Ed Kemmer

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Ed Kemmer (October 29, 1921-November 9, 2004) was an American motion picture and television actor.

[edit] Life

Kemmer was born in Reading, Pennsylvania and served as a fighter pilot in World War II. He was shot down and sent to a POW camp. He briefly escaped from the camp for two weeks before he was recaptured.

Kemmer made his television debut in 1951, and starred in the live science fiction action-drama Space Patrol between 1951 and 1956. Kemmer made his film debut in 1956 (Behind the High Wall). He was also a stunt pilot in the film, The Hot Angel (1958), but his big screen work was mostly small roles in low budget B pictures. The bulk of Kemmer's work was for the small screen.

After Space Patrol, Kemmer was a guest star in various prime-time TV series, including the classic Twilight Zone episode Nightmare at 20,000 Feet, in which former space hero Kemmer co-starred with future space hero William Shatner. Kemmer starred for two years as an American astronaut in the soap opera The Clear Horizon, leading to the later phase of his career as a leading player in various daytime drama series.

He was married twice and had three children. He suffered a stroke on November 5, 2004, and died four days later.