NYC Tour Bus Hits Soap Opera Actor

NEW YORK (AP) â€” A 71-year-old actor who has appeared in off-Broadway plays and a few soap operas was struck and killed by a double-decker tourist bus as he crossed a busy street. <br><br>Randolph Walker

Tuesday, May 23rd 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NEW YORK (AP) â€” A 71-year-old actor who has appeared in off-Broadway plays and a few soap operas was struck and killed by a double-decker tourist bus as he crossed a busy street.

Randolph Walker was killed Monday by the Big Apple Tours bus after the vehicle made a turn in midtown Manhattan.

The driver, Howard Scott, was cited for operating a vehicle out of his license class and operating on a route he wasn't supposed to be on. The tour company, known for its red double-decker buses, was cited for using an unqualified bus operator and allowing bus operation without a seat belt.

Walker appeared in the 1985 revival of ``The King and I'' on Broadway and had the lead last month in the off-Broadway ``Taking Sides,'' playing a German conductor accused of Nazi war crimes. It was one of many off-Broadway and dinner theater roles he had played, his family said.

He also had small roles on ``One Life to Live'' and ``One Day at a Time.''

The company's buses are a familiar sight around Manhattan but a source of complaints for pedestrians.

``We've always known if you cross with a Big Apple bus is turning, you're taking your life in your hands,'' said Adam Honihgman, a community activist who lives in the neighborhood.

The company was fined $800,000 last year for trying to avoid federal inspections on 70 vehicles imported from Britain. On April 25, the Department of Consumer Affairs began administrative proceedings to revoke the company's license.

After Walker's death, the company issued a statement calling the accident tragic and pledging to cooperate with the police investigation.