Pat Corley, the gravel-voiced character actor who was the barkeep Phil on TV's "Murphy Brown," died of congestive heart failure Sept. 11, 2006, according to the Associated Press. Mr. Corley, who also had theatre credits in his resume, was 76. He died of congestive heart failure at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, according to his son, Jerry, an actor-comedian.

On Broadway, the Dallas native appeared in Blues for Mr. Charley (1964), The Secret Affairs of Mildred Wild (1972), Of Mice and Men (1974) and a revival of Sweet Bird of Youth (1975) starring Irene Worth.

Mr. Corley also had film roles in "Coming Home," "True Confessions" and "Against All Odds."

His TV credits included "The Bay City Blues" and coroner Wally Nydorf on "Hill Street Blues"—a breakout role that led to his frequent employment on television. His son said the coroner was his favorite role.

Mr. Corley is survived by sons Jerry and Kevin, daughters Troy and Christina Pratt, and 12 grandchildren. His wife and a daughter predeceased him.