T.J. Hooker.

Herd as Capt. Snyder on M*A*S*H

In the 1990s, he worked his way up to "Admiral" on two beloved sci-fi series, SeaQuest 2032 (Admiral Noyce) and Star Trek: Voyager (Admiral Owen Paris). 

Sitcom lovers will remember Herd as Mr. Matt Wilhelm, George Costanza's immediate supervisor in the New York Yankees organization on Seinfeld.

In recent years, Herd reprised his role as Admiral Paris for the Trekkie-made fan film Star Trek: Renegades. Cementing his status at Trek conventions, Herd has also played the Klingon warrior L'Kor in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Herd's screen career began alongside a more notable film debut — he was in Arnold Schwarzenegger's first movie, Hercules in New York. That led to roles in All the President's Men and The China Syndrom. He also had small recurring parts in Dallas, V: The Final Battle and Quantum Leap.

On Tuesday, May 26, Herd passed away, according to The Hollywood Reporter. He was 87.