Bruce Peter Solomon is an American film and television actor, best known for the roles of Sgt. Foley in the TV show ''
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman
''Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'' is an American satirical soap opera that aired in daily weeknight syndication from January 1976 to July 1977. The series follows the titular Mary Hartman, an Ohio housewife attempting to cope with various bizarre ...
'' and Kenny Zuckerman in ''
Beverly Hills, 90210
''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to by its short title, ''90210'') is an American teen drama television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling under his production company Spelling Television. The series ran fo ...
''.
Television and film
Solomon starred as the title character in the short-lived 1977 television series ''
Lanigan's Rabbi
''Lanigan's Rabbi'' is an American crime drama series that aired on NBC from January 30 to April 24, 1977.
Synopsis
Based upon a series of novels by Harry Kemelman, the series stars Art Carney as Police Chief Paul Lanigan, who fights crime in ...
'',
[filmbug.com](_blank)
accessed February 17, 2011. but is best known for his portrayal of Sgt. Foley on the TV show, ''
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman
''Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'' is an American satirical soap opera that aired in daily weeknight syndication from January 1976 to July 1977. The series follows the titular Mary Hartman, an Ohio housewife attempting to cope with various bizarre ...
''. His acting teacher,
Joan Darling
Joan Darling (née Kugell; born April 14, 1935, Boston, Massachusetts, United States) is an American actress, film and television director and a dramatic arts instructor.
Biography
Born Joan Kugell in Boston, Darling began her career with the ...
, 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.
[TV.com](_blank)
accessed February 17, 2011. When Solomon was cast in the role it was rewritten as a young, handsome, "ever-on-the-make" police officer.
He was also known for the role of Kenny Zuckerman in ''Beverly Hills, 90210''.
In addition to his role of Rabbi David Small in ''Lanigan's Rabbi'', he would also play a rabbi in the 2000 film, ''
Harrison's Flowers
''Harrison's Flowers'' is a 2000 film by Elie Chouraqui. It stars, among others, Andie MacDowell, Elias Koteas, Brendan Gleeson, Adrien Brody, Marie Trintignant, Gerard Butler, and David Strathairn. The film is also Quinn Shephard's big screen d ...
''.
Solomon was part of the cast of the comedy series ''
E/R'', which included
Elliott Gould
Elliott Gould (; né Goldstein; born August 29, 1938) is an American actor. He began acting in Hollywood films during the 1960s.
Elliott's breakthrough role was in the ''Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice'' (1969), for which he received a nomination f ...
,
Jason Alexander
Jay Scott Greenspan (born September 23, 1959), known professionally as Jason Alexander, is an American actor, comedian, host and director. An Emmy and Tony winner, he is best known for his role as George Costanza in the television series '' Se ...
, and
Mary McDonnell
Mary Eileen McDonnell (born April 28, 1952) is an American film, stage, and television actress. She received Academy Award nominations for her roles as Stands With A Fist in ''Dances with Wolves'' and May-Alice Culhane in ''Passion Fish''. McD ...
.
His many guest star appearances in other series included ''
Barney Miller
''Barney Miller'' is an American sitcom television series set in a New York City Police Department police station on East 6th St in Greenwich Village. The series was broadcast on ABC Network from January 23, 1975, to May 20, 1982. It was created ...
'' and ''
Resurrection Boulevard
''Resurrection Blvd.'' is an American dramatic series which aired on Showtime for three seasons from 2000 to 2002.
Plot
In East Los Angeles, California, the Santiago family has had three generations of boxers within the family. They continue the ...
'', and films including
''The Candidate'' and ''
Foul Play''.
One of his earliest movies was ''
Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things
''Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things'' (also known as ''Revenge of the Living Dead'', ''Things from the Dead'', and ''Zreaks'') is a 1972 comedic horror film directed by Bob Clark. It later became a cult classic. This low-budget zombie f ...
'', in 1972. 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
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...
. The TV drama was produced for
public television
Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...
's ''
WonderWorks
''WonderWorks'' is an anthology series which ran from 1984 to 1992. Produced by the Public Broadcasting Service, the Walt Disney Company purchased the home video rights to the series in 1987 and was responsible for making the series available t ...
'' series.
In one of his most recent movie appearances, Solomon plays Edward Feldman, the Executive Producer of the television series ''
Hogan's Heroes
''Hogan's Heroes'' is an American television sitcom set in a Nazi German prisoner-of-war (POW) camp during World War II. It ran for 168 episodes (six seasons) from September 17, 1965, to April 4, 1971, on the CBS network, the longest broadcast ...
'', in the 2002 film ''
Auto Focus
''Auto Focus'' is a 2002 American biographical drama film directed by Paul Schrader and starring Greg Kinnear and Willem Dafoe. The screenplay by Michael Gerbosi is based on Robert Graysmith's book ''The Murder of Bob Crane'' (1993).
''Auto Focus ...
'', the story of actor
Bob Crane
Robert Edward Crane (July 13, 1928 – June 29, 1978) was an American actor, drummer, radio personality, and disc jockey known for starring in the CBS situation comedy ''Hogan's Heroes''.
Crane was a drummer from age 11, and he began his ente ...
.
[SonyClassics.com](_blank)
accessed February 17, 2011. 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."
Another of his famous lines—from the film ''
Foul Play'' with
Goldie Hawn
Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born November 21, 1945) is an American actress, dancer, producer, and singer. She rose to fame on the NBC sketch comedy program ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (1968–1970), before going on to receive the Academy Award and Go ...
—was "The dwarf...beware the dwarf."
Stage
In addition to his roles in film and television, Solomon has appeared on stage in a number of plays in the
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
area, including a number of productions of the
Elephant Theatre Company
The Elephant Theatre Company was a non-profit theatre company based in Hollywood. The company "built a reputation for championing new American plays" and ceased operation in September 2015.
History
The Elephant Theatre Company was created in ...
.
Among the productions in which he has appeared were ''Search and Destroy'', ''Dearboy's War'', and ''Greystone''.
And, after playing a rabbi on television and film, he originated the role of Catholic priest Fr. Carney in the Hollywood
Stella Adler Theatre
The Stella Adler Studio of Acting (formerly Stella Adler Conservatory) is a prestigious acting school that was founded by actress and teacher Stella Adler. world premiere of the play ''
Friends of Frank
''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa ...
'', the story of the decision to cast
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academ ...
in ''
On The Waterfront
''On the Waterfront'' is a 1954 American crime drama film, directed by Elia Kazan and written by Budd Schulberg. It stars Marlon Brando and features Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger, Pat Henning, and Eva Marie Saint in her film debut. ...
'' rather than
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...
. The play was produced in 2005.
Variety review, "Friends of Frank," April 18, 2005
accessed February 18, 2011.
Filmography
Films
Television
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Solomon, Bruce
American male film actors
American male television actors
Living people
Male actors from New York City
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors
Year of birth missing (living people)