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Walter Stacy Keach Jr. (born June 2, 1941) is an American actor, active in theatre, film and television since the 1960s. Keach first distinguished himself in Off-Broadway productions and remains a prominent figure in American theatre across his career, particularly as a noted Shakespearean.[1][2][3] He is the recipient of several theatrical accolades: four Drama Desk Awards, two Helen Hayes Awards and two Obie Awards for Distinguished Performance by an Actor. He was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his performance in Arthur Kopit's 1969 production of Indians.[3]
Stacy Keach | |
|---|---|
 Keach in 2007 | |
| Born | Walter Stacy Keach Jr. June 2, 1941 Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| Citizenship |
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| Education | |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1964–present |
| Spouses |
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| Children | 2 |
| Parents |
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| Relatives | James Keach (brother) |
| Website | gostacykeach |
In film, he garnered critical acclaim for his portrayal of a washed-up boxer in the John Huston film Fat City (1972) and appeared as Sergeant Stedenko in Cheech & Chong's films Up in Smoke (1978) and Nice Dreams (1981).[4] His other notable film credits include Brewster McCloud (1970), Doc (1971), The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972), Luther (1973), Slave of the Cannibal God (1979), The Ninth Configuration (1980), The Long Riders (1980), Escape from L.A. (1996), American History X (1998), The Bourne Legacy (2012) and Nebraska (2013).
Keach is known to television audiences for his portrayal of private detective Mike Hammer on the television series Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer (1984–1987), for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe, as Ken Titus on the sitcom Titus (2000–2002) and as the narrator of the crime documentary series American Greed (2007–present). He also had recurring roles on series such as Prison Break (2005–2007), Two and a Half Men (2010) and Blue Bloods (2016–). He won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Primetime Emmy Award for playing Ernest Hemingway on the television miniseries Hemingway (1988).
He is an inductee of the Theatre Hall of Fame and was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2019. He is the son of theatre director Stacy Keach Sr., and the older brother of actor James Keach.
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Keach was born in Savannah, Georgia, to Mary Cain (née Peckham), an actress, and Stacy Keach Sr., a theatre director, drama teacher, and actor with dozens of television and theatrical film credits billed as "Stacy Keach."[5] The younger Keach was born with a cleft lip and a partial cleft of the hard palate, and he underwent numerous operations as a child. Throughout his adult life he has usually worn a mustache to hide the scars. He is now the honorary chairman of the Cleft Palate Foundation and advocates for insurance coverage for surgeries.[6]
He graduated from Van Nuys High School in June 1959, where he was class president,[7] then earned two BA degrees at the University of California, Berkeley (1963): one in English, the other in Dramatic Art. He earned a Master of Fine Arts at the Yale School of Drama in 1966 and was a Fulbright Scholar at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.[8]
While studying in London, Keach met Laurence Olivier, his acting hero.[9]
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Theatre
Keach played the title role in MacBird!, an Off-Broadway anti-war satire by Barbara Garson staged at the Village Gate in 1966. In 1967, he was cast, again Off-Broadway, in George Tabori's The Niggerlovers with Morgan Freeman in his acting debut. To this day, Freeman credits Keach with teaching him the most about acting.[10] In 1967, Keach also starred in We Bombed in New Haven, a play by Joseph Heller that premiered in New Haven at the Yale Repertory Theatre and later was produced on Broadway. Keach first appeared on Broadway in 1969 as Buffalo Bill in Indians by Arthur Kopit.[11] Early in his career, he was credited as Stacy Keach Jr. to distinguish himself from his father. He played the lead actor in The Nude Paper Sermon, an avant-garde musical theatre piece for media presentation, commissioned by Nonesuch Records by composer Eric Salzman.
Keach has won numerous awards, including Obie Awards, Drama Desk Awards and Vernon Rice Awards. In the early 1980s, he starred in the title role of the national touring company of the musical Barnum, composed by Cy Coleman.[12] In 1991 and 1996 he won Helen Hayes Awards for Outstanding Actor for his work in Richard III and Macbeth with the Shakespeare Theatre Company. In 1998, he was one of the three characters in a London West End production of 'Art' with David Dukes and George Wendt.
