William Devane
William Devane | |
---|---|
Devane in The Missiles of October (1974) | |
Born |
William Joseph Devane September 5, 1939 Albany, New York, United States |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1967–present |
Spouse(s) | Eugenie Devane (1961–present; 2 children) |
Children | Joshua Devane |
William Joseph Devane (born September 5, 1939) is an American film, television and theatre actor, known for his role as Greg Sumner on the primetime soap opera Knots Landing (1983–1993) [1] and as James Heller on the Fox serial drama 24 (2005–2007), the role he reprised in Live Another Day (2014). He is also known for his supporting roles in films such as McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), Marathon Man (1976), Timestalkers (1987) and Space Cowboys (2000).
Early life
Devane was born in Albany, New York in 1939, the son of Joseph Devane, who had been Franklin D. Roosevelt's chauffeur when he was Governor of New York.[2] His father was of Irish descent and his mother had Dutch and German ancestry.[3] Devane graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.
Career
In 1966, Devane portrayed Robert F. Kennedy in the Off-Broadway spoof MacBird. He gained acclaim for his role as President John F. Kennedy in a TV movie about the Cuban Missile Crisis, The Missiles of October (1974), and again when he played blacklisted radio personality John Henry Faulk in the Emmy Award-winning TV movie Fear on Trial (1975). He is widely known for his ten years as the ambitious and hardnosed politician-turned-corporate titan Greg Sumner on Knots Landing.
In 1994, Devane appeared as Al Capone in Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman in an episode entitled "That Old Gang of Mine". He also had a recurring role on the CBS show Early Edition (1996–2000) as the lead character's father. Devane appeared in the films McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971); Lady Liberty (1971); Family Plot (1976) directed by Alfred Hitchcock; Marathon Man (1976); Rolling Thunder (1977); Yanks (1979); Testament (1983) with Jane Alexander; Timestalkers (1987) with Lauren Hutton and Klaus Kinski; Forgotten Sins (1996) with John Shea; Exception to the Rule (1997); Payback (1999); Hollow Man and Space Cowboys (2000).
Devane has played members of the Presidential Cabinet on two evening dramas. In 2004, on The West Wing, he guest-starred as the Secretary of State and potential Vice-Presidential nominee. In Season 4 (2005), he joined the cast of 24 as Secretary of Defense James Heller. He also "Special Guest Starred" as Heller in season 5 & 6. On The West Wing, Devane appeared in several scenes with Martin Sheen; they also appeared together as President John F. Kennedy and his brother Robert F. Kennedy, respectively, 30 years earlier in The Missiles of October (1974).
Later career
In 2004, Devane starred in three episodes of Stargate SG-1 (3 episodes), as President Henry Hayes and appears in the direct-to-DVD movie Stargate: Continuum. He also starred in the short-lived sitcom Crumbs and as Brian's real estate broker father in What About Brian (2006–07). In 2008, he starred in Russ Emanuel's "Chasing the Green" alongside Jeremy London, Ryan Hurst, and Robert Picardo. He also appears as former police officer turned psychologist Dr. Dix in the Jesse Stone mystery movies with Tom Selleck. In 2010, he appeared in NCIS: "Worst Nightmare" as the grandfather-who-is-not-what-he-appears-to-be, who is actually a former U.S. deep cover special operations agent, of a child kidnapped from Marine Corps Base Quantico.
In 2012, Devane began a recurring role as Grandpa Edward Grayson on the ABC primetime soap opera Revenge.[4] Devane also played the President of the United States in the Christopher Nolan film The Dark Knight Rises.
Devane reprised his role as James Heller, now President, in the limited-run series 24: Live Another Day, which premiered in May 2014.
Devane was also part of the regular cast of the sitcom The Grinder.
Devane had a cameo role as Williams, part of NASA, in Interstellar, the 2014 film.
Devane is currently a spokesman for Rosland Capital.
Personal life
Devane married Eugenie Devane in 1961. They have two children.
