Robert H. Harris

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Robert H. Harris
As Jake Goldberg, 1954.
Born
Robert H. Hurwitz

(1911-07-15)July 15, 1911
Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
DiedNovember 30, 1981(1981-11-30) (aged 70)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other namesRobert Harris
Years active1950–1977
Spouse(s)Louise Lewis
Viola Harris (?–1981)
Children1

Robert H. Harris (born Robert H. Hurwitz; July 15, 1911 – November 30, 1981) was an American character actor.

Stage

A veteran of the Yiddish Art Theater from his teens,[1] Harris made his first Broadway appearance in 1937 in Schoolhouse on the Lot. His other Broadway credits include Xmas in Las Vegas (1965), Minor Miracle (1965), Foxy (1963), Look, Ma, I'm Dancin'! (1947) and Brooklyn, U.S.A. (1941).[2]

In 1952, Harris was the managing director of the Woodstock Playhouse in Woodstock, New York. Prior to that, he had directed repertory theater in Boston and Hollywood.[3]

Television

From 1950 on, he appeared extensively on television series, specializing in playing shady, if not outright evil characters, roles for which he excelled. From 1953–1956 he played Jake Goldberg in The Goldbergs, one of his few sympathetic roles. (His obituary distributed via United Press International says that he played the role of Jake Goldberg in 1953-1954.)[1] In 1957, Harris played the lead role in The Court of Last Resort.

He also made many guest appearances in many other TV series. These include eight appearances in Alfred Hitchcock Presents between 1956 and 1961 and seven appearances in Perry Mason between 1958 and 1965 including in the 1962 episode "The Case of the Dodging Domino". Among his seven appearances, he played the murderer three times, the murder victim once, and the defendant once. He also appeared in other television series such as Peter Gunn, 77 Sunset Strip, Gunsmoke, Ben Casey, The Asphalt Jungle, and Rawhide. He played the scheming John Sukey in "Have Gun Will Travel" S1 E26 "Birds of a Feather" (1958). Robert H. Harris also appeared in the first season of Barnaby Jones; episode titled, "Twenty Million Alibis"(May 6, 1973).

Film

He starred in the 1958 B-movie horror film How to Make a Monster and had notable appearances as a rich cuckold in Elia Kazan's 1963 film America America, and Edward Dmytryk's 1965 film Mirage, as the obsessive-compulsive consulting psychiatrist. His other film credits included roles in Bundle of Joy (1956), The Invisible Boy (1957), Peyton Place (1957), The George Raft Story (1961), Apache Uprising (1965), Valley of the Dolls (1967), How Awful About Allan (1970), The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid (1972) and The Man in the Glass Booth (1975).

Personal life and death

Harris and his wife, actress Viola Harris, had a son, Steven Lee.[3] Harris died November 30, 1981.[1]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1948 The Naked City Druggist Uncredited
1956 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Clarence Fox Season 1 Episode 18 ("Shopping For Death")
1956 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Laurence Appelby Season 1 Episode 29 ("The Orderly World of Mr. Appelby")
1956 Alfred Hitchcock Presents John Hurley Season 1 Episode 34 ("The Hidden Thing")
1956 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Albert Birch Season 2 Episode 6 ("Toby")
1956 Gunsmoke Ben Pitcher Season 2 Episode 1 ("Cow Doctor")
1956 Bundle of Joy Mr. Hargraves
1957 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Bellefontaine Season 2 Episode 39 ("The Dangerous People")
1957 The Big Caper Zimmer
1957 The Invisible Boy Professor Frank Allerton
1957 The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown Barney Baylies
1957 No Down Payment Markham
1957 Peyton Place Seth Bushwell
1958 Alfred Hitchcock Presents George C. Piper Season 3 Episode 36 ("The Safe Place")
1958 How to Make a Monster Pete Dumond
1959 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Ben Prowdy Season 5 Episode 14 ("Graduating Class")
1961 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Morty Lenton Season 6 Episode 18 ("The Greatest Monster of Them All")
1961 Operation Eichmann Minor Role Uncredited
1961 Twenty Plus Two Stanley Uncredited
1961 The George Raft Story Harvey
1961 The Lawbreakers Joe Selkin
1962 Convicts 4 Commissioner
1963 America America Aratoon Kebabian
1964 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Doctor Perrigan Season 3 Episode 11 ("Consider Her Ways")
1964 Nightmare in Chicago Officer Newman
1965 Mirage Dr. Augustus J. Broden
1965 Apache Uprising Hoyt Taylor
1967 Valley of the Dolls Henry Bellamy
1968 The Virginian (TV series) the Doctor Season 6 Episode 23 ("Stacy")
1970 How Awful About Allan Dr. Ellins TV movie
1972 The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid Wilcox
1975 The Man in the Glass Booth Dr. Weisburger

