Dana Elcar
This article needs additional citations for verification. (March 2013) |
Dana Elcar | |
---|---|
![]() Elcar as Peter Thornton on MacGyver | |
Born | Ibson Dana Elcar October 10, 1927 Ferndale, Michigan, U.S. |
Died | June 6, 2005 Ventura, California, U.S. | (aged 77)
Education | University of Michigan |
Years active | 1952–2002 |
Spouses | Katherine Frances Mead
(m. 1948–1950)Peggy Romano (m. 1954–1970)Marianne Torrance
(m. 1978–1995) |
Partner | Thelma Garcia |
Children | 4 |
Ibson Dana Elcar (October 10, 1927 – June 6, 2005) was an American television and film character actor. He appeared in about 40 films as well as in the 1960s television series Dark Shadows as Sheriff George Patterson and the 1980s and 1990s television series MacGyver as Peter Thornton, MacGyver's immediate supervisor at the Phoenix Foundation. Elcar had appeared in the pilot episode of MacGyver as Andy Colson[1] before assuming the role of Thornton.
Early life
[edit]Elcar was born in Ferndale, Michigan, the son of Hedwig (née Anderberg) and James Aage Elcar, a carpenter and butcher.[1] He was an alumnus of the University of Michigan where he was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. At age 18, Elcar enlisted and served a tour of duty in the United States Navy at the end of World War II.[2] He moved to New York in the 1950s to become a professional thespian.[2] He was a student of legendary acting coach Sanford Meisner. He brought this education to bear when in 1986, with fellow character actor William Lucking, he formed the Santa Paula Theater Center. Elcar sat as artistic director for six years.[citation needed]
Career
[edit]This section needs additional citations for verification. (April 2017) |
In 1962, he created the role of the hitman Ben in the U.S. premiere of Harold Pinter's The Dumb Waiter at the Cherry Lane Theater in Greenwich Village, New York City. That same year he was cast on the long running CBS daytime drama The Guiding Light as Andrew Murray, the District Attorney of Los Angeles County. Later in 1962 and 1963, due to his stint on The Guiding Light, he was cast in three episodes of the NBC sitcom Car 54, Where Are You?, and two segments of the ABC crime drama Naked City, both set in New York City. In 1966-67, Elcar played Sheriff George Patterson on the gothic soap opera Dark Shadows[3] He played Inspector Shiller, the supervisor, in the crime drama, Baretta, starring Robert Blake. As a character actor, Elcar guest-starred in many television shows, including Gunsmoke; Mannix; Ironside; Columbo; Cannon; Benson; Newhart; The Fall Guy; Scarecrow and Mrs. King; Hill Street Blues; The A-Team; Trapper John, M.D.; Matlock; Law and Order; and ER.
Elcar guest starred on Get Smart as KAOS Agent Kruger in the two-part 1969 episode of entitled "And Baby Makes Four". [citation needed]. In 1970, he appeared on CBS's Mission: Impossible and Storefront Lawyers. In 1971, he was a guest star on Ironside. He appeared on The Waltons and Kung Fu in 1973. Elcar had a regular role as Colonel Lard in the 1976–78 television military drama, Baa Baa Black Sheep, starring Robert Conrad, and he also directed four episodes of the series. He appeared in TV disaster movies such as Heatwave! (1974) and Crisis in Mid-Air (1979). He also appeared in The Sting (1973).
In 1979, Elcar played judges in Centennial and B. J. and the Bear. In 1980, he was cast in the role of "Chief" (previously played in the TV series by Edward Platt, who died in 1974) in the Get Smart feature film entitled The Nude Bomb (a.k.a. The Return of Maxwell Smart). He also co-starred in two episodes of The A-Team in 1984 and 1985. In 1987, he was cast on Matlock.