In 2006, Keach performed the lead role in Shakespeare's King Lear at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago. In 2008, he played Merlin in Lerner and Loewe's Camelot, done with the New York Philharmonic. In the summer of 2009, Shakespeare Theatre Company remounted the production of King Lear at Sidney Harman Hall in Washington, D.C., for which Keach won another Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Actor.[13][14]
He has played the title role in two separate productions of Hamlet.[15]
In 2008 and 2009, Keach portrayed Richard M. Nixon in the U.S. touring company of the play Frost/Nixon.[13]
On December 16, 2010, Keach began performances as patriarch Lyman Wyeth in the off-Broadway premiere of Jon Robin Baitz' acclaimed new play Other Desert Cities. The production transferred to Broadway's Booth Theatre, where it opened November 3, 2011.
Keach is a founding member of L.A. Theatre Works. He has performed leads in many productions with the company, including 'Willy Loman' in Death of a Salesman and 'John Proctor' in The Crucible.[16]
He was scheduled to return to Broadway in December 2014 in the revival of Love Letters at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre alongside Diana Rigg, but the production closed before Keach and Rigg began their runs.[17]
Keach was scheduled to play Ernest Hemingway in Jim McGrath's one-man play Pamplona at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago from May 30 to June 25, 2017. Keach appeared in previews of Pamplona, May 19 through May 28, and was well received by audiences. On opening night, he suffered a mild heart attack on stage and the next day, Keach had bypass surgery.[18] On June 2, the Goodman Theatre announced that the entire run would be canceled after Keach's doctors advised a period of rest and recuperation.[19]
Keach returned to the role at The Goodman one year later, July 10 through August 18, 2018. Keach said it would fulfill an obligation "to the play, to the city and to myself".[20][21]
Film
Keach played a rookie policeman in The New Centurions (1972), opposite George C. Scott. That year he also starred in Fat City, a boxing film directed by John Huston. He was the first choice for the role of Damien Karras in the 1973 movie The Exorcist, but he did not accept the role. He went on to play Kane in the 1980 movie The Ninth Configuration, written and directed by Exorcist author William Peter Blatty; this role was itself intended for Nicol Williamson.
Keach was narrator of the 1973 Formula One racing documentary Champions Forever, The Quick and the Dead by Claude du Boc. He played Cheech & Chong's police department nemesis Sgt. Stedenko in Up in Smoke and Nice Dreams. He also appeared as Barabbas in Jesus of Nazareth. In 1978, he played a role of explorer and scientist in Slave of the Cannibal God, co-starring former Bond girl Ursula Andress.[13] The film became a cult favorite as a "video nasty". Another one of his screen performances was as Frank James (elder brother of Jesse) in The Long Riders (1980). His brother James played Jesse James. Keach starred in the 1981 Australian thriller Roadgames alongside Jamie Lee Curtis. In 1982, Keach starred in Butterfly with Pia Zadora and Orson Welles. In the 1993 movie, Body Bags he played a man who is obsessed with hair.
He portrayed a white supremacist in American History X, alongside Edward Norton and Edward Furlong. In Oliver Stone's 2008 biographical film W., Keach portrays a Texas preacher whose spiritual guidance begins with George W. Bush's AA experience, but extends long thereafter.
Keach also starred in the TV film Ring of Death playing a sadistic prison warden who runs an underground fight club where prisoners compete for their lives. He had also starred in the movie Planes as Skipper Riley, main character Dusty Crophopper's flight instructor. He reprised the role in Planes: Fire & Rescue.
In 2012, Keach had a supporting role in The Bourne Legacy, and in the 2013 Alexander Payne film Nebraska. In the 2017 film Gotti, Keach played the part of Neil Dellacroce, the underboss of the Gambino crime family.
Television
Keach's first-ever experience as a series regular on a television program was playing the lead role of Lieutenant Ben Logan in Caribe in 1975.[22] He played Barabbas in 1977's Jesus of Nazareth, and portrayed Jonas Steele, a psychic and Scout of the United States Army in the 1982 CBS miniseries, The Blue and the Gray. He later portrayed and is best known as Mike Hammer in the CBS television series Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer and The New Mike Hammer from 1984 to 1987. He returned to the role of Hammer in Mike Hammer, Private Eye, a new syndicated series that aired from 1997 to 1998. In 1988, he starred as Ernest Hemingway in the made-for-TV movie Hemingway.[23] He also hosted segments for the Encore Mystery premium cable network in the late 1990s and 2000s.
