David Ogden Stiers (October 31, 1942 – March 3, 2018) was an American actor, voice actor, and musician, noted for his roles in Disney animated films, the television series M*A*S*H as Major Charles Emerson Winchester III and the supernatural fiction drama The Dead Zone as Reverend Gene Purdy. He was also known for the role of District Attorney Michael Reston in several Perry Mason TV movies.
Early life and education[]
Stiers was born in Peoria, Illinois, the son of Margaret Elizabeth (née Ogden) and Kenneth Truman Stiers. He attended Urbana High School at the same time as film critic Roger Ebert. He moved to Eugene, Oregon where he graduated from North Eugene High School and briefly attended the University of Oregon. He later moved to San Francisco, where he performed with the California Shakespeare Theater, San Francisco Actors Workshop, and the improv group The Committee, whose members included Rob Reiner, Howard Hesseman and Peter Bonerz. Stiers studied at the Juilliard School (Drama Division Group 1: 1968–1972). During his studies, Stiers was mentored by actor John Houseman and would later join his City Center Acting Company.
Career[]
Early acting credits[]
Stiers first appeared in the Broadway production The Magic Show in 1974 in the minor role of Feldman. Subsequent early credits include The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Kojak, and Rhoda. Stiers also appeared in the pilot of Charlie's Angels as the team's chief back-up.
M*A*S*H (1977–1983)[]
In 1977, Stiers joined the cast of the CBS-TV sitcom M*A*S*H. As Major Charles Emerson Winchester III, Stiers filled the void created by the departure of actor Larry Linville's Frank Burns character. In contrast to the buffoonish Burns, Winchester was a well-spoken and talented surgeon who presented a different type of foil to Alan Alda's Hawkeye Pierce and Mike Farrell's B.J. Hunnicutt. Burns usually served as the butt of practical jokes instigated by Pierce or Hunnicutt, and his surgical skills were often harshly criticized. Winchester, however, presented a challenge to his colleagues' displays of irreverence because his surgical skills could match or even outshine theirs; his aristocratic manner and aversion to puerile behavior served as the target for his fellow surgeons' barbs and jokes. At times, however, Winchester could align himself with Pierce and Hunnicutt and held considerable admiration for his commanding officer, Col. Sherman T. Potter. For his portrayal of the pompous but nonetheless multifaceted Boston aristocrat, Stiers received two Emmy Award nominations.
Other television work[]
After M*A*S*H completed its run in 1983, Stiers expanded his work on television with regular guest appearances on North and South; Star Trek: The Next Generation; Murder, She Wrote; Matlock; Touched by an Angel; Wings; and Frasier, along with a recurring role in Season 1 of Two Guys and a Girl as Mr. Bauer. In 1984, he portrayed United States Olympic Committee founder, William Milligan Sloane in the NBC miniseries, The First Olympics: Athens 1896. Beginning in 1985, Stiers made his first of eight appearances in Perry Mason made-for-TV movies as District Attorney Michael Reston. He had guest appearances on ALF and Matlock. He appeared in two unsuccessful television projects, Love & Money and Justice League of America (as the Martian Manhunter). In 2002, Stiers started a recurring role as the Reverend Purdy on the successful USA Network series The Dead Zone with Anthony Michael Hall. In 2006, he was cast as the recurring character Oberoth in Stargate Atlantis.
