Norman Fell
Norman Fell | |
---|---|
Born | Norman Noah Feld March 24, 1924 |
Died | December 14, 1998 Los Angeles, California, U.S. | (aged 74)
Cause of death | Cancer |
Resting place | Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles |
Other names | Norman N. Fell |
Education | Central High School of Philadelphia |
Alma mater | Temple University |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1955–98 |
Television | Three's Company, The Ropers |
Spouse(s) | ? (2 children) Diane Weiss (1961-1973; divorced) Karen Weingard (1975-1995; divorced) |
Norman Fell[1] (born Norman Noah Feld, March 24, 1924 – December 14, 1998), was an American actor of film and television, most famous for his role as landlord Mr. Roper on the sitcom Three's Company and its spin-off, The Ropers.
Early life
Fell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 24, 1924, to a Jewish family. He attended Central High School of Philadelphia. He studied drama at Temple University after serving as a tail gunner on a B-25 Mitchell in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II.[2] He later honed his craft at The Actors Studio.[3]
Career
Aside from Fell's best-known television work, he also played minor character roles in several films, including the original Ocean's 11, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, PT 109, The Graduate, Bullitt and Catch-22 (as Sergeant Towser). He appeared alongside Ronald Reagan in Reagan's last film, The Killers.
From 1961 to 1962, he portrayed Meyer Meyer in the TV series Ed McBain's 87th Precinct.
From 1977 to 1979, he portrayed the main characters' hardnosed landlord Stanley Roper on the hit sitcom Three's Company (a role with some similarities to Mr. McCleery in The Graduate). He continued the role as the co-lead with Audra Lindley playing his wife, Helen, on The Ropers, a spin-off which lasted a year.
He won a Golden Globe Award for Best TV Actor in a Supporting Role in 1979 for Three's Company. He was nominated for an Emmy Award for his dramatic performance as the boxing trainer of Tom Jordache (Nick Nolte) in the miniseries Rich Man, Poor Man. His final television appearance was a cameo as Mr. Roper on an episode of the sitcom Ellen in 1997.
Death
Fell died of cancer in Los Angeles on December 14, 1998, and was interred at the Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery. He was 74.
Filmography
Television
Year | Title | Role | Other notes |
1954 | The Elgin Hour | Morton | Episode: Hearts and Hollywood |
Westinghouse Studio One | Juror #1 | Episode: Twelve Angry Men | |
The Philco Television Playhouse | Episode: Miss Look-Alike | ||
Goodyear Television Playhouse | Episode: The Huntress | ||
1955 | Joe & Mabel | Mike | |
1956 | The Alcoa Hour | Marvie | Episode: Finkle's Comet |
Star Tonight | Sharp | Episode: Faith and Patience | |
Playwrights '56 | Nick Zervas | Episode: Nick and Letty | |
The United States Steel Hour | Detective | Episode: Hunted | |
1959 | Hallmark Hall of Fame | Wint Selby | Episode: Ah, Wilderness! |
1960 | Johnny Staccato | Bill Lentz | Episode: The Man in the Pit |
Perry Mason | Caspar Pedley | Episode: The Case of the Mythical Monkeys | |
The Untouchables | Reiner | Episode: The Rusty Heller Story | |
The Tom Ewell Show | Episode: Salesmanship Lesson | ||
1961 | The Law and Mr. Jones | Fred Cook | Episode: Lethal Weapons |
The Tab Hunter Show | Emory Farnsworth | Episode: Me and My Shadow | |
Peter Gunn | Danny Carmichael | Episode: A Kill and a Half | |
The Aquanauts | Oliver Pappas | Episode: The Rainbow Adventure | |
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis | Cole | Episode: Be It Ever So Humble | |
Checkmate | Shep Stryker | Episode: Hot Wind in a Cold Town | |
Cain's Hundred | Driscoll | Episode: Cain's Final Judgement | |