In 2000, he played Ken Titus, the sarcastic, chain-smoking, five-times-divorced functional alcoholic father of the title character in Fox's sitcom Titus. Cast members of Titus have commented they enjoyed working with Keach because he would find a way to make even the driest line funny.[24]
Keach lent his voice to The Simpsons episodes "Hungry, Hungry Homer", "Old Yeller-Belly", "Marge and Homer Turn a Couple Play", and "Waiting for Duffman", portraying Duff Brewery President Howard K. Duff VIII, and the Batman Beyond episode "Lost Soul" as Robert Vance, a deceased businessman resurrected as an artificial intelligence. He also guest starred in a 2005 episode of the sitcom Will & Grace, and had a recurring role as Warden Henry Pope in the Fox drama Prison Break. Keach was in an episode of Perry Mason.
In 2006, he acted in the mini-series Blackbeard, made for the Hallmark Channel. It was directed by Kevin Connor, and starred Angus Macfadyen, with Richard Chamberlain, David Winters, and Jessica Chastain.[25] In 2011, Keach co-starred as "Pops", the father of the main character in the short lived boxing drama series Lights Out.
In November 2013, Keach appeared on the Fox comedy series Brooklyn Nine-Nine, in the episode "Old School".[26] In February 2015, Keach started guest appearing in NCIS: New Orleans as Cassius Pride, father of NCIS Agent Dwayne Pride.[27] He played the elderly father Bob on the 2016 sitcom Crowded. Beginning in 2016, Keach occasionally appears on CBS's drama Blue Bloods as Archbishop Kevin Kearns. In 2017, Keach started guest appearing in Man with a Plan as Joe Burns, father of Adam Burns (played by co-star Matt LeBlanc) and was later promoted to series regular status for season three. He played the role of Robert Vesco, Raymond Reddington's former mentor and criminal muse, on the TV series The Blacklist.
Narrator
Keach narrated several episodes of Nova, National Geographic, and various other informational series. From 1989 to 1992, he was host of the syndicated informational reenactment show, Missing Reward, which had a similar format to the popular Unsolved Mysteries at the time. From 1992 to 1995, he became the voice-over narrator for the paranormal series Haunted Lives: True Ghost Stories.[citation needed]
Beginning in 1999, he served as the narrator for the home video clip show World's Most Amazing Videos, which is now seen on Spike TV. He currently hosts The Twilight Zone radio series. Keach can also be heard narrating the CNBC series American Greed, from its 2007 inception to the 2022-23 season. For the PBS series American Experience, he narrated The Kennedys, among others.[citation needed]
In 2008, Keach once again reprised his famous role as Mike Hammer in a series of full-cast radio dramatizations for Blackstone Audio. (He also arranged and performed the music for the audio dramas. His wife, Malgosia Tomassi, also starred in the dramas, playing Maya Ricci, a yoga instructor.) Keach has also read many of Mickey Spillane's original Mike Hammer novels as Audiobooks.
Keach played the role of John in The Truth & Life Dramatized Audio Bible, a 22-hour audio version of the RSV-CE translation of the New Testament.[28] He also voiced both Job and Paul the Apostle in The Word of Promise, a 2007 dramatic audio presentation based on the New King James Version.[29]
On January 6, 2014, Keach became the official voice of The Opie and Anthony Channel on SiriusXM Satellite Radio (Sirius Channel 206, XM Channel 103).[citation needed] Keach is the voice of CNBC's American Greed, now on their thirteenth season.
Music
Keach is an accomplished pianist and composer. He sang backing vocals on the Judy Collins hit song "Amazing Grace". He is also credited with co-writing a song, "Easy Times", on the Judy Collins live album Living. He provided music for the film Imbued, directed by Rob Nilssen. He has also completed composing the music for the Mike Hammer audio radio series, "Encore For Murder", written by Max Collins, directed by Carl Amari, and produced by Blackstone Audio.