Vocal work[]
Stiers has provided voice work for dozens of film and television projects. His first work was on one of George Lucas' earliest films, the critically acclaimed THX 1138, in which he was incorrectly billed as "David Ogden Steers". Stiers has voiced PBS documentary films such as Ric Burns' project New York: A Documentary Film, 2010 Peabody Award winner The Lord is Not on Trial Here Today and several episodes of the documentary television series The American Experience, including Ansel Adams (2002), also directed by Ric Burns. In 1992, he voiced Mr. Piccolo in the animated English-dubbed version of Porco Rosso. He collaborated with Disney on eight animated features, including 1991's Beauty and the Beast (as Cogsworth, also opening narration), 1995's Pocahontas (as Governor Ratcliffe and Wiggins), 1996's The Hunchback of Notre Dame (as the Archdeacon), 2001's Atlantis: The Lost Empire (as Mr. Harcourt), and 2002's Lilo & Stitch (as Jumba Jookiba). He lent his voice to the direct-to-video Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman (2003) as the Penguin. Stiers did voice work for Solovar in a two-part episode "The Brave and The Bold" in Justice League and voiced Solovar again in a Justice League Unlimited episode "Dead Reckoning". He voiced characters in two of Disney's animated TV series: Gryzlikoff from Darkwing Duck, and Mr. Jolly from Teacher's Pet. He voiced the king and prime minister in the 2004 short film The Cat That Looked at a King. In Hoodwinked (2005), the animated movie partly based on Little Red Riding Hood, Stiers voiced the role of Nicky Flippers, the frog detective who is dispatched to Granny's house. He voiced Pop's father, Mr. Maellard, in the animated TV series Regular Show, which debuted in 2010. Stiers had voices in several video games, including Icewind Dale, Kingdom Hearts II, Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, as Jeff Zandi in Uru: Ages Beyond Myst, and as Esher in Myst V: End of Ages.
Music[]
Stiers is the associate conductor for the Newport (Oregon) Symphony Orchestra and the Ernest Bloch Music Festival. He has guest conducted over 70 orchestras around the world, including the Oregon Mozart Players, the Vancouver Symphony, the Oregon Chamber Players, the Yaquina (Oregon) Chamber Orchestra, as well as orchestras in San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, Chicago and Toronto.
Death[]
Stiers died on March 3, 2018 at his home in Newport, Oregon at the age of 75 from bladder cancer.
Filmography[]
Genre | Year | Title | Episodes | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Film | 1971 | Drive, He Said | Pro Owner | ||
Film | 1971 | THX 1138 | Announcer | voice actor | |
TV series | 1975 | Kojak | "Money Back Guarantee" | Bryan LeBlanc / Mr. Roberts | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1976 | Charlie's Angels | "Charlie's Angels" (Pilot) | Scott Woodville | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1976 | Doc | Template:Hs"A Little Night Visitor" "And Stanley Makes Three" "Carry on Nurse, Please" "Come Scrub with Me" "EKG and Vote for Me" "Mama Doc" "The Westside Clinic and Deli" |
Stanley Moss | Template:Hs7 episodes |
TV series | 1976 | Template:HsThe Mary Tyler Moore Show | "Look at Us, We're Walking" | Mel Price | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV series | 1976 | Phyllis | Template:Hs"The Wrong Box" | Mr. Raymond | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1976 | Rhoda | "If You Want to Shoot the Rapids, You Have to Get Wet" | George | Template:Hs2 episodes total |
Film | 1977 | Oh, God! | Mr. McCarthy, District Produce Manager | ||
TV series | 1977 | This Is the Life | Template:Hs"Undertow" |
Harry | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1977 | Template:HsThe Mary Tyler Moore Show | Template:Hs"The Critic" "The Ted and Georgette Show" |
Mel Price | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV series | 1977 | Rhoda | "Nose Job" | Dr. Curt Dreiser | Template:Hs2 episodes total |