1962 | Sam Benedict | Alex McConnell | Episode: Where There's a Will |
1961, 1962 | 87th Precinct | Det. Meyer Meyer | Episode: The Floater Episode: Man in a Jam |
1963 | The Eleventh Hour | Lionel | Episode: Five Moments Out of Time |
The Lloyd Bridges Show | Episode: Gym in January Episode: Sheridan Square | ||
The Dick Powell Show | Dr. Joseph Greer | Episode: The Last of the Big Spenders | |
Kraft Suspense Theatre | Sgt. Max Winkler | Episode: The Case Against Paul Ryker (1) Episode: The Case Against Paul Ryker (2) | |
East Side/West Side | Eddie Best | Episode: Not Bad for Openers | |
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Al Norman | Episode: The Dividing Wall | |
1964 | The Defenders | George Capp | Episode: Moment of Truth |
The Hanged Man | Gaylord Grebb | TV-Movie | |
1965 | Mr. Novak | Barney Sanders | Episode: And Then I Wrote... |
The Trials of O'Brien | Mickey the Miser | Episode: How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall? | |
Dr. Kildare | Dr. Keith Myers Arnold Vitnack |
||
The Fugitive | Lt. Germak Lt. Green |
Episode: May God Have Mercy Episode: Stranger in the Mirror | |
1964, 1965 | Ben Casey | Arnold Halbert Manny Berger |
Episode: I'll Get on My Ice Floe and Wave Goodbye Episode: Where Does the Boomerang Go? |
1966 | The Wild Wild West | Jeremiah Ratch | Episode: The Night of the Whirring Death |
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Mark Slate | Episode: The Moonglow Affair | |
A Man Called Shenandoah | Capt. Arnold Dudley | Episode: Muted Fifes, Muffled Drums | |
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre | Eddie Carr | Episode: Dear Deductible | |
Bewitched | Dr. Freud | Episode: I'd Rather Twitch Than Fight | |
1964, 1966 | Twelve O'Clock High | Lt. Canello | Episode: An Act of War Episode: The All-American |
1967 | The Invaders | Neal Taft | Episode: The Betrayed |
Ghostbreakers | Lt. P.J. Hartunain | TV Pilot | |
I Spy | Karin | Episode: The Medarra Block | |
Mannix | Daniel Brewer | Episode: Coffin for a Clown | |
1968 | That Girl | Bernie | Episode: Sixty-Five on the Aisle |
Judd, for the Defense | Harry Green | Episode: The Sound of the Plastic Axe | |
1969 | The Name of the Game | Winston Polk | Episode: A Hard Case of the Blues |
Three's a Crowd | Norman, the Elevator Operator | TV-Movie | |
1965, 1968, 1969 | The F.B.I. | Ted Cullinan Ken Haney Victor Green |
Episode: All the Streets Are Silent Episode: The Mercenary Episode: The Catalyst |
1967, 1969 | Ironside | Capt. Lauren Lt. Haines |
Episode: An Inside Job Episode: Seeing Is Believing |
1970 | Double Jeopardy | Sgt. Charles Wilentz | TV-Movie |
1971 | The Partridge Family | Mr. Bruner | Episode: The Undergraduate |
1970–1971 | Dan August | Sgt. Charles Wilentz | |
1972 | O'Hara, U.S. Treasury | Leo Walsh | Episode: Operation - Smokescreen |
The Heist | Pat Dillon | TV-Movie | |
McCloud | Lt. Ed Feldman | Episode: The Park Avenue Rustlers | |
1969, 1972 | Love, American Style | Segment: Love and the Good Deal Segment: Love and the Clinic | |
1973 | Marcus Welby, M.D. | Episode: Catch a Ring That Isn't There | |
Going Places | Mr. Shaw | TV-Movie | |
Needles and Pins | Nathan Davidson | ||
Griff | Episode: Hammerlock | ||
1974 | Medical Center | Frank | Episode: The World's Balloon |
Thursday's Game | Melvin Leonard | TV-Movie | |
1975 | Death Stalk | Frank Cody | TV-Movie |
McMillan & Wife | Allan Kovacs | Episode: Love, Honor and Swindle | |
Lucas Tanner | Abe Lydecker | Episode: The Noise of a Quiet Weekend | |
Rhoda | Dr. Henry Gerber | Episode: Chest Pains Episode: Ida's Doctor | |
Cannon | Police Lieutenant | Episode: The Games Children Play | |
Starsky and Hutch | Sammy Grovner | Episode: Shootout | |
1976 | Rich Man, Poor Man | Smitty | Mini-Series Emmy Award (nominated) |
