Bruce Solomon

Bruce Peter Solomon (born August 12, 1944) is an American television and film star, best known for the roles of Sgt. Foley in the TV show "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" and Kenny Zuckerman in Beverly Hills, 90210.

Contents

Life and Works

Solomon was born August 12, 1944, in New York City.[1]

Television and film

Solomon starred as the title character in the short-lived 1977 television series "Lanigan's Rabbi",[2] but is best known for his portrayal of Sgt. Foley on the TV show, "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman."[1] His acting teacher, Joan Darling, one of the directors for "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman," chose him for that role, despite the fact that it was originally written as an older, middle-aged policeman.[3] When Solomon was cast in the role it was rewritten as a young, handsome, "ever-on-the-make" police officer.[3] He was also known for the role of Kenny Zuckerman in "Beverly Hills, 90210."[3]

In addition to his role of Rabbi David Small in "Lanigan's Rabbi,"[4] he would also play a rabbi in the 2000 film, "Harrison's Flowers."[5]

Solomon was part of the cast of the comedy series "E/R", which included Elliot Gould, Jason Alexander, and Mary McDonnell.[2] His many guest star appearances in other series included Barney Miller and Resurrection Boulevard, and films including The Candidate and Foul Play[2] One of his earliest movies was "Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things," in 1972.[6] He was also in the 1986 TV movie, "Maricela," about the daughter of an affluent American family who resents the daughter of the live-in maid from El Salvador.[7] The TV drama was produced for public television's "WonderWorks" series.[8]

In one of his most recent movie appearances, Solomon plays Edward Feldman, the Executive Producer of the television series "Hogan's Heroes," in the 2002 film "Auto Focus," the story of actor Bob Crane.[9] In that film, he has the well-known line to Crane, "Bob, don't try so hard. You're the hero of the show. It's named after you. Heroes don't try to be heroes. They simply are."[9] Another of his famous lines—from the film Foul Play with Goldie Hawn-- was "The dwarf...beware the dwarf."[10]

Stage

In addition to his roles in film and television, Solomon has appeared on stage in a number of plays in the Los Angeles area, including a number of productions of the Elephant Theatre Company.[2] Among the productions in which he has appeared were "Search and Destroy," "Dearboy's War," and "Greystone."[2] And, after playing a rabbi on television and film, he originated the role of Catholic priest Fr. Carney in the Hollywood Stella Adler Theatre world premiere of the play "Friends of Frank," the story of the decision to cast Marlon Brando in "On the Waterfront" rather than Frank Sinatra.[11] The play was produced in 2005.[12][13]

External links

References

  1. ^ a b IMDB.com, accessed February 17, 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d e filmbug.com, accessed February 17, 2011.
  3. ^ a b c TV.com, accessed February 17, 2011.
  4. ^ IMDB:Lanigan's Rabbi, accessed February 17, 2011.]
  5. ^ IMDB:Harrison's Flowers, accessed February 17, 2011.
  6. ^ RottenTomatoes.com, accessed February 17, 2011.
  7. ^ IMDB.com:Maricela, accessed February 18, 2011.
  8. ^ LATimes.com, December 15, 1985, accessed February 18, 2011.
  9. ^ a b SonyClassics.com, accessed February 17, 2011.
  10. ^ Turner Classic Movies, accessed Februar 17, 2011.
  11. ^ Goldstar.com, accessed February 18, 2011.
  12. ^ Theatermania.com, accessed February 18, 2011.
  13. ^ Variety review, "Friends of Frank," April 18, 2005, accessed February 18, 2011.