Ed Williams, the scientist from 'The Naked Gun,' dies at 98.

Ed Williams , the actor best remembered for his role as scientist Ted Olsen in the Naked Gun , has died at his home in California at the age of 98. The news, confirmed by his granddaughter Stephanie Williams to The Hollywood Reporter , comes weeks after his death on October 2.

Born in San Jose in 1926, Williams was a U.S. Navy sailor and, after moving to Los Angeles in 1955, became a professor of broadcasting and radio and television arts . For years, he combined teaching with a prolific career in theater and radio , where he starred in more than 200 plays. Williams' recognition did not come until later in life, after a long career in other fields.

His big on-screen break came in 1982, when he was cast in the television series Police Squad . Although the series was short-lived, the character of the stolid scientist Ted Olsen became a mainstay for the franchise, a role Williams would reprise in the films The Naked Gun (1988), The Scent of Fear (1991), and The Final Insult (1994). Throughout his career, he also had roles in other popular series such as MacGyver , Hooperman , and The Matlock Lawyer .