Michael Cole, who played Pete on Mod Squad, died on Dec. 10. He was 84. Cole was a rising young actor in the 1960s, with a steady career on TV and the occasional movie. He was cast as one of three groovy teen undercover cops in Mod Squad (1968-73), and became one of the pop sex symbols of the era. Cole continued working till 2010—Wonder Woman, Vega$, General Hospital (a continuing role, as Harlan Barrett). He even did the “my career is over” trifecta of The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, and Murder She Wrote. Speaking in later years of watching Mod Squad reruns, Cole said, “You know what's funny? As I'm watching these things, I'll get up and go look in the mirror and say, 'God damn, that was a long time ago!' . . . to wind up being as close to Clarence and Peggy and Tige as I was, was another thing that was very fortunate.”