TV series | 1977 | Template:HsThe Tony Randall Show | "Case: The People Speak" | Cleaver | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1977–1983 | M*A*S*H | Major Charles Emerson Winchester III | 131 episodes total | |
Film | 1978 | Template:HsThe Cheap Detective | Captain | ||
Film | 1978 | Magic | Todson | ||
TV series | 1978 | Template:HsThe Paper Chase | Template:Hs"An Act of Desperation" | Woodrow Tullis | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV film | 1979 | Breaking Up Is Hard to Do | Howard Freed | ||
TV series | 1981 | Template:HsCBS Afternoon Playhouse | "Me and Mr. Stenner" | Peter Stenner | Template:Hs1 episode |
Film | 1981 | Harry's War | Ernie | ||
TV series | 1983 | American Playhouse | Template:Hs"The Innocents Abroad" | Doc | based on the travel book by Mark Twain |
TV miniseries | 1984 | Template:HsThe First Olympics: Athens 1896 | William Milligan Sloane | ||
TV film | 1985 | Template:HsThe Bad Seed | Emory Breedlove | ||
Film | 1985 | Better Off Dead... | Al Meyer | ||
Film | 1985 | Creator | Dr. Sid Kullenbeck | ||
Film | 1985 | Template:HsThe Man with One Red Shoe | Template:HsThe Conductor | ||
TV miniseries | 1985 | North and South | Congressman Sam Greene | Template:Hs6 episodes | |
TV film | 1986 | Mrs. Delafield Wants to Marry | Horton Delafield | ||
TV series | 1986 | Murder, She Wrote | "Corned Beef and Carnage" | Aubrey Thornton | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV miniseries | 1986 | North and South, Book II | Congressman Sam Greene | Template:Hs6 episodes | |
TV film | 1987 | Template:HsThe Alamo: Thirteen Days to Glory | Colonel Black | ||
TV film | 1987 | J. Edgar Hoover | Franklin D. Roosevelt | ||
TV series | 1987 | Matlock | "Blind Justice" | Arthur Hampton | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV film | 1987 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Lost Love | D.A. Michael Reston | ||
TV film | 1987 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Murdered Madam | D.A. Michael Reston | ||
TV film | 1987 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Notorious Nun | D.A. Michael Reston | ||
TV film | 1987 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Scandalous Scoundrel | D.A. Michael Reston | ||
TV film | 1987 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Shooting Star | D.A. Michael Reston | ||
TV film | 1987 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Sinister Spirit | D.A. Michael Reston | ||
Film | 1988 | Template:HsThe Accidental Tourist | Porter Leary | ||
TV series | 1988 | ALF | "Turkey in the Straw: Part 1" "Turkey in the Straw: Part 2" |
Flakey Pete | Template:Hs2 episodes |
Film | 1988 | Another Woman | Young Marion's Father | ||
TV series | 1988 | Matlock | Template:Hs"The Ambassador: Part 1" "The Ambassador: Part 2" |
Thomas Baldwin | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV film | 1988 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Avenging Ace | D.A. Michael Reston | ||
TV film | 1988 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Lady in the Lake | D.A. Michael Reston | ||
TV film | 1989 | Day One | Franklin D. Roosevelt | ||
TV film | 1989 | Template:HsThe Final Days | Alexander Haig | ||
TV series | 1989 | Template:HsThe Ray Bradbury Theater | Template:Hs"The Pedestrian" | Leonard Mead | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1990 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | "American Eyes" | Jack Henderson | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1990 | Married People | "Term Paper" | Dr. Cashin | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1990 | Wings | Template:Hs"A Little Nightmare Music" | Edward Tinsdale | Template:Hs1 episode |
Animated film | 1991 | Beauty and the Beast | Template:HsCogsworth / Narrator | voice actor | |
Film | 1991 | Doc Hollywood | Mayor Nick Nicholson | ||
Film | 1991 | Shadows and Fog | Hacker | ||
TV series | 1991 | Star Trek: The Next Generation | "Half a Life" | Timicin | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV film | 1991 | Wife, Mother, Murderer | John Homan | ||
Film | 1992 | Template:HsThe Last of His Tribe | Dr. Saxton Pope | ||
