RIP Merlin Olsen. Little House on the Prairie actor, Merlin Olsen, died Thursday at age 69. ABC 4 New in Salt Lake City reported that Merlin Olsen succumbed to cancer last night.

Olsen was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2009 and had undergone several rounds of chemotherapy.

Olsen also played the lead role on TV’s Father Murphy in the ’70s and ’80s.