Dean Stockwell obit

Dean Stockwell Dies: ‘Quantum Leap’ Star Was 85

 

He was not on the list.

Former Quantum Leap star Dean Stockwell, an Oscar- and Emmy-nominated actor whose career on stage, in film and TV spanned more than 70 years, passed away in the early morning of November 7. He died peacefully at home of natural causes, a rep for the family confirmed to Deadline. He was 85.

Stockwell was born in 1936 in North Hollywood. By the time he was 7, he was on Broadway, launching a career as a child actor. He appeared in Anchors Aweigh with Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, Kim with Errol Flynn, Gentleman’s Agreement and, most notably, in the controversial 1948 movie The Boy With the Green Hair.

As a young adult, Stockwell returned to the Broadway stage in Compulsion with Roddy McDowall, who became a lifelong friend. Stockwell reprised his role in the film version and won his first of two Best Actor awards at the Cannes Film Festival. He also starred in Sons and Lovers and Long Day’s Journey Into Night with Katherine Hepburn.

Stockwell was on the verge of a career change as he got a real estate license and packed up the family to leave Hollywood when he received a phone call from Harry Dean Stanton, who convinced him to join him on the set of Wim Wenders’ film, Paris, Texas. That led to a string of memorable film roles in Blue Velvet, Dune, Married to the Mob (which earned Stockwell an Academy Award nomination), The Rainmaker and The Player.

In was in television where Stockwell delivered his signature performance, on the quirky, sci-fi TV series Quantum Leap. He played Admiral Al Calavicci opposite Scott Bakula, landing four Emmy nominations for his role. Stockwell’s series credits also include Battlestar Galactica; JAG, from Quantum Leap creator Don Bellisatio; The Tony Danza Show and NCIS: New Orleans among others.

In recent years, Stockwell, who retired from acting in 2015, did pursue a career change, making art and exhibiting around the U.S. under his full name, Robert Dean Stockwell.

Stockwell was born March 5, 1936, in the North Hollywood section of Los Angeles, California, and grew up between there and New York City. Stockwell was born into a family of entertainers. He is the younger son of Elizabeth "Betty" Stockwell and Harry Stockwell, an actor and lyric baritone singer in New York productions of Carousel and Oklahoma! as well as the voice of Prince Charming in Disney's film Snow White. His elder brother was television and film actor Guy Stockwell. His stepmother, Nina Olivette, was an actress, comedian, singer, and toe dancer in burlesque and theater in Northern America and New York.

Stockwell's father was appearing on Broadway in Oklahoma!, when he heard about a play, Innocent Voyage by Paul Osborne, that was looking for child actors. As a result, Stockwell's mother took their two sons down to audition. Both boys were successful. Stockwell's part was small and the play only had a short run, but it led to a contract with MGM.

The studio cast Stockwell in a small role in The Valley of Decision (1945), a popular melodrama. Producer Joe Pasternak gave him a bigger part in Anchors Aweigh (1945) alongside Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, in which Stockwell played the nephew of Kathryn Grayson.

The film was popular, and MGM put him in a key role in The Green Years (1946), as Robert Shannon, an Irish Catholic orphan who grows up in a Scottish Presbyterian household. It was a huge hit. He also made a brief appearance in the MGM school room during the chase sequence of Abbott and Costello in Hollywood (1945).

20th Century Fox borrowed him for Home Sweet Homicide (1946) with Peggy Ann Garner where he was billed fourth. He co-starred with Wallace Beery in The Mighty McGurk (1947) at MGM, a remake of The Champ (1931) which Beery had made previously with Jackie Cooper. He also had the lead in the short A Really Important Person (1947).

Stockwell had supporting roles in The Arnelo Affair (1947), The Romance of Rosy Ridge (1947) (playing Janet Leigh's brother), and Song of the Thin Man (1947), billed fourth as the son of William Powell and Myrna Loy's characters. Stockwell later said, "I have very positive feelings regarding both of them, they were very sweet people, especially Myrna Loy. And that cute little dog, Asta. I liked that little dog."

Nevertheless, Stockwell found the experience of being a child actor difficult overall, stating, "I didn't enjoy acting particularly, when I was young. I thought it was a lot of work. There were a few films that I enjoyed, they were comedies, they were not important films, weren't very successful, so I was always pretty much known as a serious kid. I got those kind of roles and I didn't care for them very much."

