Ralph Waite from ‘The Waltons’ and ‘NCIS’ Has Passed Away at 85

"Good night Daddy."

Ralph Waite, who most famously played the dad on the hit TV show "The Waltons", died yesterday at his home in Palm Desert, California. He was 85 years old.

A friend showed up at his house yesterday for lunch, only to be told by his wife that he had passed.

There is no official word on the cause of death, but this friend did say that, "[He had a] tired heart...This last year or two, he had really gotten closer to realizing that his body was wearing out."

Ralph played John Walton, Sr., the patriarch on "The Waltons", which ran on CBS from 1971 to 1981. More recently, he played Mark Harmon's father on NCIS and Father Matt on "Days of our Lives". He also had a recurring role on "Bones".