The actor best known for playing hot-headed Nick Barkley on The Big Valley TV series has died.
Peter Breck was 82 years old and died on Monday, February 6th. He passed away after a long illness in Vancouver, British Columbia, where he and his wife Diane were longtime residents. According to his widow, Breck had been in the hospital since January 10th.
Born in Rochester, NY, Breck served in the US Navy and studied drama at the University of Houston. He appeared in several film and stage productions during his career, but worked mostly on the small screen.
He had recurring roles on Maverick and Black Saddle and guest-starred on dozens of others, like 77 Sunset Strip, Perry Mason, The Six Million Dollar Man, and Fantasy Island.
Breck took great pride in his work on The Big Valley and was with the show for all of its four seasons, starring alongside Barbara Stanwyck, Richard Long, Lee Majors, and Linda Evans.
Of his time on the show, Breck wrote, “What a great ride that show was – wonderful people to work with, good writers & directors, exciting guest stars and scripts that were worth doing.”
What do you think? Did you enjoy Breck’s work? What are some of your favorite memories?
Love this show still watch all the reruns . Nick was my favorite . Hot headed sure. But he cared . They don’t make westerns like this or the Virginian or gunsmoke anymore . Still my go to shows here lately .
I love watching the big valley, Peter Breck made the show exciting, I admire all of the cast members, but he really was a great actor
Watching the re runs ,and still love them , childhood memories
Just started watching The Big Valley again. I remember watching the reruns back in the 70’s but I didn’t recall any of it watching it now so every episode is new to me. Oh, that Nick Barkley character sure makes me smile..the way he bellows and startled other or gets all fired up showing that he cared. He’s also a vey handsome man with gorgeous thick black hair. Sad to find that he passed away back in 2012. I am glad he had a memorable time working on the show.
While attending college in Costa Mesa, Ca, I worked part time as a cook at a British pub there. The owners there were big fans of Peter Breck, and had a photo of him on the wall. He made a quick appearance one night, and we all got to meet him. He was very gracious, and friendly. Sorry to hear of his passing.