Chicago actor Ron Dean, who had a sort of Where’s Waldo presence in ‘80s and ‘90s movies that needed a no-nonsense character, died Oct. 5 at 87 after a long illness.

His success was a stunning turnaround after a youth marked by a fatal encounter with a Chicago police officer and years behind bars. Acting paved the road for a second chance in life.

In what was perhaps his most remembered role, Mr. Dean played one of the Chicago homicide detectives who interrogated Harrison Ford’s character in “The Fugitive.”

He had small roles in a trio of early Tom Cruise movies — “Risky Business,” “The Color of Money” and “Cocktail.” In “The Breakfast Club,” he played the strict father of a teenage athlete played by Emilio Estevez. He played a University of Notre Dame football coach in “Rudy.”

In “Cod

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