James Callahan (actor)
| James T. Callahan | |
|---|---|
 James Callahan as seen in the opening credits of Charles in Charge | |
| Born |
James Thomas Callahan October 4, 1930 Grand Rapids, Michigan |
| Died |
August 3, 2007 (aged 76) Fallbrook, California |
| Cause of death | Esophageal cancer |
| Spouse(s) | Peggy Cannon (May 18, 1994 – August 3, 2007, his death) |
James Thomas Callahan (October 4, 1930 – August 3, 2007) was an American film and television actor who appeared in more than 120 films and television programs between 1959 and 2007. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal from 1987 to 1990 of Walter Powell on the syndicated sitcom Charles in Charge, starring Scott Baio. He played a doomed soldier/journalist in the M*A*S*H episode Sometimes You Hear the Bullet.
He also had recurring roles in two 1960s series, as Danny Adams in ABC's Wendy and Me, with a cast including George Burns, Connie Stevens, Ron Harper, and J. Pat O'Malley, and as Lieutenant O'Connell on NBC's 13-episode war drama, Convoy, with John Gavin and John Larch.
Life and career
One of three children, Callahan was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to William and Elenora Callahan on October 4, 1930. After his service in the United States Army from 1951 to 1953, he worked for the United States Postal Service. While attending school in the Midwest, he discovered acting and on the advice of a teacher, he enrolled at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington. He studied drama and graduated in the late 1950s.[1][2]
Callahan did not marry until he was sixty-three, when he wed Peggy Cannon in 1994.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | The Californians | James McFadden | Episode: "The Fur Story" |
| 1959 | Steve Canyon | Lt. Hageman | Episode: "Operation Firebee" |
| 1960 | Bourbon Street Beat | Detective | Episode: "Twice Betrayed" |
| 1960 | Dennis the Menace | Officer Holt | Episode: "Dennis Runs Away" |
| 1960 | Manhunt | Willie | Episode: "A Rose for Willie" |
| 1960 | Two Faces West | Cleve | Episode: "Prognosis: Death" |
| 1961 | National Velvet | Johnny | Episode: "The Bridegroom" |
| 1961 | The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor | Phil | Episode: "Hit and Miss" |
| 1961 | The Jim Backus Show | Lou | 2 episodes |
| 1962 | Have Gun – Will Travel | Albert Eubanks | Episode: "Don't Shoot the Piano Player" |
| 1962 | Perry Mason | Bookkeeper Fred Carlyle | Episode: "The Case of the Shapely Shadow" |
| 1962 | Route 66 | Smudge | Episode: "City of Wheels" |
| 1962 | G.E. True | Detective Floyd Wright | Episode: "Hercule Poirot" |
| 1962 | Saints and Sinners | Edgar | Episode: "Judgement in Jazz Alley" |
| 1962 | The Untouchables | Miles Henning | Episode: "The Economist" |
| 1962 | Have Gun - Will Travel | Albert Eubanks | Episode: "Don't Shoot the Piano Player" |
| 1962 | Stoney Burke | Bert | Episode: "Spin a Golden Web" |
| 1962-1964 | Dr. Kildare | Dr. Yates Atkinson | 6 episodes |
| 1963 | Combat! | Reischer | Episode: "The Squad" |
| 1963 | Empire | Redford | Episode: "A House in Order" |
| 1963 | Grindl | Mike | Episode: "Grindl and the Counterfeiters" |
| 1963 | The Eleventh Hour | Matt Hopewell | Episode: "I Feel Like a Rutabaga" |
| 1963 | The Twilight Zone | Doug Kirk | Episode: "Ninety Years Without Slumbering" |
| 1963 | The Lieutenant | Markley | Episode: "Fall from a White Horse" |
| 1964 | My Favorite Martian | Jack | Episode: "Unidentified Flying Uncle Martin" |
| 1964- 1965 |
Wendy and Me | Danny Adams | TV series |
| 1965 | Convoy | Lt. Dick O'Connell | TV series |
| 1965 | Profiles in Courage | Barnes | Episode: "General Alexander William Doniphan", with Peter Lawford as Doniphan |
| 1966 | The Fugitive | Two different roles | Episodes: "Right in the Middle of the Season" and "The White Knight" |