Animated film | 1992 | Porco Rosso | Grandpa Piccolo | voice actor; English version | |
TV series | 1993 | Jack's Place | "Forever and Ever" | Flower Man | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1994 | Template:Hshe Boys Are Back | Template:Hs"A Tree Dies in Portland" | George Spivack | Template:Hs1 episode |
Film | 1994 | Iron Will | J.W. Harper | ||
TV series | 1994 | Murder, She Wrote | Template:Hs"An Egg to Die For" | Sergei Nemiroff | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV film | 1994 | Past Tense | Dr. Bert James | ||
Film | 1995 | Bad Company | Judge Beach | ||
Film | 1995 | Mighty Aphrodite | Laius | ||
Film | 1995 | Napoleon | Koala / Owl | voice actor | |
Animated film | 1995 | Pocahontas | Governor Ratcliffe / Wiggins | voice actor | |
Film | 1995 | Steal Big Steal Little | Judge Winton Myers | ||
TV documentary series | 1995–2011 | American Experience | Narrator | voice actor; Template:Hs32 episodes | |
TV series | 1996 | Cybill | "Educating Zoey" | Val | Template:Hs1 episode |
Film | 1996 | Everyone Says I Love You | Holden's Parent | ||
Animated film | 1996 | Template:HsThe Hunchback of Notre Dame | Archdeacon | voice actor | |
TV series | 1996 | Murder, She Wrote | "Death by Demographics" | Howard Deems | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV series | 1996 | Poltergeist: The Legacy | Template:Hs"The Twelfth Cave" | Randolph Hitchcock | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV film | 1996 | To Face Her Past | Ken Bradfield | ||
Animated film | 1997 | Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas | Template:HsCogsworth | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
TV series | 1997 | Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman | "Farewell Appearance" | Theodore Quinn | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV film | 1997 | Justice League of America | J'onn J'onzz / Martian Manhunter | ||
Film | 1997 | Jungle 2 Jungle | Alexei Jovanovic | ||
Film | 1997 | Meet Wally Sparks | Governor Floyd Preston | ||
Animated TV series | 1998 | 101 Dalmatians: The Series | "Out to Launch/Prophet and Loss" | VLAD | voice actor |
TV series | 1998 | Ally McBeal | "They Eat Horses, Don't They?" | Judge Andrew Peters | Template:Hs1 episode |
Animated film | 1998 | Belle's Magical World | Template:HsCogsworth | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
Film | 1998 | Krippendorf's Tribe | Henry Spivey | ||
Animated film | 1998 | Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World | Governor Ratcliffe/Duke of Buckingham | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
TV series | 1998 | Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place | Mr. Bauer | Template:Hs13 episodes | |
Animated TV series | 1999 | Template:HsThe Angry Beavers | "Kreature Komforts/Oh, Brother?" | Byron Beaver | voice actor |
Animated film | 1999 | My Neighbors the Yamadas | Narrator | voice actor; English version | |
TV series | 1999 | Template:HsThe Outer Limits | Template:Hs"The Shroud" | Reverend Dr. Thomas Tilford | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1999 | Template:HsThe Practice | "Infected" | Judge Hollings | Template:Hs1 episode |
TV series | 1999–2000 | Love & Money | Nicholas Conklin | Template:Hs13 episodes | |
TV series | 2000 | Bull | "How Green Is Your Mail?" "Who's Afraid of Chairman Al" "Monday, Bloody Monday" "White Knight" |
Gardner Blackstone | Template:Hs4 episodes |
TV series | 2000 | Template:HsThe Trouble With Normal | "Say Cheese" | Mr. Harrington | Template:Hs1 episode |
Animated TV series | 2000 | Template:HsThe Wild Thornberrys | "Luck Be an Aye-Aye" | Karroo | voice actor; 1 episode |
Animated TV series | 2000–2002 | Teacher's Pet | Mr. Jolly / Narrator / Congressman | voice actor; 13 episodes | |
Film | 2001 | Tomcats | Dr. Crawford | ||
Animated film | 2001 | Atlantis: The Lost Empire | Fenton Q. Harcourt | voice actor | |
Film | 2001 | Template:HsThe Curse of the Jade Scorpion | Voltan | ||
Film | 2001 | Template:HsThe Majestic | Doc Stanton | ||