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Keach has been married four times: to Kathryn Baker in 1964, to Marilyn Aiken in 1975, to Jill Donahue in 1981, and to Małgorzata Tomassi in 1986.[30] He has two children by adoption with Małgorzata: son Shannon Keach and daughter Karolina Keach. In 2015, Keach became a Polish citizen.[31]
His brother James is an actor and television director.
Keach is a Roman Catholic.
Legal issues
In 1984, Customs & Excise officers arrested Keach at Heathrow Airport for importation of cocaine. Keach pleaded guilty, and served six months at Reading Prison.[32] Keach stated that his time in prison, which he described as the lowest point of his life, and the friendship he formed with a priest during that time led to his conversion to Catholicism. Subsequently, he and his wife met Pope John Paul II. His wife, Małgorzata Tomassi, had attended the same school in Warsaw as the pope.[33]
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In 2015, Keach was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.[34] In 2019, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.[35]
| Title | Run | Role | Original venue | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Comedy of Errors | 07/21/1962-08/30/1962 | Antipholus of Syracuse | Oregon Shakespeare Festival | [36] | |
| Henry IV, Part 2 | 07/22/1962-08/31/1962 | Earl of Westmorland | [36] | ||
| Coriolanus | 07/24/1962-09/02/1962 | Senator | [36] | ||
| Henry V | 07/27/1963-09/05/1963 | Henry V | [36] | ||
| Romeo and Juliet | 07/25/1963-09/07/1963 | Mercutio | [36] | ||
| Love's Labour's Lost | 07/26/1963-09/08/1963 | Lord Berowne | [36] | ||
| Hamlet | 06/16/1964-07/04/1964 | Marcellus / First Player | Delacorte Theater, Off-Broadway | [37] | |
| Danton's Death | 10/21/1965-11/27/1965 | Performer | Vivian Beaumont Theater, Broadway | [38] | |
| The Country Wife | 12/09/1965-01/23/1966 | Mr. Horner | [38] | ||
| The Caucasian Chalk Circle | 03/24/1966-06/18/1966 | Performer | [38] | ||
| Annie Get Your Gun | 08/23/1966-08/27/1966 | Sitting Bull | Williamstown Theatre Festival | [39] | |
| You Can't Take It with You | 07/01/1966-07/09/1966 | Boris Kolenkhov | [39] | ||
| Incident at Vichy | 07/12/1966-07/16/1966 | Prinz von Berg | [39] | ||
| The Lion in Winter | 07/19/1966-07/23/1966 | Richard | [39] | ||
| Marat/Sade | 07/26/1966-07/30/1966 | Jean-Paul Marat | [39] | ||
| MacBird! | 02/22/1967-01/21/1968 | MacBird | Village Gate, Off-Broadway | [37] | |
| The Niggerlovers | 10/01/1967-10/22/1967 | August / The Man | Orpheum Theatre, Off-Broadway | [37] | |
| We Bombed in New Haven | 12/04/1967-12/23/1967 | Captain Starkey | Yale Repertory Theatre, New Haven | [40] | |
| Henry IV, Part 1 | 01/29/1968-02/10/1968 | John Falstaff | [40] | ||
| Henry IV, Part 2 | [40] | ||||
| Three Sisters | 03/04/1968-03/16/1968 | Baron Tusenbach | Yale Repertory Theatre, New Haven | Also composer | [40] |
| Henry IV, Part 1 | 06/11/1968-08/03/1968 | John Falstaff | Delacorte Theater, Off-Broadway | [37] | |
| Henry IV, Part 2 | 06/18/1968-08/03/1968 | [37] | |||
| King Lear | 11/07/1968-02/12/1969 | Edmund | Vivian Beaumont Theater, Broadway | [38] | |
| Peer Gynt | 07/08/1969-08/02/1969 | Peer Gynt | Delacorte Theater, Off-Broadway | [37] | |
| Indians | 05/01/1969-06/08/1969 | Buffalo Bill | Arena Stage, Washington D.C. | [40] | |
| 10/13/1969-01/03/1970 | Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Broadway | [38] | |||