Elcar and his stunt/photography double Don S. Davis were often mistaken for each other. Elcar appeared in the hit series Knight Rider in the 1983 episode "Merchants of Death"; as a corrupt sheriff in The Incredible Hulk episode "Escape from Los Santos" (1978), in which Banner is headed to Phoenix;
In 1991, Elcar began to develop glaucoma. This condition was written into the MacGyver plotline, beginning with the sixth season, seventeenth episode "Blind Faith" and continuing through the remainder of that season and the entire seventh season, with Elcar's character developing the disease. The sixth-season finale, "Hindsight", was a clip show using Pete Thornton's upcoming eye surgery as a framing device. After MacGyver, Elcar made a guest appearance in "Virus", a 1993 episode of Law & Order, in which he played a man who blamed his diabetes-caused blindness on his former physician, and whose son murdered other patients as revenge. [citation needed]
Elcar also played a blind character on episodes of The Magic School Bus and ER. Once blind, Elcar accepted the challenge of playing Vladimir in Waiting for Godot on stage, complete with white cane. This was his theatrical swan song, and he retired in 2002 after his ER performance. [citation needed]
Personal life
[edit]Elcar married Katherine Frances Mead in 1948 and divorced her in 1950.[4] He married Peggy Romano in 1954 and divorced her in 1970.[5] Elcar had 4 children: Marin Elcar, Nora Elcar Verdon, Dane Elcar, and Chandra Elcar. His long-time partner was Thelma Garcia.[1]
Death
[edit]On June 6, 2005, Elcar died at the Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura, California from pneumonia at age 77.[1][6][7]
Filmography
[edit]Film
[edit]Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1964 | Fail Safe | Foster | |
1965 | The Fool Killer | Mr. Dodd | |
1968 | A Lovely Way to Die | Layton | |
The Boston Strangler | Luis Schubert | ||
1969 | Pendulum | Detective J.J. "Red" Thornton | |
The Maltese Bippy | Sergeant Kelvaney | ||
The Learning Tree | Kirky | ||
1970 | Zig Zag | Harold Tracey | |
Soldier Blue | Captain Battles | ||
Adam at 6 A.M. | Van Treadly | ||
1971 | Mrs. Pollifax-Spy | Carstairs | |
A Gunfight | Marv Green | ||
1972 | The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid | Allen | |
1973 | The Sting | FBI Agent Polk | Caper film set in September 1936, involving a complicated plot by two professional grifters, directed by George Roy Hill.[8] |
Dying Room Only | The Sheriff | Television film directed by Philip Leacock, adapting Richard Matheson's 1953 short story of the same name. | |
1975 | Report to the Commissioner | Chief Perna | |
1976 | W.C. Fields and Me | Agent Dockstedter |
|
Baby Blue Marine | Sheriff Wenzel | ||
St. Ives | Lieutenant Charles Blunt | ||
1979 | The Champ | Hoffmaster | |
Good Luck, Miss Wyckoff | Principal Havermeyer | ||
1980 | The Nude Bomb | Chief | |
The Last Flight of Noah's Ark | Benchley | ||
1981 | Buddy Buddy | Captain Hubris | |
Condorman | Russ |
| |
1982 | Breach of Contract | Unknown | |
1983 | Blue Skies Again | Lou | |
1984 | Jungle Warriors | D'Antoni | |
All of Me | Burton Schuyler | Fantasy comedy film directed by Carl Reiner.[10] | |
2010 | Dimitri Moisevitch | ||
1986 | Inside Out | Leo Gross | Drama film directed by Robert Taicher.[11] |
Television
[edit]Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1954 | A Time to Live | Dr. Clay | Contract role[12] |
1956 | The Big Story | Oscar | Episode: "Zeke Scher and George MacWilliams of The Denver Post" (S 8:Ep 11) |
1957 | Bernie | Episode: "Charley Wigle of The Denver Post aka Young Lovers" (S 8:Ep 26) | |
Cashmore | Episode: "Malcolm Glover of The San Francisco Examiner aka Car 83" (S 8:Ep 36) | ||
1958 | Lieutenant Alameda | Episode: "Until Proven Guilty" | |
1959 | Brenner | The Bartender | Episode: "False Witness" (S 1:Ep 1) |
The Play of the Week | Friend Ed | Episode: "Burning Bright" (S 1:Ep 3) | |
1960 | Sunday Showcase | Newspaperman | Episodes:
|
Omnibus | Guest | Episode: "He Shall Have Power" (S 8: Ep 1) | |
1961 | Armstrong Circle Theatre | Guest | Episode: "The Medicine Man" (S 12: Ep 7) |
1962 | The DuPont Show of the Week | Dennis Wilcox | Episode: "Big Deal in Laredo" (S 2:Ep 4) |
Guiding Light | District Attorney Andrew Murray | Recurring | |
1963 | Naked City | Al Boris | Episode: "Man Without a Skin" (S 4:Ep 20) |
The Armstrong Circle Theatre | Carl Rogers | Episode: "The Embezzler" (S 14:Ep 15) | |
Hallmark Hall of Fame | Jacob | Episode: "The Patriots" (S 13:Ep 2) | |
1966–1967 | Dark Shadows | Sheriff George Paterson | Recurring |
1967 | The Borgia Stick | Craigmeyer | Made for TV movie |
1968 | The Name of the Game | Hood | Episode: 1x02 "Witness" |
1968 | Mannix | Shérif Viewcola | Season 2 Episode 12 : "Fear I to Fall" |
1969 | Get Smart | Kruger | Episode: "And Baby Makes Four: Part 2" |
1970 | Room 222 | Everett Stiles | Episode: "The Lincoln Story" (S 2:Ep 3) |