Series in detail

Appearances in Alfred Hitchcock Presents
  • "Mr. Fox" in episode: Shopping for Death, first broadcast on January 29, 1956 (episode # 1.18).
  • "Laurence Appleby" in episode: The Orderly World of Mr. Appleby, first broadcast on April 15, 1956 (episode # 1.29).
  • "John Hurley" in episode: The Hidden Thing, first broadcast on May 20, 1956 (episode # 1.34).
  • "Albert Birch" in episode: Toby, first broadcast on November 4, 1956 (episode # 2.6).
  • "LaFontaine" in episode: The Dangerous People, first broadcast on June 23, 1957 (episode # 2.39).
  • "George Piper" in episode: The Safe Place, first broadcast on June 8, 1958 (episode # 3.36).
  • "Ben Prowdy" in episode: Graduating Class, first broadcast on December 27, 1959 (episode # 5.14).
  • "Morty Lenton" in episode: The Greatest Monster of Them All, first broadcast on February 14, 1961 (episode # 6.18).
Appearances in The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
  • "Dr. Perrigan" in episode: Consider Her Ways, first broadcast on December 28, 1964 (episode # 3.11).
Appearances in The Virginian
  • "The doctor" in episode: "Stacey", first broadcast on February 2, 1968 (episode # 6.23).
Appearance in Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
  • "Dr. Eric Carlton" in episode "The Sky Is Falling (1966)"
Appearances in Perry Mason
Appearances in Gunsmoke
  • "Ben Pitcher" in episode: Cow Doctor, first broadcast on September 8, 1956 (episode # 2.1).
  • "Fred Myers" in episode: Kick Me, first broadcast on January 26, 1957 (episode # 2.18).
Appearances in The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
  • "Dr. Janos Hrandy" in episode: The Love Affair, first broadcast on March 29, 1965 (episode # 1.26).
  • "Mark Ole" in episode: The Pop Art Affair, first broadcast on October 7, 1966 (episode # 3.6).
Appearances in The Untouchables
  • "Phil Corbin" in episode: Kiss of Death Girl, first broadcast on December 8, 1960 (episode # 3.6).
Appearances in Suspense
  • episode: Escape This Night, first broadcast on February 7, 1950 (episode # 2.23).
  • episode: Dark Shadows, first broadcast on September 19, 1950 (episode # 3.4).
  • episode: The Juiceman (episode # 3.34).
  • episode: Night Drive, first broadcast on February 26, 1952 (episode # 4.24).
Appearances in Climax!
  • episode: Flight 951, first broadcast on April 21, 1955 (episode # 1.22).
  • appearing as Robert Harris playing "Porfear" in episode: No Right to Kill, first broadcast on August 9, 1956 (episode # 2.42).
  • episode: The Secret of the Red Room first broadcast on September 12, 1957 (episode # 3.44).
Appearances in Bonanza
  • Jacob J. Dormann in episode: "The Legacy", first broadcast on December 15, 1963 (episode # 5.11).

References

  1. ^ a b c "Actor Robert Harris dead at 70". The Galveston Daily News. Texas, Galveston. United Press International. December 4, 1981. p. 14. Retrieved November 8, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  2. ^ "("Robert H. Harris" search results)". Playbill Vault. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  3. ^ a b "TV Actor Is New Playhouse Head". The Kingston Daily Freeman. New York, Kingston. April 28, 1952. p. 11. Retrieved November 9, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon 
4. Demetria Fulton previewed Robert H. Harris' appearance in the first season of Barnaby Jones; episode titled, "Twenty Million Alibis"(May 6, 1973).

External links

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