Bryan Clark (April 5, 1929 – September 9, 2022), sometimes credited as Bryan E. Clark, was an American film, television, and stage actor.

Early life and education

Clark was born in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, the only child of pharmacist Bryan Clark and Maybelle Chester Clark. He spent many summers at Eugene O'Neil Playwright's Conference and studied singing, acting, and dancing. Clark performed with the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall at the age of 15 and also played the clarinet in a

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s ...

while attending Fordham University.

Career

Over a career spanning several decades, his film roles included ''

All the President's Men ''All the President's Men'' is a 1974 non-fiction book by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, two of the journalists who investigated the June 1972 break-in at the Watergate Office Building and the resultant political scandal for ''The Washingto ...

'' (1976), ''

Trading Places ''Trading Places'' is a 1983 American comedy film directed by John Landis, with a screenplay by Timothy Harris and Herschel Weingrod. Starring Dan Aykroyd, Eddie Murphy, Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche, Denholm Elliott, and Jamie Lee Curtis, the ...

'' (1983), ''

Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead ''Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead'' is a 1991 American coming-of-age black comedy film directed by Stephen Herek, written by Neil Landau and Tara Ison, and starring Christina Applegate, Joanna Cassidy, Keith Coogan, John Getz and Josh Char ...

'' (1991), '' Without Warning: The James Brady Story'' (1991). On TV, his guest and recurring appearances in many television shows include '' Cheers'', where he played the bartender Earl in Season 9, ''

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

Becker Becker () is one of the German-language surnames, along with Bäcker and Baecker, that derive from the root, which refers to baking. The surname began as a name for a baker (and thus his family). In northern Germany it can also derive from the ...

Suddenly Susan ''Suddenly Susan'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from September 19, 1996, to December 26, 2000. The series was created by Clyde Phillips and starred Brooke Shields in her first regular series. Shields played Susan Keane, ...

, St. Elsewhere, Who's the Boss?,

The Nanny ''The Nanny'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from November 3, 1993, to June 23, 1999, starring Fran Drescher as Fran Fine, a Jewish fashionista from Flushing, Queens, New York, who becomes the nanny of three ch ...

, Murphy Brown'' (playing Corky's dad), and '' Chicago Hope''. Known for his "striking" resemblance to Ronald Reagan, he was often cast as him in various productions, including '' Guts and Glory: The Rise and Fall of Oliver North'' (1989), '' Without Warning: The James Brady Story'' (1991), '' Pizza Man'' (1991), and an episode of ''

Dark Skies ''Dark Skies'' is an American UFO conspiracy theory-based sci-fi television series that debuted on NBC on September 21, 1996, and ended on May 31, 1997, and was later rerun by the Sci-Fi Channel; 18 episodes and a two-hour pilot episode were br ...

'' ("Bloodlines"). Clark was also known for being a spokesman for

Folgers Folgers Coffee is a brand of ground, instant, and single-use pod coffee produced and sold in the United States, with additional distribution in Asia, Canada and Mexico. It forms part of the food and beverage division of The J.M. Smucker Co ...

coffee in the 1980's and other friendly personalities in various commercials, including one for

Tavern on the Green Tavern on the Green is an American cuisine restaurant in Central Park in Manhattan, New York City, near the intersection of Central Park West and West 66th Street on the Upper West Side. The restaurant, housed in a former sheepfold, has been o ...

, and various stage roles. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' complimented his performance in the 1978 Off-Broadway play ''Winning''.

Personal life

Clark was married to actress Jo Deodato Clark for 65 years and they had five children.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Bryan 1929 births 2022 deaths American actors Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)