Robert Morse has died. He was 90.
His friend, Larry Karaszewski, and Robert Morse’s son Charlie confirmed his death on Twitter and CNN affiliate KABC.
Appearing on Broadway in the mid-1950s, Morse originated the role of the enterprising J. Pierrepont Finch in 1961’s “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,” winning a Tony Award for his performance.
In “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,” Robert Morse played an entry-level employee who climbs the corporate ladder to the top.
Robert Morse performed guest spots and voice acting on dozens of series, from “American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson” to “Fantasy Island.” But his highest-profile TV role came with the celebrated series “Mad Men.”
On the series, Robert Morse, who called himself a “musical comedian,” relished the opportunity to perform a musical number — complete with dancers dressed as period-appropriate office staffers.
Robert told Time in 2015, “As simple as it was, it was one of the lovely moments of my life.”
Still, performing on stage had a special significance to Morse, who last appeared on Broadway.
”I love getting to the theater early, going out on the stage with that one light burning,” he told the New York Times in 1989, as he was about to debut his Tony Award-winning performance as Truman Capote in a one-person show. “I find the center of the stage, I find the center of me, and I feel like I belong. It’s my happiest moment.”
