Geoffrey Lewis (actor)
Geoffrey Lewis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Geoffrey Bond Lewis July 31, 1935 |
| Died | April 7, 2015 (aged 79) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1953–2015 |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 9, including Juliette |
Geoffrey Bond Lewis (July 31, 1935 – April 7, 2015) was an American actor.[2] He appeared in more than 200 films and television shows, and was principally known for his film roles alongside Clint Eastwood and Robert Redford.[3] He often portrayed villains or quirky characters.
Life and career
[edit]Lewis was born July 31, 1935, in Plainfield, New Jersey, but spent much of his youth in Wrightwood, California. He studied theater arts at San Bernardino Valley College for two years, then worked as a truck driver and at other odd jobs, before launching his career as an actor. He took acting classes at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City and performed off-Broadway and at regional theaters in Massachusetts.[4] He tried breaking into Hollywood in the 1960s.[5]
Lewis appeared in TV series' including: Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Mannix, Mission: Impossible, Cannon,[6] Barnaby Jones, Mork & Mindy, The Golden Girls, Lou Grant, Mama's Family, Magnum, P.I., The A-Team, Titus, Murder, She Wrote, The X-Files, Little House on the Prairie, Highway to Heaven, Starsky & Hutch, Walker, Texas Ranger and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. In 1979, he appeared in Salem's Lot. He also played opposite Polly Holliday in the Alice spin-off Flo (1980–81)[5], for which he received a Golden Globe nomination.[4] He co-starred with Fred Dryer in Land's End (1995–96).
His film credits include such movies as: Down in the Valley, The Butcher, Maverick and When Every Day Was the Fourth of July.
Lewis worked frequently with actor-director Clint Eastwood in several films, including: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, Pink Cadillac, Any Which Way You Can, Bronco Billy, Every Which Way but Loose, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot and High Plains Drifter.[5][7]
In the 1980s, Lewis was also a member of musical storytelling group Celestial Navigations with musician and songwriter Geoff Levin.[8]
Personal life
[edit]Lewis was married three times and had numerous children. Some news outlets reported he had nine surviving children, others, 10 children.[9] One of his children is actress Juliette Lewis[1], with whom he acted in, at least, two films: Blueberry and The Way of the Gun. His other children include his daughters: Brandy, Hannah and Dierdre Lewis and Emily Colombier; his sons: Peter, Lightfield, Miles and Matthew; and nine grandchildren.[10]
On April 7, 2015, he died of a heart attack at age 79. He had suffered the heart attack while working out at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital, according to his family. Miles Lewis told Variety he had been suffering from Parkinson's disease and dementia.[11]
Filmography and television (selected)
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | The Fat Black Pussycat | Man in Park | Uncredited |
| 1971 | The Todd Killings | Mr. Carpenter's son | |
| Welcome Home, Soldier Boys | Francis Rapture, Motel Owner | ||
| 1972 | Mannix | Ernest | Episode "Days Beyond Recall" |
| The Culpepper Cattle Co. | Russ | ||
| Cannon | James Bancroft | Episode "Nobody Beats the House" | |
| Mannix | Killer | Episode "Cry Silence" | |
| Mission Impossible | Lusk | Episode "Committed" | |
| Moon of the Wolf | Lawrence Burrifors | ||
