'Stargate SG 1' Actor Cliff Simon Dies

LOS ANGELES – Veteran actor Cliff Simon, who played the villain Ba-al on the “Stargate SG 1” TV series, has died. He was 58.

In a Facebook post, Simon’s wife Collette reported the actor’s death in a kite-boarding accident Tuesday on Topanga Beach in Los Angeles.

She wrote: “To Friends, family and fans. It is with unimaginable heartbreak that I am sharing with you, that my beloved husband, Cliff Simon, passed away at 12:30pm on Tuesday March 9, 2021. He was at Topanga Beach, California and sadly passed away after a tragic kiteboarding accident. He was known to most of you on this page as the villain you loved to hate, Ba’al, from Stargate SG-1. But as he said, “acting is what I do, it’s only a part of who I am.”

Simon was born in South Africa where competed in both swimming and gymnastics. After moving to Britain, he competed in Olympic trials in swimming, but later returned to South Africa, where he enlisted in the Air Force and went on to teach windsurfing and water-skiing at a resort, where he was recruited to participate in a stage show. He traveled the world as a gymnast, then as a dancer at the Moulin Rouge in Paris. He wrote about his experiences in his book “Paris Nights: My Year at the Moulin Rouge.”

He later starred in the South African TV series “Egoli – Place of Gold” before moving to Los Angeles, ultimately earning a guest spot on “Nash Bridges,” and later won the role of “Ba’al,” which he played for five seasons. He also guest starred on “Castle,” “NCIS,” “The Americans,” “Days of Our Lives” and “24,” and wrote the 2008 Stargate SG1 movie, “Continuum.”