Gordon Clapp (born September 24, 1948) is an American actor best known for playing Det. Greg Medavoy for all 12 seasons of the television series ''

NYPD Blue ''NYPD Blue'' is an American police procedural television series set in New York City, exploring the struggles of the fictional 15th Precinct detective squad in Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble c ...

'', winning an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

in 1998.

Early life and education

Clapp was born in North Conway, New Hampshire. He graduated from

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a col ...

in 1971. At Williams College, he met frequent collaborators David Strathairn and John Sayles. Clapp also studied at The National Theater Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center (Fall 1970).

Career

Clapp has appeared in numerous TV shows such as '' Check it Out!'' and ''

Night Court ''Night Court'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984 to May 31, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan municipal court presided over by a young, unorthodox judge, Harold "Harry" T. Stone (portray ...

'' as well as numerous stage plays. His film credits include ''

Return of the Secaucus 7 ''Return of the Secaucus 7'' is a 1980 drama film written and directed by John Sayles and starring Bruce MacDonald, Maggie Renzi, Adam LeFevre, Maggie Cousineau, Gordon Clapp, Jean Passanante, and others. The film tells the story of seven friends ...

'' (1979), ''

Running Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...

'' (1979), '' Matewan'' (1987), '' Eight Men Out'' (1988, as

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

Ray Schalk Raymond William Schalk (August 12, 1892 – May 19, 1970) was an American professional baseball player, coach, manager and scout. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox for the majority of his career. Known f ...

), '' Termini Station'' (1989), '' The Rage: Carrie 2'' (1999), '' Rules of Engagement'' (2000), '' Sunshine State'' (2002), and ''

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'' (2006) as

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

Gen. Holland Smith. He appeared in the ''

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (abbreviated as ''DS9'') is an American science fiction television series created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller. The fourth series in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise, it originally aired in syndication from ...

'' episode "

Vortex In fluid dynamics, a vortex ( : vortices or vortexes) is a region in a fluid in which the flow revolves around an axis line, which may be straight or curved. Vortices form in stirred fluids, and may be observed in smoke rings, whirlpools in th ...

." From 1993 to 2005, Clapp played Detective Greg Medavoy on "

." He won an Emmy for the role. In 2007, he appeared as Coach Mad Maddox in '' The Game Plan''. On Broadway, he most recently appeared in the revival of David Mamet's

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

-winning play ''

Glengarry Glen Ross ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' is a play by David Mamet that won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984. The play shows parts of two days in the lives of four desperate Chicago real estate agents who are prepared to engage in any number of unethical, illegal acts� ...

'', where he was nominated for a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play. He also played Alan Silver in episode Holiday Spirit in

Ghost Whisperer ''Ghost Whisperer'' is an American supernatural television series, which ran on CBS from September 23, 2005, to May 21, 2010. The series follows the life of Melinda Gordon ( Jennifer Love Hewitt), who has the ability to see and communicate with ...

(3x10). In 1995, he played Father Paul in ''

Her Hidden Truth ''Her Hidden Truth'' is a thriller/drama television film starring Kellie Martin, Antonio Sabato Jr. and Ken Howard. It was directed by Dan Lerner and written by Pamela K. Long, who was also one of the film's producers. The film first aired on Sund ...

''. In 2007 Clapp voiced Horny The Clown in the horror film ''Drive-Thru''. Later that year, Clapp also appeared as Det Dick Walenski in "In Name and Blood," season 3 episode 2 of ''

Criminal Minds ''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created and produced by Jeff Davis (writer), Jeff Davis. The series premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005, and originally concluded on February 19, 2020; it was r ...

''. Clapp portrayed a corrupt police officer in a 2008 episode of '' Cold Case''. He played the main antagonist Gen. Peter Randall in the ''Prototype'' video game. Clapp plays the father of Ellen ( Rose Byrne) in the F/X show '' Damages''. In 2014, Clapp began playing a recurring role as Chaplain Orlovsky in ''Chicago Fire''. In 2021 Clapp had a modest but critical role in the acclaimed

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

series ''

Mare of Easttown ''Mare of Easttown'' is an American crime drama limited series created and written by Brad Ingelsby for HBO. Directed by Craig Zobel, the series premiered on April 18, 2021, and concluded on May 30, 2021, consisting of seven episodes. It stars ...

'', playing key witness Pat Ross.

Personal life

Clapp was previously married to actress Deborah Taylor from 1986 to 1999. He married Elisabeth Gordon, whom he met through a mutual friend, on November 5, 2016. They reside in both

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

and

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clapp, Gordon 1948 births Male actors from New Hampshire American male film actors American male television actors South Kent School alumni Living people Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Primetime Emmy Award winners Williams College alumni People from North Conway, New Hampshire Theatre World Award winners