| Bad Company | Hobbs | ||
| 1973 | High Plains Drifter | Stacey Bridges | |
| Barnaby Jones | Sheriff Otis Dale | Episode "Murder-Go-Round" | |
| Dillinger | Harry Pierpont | ||
| My Name Is Nobody | Leader of the Wild Bunch | ||
| 1974 | Thunderbolt and Lightfoot | Eddie Goody | |
| Macon County Line | Hamp | ||
| The Waltons | Elwood Dobbs | Episode "The Runaway" | |
| 1975 | The Great Waldo Pepper | Newt | |
| The Wind and the Lion | Samuel Gummere | ||
| Smile | Wilson-Shears | ||
| The Streets of San Francisco | |||
| S.W.A.T. | Episode “The Killing Ground” (premiere episode) | ||
| Harry O | Senator John Elton | Episode "Mayday" | |
| Lucky Lady | Captain Mosely | ||
| Starsky & Hutch | Allen "Monk" Philos | Episode "The Fix" | |
| 1976 | The Return of a Man Called Horse | Zenas | |
| Little House on the Prairie | Sam Galendar | Episode "Bully Boys" | |
| Monster Squad | The Skull | Episode "The Skull" | |
| 1977 | Barnaby Jones | Earl | Episode "The Captives" |
| Hawaii Five-O | Commander Nolan | Episode "Deep Cover" | |
| Lou Grant | Sheriff | Episode "Henhouse" | |
| 1978 | Shoot the Sun Down | Scalphunter | |
| Silver Saddle | 2 Strike Snake | ||
| Every Which Way But Loose | Orville Boggs | ||
| 1979 | Centennial | Sheriff Bogardus | |
| Tilt | Truck Driver | ||
| Human Experiments | Doctor Hans R. Kline | ||
| The Jericho Mile | Dr. Bill Janowski | ||
| Salem's Lot | Mike Ryerson | ||
| 1980 | Flo | Earl Tucker | TV series |
| Barnaby Jones | Waldon "Wally" Gannus | Episode "The Killing Point" | |
| Tom Horn | Walter Stoll | ||
| Belle Starr | Reverend Meeks | ||
| Bronco Billy | John Arlington | ||
| Heaven's Gate | Trapper Fred | ||
| Any Which Way You Can | Orville Boggs | ||
| Lou Grant | Jim Lawrence | Episode "Dogs" | |
| 1982 | I, the Jury | Joe Butler | |
| The Shadow Riders | Major Cooper Ashbury | ||
| 1983 | 10 to Midnight | Dave Dante | |
| Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Janus | ||
| Little House on the Prairie | Cole Younger | Episode "The Older Brothers" | |
| Mama's Family | Claude Cainmaker | "Alien Marriage" / "Mama's Silver" | |
| September Gun | Sheriff Johnson | ||
| 1984 | Highway to Heaven | Honest Eddie | "Another Song for Christmas" |
| Night of the Comet | Carter | ||
| 1985 | Lust in the Dust | Hard Case Williams | |
| The A-Team | Colonel Mack Stoddard | The Doctor is Out | |
| Stitches | Ralph Rizzo | ||
| 1986 | Annihilator | Professor Alan Jeffries | |
| MacGyver | David Crane | Episode "Silent World" | |
| 1987 | The Golden Girls | Chuck | Episode "Empty Nests" |
| Designing Women | Dr. Davis Jackson | Episode "Mary Jo's Dad Dates Charlene" | |
| 1988 | Time Out | Mr. Steve Smith | |
| Out of the Dark | Dennis | ||
| 1989 | Fletch Lives | KKK Leader | |
| Pink Cadillac | Ricky Z | ||
| Catch Me ...If You Can | Mr. Johnson | ||
| Tango & Cash | Captain Schroeder | Uncredited | |
| 1990 | Gunsmoke: The Last Apache | Bodine | Television film |
| Disturbed | Michael Kahn | ||
| 1991 | Double Impact | Frank Avery | |
| 1992 | The Lawnmower Man | Terry McKeen | |
| Wishman | Hitchcock the Genie | ||
| 1993 | Point of No Return | Drugstore Owner | |
| Joshua Tree | Sheriff Cepeda | ||
| The Man Without a Face | Chief Wayne Stark | ||
| Only the Strong | Kerrigan | ||
| 1994 | White Fang 2: Myth of the White Wolf | Heath | |
| National Lampoon's Last Resort | Rex Carver | ||
| Maverick | Matthew Wicker / Eugene, Banker | ||
| The Dragon Gate | Shin'ichi | ||
| Walker, Texas Ranger | Sheriff Beau Langley | Episode "Badge Of Honor" | |
| 1995 | The Janitor | Janitor | Animated short, voice |
