Robert Blake is back on the small screen.
In his first television appearance since he was acquitted of the murder of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, the former Baretta star reunited with Barbara Walters Tuesday morning and offered up his opinion on who could have carried out the deed.
Blake told Walters that he did not know who killed his wife, but speculated that it could have been somebody looking for revenge after falling for one of Bakley's shady business innovations.
"She led that kind of life, where she made a lot of enemies and somebody...somebody whose father was taken for a ride or something like that," Blake said. "I don't know. I don't know."
Over the course of Blake's murder trial, Bakley was painted as a known scam artist, who made a living by engaging in such unappetizing endeavors as selling promises of sex through the mail and who was desperate to align herself with a celebrity.
Neither the prosecution nor the defense contested the fact that her marriage to Blake came about as the result of an accidental pregnancy as opposed to an actual love match. Blake only agreed to marry Bakley after a DNA test proved he was the father of her child. Prosecutors contended he killed her himself to get her out of his and their child's life.
During his Good Morning America appearance, the white-haired actor explained to Walters why he snapped at a reporter who asked him at last week's press conference if he knew who killed Bakley, telling the reporter to "shut up."
"What I meant by 'shut up' is I mean I would like to have everybody stop killing Bonny now," Blake said. "Everybody is making a buck on Bonny. It's like, you know, America now is filling their rice bowl any way they can. They're still picking Princess Diana's bones."
Bakley was shot to death on May 4, 2001, as she sat in a parked car outside Vitello's restaurant where she had just dined with Blake. Blake testified that he left her in the car while he returned to the eatery to retrieve a forgotten firearm that he carried for protection. When he returned to the car, he found Bakley bleeding from a pair of gunshot wounds.
Last week, a jury acquitted the actor of first-degree murder and one count of solicitation of murder. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Darlene Schempp dismissed a second count of solicitation of murder after jurors deadlocked.
Following the verdict, an overwhelmed Blake gave effusive thanks to the "small band of warriors" who helped him beat the rap, including Walters.
"Barbara Walters, God bless you, darling," Blake said at the time. "I would have never got out of the joint without you. God bless you, Barbara, wherever you are."
Walters had previously conducted a February 2003 jailhouse interview with the actor against the strenuous advice of his lawyers, two of whom quit over his insistence on talking to the media.
However, Blake's instincts were apparently good--the interview provided him with the opportunity to sweeten his image on national television, as he explained to Walters that Rosie, his daughter with Bakley, was his reason for living.
"It's all about Rosie. It's always been about Rosie," Blake said in that interview. "The greatest gift in the world, and I'm going to try to mess it up by being selfish?"
Portions of the interview were replayed in court, in lieu of Blake taking the stand himself.
Almost a week later, Blake continued to heap gratitude upon Walters--who disagreed that she played a role in the actor's acquittal.
"I wanna tell ya, you saved my life," Blake told Walters on Tuesday. "Now I know, you'd say, 'Well I didn't make a contribution. I did the best I could.' Well that's not true..."
Walters cut him off and deflected the praise.
"All I did was ask you questions and your answers and your talk about Rosie was what made the difference," Walters said. "I wish I had that power but I don't."
Now that Blake's court room battle has come to a close, he said he plans to "play grandpa" to 4-year-old Rosie, who will remain in the custody of his adult daughter, Delinah.
He also intends to return to work, after blowing through millions of dollars to mount his defense.
"If Uncle Sam woke up on the wrong side of the bed, I'd be out on the street with a guitar, because I owe him a lot of money," Blake told Walters. "I'm broke as a church mouse."
The actor still faces a wrongful death civil suit filed on behalf of Bakley's four surviving children, including Rosie.