| Long Day's Journey into Night | 04/21/1971-08/22/1971 | James Tyrone Jr. | Promenade Theatre, Off-Broadway | [37] | |
| Hamlet | 01/21/1972-02/12/1972 | Prince Hamlet | Long Wharf Theatre, New Haven | [40] | |
| 05/20/1972-07/16/1972 | Delacorte Theater, Off-Broadway | [37] | |||
| Deathtrap | 01/15/1979-09/02/1980 | Sidney Bruhl | Music Box Theatre, Broadway | Replacement | [38] |
| Barnum | 05/12/1981-08/22/1981 | P. T. Barnum | U.S. tour | [38] | |
| Sleuth | 05/03/1988-08/08/1988 | Milo Tindle | [38] | ||
| Richard III | 09/11/1990-11/10/1990 | Richard | Folger Theater, Washington D.C. | [40] | |
| Solitary Confinement | 11/08/1992-11/29/1992 | Richard Jannings | Nederlander Theatre, Broadway | [38] | |
| The Kentucky Cycle | 09/11/1993-10/07/1993 | Various | Kennedy Center, Washington D.C. | [40] | |
| 11/14/1993-12/12/1993 | Royale Theatre, Broadway | [38] | |||
| An Inspector Calls | 05/07/1996-08/04/1996 | Arthur Birling | U.S. tour | [38] | |
| A Christmas Carol | 12/09/2003-12/27/2003 | Ebenezer Scrooge | Cutler Majestic Theatre, Boston | [40] | |
| Finishing the Picture | 09/21/2004-11/07/2004 | Phillip Ochsner | Goodman Theatre, Chicago | [40] | |
| King Lear | 09/09/2006-10/22/2006 | Lear | [40] | ||
| White Christmas | 07/08/2007-07/15/2007 | General Henry Waverly | Benedum Center, Pittsburgh | [40] | |
| A Love Like No Other | 10/02/2008-10/26/2008 | Malibu Playhouse, Malibu | Also playwright | [40] | |
| Frost/Nixon | 09/30/2008-05/10/2009 | President Richard Nixon | U.S. tour | [38] | |
| King Lear | 06/16/2009-07/19/2009 | Lear | Sidney Harman Hall, Washington D.C. | [40] | |
| Other Desert Cities | 01/13/2011-02/27/2011 | Lyman Wyeth | Vivian Beaumont Theater, Broadway | [37] | |
| 11/03/2011-06/17/2012 | Booth Theatre, Broadway | [38] | |||
| Death of a Salesman | 03/16/2011-03/20/2011 | Willy Loman | Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles | [40] | |
| Uncle Vanya | 10/17/2013-10/20/2013 | Ivan Petrovich Voinitsky | James Bridges Theater, Los Angeles | [40] | |
| Henry IV, Part 1 | 03/24/2014-06/07/2014 | John Falstaff | Sidney Harman Hall, Washington D.C. | [40] | |
| Henry IV, Part 2 | 04/01/2014-05/08/2014 | [40] | |||
| Love Letters | 09/13/2014-12/14/2014 | Andrew Makepeace Ladd III | Brooks Atkinson Theater, Broadway | [41] | |
| Pamplona | 05/19/2017-05/30/2017 | Ernest Hemingway | Goodman Theatre, Chicago | [40] | |
| 07/10/2018-08/10/2018 | [40] |
Other stage credits
- The Devil's Disciple (1963, Yale Drama School) - Richard Dudgeon[42]
- Julius Caesar (1965, London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art) - Brutus[42]
- King Lear (1965, London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art) - Earl of Kent[42]
- Oh, What a Lovely War! (1969, Long Wharf Theatre) - Master of Ceremonies
- Cyrano de Bergerac (1978, Long Beach Theatre Festival) - Cyrano de Bergerac
- Hughie (1980, Royal National Theatre) - Erie Smith[43]
- Idiot's Delight (1986, American National Theater and Academy) - Harry Van[44]
- The Crucible (1988, L.A. Theatre Works) - John Proctor[45]
- The King and I (1989, Benedum Center) - Mongkut[40]
- Camelot (1991, Benedum Center) - King Arthur[40]
- Stieglitz Loves O'Keefe (1995, Morris A. Mechanic Theatre) - Alfred Stieglitz[46]
- Macbeth (1995, Folger Shakespeare Festival) - Macbeth
- Art (1998, London)
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Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter | Blount | Credited as 'Stacy Keach Jr.' |
