Sad news today… Merlin Olsen has died at age 69. Merlin Olsen was both an athlete and actor – he starred on both “Little House on the Prairie” and “Father Murphy” and had a long football career with the Los Angeles Rams.

Merlin Olsen was also a sports commentator and analyst and appeared on a variety of other TV shows.

Merlin Olsen died of cancer – he had been diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2009.

Earlier this year, Olsen made headlines for suing NBC Universal, NBC Studios, and 20th Century Fox for exposure to abestos.