Ellery Queen | Errol Keyes | Episode: The Adventure of the Tyrant of Tin Pan Alley | |
Risko | Max | Unsold TV-Pilot | |
The Bionic Woman | Milt Bigelow | Episode: In This Corner, Jaime Sommers | |
The Streets of San Francisco | Juror | Episode: The Thrill Killers (1) Episode: The Thrill Killers (2) | |
Richie Brockelman: The Missing 24 Hours | Mr. Brockelman | TV-Movie | |
Switch | Episode: Gaffing the Skim | ||
Executive Suite | Bernie | Episode: Re-The Sounds of Silence | |
1977 | The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams | Episode: The Redemption of Ben | |
Charlie's Angels | Sammy | Episode: Angels in Paradise | |
1974, 1977 | Police Story | Sgt. Dell Lieutenant Alfred Thornwood |
Episode: Wolf Episode: One of Our Cops is Crazy |
1978 | The Love Boat | Mr. McCoy, Julie's Father | Episode: Julie's Dilemma/Who's Who/Rocky |
1979 | Roots: The Next Generations | Bernie Raymond | Mini-Series |
1980 | Getting There | Jim | TV-Movie |
This Year's Blonde | Pat Toledo | TV-Movie | |
For the Love of It | Hall | TV-Movie | |
1979–1980 | The Ropers | Stanley Roper | |
1976–1981 | Three's Company | Stanley Roper | Golden Globe Award (won) |
1982 | Teachers Only | Ben Cooper | |
Matt Houston | Herman | Episode: Joey's Here | |
1983 | Uncommon Valor | Garvin | TV-Movie |
1984 | The Jesse Owens Story | Marty Forkins | TV-Movie |
1985 | Simon & Simon | Leo Nyquist | Episode: Facets |
1986 | Webster | Charlie | Episode: Almost Home |
The New Twilight Zone | Eddie O'Hara | Episode: The Convict's Piano | |
1985, 1986 | Crazy Like a Fox | Episode: Some Day My Prints Will Come Episode: A Fox at the Races | |
1987 | Magnum, P.I. | David Albertson | Episode: Solo Flight |
Matlock | Dr. Norman Radburn | Episode: The Doctors | |
Out of This World | Dr. Hauser | Episode: The Nightmare | |
Sledge Hammer! | Episode: They Call Me Mr. Trunk | ||
1985, 1988 | Murder, She Wrote | Vince Shackman Lt. Rupp |
Episode: Dead Heat Episode: Just Another Fish Story |
1989 | The Boys | Dave | |
Hooperman | Pete Cosgrove, Ventriloquist | Episode: Dog Day Afternoon, Morning and Night | |
The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! | Fred Van Winkle Ted Bull |
Episode: Fred Van Winkle Episode: Texas Tea | |
1990 | Good Grief | Slezar | Episode: The Good, the Bad and the Mariachis |
1993 | Flying Blind | Employer #2 | Episode: Panic in Neil's Park |
1994 | The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air | The Landlord | Episode: What's Will Got to Do With It? |
1995 | Family Reunion: A Relative Nightmare | Grandpa Joe Dooley | TV-Movie |
1996 | The Naked Truth | Himself | Episode: 5 Bully for Dave |
1997 | Ellen | Mr. Roper | Episode: Roommates |
References
- ^ Full name, a .JPG image of a memorial for Norman Noah Fell 1924-1998: AmazonAWS imagestore for Findagrave.com website. Retrieved on January 10, 2008.
- ^ Profile for Norman Fell: Findagrave.com website. Retrieved on January 10, 2008.
- ^ Garfield, David (1980). "Appendix: Life Members of The Actors Studio as of January 1980". A Player's Place: The Story of The Actors Studio. New York: MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc. p. 278. ISBN 0-02-542650-8.
External links
- 1924 births
- 1998 deaths
- American male film actors
- American Jews
- American military personnel of World War II
- American male television actors
- Central High School (Philadelphia) alumni
- Jewish American male actors
- 20th-century American male actors
- Male actors from Philadelphia
- Deaths from cancer in California
- Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe (television) winners
- Temple University alumni
- United States Army Air Forces soldiers
- Burials at Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery