Death Summary: Smith died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease) at his home in California on June 13, 2005, having been diagnosed with the disease in April.

Who was Lane Smith : Smith (born William Lane Smith III) was an American actor, known for his role as newspaper editor Perry White in Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and Richard Nixon in The Final Days.

Smith was born in Memphis, Tennessee and long had an interest in acting. He studied drama, before joining the army for two years and then going on to study at the Actors Studio in New York.

Smith had a lengthy career, appearing in numerous film, television and theatrical productions. Beginning largely in theatre with roles such as Randle Patrick McMurphy in 650 off-Broadway performances of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Smith went on to have a number of small roles in films such as Maidstone, Rooster Cogburn and Network while made numerous guest appearances on TV in shows like The Rockford Files, Kojak, Dallas and Lou Grant, as well as many TV movies.

Larger roles came in the form of his portrayal of the Mayor in the film Red Dawn and industrialist Nathan Bates in the 1984-1985 ABC series V; he also played James Lingk in the first Broadway production of Glengarry Glen Ross in 1984. Then, in 1989, Smith got his biggest break yet as he starred as disgraced President Richard Nixon in the docudrama The Final Days, earning critical acclaim and a Golden Globe nomination. Newsweek said that Smith was “such a good Nixon that his despair and sorrow at his predicament become simply overwhelming."

Roles in the films My Cousin Vinny and as Coach Jack Reilly in The Mighty Ducks followed, as did parts in the short lived series Good Sports and Good & Evil. But, it was disgruntled Daily Planet newspaper editor Perry White on ABC’s Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman for which he was best remembered. Smith starred in the series for four seasons, from 1993-1997. Subsequently he appeared in From the Earth to the Moon, King of the Hill and The Practice. His final screen appearance came in 2003 in Showtime’s Out of Order.

Categories: Actors, Celebrities, Entertainment.