| 1966 | The Time Tunnel | Navy Ensign Beard | Episode: "One Way To The Moon" |
| 1967 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Sam Chapman | Episodes: "Willie and the Yank: The Mosby Raiders" and "Willie and the Yank: The Deserter" |
| 1968 | A Man Called Gannon | Bo | Feature film |
| 1969 | Adam-12 | Miles Wellman | Episode: "Log 92: Tell Him He Pushed a Little Too Hard" |
| 1969- 1970 |
The Governor & J.J. | George Callison | TV series |
| 1970 | Tropic of Cancer | Fillmore | Feature film |
| 1971 | Cade's County | Llewellyn Burton | Episode: "Safe Deposit" |
| 1972 | Lady Sings the Blues | Reg Hanley | Feature film |
| 1972 | Love, American Style | Jim | Episodes: "Love and the Confession" |
| 1973 | Love, American Style | Malcolm | Episodes: "Love and the Hand Maiden" |
| 1973 | Marcus Welby, M.D. | Episode: "A More Exciting Case" | |
| 1973 | M*A*S*H | Cpl. Tommy Gillis | Episode: "Sometimes You Hear the Bullet" |
| 1973 | The Wonderful World of Disney | Sheriff Wyndham | Episode: "The Mystery of Dracula's Castle" |
| 1974 | The Missiles of October | Dave Powers | TV Movie |
| 1975 | Cannon | Police Lieutenant | Episode: "The Victim" |
| 1976 | The Practice | Jim | Episode: "Molly and Jim" |
| 1977 | Outlaw Blues | Garland Dupree | Feature film |
| 1977 | The Rockford Files | Leslie Hartman | Episode: "New Life, Old Dragons" |
| 1978- 1979 |
The Runaways | Sgt. Hal Grady | TV series |
| 1980- 1982 |
Benson | Dr. Phillips | Episodes: "Kraus's Deadly Mistake" and "Benson in the Hospital" |
| 1980- 1982 |
Quincy, M.E. | Two different roles | Episodes: "Next Stop, Nowhere" and "New Blood" |
| 1980 | The Ropers | Tom Cummins | Episode: "Old Flames" |
| 1980 | Cloud Dancer | Walt Lawson | Feature film |
| 1981- 1982 |
Alice | Two different roles | Episodes: "Alice and the Acorns" and "Alice Strikes Up the Band" |
| 1981 | Bosom Buddies | Dr. Leonard Bob | Episode: "What Price Glory?" |
| 1981 | Inchon | General Almond | Feature film |
| 1983 | Little House on the Prairie: A Look Back to Yesterday | Doctor Houser | TV movie |
| 1983 | Remington Steele | Emmett DeVore | Episode: "Steele's Gold" |
| 1983 | Too Close for Comfort | Marvin Rowe | Episode: "Out to Lunch" |
| 1984 | The A-Team | Captain Fallone | Episode: "The Island" |
| 1984 | The Burning Bed | Berlin Hughes | TV movie |
| 1985 | A Bunny's Tale | Phil | TV movie |
| 1985 | Copacabana (musical) | Dennis Riley | TV Musical |
| 1986 | Highway to Heaven | Jack Brent | Episode: "Children's Children" |
| 1986 | Growing Pains | Uncle Bob | Episode: "Extra Lap" |
| 1987- 1990 |
Charles in Charge | Walter Powell | Seasons 2 through 5 |
| 1992 | The Golden Girls | Malcolm Gordon | Episode: "Goodbye, Mr. Gordon" |
| 1993 | Return of the Living Dead 3 | Colonel Peck | Feature film |
| 1995 | Return to Two Moon Junction | Mr. Bowman | Feature film |
| 1995 | Midnight Man | Chief Massey | Feature film |
| 1995 | A Norman Rockwell Christmas Story | Samuel Cavanaugh | TV Movie |
| 1996 | Caroline in the City | Mayor Paisley | Episode: "Caroline and the Twenty-Eight-Pound Walleye" |
| 1996 | Promised Land | Warren Dempsey | Episode: "Christmas" |
| 1997 | ER | Oliver | Episode: "Something New" |
| 1999 | The Practice | Trevor Wayne | Episode: "Oz" |
| 2000 | ER | Mr. Bristol | Episode: "Homecoming" |
| 2005 | Medium | Jury Foreman | Episode: "Judge, Jury and Executioner" |
| 2006 | Wild Hearts | Arliss - Mayor of Hope | Hallmark TV Movie |
| 2006 | 7th Heaven | Father Mulligan | Episode: "And More Secrets" |
Death
In February 2007, Callahan was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Six months later, on August 3, 2007, Callahan died at his home in Fallbrook, California.[3] He was 76 years old.