Fox borrowed him again to play Gregory Peck's son in Gentleman's Agreement (1947), a film which Stockwell "didn't like doing at all, because it was so serious. In other words, when I would find out I was going to do another movie, my mother would always bring that news to me, and the first question that I would always ask was, 'Is there a crying scene in the movie?' And there almost always was."

He played an orphaned runaway longing to go to sea in Deep Waters (1948). He was then borrowed by RKO Pictures to play the title role in The Boy with Green Hair (1948) directed by Joseph Losey, a notorious flop for the Dore Schary regime. Stockwell said that "during the production, I did feel that I was part of something that meant something to me, it was important."

Back at Fox, he was cast as Lionel Barrymore's grandson and Richard Widmark's protégé in Down to the Sea in Ships (1949), before supporting Margaret O'Brien at MGM in The Secret Garden (1949), a box office disappointment. Stockwell later described the picture as "More crying scenes! And temper tantrums! But I enjoyed very much working with Margaret, she was a very talented little actress."

In MGM's popular Stars in My Crown (1950), which he did not enjoy doing, he was billed third after Joel McCrea and Ellen Drew.

Stockwell was top billed in The Happy Years, which lost a considerable amount of money for the studio, but then played the title role in Kim (1950) alongside Errol Flynn and Paul Lukas, a big commercial success.

In 1951 he appeared in a lead role alongside Joel McCrea in a Western at Universal, Cattle Drive

Stockwell had the lead in a biker movie, The Loners (1972), the last film of Sam Katzman which Stockwell called "a mess", and horror comedy The Werewolf of Washington (1973), the script for which he said "had a brilliant edge to it. It was satirical, political, funny, witty and wonderful" but the director ruined it according to Stockwell.

n 1957, he starred as Judd Steiner in the Broadway adaptation of Compulsion, based on the Leopold and Loeb story. He later reprised his role in the 1959 film version. He and his Compulsion co-stars Orson Welles and Bradford Dillman shared the 1959 Cannes Film Award for Best Actor. Stockwell continued to work heavily in TV on such shows as Playhouse 90, Johnny Staccato, and Buick-Electra Playhouse.

Stockwell married actress Millie Perkins on April 15, 1960. The same year, he played coal miner's son Paul Morel in the British film Sons and Lovers, alongside Trevor Howard and Wendy Hiller. Stockwell later called it "a very delightful film to do". He continued to work mostly in TV including episodes of Checkmate, The DuPont Show with June Allyson, Outlaws, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Hallmark Hall of Fame (The Joke and the Valley), Bus Stop, The Twilight Zone ("A Quality of Mercy"), Alcoa Premiere, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and The Dick Powell Theatre. He appeared with Millie Perkins on Wagon Train playing the lead character in the episode "The Will Santee Story".

In 1962, Stockwell divorced Perkins, and subsequently appeared in an adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's play Long Day's Journey Into Night along with Katharine Hepburn, Ralph Richardson and Jason Robards, under the direction of Sidney Lumet. Stockwell later called it "as intense and rewarding an experience as I've had." He subsequently guest starred on Combat!, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Defenders, The Eleventh Hour, Kraft Suspense Theatre, Burke's Law, and had a six-episode arc on Dr. Kildare. Stockwell had a supporting part in the feature Rapture (1965).

During the mid-1970s, he designed the distinctive cover of Young's American Stars 'n Bars (1976).

He continued to guest for TV shows such as Police Surgeon, The Streets of San Francisco, Columbo, Joe Forrester, Three for the Road, Cannon, Ellery Queen, Police Story, McCloud, Tales of the Unexpected, Greatest Heroes of the Bible, Hart to Hart, The A Team, and Simon & Simon.

On December 15, 1981, Stockwell married his second wife, Joy Marchenko, a textiles expert who worked in Morocco. The following year, Stockwell and Neil Young together directed and appeared in Human Highway (1982). He starred in Alsino and the Condor, a Nicaraguan film, and To Kill a Stranger (1983). By this time Stockwell had moved to Taos, New Mexico, and was depressed about the state of his career, turning to real estate to pay the bills. On November 5, 1983, his wife gave birth to their son, Austin.

Those close to Stockwell describe him as a rebel who loved to act, to laugh, smoke cigars and play golf.

He is survived by his wife, Joy Stockwell; and their two children, Austin Stockwell and Sophie Stockwell.

Film

Year       Title       Role       Director(s)           Notes    Ref.

