Actor Ed Williams, known for playing a mega-quirky lab scientist in the “Police Squad!” television series and its big-screen incarnation as the original “Naked Gun” movies, has died at age 98.

The veteran actor died Oct. 2, his granddaughter Stephanie Williams told The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday.

His nephew, Marty Wolfe Williams-Wilson, posted about the loss of his beloved uncle on social media.

“Our beloved Uncle Ed passed away peacefully last night in Los Angeles,” Williams-Wilson wrote earlier this month. “Professionally, he was a successful actor. Personally, we adored him and will miss him.”

Acting was Williams’ second career, one he took up after teaching for more than 30 years. The San Jose, California, native had acted in plays at San Jose State and Stanford universities and voiced radio productions, but put that aside upon moving to Los Angeles in 1955.

He taught speech and broadcasting at The Don Martin School of Radio and Television Arts and Sciences and then taught at Los Angeles City College until retiring in 1989.

As his teaching career wound down, Williams took acting classes at night, began auditioning and eventually landed his signature role alongside Leslie Nielsen’s Det. Frank Drebin in the police procedurals send-up series. As lab scientist Ted Olsen, he explained science to children in hilariously inappropriate terms laced with double or even triple entendres.

Williams resurrected his cringe character in “The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!” (1988), “The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear” (1991) and “Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult” (1994).

Subsequent roles often involved playing clergy. His agent had a penchant for placing him as a priest or minister, “so I got stuck on a lot of ministers for a long time there,” he said in 2017.

Memorable ministerial moments included joining Kimberly Williams’ Annie Banks (whose parents were played by Steve Martin and the late Diane Keaton), in holy matrimony with Bryan MacKenzie (George Newbern) in 1991’s “Father of the Bride.” Williams also officiated offscreen at Carla’s wedding in the long-running sitcom “Cheers.”

The teacher-turned-actor is survived by his wife of more than 70 years, Nancy Williams, as well as their sons, Ian and Fredrick, and grandchildren Stephanie and Maureen.

©2025 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.