Richard Hatch -- best known for playing Captain Apollo on the original "Battlestar Galactica" TV series -- has died ... family sources tell TMZ.
We're told Hatch had pancreatic cancer and went into hospice care a few weeks ago.
The actor, writer and producer began working in television in 1970 when he joined the cast of "All My Children" ... before landing a starring role on 'BG' in 1978. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a TV series in 1979.
Hatch made several guest appearances in the '80s on shows like "Murder, She Wrote," "The Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island." He also returned to the "Battlestar Galactica" franchise in a re-imagined series in 2004 as the character Tom Zarek.
Shit, he seemed like a really nice guy in interviews I've watched of him and like alot of people in their 30s and older he was part of my childhood. Like others I can't believe he was so old.
Rest in Peace Captain Apollo. The show might have been campy, but you gave it your all.
Baltar: "I don't want to miss a moment of the last Battlestar's destruction!"
Centurion: "Sir, I really think you should look at the other Battlestar."
Baltar: "What are you babbling about other...it's impossible!"
Centurion: "No. It is a Battlestar."
Corrax Entry 7:17: So you walk eternally through the shadow realms, standing against evil where all others falter. May your thirst for retribution never quench, may the blood on your sword never dry, and may we never need you again.
