He later starred as the proverbial cat-burglar-turned-good circus artist Thomas Hewitt Edward Cat in a short-lived detective series called T.H.E. Cat, first broadcast in 1966. At first, T.H.E. Cat appeared to be a success, Loggia said: "We're drawing about a 30 per cent share of the audience, which NBC considers fine for a new show with a new star."[9] After NBC cancelled the series when viewing figures failed to deliver, Loggia went into a mid-life crisis—a "Dante-esque descent into the inferno", as he called it later. For six years his career foundered, and his marriage fell apart. Restless and unnerved, constantly riddled with self-doubt, a chance meeting with Audrey O'Brien was his saving grace. She helped him out of the crisis, and they later married. Despite playing Frank Carver on the CBS soap opera The Secret Storm[10] in 1972, he took a new course when he decided to begin a career in directing.
The director Blake Edwards often cast Loggia in his films in minor or supporting roles. These included Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978) and other Pink Panther sequels, and S.O.B. (1981), which was a satire about Hollywood.
In 1983, Loggia played Frank Lopez,[11] a drug dealer who was one of the main supporting characters and antagonists in the film Scarface, which is often considered a classic Hollywood film.[12]
In 1998, Loggia appeared in a television commercial lampooning obscure celebrity endorsements. In it, a young boy names Loggia as someone he would trust to recommend Minute Maid orange-tangerine blend. Loggia instantly appears and endorses the drink, to which the boy exclaims, "Whoa, Robert Loggia!"[13] The commercial was later referenced in a Malcolm in the Middle episode in which Loggia made a guest appearance as "Grandpa Victor" (for which he received his second Emmy nomination); in it, Loggia drinks some orange juice, then spits it out and complains about the presence of pulp.
In addition to voicing Sykes in Disney's Oliver & Company, Loggia had several other voice acting roles, in multiple media, including: Admiral Petrarch in the computer game FreeSpace 2 (1999) and the anime movie The Dog of Flanders (1997), crooked cop Ray Machowski in the video game Grand Theft Auto III (2001), and a recurring role on the Adult Swim animated TV comedy series Tom Goes to the Mayor (2004–2006).[14]
In August 2009, Loggia appeared in one of Apple's Get a Mac advertisements. The advertisement features Loggia as a personal trainer hired by PC to get him back on top of his game.[citation needed] On October 26, 2009, TVGuide.com announced Loggia had joined the cast of the TNT series Men of a Certain Age.[15]
Loggia also appeared in two episodes of the animated series Family Guy as himself; in the episode "Brothers and Sisters", after Mayor West tells his fiancé Carol he has "aides" (which Carol mistakes for AIDS), before he clarifies that he is referring to his assistants; West then remarks that they both have AIDS, and the scene cuts to Loggia, angrily responding "NOT OKAY!". In the episode "Call Girl", he is seen twice denoting the passage of time in boring events. The script would cut away to Loggia saying "Eight f***ing hours later", then back to the story, further along in the plot. An earlier episode showed Peter stuck behind Loggia at the airport, where he was not voiced by Loggia himself. In 2012, Loggia portrayed Saint Peter during his final imprisonment in The Apostle Peter and the Last Supper. Loggia partnered with Canadian entrepreneur Frank D'Angelo from 2013, appearing in three films (Real Gangsters, The Big Fat Stone, and No Depo$it), with a fourth film in production (Sicilian Vampire) at the time of Loggia's death.[citation needed]
Loggia reprised his role from Independence Day, General William Grey, in a cameo appearance alongside his wife, Audrey, in the 2016 sequel Independence Day: Resurgence, filmed shortly before his death. The film was released posthumously and dedicated to him.
Personal life
Loggia was married to Marjorie Sloan from 1954 to 1981, with whom he had three children. Loggia and Sloan were divorced in 1981. In 1982, Loggia married Audrey O'Brien, a business executive and the mother of his stepdaughter Cynthia Marlette. Loggia and O'Brien remained married until his death in 2015.[citation needed]
On December 17, 2011, Loggia was honored by his alma mater, the University of Missouri, with an honorary degree for his career and his humanitarian efforts.[19]