1945      The Horn Blows at Midnight                        Raoul Walsh                      

1945      The Valley of Decision    Paulie    Tay Garnett                       

1945      Anchors Aweigh                Donald Martin   George Sidney                  

1945      Abbott and Costello in Hollywood             Dean      S. Sylvan Simon                

1946      The Green Years               Robert Shannon                Victor Saville                     

1946      Home, Sweet Homicide Archie Carstairs                 Lloyd Bacon                       

1947      The Mighty McGurk        Nipper John Waters                      

1947      The Arnelo Affair              Ricky Parkson     Arch Oboler                       

1947      The Romance of Rosy Ridge         Andrew MacBean            Roy Rowland                     

1947      A Really Important Person            Billy Reilly            Basil Wrangell    Short film           

1947      Song of the Thin Man     Nick Charles, Jr.                 Edward Buzzell                 

1947      Gentleman's Agreement               Tommy Green   Elia Kazan                           

1948      Deep Waters      Donny Mitchell Henry King                         

1948      The Boy with Green Hair               Peter Fry              Joseph Losey                     

1949      Down to the Sea in Ships               Jed Hoy                Henry Hathaway                              

1949      The Secret Garden           Colin Craven       Fred M. Wilcox                 

1950      Stars in My Crown            John Kenyon      Jacques Tourneur                            

1950      The Happy Years               John Humperdink Stover               William A. Wellman                        

1950      Kim        Kim        Victor Saville                     

1951      Cattle Drive        Chester Graham, Jr.         Kurt Neumann                 

1957      Gun for a Coward             Hade Keough     Abner Biberman                              

1957      The Careless Years           Jerry Vernon      Arthur Hiller                      

1959      Compulsion        Judd Steiner       Richard Fleischer                             

1960      Sons and Lovers                Paul Morel          Jack Cardiff                        

1962      Long Day's Journey into Night     Edmund Tyrone                Sidney Lumet                    

1965      Rapture                Joseph John Guillermin                                

1968      Psych-Out           Dave      Richard Rush                     

1970      The Dunwich Horror        Wilbur Whateley              Daniel Haller                     

1971      The Last Movie      Billy the Kid   Dennis Hopper                 

1972      The Loners          Stein      Sutton Roley                     

1973      The Werewolf of Washington     Jack Whittier      Milton Moses Ginsberg                

1974      The Pacific Connection   Miguel Luis Nepomuceno                           

1975      Win, Place or Steal           Billy        Richard Bailey                   

1975      Eadweard Muybridge, Zoopraxographer                Narrator               Thom Andersen                               

1976      Citizen Soldier   Dannes Michael Elsey    

1976      One Away            Pete Bass             Sidney Hayers                   

1976      Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood     Paul Lavell           Michael Winner                               

