Erich Anderson

Edward Erich Anderson (October 24, 1956 – June 1, 2024) was an American actor and novelist. He starred in film and on television, and was widely known for his role in the 1984 horror film Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter as Rob Dier. He also starred in the 1988 film Bat*21 and in the 2002 drama film Unfaithful.

Erich Anderson
Anderson in 2016
Born	Edward Erich Anderson (1956-10-24)October 24, 1956 Sagamihara, Japan
Died	June 1, 2024(2024-06-01) (aged 67) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other names	E. Erich Anderson
Alma mater	University of California, Santa Barbara
Occupations	Actor novelist
Years active	1983–2022
Notable work	Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter
Spouse	Saxon Trainor ​ (m. 2003)​

Background

Edward Erich Anderson was born on October 24, 1956, to an American family in Sagamihara, Japan.^[1][2] He grew up in a military family, and moved frequently throughout his childhood.^[1] He attended Hilltop High School in Chula Vista, California, and went on to study biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of California, Santa Barbara.^[1][3] He initially aspired to attend medical school, but eventually decided to pursue acting.^[1]

Career

Among Anderson's early roles was a role on Bay City Blues in 1983.^[1][3] During this time, he was cast in Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter.^[1]

Anderson appeared on over 300 television episodes through his career.^[1] Noted television appearances included the series Second Chances as Bruce Christianson, thirtysomething as Billy Sidel, and Felicity as Felicity's father. He also guest starred on Melrose Place as Courtney Thorne-Smith's psychiatrist.^[1] Anderson acted on episodes of Murder, She Wrote, CSI, CSI: Miami, Star Trek: The Next Generation in the Season 5 episode "Conundrum" as Commander Kieran MacDuff, and Boomtown as D.A. Ben Fisher. He also appeared in Season 3 Episode 19 of US drama House. He also had a role as Evan, the lead character in The Outer Limits Season 2 Episode 16 "The Deprogrammers" which co-starred Brent Spiner.

Anderson also published three novels between 2012 and 2022.^[1]

Personal life and death

Anderson was married to actress Saxon Trainor. He died from esophageal cancer at his home in Los Angeles, on June 1, 2024, at the age of 67.^[1][3]

Select filmography

Film and television roles

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1984	Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter	Rob Dier	Film
1984	Missing in Action	Masucci	Film
1986	Welcome to 18	Roscoe	Film
1987-91	Thirtysomething	Billy Sidel
1988	Patty Hearst	1st Male	Film
1988	Bat*21	Major Jake Scott	Film
1992	Star Trek: The Next Generation	Commander Kieran MacDuff	1 episode: "Conundrum"
1994	Matlock	Tom	1 episode
1994	The Glass Shield	District Attorney Ira Kern	Film
1995	The Final Cut	Talberg	Film
1996	Infinity	Gil	Film
1997	Nightwatch	Newscaster	Film
1998	Without Limits	Collin Pounder	Uncredited[citation needed]
1998	Where's Marlowe?	Detective Simmons	Film
1999	Thick as Thieves	Tenesco	Film
2000	Auggie Rose	Paul	Film
2002	Unfaithful	Bob Gaylord	Film
2006	Special	Newscaster	Film
2009	His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th	Himself	Documentary film
2013	Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th	Himself	Documentary film[4]
2016	Officer Downe	The Bartender	Film
2017	The Neighbor	Brian	Film
2018	Cold Brook	Meisenger	Film