Warren Frost

Warren Frost
Frost in an episode of Twin Peaks
Born	(1925-06-05)June 5, 1925 Newburyport, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	February 17, 2017(2017-02-17) (aged 91) Middlebury, Vermont, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Stage, television, film actor
Spouse	Virginia Calhoun ​ (m. 1949)​
Children	Mark, Lindsay, Scott
Relatives	Lucas Giolito (grandson)

Warren Frost (June 5, 1925 – February 17, 2017) was an American actor. His work was mainly in theater, but he worked in films and television sporadically from 1958. He is known for television roles on Matlock and Seinfeld, and particularly as Doctor Hayward on Twin Peaks, a series co-created by his son Mark Frost. He has also appeared in TV movies, such as Psycho IV: The Beginning (1990) and The Stand (1994).

Early life

Frost was born in 1925 in Newburyport, Massachusetts, and was raised in the Bronx and Essex Junction, Vermont.

At the age of 17, he enlisted in the United States Navy during World War II, and served aboard the destroyer escort USS Borum (DE-790) in Europe during the Normandy landings. At the age of 21, he enrolled as an English major at Middlebury College in Vermont under the G.I. Bill.

Career

Frost spent much of his career in the Twin Cities, teaching at the University of Minnesota and serving as artistic director of the Chimera Theater in St. Paul. He had a small yet memorable role in the film adaptation of Slaughterhouse Five (1972), which was shot in the Minneapolis area.

Frost's Hollywood work in shows such as Twin Peaks and Matlock was essentially his second career, following his retirement from teaching and stage direction. He was aged 63 when his son Mark, co-creator of Twin Peaks with David Lynch, cast him in the role of Dr. Will Hayward. Frost appeared in thirty episodes of the series, and reprised the role in the feature film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me although his scenes were cut. His appearance in Twin Peaks led to a recurring role in the legal drama Matlock.

In the Seinfeld TV series he played Henry Ross, father of Susan Ross, George Costanza's fiancée. His onscreen wife in Seinfeld was played by his Twin Peaks co-star Grace Zabriskie.

Frost returned to play Doc Hayward in the revived series of Twin Peaks, which began airing in May 2017.

Personal life

Frost married Mary Virginia Calhoun in 1949 and was the father of novelist, television screenwriter, and producer Mark Frost, actress Lindsay Frost, and writer Scott Frost. He was the grandfather of baseball player Lucas Giolito and actor Casey Giolito. He also has a grandson from his oldest son Mark.

Frost died at his home in Middlebury, Vermont, on February 17, 2017, following a long illness at the age of 91.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1958	War of the Colossal Beast	Operator (Switchboard)
1959	The Mating Game	Secretary	Uncredited
1959	It Started with a Kiss	Lt. McCann
1972	Slaughterhouse-Five	Driver
1992	Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me	Dr. Will Hayward
1993	Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit	Archdiocese Person #1
2014	Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces	Dr. Will Hayward

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1957	Goodyear Television Playhouse	Gene Marley	Episode: "The Princess Back Home"
1957	Death Valley Days	John Chapman	Episode: "The Calico Dog"
1957	The Gray Ghost	Capt. Leonard Wood	Episode: "The Missing Colonel"
1958	Navy Log	Shugart	Episode: "The Butchers of Kapsan"
1958	The Silent Service	Capt. Edward H. Mikes	Episode: "The Story of the U.S.S. Aspro"
1958	Studio One	The Desk Clerk	Episode: "The Desperate Age"
1958	The Gale Storm Show	Jerry	Episode: "You Gotta Have Charm"
1958	The Danny Thomas Show	Man In Dream	Episode: "The Reunion"
1958–1959	Playhouse 90	Various roles	3 episodes
1960	Perry Mason	Infrared Camera Technician	Episode: "The Case of the Nimble Nephew"
1988	Tattingers	Albert Philcox	Episode: "Death and Taxis"
1988–1989	As the World Turns	Jarred Carpenter	5 episodes
1989	Quantum Leap	US Senator	Episode: "Honeymoon Express"
1989	Beauty and the Beast	Paul Malloy	Episode: "Though Lovers Be Lost..."
1989–1991	Twin Peaks	Dr. Will Hayward	30 episodes
1990	So Proudly We Hail	Horace Gabler	Television film
1990	Psycho IV: The Beginning	Dr. Leo Richmond
1990	L.A. Law	George Melten	Episode: "New Kidney on the Block"
1991	False Arrest		Television film
1991	Get a Life	Senator	Episode: "Health Inspector 2000"
1991	Civil Wars	Judge Adelman	Episode: "Have Gun, Will Unravel"
1991–1995	Matlock	Billy Lewis	18 episodes
1992	Intruders	Dr. Holman	2 episodes
1992	Murphy Brown	Dave	Episode: "A Year to Remember"
1992	Life Goes On	Judge Harper	Episode: "Love Letters"
1992–1998	Seinfeld	Henry Ross	5 episodes
1994	The Byrds of Paradise	Rex Palmer
1994	The Stand	George Richardson	2 episodes
1994	The Larry Sanders Show	Jerry Sanders	Episode: "Would You Do Me a Favor?"
1995	Grace Under Fire	Man at House	Episode: "No Money Down"
1995	Murder One	Judge Neil Platner	Episode: "Chapter Six"
1996	The John Larroquette Show	Professor Nolfi	Episode: "The Master Class"
2017	Twin Peaks	Doc Will Hayward	Episode: "Part 7"

External links

• Warren Frost at IMDb