Lee Patterson (March 31, 1929 – February 14, 2007) was a Canadian film and television actor.

Life and career

Patterson was born in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, as Beverley Frank Atherly Patterson. He attended the

Ontario College of Art and Design Ontario College of Art & Design University, commonly known as OCAD University or OCAD, is a public art university located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus is spread throughout several buildings and facilities within do ...

British career

He moved to the UK, where he specialised in playing virile American types in British films. He appeared in a number of films during the 1950s and 1960s, including ''

The Good Die Young ''The Good Die Young'' is a 1954 British crime film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring Laurence Harvey, Gloria Grahame, Joan Collins, Stanley Baker, Richard Basehart and John Ireland. It was made by Remus Films from a screenplay bas ...

'' (1954), ''

Above Us the Waves ''Above Us the Waves'' is a 1955 British war film about human torpedo and midget submarine attacks in Norwegian fjords against the German battleship ''Tirpitz''. Directed by Ralph Thomas, it is based on two true-life attacks by British command ...

'' (1955), ''

Reach for the Sky ''Reach for the Sky'' is a 1956 British biographical film about aviator Douglas Bader, based on the 1954 biography of the same name by Paul Brickhill. The film stars Kenneth More and was directed by Lewis Gilbert. It won the BAFTA Award for Bes ...

'' (1956), '' The Key Man'' (1957), ''

Time Lock A time lock (also timelock) is a part of a locking mechanism commonly found in bank vaults and other high-security containers. The time lock is a timer designed to prevent the opening of the safe or vault until it reaches the preset time, eve ...

'' (1957) '' The Golden Disc'' (1958), '' Cat & Mouse'' (1958), ''

Jack the Ripper Jack the Ripper was an unidentified serial killer active in and around the impoverished Whitechapel district of London, England, in the autumn of 1888. In both criminal case files and the contemporaneous journalistic accounts, the killer wa ...

'' (1959) and ''

The 3 Worlds of Gulliver ''The 3 Worlds of Gulliver'' is a 1960 Eastmancolor Columbia Pictures fantasy film loosely based upon the 1726 novel ''Gulliver's Travels'' by Jonathan Swift. The film stars Kerwin Mathews as the title character, June Thorburn as his fiancée Eli ...

'' (1960). He left but returned to the UK to appear as hard-bitten navigation expert Captain Randolph Southard in the play version of ''

The Caine Mutiny Court Martial ''The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial'' is a two-act play, of the courtroom drama type, that was dramatized for the stage by Herman Wouk, which he adapted from his own 1951 novel, ''The Caine Mutiny''. Wouk's novel covered a long stretch of time a ...

'' at The Queen's Theatre, London, directed by Charlton Heston in 1985.

American TV

After moving to the USA in the early 1960s, Patterson worked mainly in television. In 1960, he was cast in two episodes of the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American Film studio, film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, Califo ...

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

television series ''

The Alaskans ''The Alaskans'' is a 1959–1960 ABC/Warner Bros. western television series set during the late 1890s in the port of Skagway, Alaska. The show features Roger Moore as "Silky Harris" and Jeff York as "Reno McKee", a pair of adventurers intent ...

'', starring

Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the third actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, playing the character in seven feature films between 19 ...

. Patterson played Tom Kirk in the episode "Behind the Moon" and Jeff Warren in "Sign of the Kodiak", a reference to the

Kodiak bear The Kodiak bear (''Ursus arctos middendorffi''), also known as the Kodiak brown bear, sometimes the Alaskan brown bear, inhabits the islands of the Kodiak Archipelago in southwest Alaska. It is the largest recognized subspecies or population o ...

. Later that year, he was cast as the fictional detective Dave Thorne in another ABC/WB series, ''

Surfside 6 ''Surfside 6'' is an ABC television series which aired from 1960 to 1962. The show centered on a Miami Beach detective agency set on a houseboat and featured Troy Donahue as Sandy Winfield II; Van Williams as Kenny Madison (a character recycled ...

'', set on a houseboat anchored at

Miami Beach, Florida Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and artificial island, man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the ...