1970 | Mission: Impossible | C.W. Cameron | Episode: "Flip Side" |
1972–1975 | Cannon | Lieutenant Sam Levaca / Walter Ryan / John 41 | 1x25 "Cain's Mark", 2x07 "A Long Way Down", 5x13/14 "The Star" |
1973 | Hawkins | Dr. Aronson | Episode: "Death and the Maiden" |
1973 | Columbo | Falcon | Episode: "Any Old Port in a Storm" |
1973 | The Partridge Family | Mr. Felcher | Episode: "Trial of the Partridge One" (Season 3, Episode 16) |
1976 | Law of the Land | Reverend Endicott | TV movie |
1976-1978 | Baa Baa Black Sheep | Colonel Thomas A. Lard | Actor: 36 episodes Director: 4 episodes |
1978 | The Incredible Hulk | Sheriff Harris | Episode "Escape From Los Santos" (S 2:Ep 10) |
1979 | Centennial | Judge Hart | Episode "The Winds of Death" (Ep 11) |
1980 | Galactica 1980 | Mr. Steadman | Episode "Space Croppers" (S 1:Ep 9) |
1981 | Benson | Senator Chapman | S.3, Ep.1 "Benson's appointment |
1983 | Trapper John, M.D. | Jared Vennemar | Episode: "Pasts Imperfect" (S 4:Ep 18) |
Knight Rider | Strock | Episode 26: "Merchants of Death" | |
1984 | The A-Team | George Olsen | Episode: "Double Heat" (S 3:Ep 6) |
1985 | Scarecrow and Mrs. King | Mitch Larner | Episode: "Spiderweb" (S 2:Ep 13) |
Hill Street Blues | Lieutenant Mel Taber | Episode: "Washington Deceased" (S 5:Ep 16) | |
Riptide | Harry Silverman | Episode: "Arrivederci, Baby" (S 2:Ep 21) | |
The A-Team | Judge Leonard Mordente | Episodes:
| |
There Were Times, Dear | Don Mason | Made-for-TV-Movie directed by Nancy Malone. | |
Toughlove | Max Wiley | Made-for-TV-Movie directed by Glenn Jordan.[13] | |
Trapper John, M.D. | Howard Bowman | Episode: "Billboard Barney" (S 7:Ep 9) | |
1985–1992 | MacGyver | Pete Thornton | Appeared in 85 episodes (but credited in a further 40 episodes; also appeared in the 1985 pilot as character Andy Colson)[14] |
1986 | Murder in Three Acts | Dr. Strange | Made-for-TV-Movie based on Agatha Christie's book Three Act Tragedy and directed by Gary Nelson.[15] |
1987 | Matlock | Arthur Hughes | Episode: "The Court-Martial: Part 1" (S 1:Ep 18) |
1993 | For Their Own Good | Sally's Father |
|
Law & Order | Robert Cook | Episode: "Virus" | |
1995 | The Magic School Bus | Mr. Terese | Episode: "Going Batty" (S 2:Ep 4) |
2002 | ER | Manny Kendovich | Episode: "Damage Is Done" (S 8:Ep 13) (final appearance) |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Nelson, Valerie J. (June 10, 2005). "Dana Elcar, 77; Veteran Actor Lost His Sight But Kept His Focus on Performing". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
- ^ "Actor Dana Elcar Dies at 77 50 Years of TV and Movies". Emmys.com. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
- ^ (via google news)"University of Michigan Official Publication, Volume 53". University of Michigan. 1951. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
- ^ "Paid Notice: Deaths FYBISH, PEGGY ROMANO". The New York Times. March 1, 1999. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
- ^ Associated Press Staff (June 11, 2005). "Dana Elcar, 77, 'MacGyver' Co-Star, Is Dead". The New York Times. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
- ^ Allis, Tim (May 13, 1991). "His Sight Stolen by Glaucoma, Macgyver Actor Dana Elcar Turns His Plight into a Moving Tv Plot Line". People. Time Inc. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
- ^ "The Sting". TCM database. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
- ^ "W.C. Fields and Me". TCM database. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
- ^ "All of Me". TCM database. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
- ^ "Inside Out". TCM database. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
- ^ Hyatt, Wesley (2003). Short-Lived Television Series, 1948–1978: Thirty Years of More Than 1,000 Flops. Jefferson, North Carolina and London: McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 59. ISBN 978-0786414208.
- ^ "Toughlove". TCM database. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
- ^ "Dana Elcar - IMDb". IMDb. Retrieved February 28, 2016.
- ^ "Murder in Three Acts". TCM database. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
- ^ "For Their Own Good". TCM database. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
External links
[edit]- Dana Elcar at IMDb
- Dana Elcar at the Internet Broadway Database
- Dana Elcar at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- Dana Elcar Archived 2018-02-01 at the Wayback Machine at TV.com Archived 2019-04-12 at the Wayback Machine
- In Memory of Dana Elcar
- 1927 births
- 2005 deaths
- 20th-century American male actors
- Male actors from Michigan
- American male film actors
- American male stage actors
- American male television actors
- Blind actors
- American actors with disabilities
- American blind people
- Deaths from pneumonia in California
- People from Ferndale, Michigan
- People from Santa Paula, California
- University of Michigan alumni