| 1970 | End of the Road | Jacob Horner | |
| The Traveling Executioner | Jonas Candide | ||
| Brewster McCloud | Abraham Wright | ||
| 1971 | Doc | Doc Holliday | |
| 1972 | Fat City | Billy Tully | |
| The New Centurions | Roy Fehler | ||
| The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean | Bad Bob | ||
| 1973 | Luther | Martin Luther | |
| 1974 | The Gravy Train | Calvin | |
| Watched! | Mike Mandell / 'Sonny' | ||
| 1975 | Conduct Unbecoming | Cpt. Harper | |
| 1976 | Street People | Charlie Hanson | |
| The Killer Inside Me | Lou Ford | ||
| 1977 | The Squeeze | Jim Naboth | |
| The Duellists | Narrator | Voice | |
| 1978 | The Greatest Battle | Maj. Mannfred Roland | |
| Gray Lady Down | Cpt. Bennett | ||
| Slave of the Cannibal God | Prof. Edward Foster | ||
| Up in Smoke | Sgt. Stedenko | ||
| Two Solitudes | Huntley McQueen | ||
| 1980 | The Ninth Configuration | Col. Vincent "Killer" Kane | |
| The Long Riders | Frank James | Also writer and executive producer | |
| 1981 | Roadgames | Patrick Quid | |
| Nice Dreams | Sergeant Stedenko | ||
| 1982 | Butterfly | Jess Tyler | |
| That Championship Season | James Daley | ||
| 1990 | Class of 1999 | Dr. Bob Forest | |
| Milena | Jesenski | ||
| False Identity | Ben Driscoll / Harlan Errickson | ||
| 1993 | Sunset Grill | Harrison Shelgrove | |
| Batman: Mask of the Phantasm | Carl Beaumont, Phantasm | Voice[47] | |
| 1994 | Raw Justice | Deputy Mayor Bob Jenkins | |
| New Crime City | Wynorski | ||
| 1996 | Escape from L.A. | Cdr. Mac Malloy | |
| Prey of the Jaguar | The Commander | ||
| 1997 | The Sea Wolf | Cpt. Wolf Larsen | |
| Future Fear | Gen. Wallace | ||
| 1998 | American History X | Cameron Alexander | |
| Sea Devils | Cpt. Savienko | ||
| 1999 | Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return | Dr. Michaels | |
| Fear Runs Silent | Mr. Hill | ||
| 2000 | Unshackled | Warden Kelso | |
| Icebreaker | Bill Foster | ||
| Militia | George Armstrong Montgomery | ||
| Mercy Streets | Tom | ||
| 2001 | Sunstorm | General John Parker | |
| 2003 | When Eagles Strike | General Thurmond | |
| 2004 | The Hollow | Claus Van Ripper | |
| Caught in the Headlights | Mr. Jones | ||
| Galaxy Hunter | 3V3 | ||
| El Padrino: The Latin Godfather | Governor Lancaster | ||
| 2005 | Man with the Screaming Brain | Dr. Ivanov | |
| Keep Your Distance | Brooks Voight | ||
| 2006 | Come Early Morning | Owen Allen | |
| Jesus, Mary and Joey | Jack O'Callahan | ||
| 2007 | Honeydripper | Sheriff | |
| 2008 | W. | Earle Hudd | |
| 2009 | Chicago Overcoat | Ray Berkowski | |
| The Boxer | Joe | ||
| 2011 | Weather Wars | Marcus Grange | |
| Cellmates | Warden Merville | ||
| Jerusalem Countdown | Jackson | ||
| 2012 | The Great Chameleon | Max | |
| The Bourne Legacy | Adm. Mark Turso | ||
| 2013 | Ooga Booga | ||
| Planes | Skipper Riley | Voice[47] | |
| Nebraska | Ed Pegram | ||
| 2014 | Planes: Fire & Rescue | Skipper Riley | Voice[47] |
| Sin City: A Dame to Kill For | Alarich 'Kraut' Wallenquist | ||
| If I Stay | Grandpa | ||
| 2015 | Truth | Lt. Col. Bill Burkett | |
| 2016 | Cell | Charles Ardai | |
| Gold | Clive Coleman | ||
| 2017 | Girlfriend's Day | Gundy | |
| 2018 | Gotti | Aniello Dellacroce | |
| 2020 | Survival Skills | The Narrator | |
| 2025 | Jay Kelly | Post-production[48] | |
| TBA | Lost & Found in Cleveland | Completed |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Channing | The Colleague | Episode: "The Face in the Sun" |