Animated film | 2001 | Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse | Template:HsCogsworth | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
TV film | 2001 | Template:HsMurder, She Wrote: The Last Free Man | Stanford Thornton | Murder, She Wrote TV series | |
Animated film | 2001 | Spirited Away | Kamajii | voice actor; English version | |
Animated TV series | 2001–2002 | Disney's House of Mouse | "Thanks to Minnie" "Mickey and Minnie's Big Vacation" "Donald and the Aracuan Bird" |
Template:HsCogsworth | voice actor; 3 episodes |
TV series | 2002 | Arli$$ | "It's All in the Game" | Eli | Template:Hs1 episode |
Animated TV series | 2002 | Justice League | Template:Hs"The Brave and the Bold" "The Brave and the Bold: Part II" |
Solovar / Car Owner | voice actor; 3 episodes total |
Animated film | 2002 | Lilo & Stitch | Dr. Jumba Jookiba | voice actor | |
TV series | 2002–2007 | Template:HsThe Dead Zone | Reverend Eugene 'Gene' Purdy | Template:Hs40 episodes | |
Animated film | 2003 | Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman | Penguin | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
TV series | 2003 | Frasier | "Fathers and Sons" | Dr. Leland Barton | Template:Hs1 episode |
Animated film | 2003 | Stitch! The Movie | Template:Hs Dr. Jumba Jookiba | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
TV series | 2003 | Touched by an Angel | "I Will Walk with You: Part 1" "I Will Walk with You: Part 2" |
Jones | Template:Hs2 episodes |
Animated TV series | 2003–2006 | Lilo & Stitch: The Series | Template:Hs Dr. Jumba Jookiba | Template:Hs66 episodes | |
TV film | 2004 | Cable Beach | Doc McWhirter | ||
Template:HsLive-action/animated short film | 2004 | Template:HsThe Cat That Looked at a King | Template:HsThe King / The Prime Minister | voice actor | |
Animated film | 2004 | Springtime with Roo | Narrator | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
Animated TV series | 2004 | Static Shock | "Hoop Squad" | Dr. Odium | voice actor |
Animated film | 2004 | Teacher's Pet | Mr. Jolly | voice actor | |
Animated TV series | 2005 | American Dragon: Jake Long | Template:Hs"The Talented Mr. Long" | Narrator / Crew Man | voice actor |
Animated film | 2005 | Hoodwinked! | Nicky Flippers | voice actor | |
Animated film | 2005 | Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch | Template:HsDr. Jumba Jookiba | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
TV documentary series | 2005 | Nova | Template:Hs"A Daring Flight" | Narrator | voice actor |
Animated short video | 2005 | Template:HsThe Origin of Stitch | Template:HsDr. Jumba Jookiba | voice actor; 4:35 minutes uncredited | |
Animated film | 2005 | Pooh's Heffalump Halloween Movie | Narrator | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
Animated TV series | 2006 | Justice League | "Dead Reckoning" | Solovar | voice actor; 3 episodes total |
Film | 2006 | Lady in the Water | Narrator | uncredited | |
Animated film | 2006 | Leroy & Stitch | Template:HsDr. Jumba Jookiba | voice actor; direct-to-video | |
TV series | 2006 | Stargate Atlantis | "Progeny" | Oberoth | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV series | 2006 | Template:HsWorst Week of My Life | "Pilot" | Jenson | Template:Hs1 episode; American TV series |
TV series | 2007 | Stargate Atlantis | Template:Hs"First Strike" "Lifeline" |
Oberoth | Template:Hs3 episodes total |
TV documentary series | 2007 | The Power of Choice: The Life and Ideas of Milton Friedman | Narrator | ||
TV film | 2008 | Together Again for the First Time | Max Frobisher | ||
TV series | 2010 | Dino Dan | Wandering Oaken | ||
TV series | 2011 | Leverage | Template:Hs"The Lonely Hearts Job" | Walt Whitman Wellesley IV | Template:Hs1 episode |
Animated TV series | 2011–2016 | Regular Show | 18 episodes total | Mr. Maellard | voice actor; recurring role, 18 episodes to date |
Feature Film | 2015 | Neil Stryker and the Tyrant of Time | The Admiral | actor; |
External links[]
- David Ogden Stiers on Wikipedia
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