The cause was mesothelioma a form of cancer most commonly caused by asbestos exposure his publicist Edward Lozzi said.
Menacing characters were his forte. He was the brutal prison guard and Burt Reynolds s nemesis in the 1974 comedy drama The Longest Yard and the sleazy gas station attendant in Alfred Hitchcock s last film Family Plot (1976). In Death Wish 3 (1985) he was the violent police officer who teamed up with Charles Bronson s vigilante to rid New York City s streets of criminals by killing them.
More recently he was the butler to the ing nue played by B r nice Bejo in The Artist which won the Oscar for best film in 2012.
His numerous other movies included Oliver Stone s Born on the Fourth of July with Tom Cruise The New Centurions with George C. Scott and the comedies My Blue Heaven Revenge of the Nerds II and Not Another Teen Movie. His television credits included The Office ER Murder She Wrote and The Rockford Files.
Mr. Lauter described himself in a 2010 interview with Cinema Shock magazine as a turn actor someone who shows up in a film and turns the plot in a different direction.
He said that many of the characters he played were inspired by people he had grown up observing in Long Beach N.Y. where he was born Edward Matthew Lauter II on Oct. 30 1938.
He began his career doing comedy on and around Long Island. After serving in the Army he appeared on Broadway in The Great White Hope with James Earl Jones.
Mr. Lauter continued to work until a few months ago. He was in Trouble With the Curve with Clint Eastwood last year and had roles in films still to be released. The last film he completed is a remake of the 1976 horror movie The Town That Dreaded Sundown scheduled for a 2014 release.
Survivors include his wife Mia two daughters Emma and Ameka Lauter two sons Ben and Anton and two sisters Sally Traube and Elizabeth Lauter.
Mr. Lauter said he was frequently recognized in public but added Sometimes people don t know my name.
They ll say Oh yeah There s that guy You were in ... you were in ...
Daniel E. Slotnik contributed reporting.
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