| 1967 | The Winter's Tale | Autolycus | Television film |
| 1968 | Macbeth | Banquo | |
| 1971 | NET Playhouse | Wilbur Wright | Episode: "The Wright Brothers" |
| 1973 | Incident at Vichy | — | Television play, director |
| The Man of Destiny | Napoleon Bonaparte | Television film | |
| 1974 | All the Kind Strangers | Jimmy Wheeler | |
| Great Performances | Chorus | Episode: "Antigone" | |
| 1975 | Caribe | Lieutenant Ben Logan | 13 episodes |
| 1976 | Dynasty | Matt Blackwood | Television film |
| Six Characters in Search of an Author | — | Television play, director | |
| Lincoln | Politician | Episode: "Crossing Fox River" | |
| 1977 | Jesus of Nazareth | Barabbas | 2 episodes |
| 1978 | The Fitzpatricks | Unnamed Character | Episode: "The New Fitzpatrick" |
| Saturday Night Live | Man In Cold As Ice | Episode: "Christopher Lee/Meatloaf" | |
| 1980 | A Rumor of War | Major Ball | 2 episodes |
| 1982 | The Blue and the Gray | Jonas Steele | 3 episodes |
| 1983 | Princess Daisy | Prince Alexander 'Stash' Valensky | 2 episodes |
| Murder Me, Murder You | Mike Hammer | Television film | |
| 1984 | Mistral's Daughter | Julien Mistral | 4 episodes |
| More Than Murder | Mike Hammer | Television film | |
| 1984–1987 | Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer | 48 episodes | |
| 1986 | The Return of Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer | Television film | |
| Intimate Strangers | Dr. Jeff Bierston | ||
| 1988 | Hemingway | Ernest Hemingway | 4 episodes |
| 1989 | The Forgotten | Adam Roth | Television film |
| Mike Hammer: Murder Takes All | Mike Hammer | ||
| 1989–1992 | Missing: Reward | Himself (host) | Documentary series |
| 1991 | The Mysteries of the Dark Jungle | Col. Edward Corishant | 3 episodes |
| Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolis | CPT. Charles B. McVay III | Television film | |
| 1992 | Lincoln | George McClellan | Voice, television film |
| Haunted Lives: True Ghost Stories | Narrator | Voice, documentary | |
| Revenge on the Highway | Claude Sams | Television film | |
| 1993 | Rio Diablo | 'Kansas' | |
| Body Bags | Richard Coberts | ||
| In the Heat of the Night | Wade Hatton | 2 episodes | |
| 1994 | Against Their Will: Women in Prison | Jack Devlin | Television film |
| Texas | Sam Houston | ||
| 1995 | Young Ivanhoe | Pembrooke | |
| Amanda & the Alien | Emmitt Mallory | ||
| 1996 | The Pathfinder | Compte Du Leon | |
| 1997 | Promised Land | Ned Bernhart | Episode: "Downsized" |
| Legend of the Lost Tomb | Dr. William Bent | Television film | |
| Murder in My Mind | Cargill | ||
| 1997–1998 | Mike Hammer, Private Eye | Mike Hammer | 26 episodes; also executive producer |
| 1997, 2003 | Touched by an Angel | Ty Duncan / Maury Hoover | 2 episodes |
| 1998 | Planet of Life | Narrator | Voice, 7 episodes |
| 1998–2001 | Rugrats | Marvin Finster | Voice, 3 episodes[47] |
| 1999 | Batman Beyond | Robert Vance | Voice, episode: "Lost Soul"[47] |
| 2000 | The Courage to Love | Jean Baptiste | Television film |
| The Outer Limits | Cord Van Owen | Episode: "The Gun" | |
| 2000–2002 | Titus | Ken Titus | 54 episodes |
| 2001 | Lightning: Fire from the Sky | Bart Pointdexter | Television film |
| The Zeta Project | Roland De Fleures | Voice, episode: "The Next Gen"[47] | |
| 2001–2016 | The Simpsons | Various | Voice, 6 episodes |
| 2002 | The Santa Trap | Max Hurst | Television film |
