Rudy Challenger obit

Actor Rudy Challenger Has Died 

He was not on the list.

Rudolph Michael Challenger (October 2, 1928 – August 22, 2012) was an African-American supporting actor who had roles in various projects over the course of his thirty-four year career in film and television in Hollywood. He appeared on such shows as Sanford and Son, Kojak, Lou Grant, and The Fall Guy. He also appeared in the 1970s blaxploitation flicks Detroit 9000 (1973) and the highly successful box office hit film Sheba Baby (1975), opposite actress Pam Grier.

The New York City-born and raised Challenger first got his acting start on the stage in the early 1960s, performing in the off-Broadway plays The Rise and Fall Of The City Of Mahagonny, Along Came A Spider, and the Jacques Levy-directed Scuba Duba, where he appeared alongside the likes of future television and film stars such as Judd Hirsch, Conrad Bain, and Jerry Orbach. The play ran for 692 performances, from October 10, 1967, to June 8, 1969. He also appeared in the Broadway productions Tambourines In Grey (1963), Do I Hear A Waltz? (1965), Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright (1962), and four-time Tony Award winning, Robert Lewis directed On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (1965) which ran for 280 performances, from October 17, 1965, to June 11, 1966. Challenger was married to veteran British actress Lisa Davis Waltz from December 31, 1973, to September 14, 1978, after almost two and a half years of separation.

Challenger retired from acting on both stage and screen in 1989. He latterly resided in Southern California with his wife, Charlotte. Challenger died in Van Nuys, California on August 22, 2012, at the age of 83.

 

Actor

Eddie Murphy and Richard Pryor in Harlem Nights (1989)

Harlem Nights

6.1

Patron

1989

 

L.A. Law (1986)

L.A. Law

7.1

TV Series

Claude Nevins

1989

1 episode

 

Angela Lansbury in Murder, She Wrote (1984)

Murder, She Wrote

7.2

TV Series

Dr. Lowell Wheatley

1989

1 episode

 

Anne Baxter, James Brolin, and Connie Sellecca in Hotel (1983)

Hotel

6.4

TV Series

Conductor

Jeffrey Wickett

1985–1987

2 episodes

 

Randy Quaid and Patti LuPone in LBJ: The Early Years (1987)

LBJ: The Early Years

7.2

TV Movie

1987

 

Tiffany Brissette in Small Wonder (1985)

Small Wonder

7.0

TV Series

Mailman

1986

1 episode

 

Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer in Hunter (1984)

Hunter

6.9

TV Series

Neighbor

1986

1 episode

 

Lee Majors and Heather Thomas in The Fall Guy (1981)

The Fall Guy

7.1

TV Series

Horatio

1986

1 episode

 

Tyne Daly and Sharon Gless in Cagney & Lacey (1981)

Cagney & Lacey

6.8

TV Series

Judge

1985

1 episode

 

Sole Survivor (1984)

Sole Survivor

6.0

Air Traffic Controller

1984

 

Days of Our Lives (1965)

Days of Our Lives

5.3

TV Series

Dr. Montgomery

1980

3 episodes

 

Edward Asner in Lou Grant (1977)

Lou Grant

7.3

TV Series

Stan Sherman

1978

1 episode

 

Lee Majors in The Six Million Dollar Man (1973)

The Six Million Dollar Man

7.1

TV Series

Richard Tynan

Senior Officer Martino

1976–1978

2 episodes

 

George Hamilton and Jane Seymour in Killer on Board (1977)

Killer on Board

6.1

TV Movie

1977

 

Jack Albertson and Freddie Prinze in Chico and the Man (1974)

Chico and the Man

6.8

TV Series

IRS Agent Mr. Davis

1976

1 episode

 

Johnny Staccato (1959)

Delvecchio

6.7

TV Series

Dr. Langerman

1976

1 episode

 

Kojak (1973)

Kojak

7.1

TV Series

Lionel Lessonbee

1976

1 episode

 

Pam Grier in 'Sheba, Baby' (1975)

'Sheba, Baby'

5.6

Andy Shayne

1975

 

Carl Franklin and Stacy Keach in Caribe (1975)

Caribe

6.8

TV Series

Dr. Grovner

1975

1 episode

 

Noah Beery Jr. and James Garner in The Rockford Files (1974)

The Rockford Files

8.2

TV Series

Dr. Watkins

1974

1 episode

 

Dennis Weaver in McCloud (1970)

McCloud

6.9

TV Series

Lt. Melton

1974

1 episode

 

Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974)

Kolchak: The Night Stalker

8.4

TV Series

Stanley Wedemyer

1974

1 episode

 

Ron Carey, Max Gail, Ron Glass, James Gregory, Steve Landesberg, Hal Linden, and Jack Soo in Barney Miller (1975)

Barney Miller

8.3

TV Series

John

1974

1 episode

 

Raymond Burr and Barbara Sigel in Ironside (1967)

Ironside

6.9

TV Series

Twilling

Doctor Stanley

1972–1974

2 episodes

 

George Peppard in Banacek (1972)

Banacek

7.7

TV Series

Lt. Trask

Security Guard

1972–1973

2 episodes

 

The Six Million Dollar Man: The Solid Gold Kidnapping (1973)

The Six Million Dollar Man: The Solid Gold Kidnapping

6.7

TV Movie

Executive

1973

 

Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson in Sanford and Son (1972)

Sanford and Son

7.9

TV Series

Mr. Menton

1973

1 episode

 

The Slams (1973)

The Slams

5.9

Minor Role

1973

 

Detroit 9000 (1973)

Detroit 9000

6.3

Aubrey Hale Clayton

1973

 

Parachute to Paradise

TV Movie

1972

 

Bernie Casey in Hit Man (1972)

Hit Man

5.7

Swift

1972

 

Peggy Lipton, Michael Cole, and Clarence Williams III in Mod Squad (1968)

Mod Squad

7.0

TV Series

Dr. Gordon

1972

2 episodes

 

Cool Breeze (1972)

Cool Breeze

5.4

Roy Harris

1972

 

The Bold Ones: The Lawyers (1969)

The Bold Ones: The Lawyers

7.1

TV Series

Judge Morganfield

1971

1 episode

 

Some Kind of a Nut (1969)

Some Kind of a Nut

4.3

Bank Executive (uncredited)

1969

 

Raymond St. Jacques in Change of Mind (1969)

Change of Mind

6.2

Howard Culver

1969