1977      Tracks   Mark     Henry Jaglom                    

1979      She Came to the Valley Pat Westall         Albert Band                       

1979      Alsino and the Condor    Frank     Miguel Littín                      

1982      Wrong Is Right   Hacker Richard Brooks                 

1982      Human Highway               Otto Quartz        Himself                 Also writer and co-director         

1984      Paris, Texas         Walter 'Walt' Henderson              Wim Wenders                  

1984      Dune     Doctor Wellington Yueh                David Lynch                       

1985      To Kill a Stranger              John Carver        Juan López Moctezuma                

1985      Papa Was a Preacher      John       Steve Feke                         

1985      The Legend of Billie Jean               Muldaur               Matthew Robbins                           

1985      To Live and Die in L.A.    Bob Grimes         William Friedkin                               

1986      Blue Velvet         Ben        David Lynch                       

1987      The Time Guardian          Boss       Brian Hannant                  

1987      Banzai Runner   Billy Baxter          John G. Thomas                               

1987      Gardens of Stone             Capt. Homer Thomas      Francis Ford Coppola                     

1987      Beverly Hills Cop II           Chip Cain             Tony Scott                          

1988      Palais Royale      Michael Dattalico             Martin Lavut                     

1988      The Long Haul    Mario    Paulo Thiago                     

1988      The Blue Iguana                Detective Carl Strick        John Lafia                           

1988      Tucker: The Man and His Dream                Howard Hughes                Francis Ford Coppola                     

1988      Married to the Mob        Anthony "Tony the Tiger" Russo                 Jonathan Demme                            

1989      Buying Time       Detective Novak               Mitchell Gabourie                           

1990      Limit Up               Peter Oak            Richard Martini                

1990      Sandino                Captain Hatfield                Miguel Littin                      

1990      Catchfire              John Luponi        Dennis Hopper                 

1992      Friends and Enemies       Freddie                 Andrew Frank                   

1992      The Player           Andy Civella        Robert Altman                  

1994      Chasers                Salesman Stig     Dennis Hopper                 

1995      Naked Souls        Duncan                 Lyndon Chubbuck                           

1996      Mr. Wrong          Jack Tramonte   Nick Castle                         

1996      Last Resort          Grey Wolf            Lyman Dayton                  

1996      Unabomber: The True Story        Ben Jeffries         Jon Purdy                           

1997      McHale's Navy   Capt. Wallace B. Binghamton      Bryan Spicer                      

1997      Midnight Blue    Katz-Feeney       Skott Snider                       

1997      Living in Peril      William                 Jack Ersgard                       

1997      Air Force One     Defense Secretary Walter Dean Wolfgang Petersen                        

1997      The Shadow Men             Stan Mills            Timothy Bond                   

1997      The Rainmaker Judge Harvey Hale           Francis Ford Coppola                     

1998      Sinbad: The Battle of the Dark Knights     Bophisto                                             

1999      Restraining Order             Charlie Mason   Lee H. Katzin                     

1999      Water Damage Det. Frank Skoufaris                                       

1999      The Venice Project          Sen. Campbell    Robert Dornhelm                            

1999      Rites of Passage                Del Farraday       Victor Salva         Also associate producer                

2000      The Flunky          Micky    Vincent Van Patten                         

2000      They Nest            Sheriff Hobbs     Ellory Elkayem                  

2000      Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker        Tim Drake            Curt Geda            Voice

Direct-to-DVD   

2001      In Pursuit             Charles Welz      Peter Pistor                       

2001      Italian Ties           Jimmy   Ellie Kanner                       

2001      CQ          Dr. Ballard           Roman Coppola                               

2001      The Quickie         Michael                Sergey Bodrov                  

2001      Buffalo Soldiers                 General Lancaster            Gregor Jordan                   

2002      Inferno Mayor Bill Klinger             Dusty Nelson                     

2004      The Manchurian Candidate          Mark Whiting     Jonathan Demme                            

2007      The Deal              Agent Tremayne               Bryan Goeres                    

2008      Al's Beef               The Sheriff          Dennis Hauck     Short film           

2008      The Cool School                Himself                 Morgan Neville Documentary    

2013      C.O.G.   Hobbs   Kyle Patrick Alvarez                        

2013      Persecuted         Dave Wilson       Daniel Lusko                      

2014      Deep in the Darkness     Phil Deighton     Colin Theys                        

2014      Rusty Steel          Hunts    Ion Ionescu                        

2015      Entertainment   Frank     Rick Alverson                    

2016      Max Rose             Ben Tracey          Daniel Noah                       

 

Television

Year       Title       Role       Notes

1956      Matinee Theatre              N/A        4 episodes

1957–1961          Wagon Train      Will Santee / Rodney Lawrence / Juan Ortega / Jimmy Drew         4 episodes

