Mitchell Ryan was fired from the series due to his alcoholism. Ryan admitted in a 1976 interview, "I was so drunk that year, I barely remember what it was about," adding that he sometimes even came to the studio drunk. Fortunately, Ryan later sobered up and enjoyed a successful career, headlining his own series Chase (1973) and appearing as a regular on the sitcom Dharma & Greg (1997). Throughout the '70s and into the early 2000s, Ryan made countless appearances in guest starring roles on television and in popular films such as Magnum Force (1973), Lethal Weapon (1987), and Liar Liar (1997). Ryan died on March 4, 2022, age 88.
Final appearance of Mitchell Ryan as Burke Devlin. Ryan was replaced by Anthony George, who will assume the role of Burke beginning in Episode #1.262 (1967).