RIP, Stanley Kamel

Veteran TV actor Stanley Kamel died of a heart attack on Tuesday. Here's an obit of Kamel, who had regular roles on "Monk," "L.A. Law," "Melrose Place," "Beverly Hills 90210," and "Murder One." A few weeks ago, while compiling a countdown of the 14 top TV shrinks, I remembered Kamel's performance as Dr. Kroger on "Monk" with pleasure. Kamel often played villains, and he played them well; but on "Monk" he was amusing and appealing as the crazy detective's savior, his solid rock.