| When the Dark Man Calls | John "Parmenter" | TV film | |
| 1996 | An Occasional @#!*% | Draper Jewett | |
| 1997 | American Perfekt | Willy | |
| Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil | Luther Driggers | ||
| 1999 | The X-Files | Alfred Fellig | Episode "Tithonus" |
| Five Aces | Sloan | ||
| Cousin Skeeter | Zeek | ||
| 2000 | The Prophet's Game | Guest #1 | |
| The Way of the Gun | Abner Mercer | ||
| Highway 395 | |||
| 2001 | Sunstorm | Browner | |
| Titus | Calvin | Episode "Dave Joins the Army" | |
| 2002 | A Light in the Darkness | Stanley Melnick | |
| The New Guy | Principal Zaylor | ||
| 2003 | Dawson's Creek | Uncle Bill | Episode "Rock Bottom" |
| Mind Games | Melvin Reeves | ||
| A Painted House | Mr. Spruill | ||
| 2004 | Blueberry | Greg Sullivan | (released in USA on DVD as Renegade) |
| Plainsong | Raymond McPheron | Hallmark TV movie | |
| 2005 | Social Guidance | Lucky Marshall | |
| Down in the Valley | Sheridan | ||
| The Devil's Rejects | Roy Sullivan | ||
| 2006 | Wild Hearts | Hank | Hallmark TV Movie |
| Fingerprints | Keeler | ||
| Wicked Little Things | Harold | ||
| Criminal Minds | Coroner | Episode "The Boogeyman" | |
| 2007 | Cold Ones | Felton Jones | |
| Moving McAllister | Crazy Old Martin | Uncredited | |
| House, MD | Older Man With Cancer | Episode "One Day, One Room" | |
| 2008 | I Am Somebody: No Chance in Hell | Lewis | |
| Thomas Kinkade's Christmas Cottage | Butch | ||
| 2009 | The Butcher | Naylor | |
| 2010 | Pickin' & Grinnin' | Cletus | |
| Miss Nobody | Mr. Ketchum | ||
| 2012 | Mommy's Little Monster | Stanley Melnick | |
| 2016 | Retreat! | Sullivan | |
| 2018 | High and Outside | Len Harding | (final film role) |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Slotnik, Daniel E. (April 9, 2015). "Geoffrey Lewis, Actor in Clint Eastwood Films, Dies at 79". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-08-08.
- ^ "Geoffrey Lewis – Filmography". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-11-03.
- ^ Reyes, Traciy (April 8, 2015). "Geoffrey Lewis, Dead: Actor Known For Robert Redford, Clint Eastwood Movies Dies At Woodland Hills Home". Inquisitr. Retrieved 2017-08-08.
- ^ a b Chawkins, Steve (April 8, 2015). "Geoffrey Lewis dies at 79; actor in several Clint Eastwood movies". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ a b c Geoffrey Lewis at IMDb
- ^ "Cannon" Nobody Beats the House (TV Episode 1972) - IMDb, retrieved 2021-09-21
- ^ Geoffrey Lewis profile, The New York Times; accessed April 8, 2015.
- ^ Barnes, Mike (April 7, 2015). "Geoffrey Lewis, Frequent Co-Star of Clint Eastwood, Dies at 79". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
- ^ Oldenburg, Ann. "Character actor Geoffrey Lewis dies at 79". USA Today. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Slotnik, Daniel E. (10 April 2015). "Geoffrey Lewis, Actor in Clint Eastwood Films, Dies at 79". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Saperstein, Pat (8 April 2015). "Geoffrey Lewis, Actor in Clint Eastwood Movies, Dies at 79". Variety. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
External links
[edit]
- 1935 births
- 2015 deaths
- American male film actors
- American male television actors
- American people of Welsh descent
- American Scientologists
- Male actors from California
- Male actors from New Jersey
- Male Spaghetti Western actors
- People from Plainfield, New Jersey
- People from San Bernardino County, California
- 20th-century American male actors
- 21st-century American male actors
- Actors from Union County, New Jersey