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1967 | In the Country | ||
1969 | Gunsmith of Williamsburg | Narrator | |
1971 | The Pursuit of Happiness | Pilot | |
The 300 Year Weekend | Tom | ||
McCabe & Mrs. Miller | Clement Samuels, Esq | ||
My Old Man's Place | Jimmy Pilgrim | ||
La mortadella | Jock Fenner | ||
1972 | Irish Whiskey Rebellion | Lieutenant Ashley | |
1975 | Report to the Commissioner | Asst. D.A. Jackson | |
1976 | Family Plot | Arthur Adamson / Edward Shoebridge | |
Marathon Man | Peter Janeway | ||
1977 | The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training | Mike Leak | |
Rolling Thunder | Major Charles Rane | ||
1979 | The Dark | Roy Warner | |
Yanks | Captain John | ||
1981 | Honky Tonk Freeway | Mayor Kirby T. Calo | |
1983 | Testament | Tom Wetherly | |
1987 | Hadley's Rebellion | Coach Ball | |
1987 | Timestalkers | Dr. Scott McKenzie | |
1990 | Vital Signs | Dr. Chatham | |
1992 | Obsessed | Ed Bledsoe | |
1994 | Lady in Waiting (aka Hollywood Madam | Lt. Barrett | |
1997 | Exception to the Rule | Lawrence Kellerman | |
1999 | Payback | Carter | |
2000 | The Man Who Used To Be Me | Sam | |
Poor White Trash | Ron Lake | ||
Space Cowboys | Eugene "Gene" Davis | ||
Hollow Man | Dr. Howard Kramer | ||
2001 | Race to Space | Roger Thornhill | |
2002 | The Badge | The Judge | |
Threat of Exposure | Col. Weldon | ||
2003 | The Wind Effect | LT Porter | |
Monte Walsh | Cal Brennan | ||
2008 | The Fall | Judge Stanley Seeban | |
2009 | The Least Among You | Alan Beckett | |
Chasing the Green | Victor Gatling | ||
2010 | The River Why | Dutch Hines | |
The Kane Files: Life of Trial | Thompson | ||
2011 | Flag of My Father | Jake | |
2012 | Red Clover | Pop O'Hara | |
The Dark Knight Rises | The President | ||
2013 | Bad Turn Worse | Big Red | |
2014 | 50 to 1 | Leonard Doc Blach | |
Interstellar | Williams |
Television
- N.Y.P.D. (3 episodes, 1967–1969)
- Medical Center (1 episode, 1970 "Ghetto Clinic")
- Young Dr. Kildare (1 episode, 1972)
- Gunsmoke (1 episode, 1973)
- The Bait (1973)
- Mannix (1 episode, 1974)
- Hawaii Five-O (1 episode, 1974)
- The Missiles of October (1974)
- Fear on Trial (1975)
- Red Alert (1977)
- Black Beauty (1978)
- From Here to Eternity (1979)
- From Here to Eternity (11 episodes, 1980)
- Red Flag: The Ultimate Game (1981)
- The Other Victim (1981)
- The Big Easy (1982)
- Jane Doe (1983)
- With Intent to Kill (1984)
- Timestalkers (1987)
- A Woman Named Jackie (1991)
- Knots Landing (269 episodes, 1983–1993)
- Phenom (21 episodes, 1993–1994)
- Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1 episode, 1994)
- For the Love of Nancy (1994)
- Falling from the Sky: Flight 174 (TV movie, 1995)
- Virus (1995)
- Night Watch (1995)
- The Monroes (8 episodes, 1995)
- Knots Landing: Back to the Cul-de-Sac (1997)
- Touched by an Angel (1 episode, 1997)
- Turks (13 episodes, 1999)
- Early Edition (5 episodes, 1997–1999)
- The Michael Richards Show (7 episodes, 2000)
- The X-Files (1 episode, "The Truth" 2002)
- A Christmas Visitor (2002, TV Movie)
- The West Wing (2 episodes, 2003)
- Stargate SG-1 (3 episodes, 2004)
- Crumbs (13 episodes, 2006)
- Jesse Stone: Death in Paradise (2006)
- What About Brian (6 episodes, 2006–2007)
- 24 (20 episodes, 2005–2007)
- Jesse Stone: Sea Change (2007)
- Jesse Stone: Thin Ice (2009)
- Jesse Stone: No Remorse (2010)
- Psych (1 episode, 2010)
- NCIS (1 episode, 2010)
- Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost (2011)
- Good Morning, Killer (2011)
- Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt (2012)
- Revenge (2 episodes, 2012)
- 24: Live Another Day (12 episodes, 2014)
- The Grinder (22 episodes, 2015)
- Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise (2015)
References
- ↑ "Biography for William Devane". IMDb.com.
- ↑ Weinraub, Bernard (October 15, 1995). "COVER STORY;They Told Devane He'd Be Typecast As a Kennedy (But Which One?) – New York Times". The New York Times.
- ↑ http://www.timesunion.com/entertainment/article/William-Devane-talks-heritage-Irish-and-Albany-4443304.php
- ↑ '24' star William Devane joins ABC's 'Revenge', Digital Spy, Dec 14 2011, Morgan Jeffery
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to William Devane. |