Edward Platt

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Edward C. Platt (February 14, 1916 – March 19, 1974) was a character actor best known for his portrayal of "The Chief" in the 1965-69 NBC (moved to CBS for the 1969-70 season) television series Get Smart. Though he will be forever remembered as Don Adams' foil on the popular Mel Brooks/Buck Henry spy series, Platt had been around for decades prior to landing that famous comedy role.

Born in Staten Island, New York, he inherited an appreciation for music on his mother's side. He majored in romantic languages at Princeton University but eventually switched to music at Juilliard after deciding on a career in opera. Instead, however, he became a band vocalist with Paul Whiteman and Orchestra, then performed in a few stage musicals including "The Mikado" and "The Pirates of Penzance" before World War II interrupted things.

He served as a radio operator with the army, his deep, resonant voice quite suitable to the medium. He would find himself on radio again in post war years.

A number of musical comedy roles also came his way. In 1947, he made it to Broadway in the musical "Allegro." Star José Ferrer took an interest in him while they were appearing in "The Shrike" on Broadway in 1952 and took him to Hollywood to reprise his role in the 1955 film version of The Shrike. Later that year, Platt appeared in the Academy Award nominated classic Rebel Without a Cause with James Dean, Natalie Wood, and Sal Mineo. This led to a plethora of film and TV offers where his rich voice, balding maturity, stern intensity and pragmatic air served him well over the years, playing a slew of professional or shady types in crime dramas and war pictures.

In the late 1960s he focused on his secret agent role on the "Get Smart" series, finding occasional guest spots in its aftermath. Married twice and the father of four, Platt died suddenly of a heart attack in 1974 at the age of 58.