‘Dr. Kildare’ and ‘Shōgun’ star Richard Chamberlain dies, aged 90

Richard Chamberlain, the actor remembered for his roles on television in Dr. Kildare and Shōgun, has died at the age of 90.

The news was confirmed by his publicist Harlan Boll, who said he passed away on Saturday (March 29) in Waimanalo, Hawaii after complications following a stroke.

Chamberlain’s partner Martin Rabbett said in a statement: “Our beloved Richard is with the angels now. He is free and soaring to those loved ones before us. How blessed were we to have known such an amazing and loving soul. Love never dies. And our love is under his wings lifting him to his next great adventure.”

The actor was a three-time Golden Globe winner across his lengthy career, picking up his first for his beloved title role in the NBC medical drama Dr. Kildare from 1961 to 1966, the show that made him a household name in the US.

His second Globe win came for the 1980 television adaptation of Shōgun, in which he played John Blackthorne, the lead character reprised by Cosmo Jarvis in the acclaimed 2024 FX version of the James Clavell novel. Three years later, he won again for the hit romantic miniseries The Thorn Birds.

Chamberlain was born on March 31, 1934 in Beverly Hills and served in the US Army in Korea in the 1950s. He went on to found the Los Angeles theatre group Company Of Angels in 1959 and scored early roles in shows including Gunsmoke and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

His film career including appearances in major titles in the 1970s such as The Towering Inferno, The Count Of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers, while later television roles included appearances in Will & Grace, Desperate Housewives and Twin Peaks: The Return.

Chamberlain was outed by the French publication Nous Deux in 1989 and confirmed that he was gay in his 2003 autobiography Shattered Love: A Memoir. He spent decades in a relationship with Rabbett, who has been described as his “lifelong partner and best friend”.

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