Tom Towles was an actor best known for his roles in horror films and popular television shows throughout the 1990s.

He had appearances on the television series Seinfeld, 3rd Rock from the Sun, The Drew Carey Show, Malcolm in the Middle, Crossing Jordan, L.A. Law, ER, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, Firefly and six episodes of NYPD Blue, playing Inspector Anthony Lastarza.

Towles’ biggest role came with the film Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, in which he played Otis, the roommate and partner in crime of the title character, played by Michael Rooker. Towles’ character was based on Ottis Toole, who was convicted in 2008 of the 1981 murder of John Walsh’s son. Walsh, of course, went on to create America’s Most Wanted in the aftermath of his son’s then-unsolved murder.

In Night of the Living Dead Towles played the angry yet cowardly Harry Cooper; he later appeared in several Rob Zombie films, including House of 1,000 Corpses, The Devil’s Rejects and Halloween. He also appeared in Michael Mann’s Miami Vice in 2006.

Towles died April 5, 2015, in Pinellas County, Florida. He was 65.