, which co-starred

Van Williams Van Zandt Jarvis Williams (February 27, 1934 – November 28, 2016) was an American actor best known for his leading role as Kenny Madison in both Warner Bros. television detective series '' Bourbon Street Beat'' (1959–1960) and its sequel ...

Troy Donahue Troy Donahue (born Merle Johnson Jr., January 27, 1936 – September 2, 2001) was an American film and television actor and singer. He was a popular sex symbol in the 1950s and 1960s. Biography Early years Born in New York City, Donahue was ...

Diane McBain Diane J. McBain (May 18, 1941 – December 21, 2022) was an American actress who, as a Warner Brothers contract player, reached a brief peak of popularity during the early 1960s. She was best known for playing an adventurous socialite in the 1960 ...

and

Margarita Sierra María Margarita Suárez Sierra (January 5, 1936 – September 6, 1963), better known as Margarita Sierra, was a Spanish-American singer, dancer, and actress perhaps best known for her supporting role as the nightclub-singing Cha Cha O'Brien on ...

. He also appeared in 1965 on the fourth season of ''

Combat! ''Combat!'' is an American television drama series that originally aired on ABC from 1962 until 1967. The exclamation point in ''Combat!'' was depicted on-screen as a stylized bayonet. The show covered the grim lives of a squad of American sol ...

'' as an O.S.S Officer, Captain Howard in the episode "9 Place Vendee". Early in 1966, Patterson appeared as Dan Thorne in the ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a cli ...

'' episode "The Case of the Midnight Howler".

Later career

Patterson appeared in

daytime serial A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

s prior to 1970. His first

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

role was that of Brad Kiernan in ABC's '' The Nurses''. After that show was cancelled in 1967, he joined the original cast of ''

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...

'', a move that reunited him with Doris Quinlan, the producer of ''The Nurses''. Patterson remained in ''One Life to Live'' until 1970, when his character Joe Riley was presumed dead; he returned to the show in 1972 and remained the romantic lead until 1979, when he left due to his unhappiness with the direction the show took after

Doris Quinlan Doris may refer to: People Given name *Doris (mythology) of Greek mythology, daughter of Oceanus and Tethys * Doris, fictional character in the Canadian television series ''Caillou'' and the mother of the titular character *Doris (singer) (born ...

left to produce NBC's troubled serial '' The Doctors''. Patterson then joined the cast of NBC's '' Another World'' and ''

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

'' in the role of Dr. Kevin Cooke. The character began in ''Another World'', but moved to ''Texas'' when that show began on August 4, 1980. He stayed until 1981, when the show was revamped to bring up its poor ratings against the number-one daytime program, ABC's ''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the list of longest-running television shows by category, longest-running American soap opera in pro ...

''. ''Texas'' was cancelled in 1982. Patterson returned to ''One Life to Live'' as Joe's twin brother, Tom Dennison, from 1986 until 1988. He also continued to make appearances in other television shows such as ''

War and Remembrance ''War and Remembrance'' is a novel by Herman Wouk, published in October 1978 as the sequel to Wouk's ''The Winds of War'' (1971). ''The Winds of War'' covers the period 1939 to 1941, and ''War and Remembrance'' continues the story of the extended ...

'', ''

Magnum, P.I. ''Magnum, P.I.'' is an American crime drama television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator (P.I.) living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from December 11, 1980 to May 8, 1988 during its first-run broadcast on ...

'' and ''

The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American action-adventure television series that ran on NBC from January 1983 to March 1987 about former members of a fictitious United States Army Special Forces unit. The four members of the team were tried by court marti ...

'', and appeared in movies including ''

Chato's Land ''Chato's Land'' is a 1972 Western Technicolor film directed by Michael Winner, starring Charles Bronson and Jack Palance. In Apache country, the half-native Chato shoots the local sheriff in self-defense, and finds himself hunted by a posse of ...

'' (1972) and '' Airplane II: The Sequel'' (1982). His last role was Sergeant Gaylor in the 1994 film '' Healer''.

Death

Patterson died in

Galveston, Texas Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...