1958      Cimarron City     Bud Tatum          Episode: "Kid on a Calico Horse"

1959      Buick-Electra Playhouse                Nick Adams         Episode: "The Killers"

1959      Johnny Staccato                Dave      Episode: "Nature of the Night"

1960      Checkmate         Roddy Stevenson             Episode: "Cyanide Touch"

1960      The DuPont Show with June Allyson         Johnny Perry      Episode: "The Dance Man"

1961      The Twilight Zone             Lt. Katell               Episode: "A Quality of Mercy"

1961      Alfred Hitchcock Presents             Billy Weaver       Episode: "The Landlady"

1962      Alfred Hitchcock Hour    David     Episode: "Annabel"

1963      Combat!               Rob Lawson        Episode: "High Named Today"

1964      Kraft Suspense Theatre Martin Rosetti   Episode: "Their Own Executioners"

1965      Dr. Kildare           Dr. Rudy Deveraux          6 episodes

1969      Bonanza               Matthew Rush   Episode: "The Medal"

1971      Mannix                 Chris Townsend                Episode: "A Step in Time"

1971      Paper Man          Avery Jensen     Television film

1971      The Failing of Raymond Raymond             Television film

1972      Adventures of Nick Carter             Freddy Duncan Pilot

1972      Columbo              Eric Wagner        Episode: "The Most Crucial Game"

1973      Mission: Impossible        Gunnar Malestrom          Episode: "The Pendulum"

1973      Night Gallery      Charlie Evans     Episode: "Whisper"

1973      The Streets of San Francisco        Paul Thomas       Episode: "Legion of the Lost"

1973      Orson Welles Great Mysteries    Jerry      Episode: "Unseen Alibi"

1975      Police Story        Ott / Detective Giacino / Detective Callan / Bennett          4 episodes

1975      Cop on the Beat                Det. Callan          Television film

1975      Columbo              Lloyd Harrington               Episode: "Troubled Waters"

1975      Cannon                 Mr.Longmen Jr Episode: "The Hero"

1975      Ellery Queen      Cliff Waddell      Episode: "The Adventure of the Blunt Instrument"

1975      Three for the Road          Ethan Crawford                 Episode: "The Trail of Bigfoot"

1976      McCloud              Pete Lancaster   Episode: "'Twas the Fight before Christmas"

1977      A Killing Affair    Kenneth Switzer               Television film

1977      Quinn Martin's Tales of the Unexpected                Richard Ayres     Episode: "No Way Out"

1978      Greatest Heroes of the Bible       Hissar    Episode: "Daniel in the Lion's Den"

1981      Born to Be Sold Marty Helick       Television film

1982      Hart to Hart        James Francis     Episode: "Harts' Desire"

1983      The A-Team        Officer Collins    Episode: "A Small and Deadly War"

1985      Miami Vice          Jack Gretsky       Episode: "Bushido"

1986      Hunter Brother Harold Hobarts Episode: "Bad Company"

1987      The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues        James McLaughlin            Television film

1988      Murder, She Wrote         Eliot Easterbrook              Episode: "Deadpan"

1989–1993          Quantum Leap Admiral Al Calavicci         97 episodes

1989      The Twilight Zone             Martin Decker   Episode: "Room 2426"

1990–1992          Captain Planet and the Planeteers            Duke Nukem      Voice

9 episodes

1991      Son of the Morning Star                General Philip Sheridan Television film

1993      Bonanza: The Return      Augustus Brandenburg Television film

1994      Vanishing Son II                Mickey Jo            Television film

1994      Justice in a Small Town Commissioner Sam Caldwell        Television film

1994      The Innocent     Capt. Jason Flaboe           Television film

1994      Madonna: Innocence Lost            Tony Ciccone      Television film

1994      In the Line of Duty: The Price of Vengeance          Jack Lowe            Television film

1994      Chicago Hope     Robert St. Clair Episode: "Songs from the Cuckoo Birds"

1994      Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Preston Carpenter           Episode: "The Rival"

1995      The Langoliers   Bob Jenkins        2 episodes

1995      The Man from Snowy River          Professor Julius Waugh 2 episodes

1995      Nowhere Man   Gus Shepherd    Episode: "You Really Got a Hold on Me"

1996      Unabomber: The True Story        Ben Jeffries         Television film

1997–1998          The Tony Danza Show    Frank DiMeo      14 episodes

1998      It's True                Mr. Murphy        Pilot

1998      Phenomenon: The Lost Archives                                Episode: ″Monopoly Men″

1999      What Katy Did   Tramp   Television film

1999      The Drew Carey Show    Hal         Episode: "Y2K, You're Okay"

2002–2004          JAG        Senator Edward Sheffield             11 episodes

2002      First Monday      Senator Edward Sheffield             3 episodes

2002      Star Trek: Enterprise       Colonel Grat       Episode: "Detained"

2002      Stargate SG-1     Doctor Kieran    Episode: "Shadow Play"

2006–2009          Battlestar Galactica         John Cavil / Number One Cylon 14 episodes

2009      The Dunwich Horror        Dr. Henry Armitage         Television film

2008      Crash     Frankie Navajo Episode: "Los Muertos"

2009      Battlestar Galactica: The Plan      John Cavil / Number One Cylon Television film

2014      Enlisted                Dan        Episode: "Vets"

2014      NCIS: New Orleans           Tom Hamilton    Episode: "Chasing Ghosts"

 

Stage

Year       Title       Role       Notes    Ref.

1943      The Innocent Voyage     John Thornton   Belasco Theatre               

1957      Compulsion        Judd Steiner       Ambassador Theatre     

 

Radio

Year       Program               Episode                Ref.

1952      Lux Radio Theatre            Kim       

1951      Suspense             Aria from Murder