| Girls Club | Harold Falcon | Episode: "Book of Virtues" | |
| 2003 | Miracle Dogs | C.W. Aldrich | Television film |
| How Do You Change Your Parents? | Richard Henderson | ||
| Frozen Impact | Pete Crane | ||
| 2003–2005 | What's New, Scooby-Doo? | Harold Lind / The Mayor | Voice, 2 episodes |
| 2005 | George Lopez | Blaine McNamara | Episode: "George Stare-oids Down Jason" |
| Will & Grace | Wendell Schacter | Episode: "From Queer to Eternity" | |
| 2005–2007 | Prison Break | Henry Pope | 23 episodes |
| 2006 | Desolation Canyon | Samuel Kendrick | Television film |
| Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America | Secretary Collin Reed | ||
| Blackbeard | Captain Benjamin Hornigold | ||
| Death Row | John Elias | ||
| 2007 | ER | Mike Gates | 3 episodes |
| 2007–present | American Greed | Narrator | Voice, 198 episodes |
| 2008 | Lone Rider | Robert Hattaway | Television film |
| Ring of Death | Warden Golan | ||
| 2009 | Meteor | Sheriff Crowe | |
| The Nanny Express | Reverend McGuiness | ||
| 2010 | Two and a Half Men | Tom | 4 episodes |
| 2011 | Lights Out | 'Pops' Leary | 13 episodes |
| Bored to Death | Bergeron | 2 episodes | |
| Mater's Tall Tales | Skipper | Voice, episode: "Air Mater" | |
| Hindenburg: The Last Flight | Edward Van Zandt | Television film | |
| 2012 | 30 Rock | Himself | Episode: "Murphy Brown Lied to Us" |
| 2012–2013 | The Neighbors | Dominick Weaver | 3 episodes |
| 2013 | Sean Saves the World | Lee Thompson | 3 episodes |
| 1600 Penn | Senator Frohm Thoroughgood | 2 episodes | |
| Anger Management | Ray | Episode: "Charlie and Deception Therapy" | |
| Brooklyn Nine-Nine | Jimmy Brogan | Episode: "Old School" | |
| 2014 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Orion Bauer | Episode: "American Disgrace"[49] |
| Enlisted | Patrick | Episode: "Vets" | |
| Jennifer Falls | Mike | Episode: "Jennifer's Song" | |
| The Exes | Bill Drake | Episode: "An Officer and a Dental Man" | |
| 2015 | Hot in Cleveland | Alex | 2 episodes |
| Full Circle | Bud O'Rourke | 8 episodes | |
| 2015–2019 | NCIS: New Orleans | Cassius Pride | 6 episodes |
| 2016 | Crowded | Bob Moore | 13 episodes |
| Blunt Talk | Arthur Bronson | 2 episodes | |
| Ray Donovan | Marty 'The Texan' Swanbeck | 2 episodes | |
| 2016–2024 | Blue Bloods | Archbishop Kevin Kearns | 11 episodes |
| 2017 | Tokyo Trial | Narrator | Voice, 4 episodes |
| 2017–2020 | Man with a Plan | Joe Burns | 48 episodes |
| 2019–2023 | The Blacklist | Robert Vesco | 6 episodes |
| 2020 | Kidding | Himself | Episode: "The Death of Fil" |
Critics awards
| Association | Year | Category | Work | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Film Critics Circle | 1972 | Best Actor | Fat City | Won[b] |
| Outer Critics Circle | 2011 | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play | Other Desert Cities | Nominated |
| Seattle Film Critics Society | 2014 | Best Ensemble Cast | Nebraska | Nominated |
Film festivals
| Festivals | Year | Category | Work | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horrible Imaginings Film Festival | 2020 | Best Actor in a Feature Film | Survival Skills | Won |
| Oldenburg International Film Festival | 2007 | Star of Excellence | — | Won |
| Honorary Award | — | Won | ||
| San Diego International Film Festival | 2003 | Lifetime Achievement Award | — | Won |
| St. Louis International Film Festival | 2010 | Lifetime Achievement Award | — | Won |
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