, of

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

with complications from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

and

emphysema Emphysema, or pulmonary emphysema, is a lower respiratory tract disease, characterised by air-filled spaces ( pneumatoses) in the lungs, that can vary in size and may be very large. The spaces are caused by the breakdown of the walls of the alve ...

, on 14 February 2007; he was aged 77. His death was not reported for nearly a year.

Selected filmography

* ''

Malta Story ''Malta Story'' is a 1953 British war film, directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, which is set during the air defence of Malta during the Siege of Malta in the Second World War. The film uses real and unique footage of the locations at which the ba ...

'' (1953) - Officer on Back of Truck (uncredited) * ''

Meet Mr. Lucifer ''Meet Mr. Lucifer'' is a black-and-white British comedy satire film released in 1953 starring Stanley Holloway. It was filmed at Ealing Studios, London, and is one of the Ealing comedies. The film is based on the play ''Beggar My Neighbour'' by ...

'' (1953) - American Sailor (uncredited) * '' 36 Hours'' (1953) - Joe (uncredited) * ''

'' (1954) - Tod Maslin * ''Diamond Expert'' (1954) * ''

The Passing Stranger ''The Passing Stranger'' is a 1954 British crime film written and directed by John Arnold, produced by Anthony Simmons (who also wrote the original film story) and Ian Gibson-Smith, with Leon Clore serving as the film's executive producer, for ...

'' (1954) - Chick * ''

'' (1955) - Cox * ''Faccia da mascalzone'' (1956) * ''

Soho Incident ''Soho Incident'', released in the United States as ''Spin a Dark Web'', is a 1956 British film noir directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Faith Domergue and Lee Patterson.

'' (aka ''Spin a Dark Web'') (1956) - Jim Bankley * ''

'' (1956) - Turner * ''

Dry Rot Dry rot is wood decay caused by one of several species of fungi that digest parts of the wood which give the wood strength and stiffness. It was previously used to describe any decay of cured wood in ships and buildings by a fungus which resul ...

'' (1956) - Danby * '' Checkpoint'' (1956) - Johnny Carpenter * ''

The Counterfeit Plan ''The Counterfeit Plan'' is a 1957 British crime film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Zachary Scott and Peggie Castle.The Key Man'' (1957) - Lionel Hulme * ''

The Story of Esther Costello ''The Story of Esther Costello'' is a 1957 British drama film starring Joan Crawford, Rossano Brazzi, and Heather Sears. The film is an exposé of large-scale fundraising. ''The Story of Esther Costello'' was produced by David Miller and Jack ...

'' (1957) - Harry Grant * ''

'' (1957) - Colin Walker * ''Natlogi betalt'' (1957) - Johnny Williams * '' The Flying Scot'' (1957) - Ronnie * '' The Golden Disc'' (1958) - Harry Blair * ''

The Spaniard's Curse ''The Spaniard's Curse'' is a 1958 British thriller film directed by Ralph Kemplen and starring Tony Wright, Lee Patterson, Michael Hordern, Susan Beaumont and Henry Oscar. It was shot at Walton Studios near London with sets designed by the ...

'' (1958) - Mark Brett * '' Man with a Gun'' (1958) - Mike Davies * ''The Desperate Men'' (aka '' Cat & Mouse'') (1958) - Rod Fenner * '' Breakout'' (1959) - George Munro * ''

'' (1959) - Sam Lowry * ''

Deadly Record ''Deadly Record'' is a 1959 'B' feature British crime drama directed by Lawrence Huntington, and based on a novel by Nina Warner Hooke. It aired in the US as part of the ''Kraft Mystery Theatre''. ''Plot'': When airline pilot Trevor Hamilton's wi ...

'' (1959) - Trevor Hamilton * ''

The White Trap ''The White Trap'' is a 1959 British B movie, second feature thriller film directed by Sidney Hayers and starring Lee Patterson. The screenplay is by playwright Peter Barnes (playwright), Peter Barnes, who went on to write the cult The Ruling Clas ...

'' (1959) - Paul Langley * ''

Third Man on the Mountain ''Third Man on the Mountain'' is a 1959 American family adventure film by Walt Disney Productions, directed by Ken Annakin and starring Michael Rennie, James MacArthur and Janet Munro. Set during the golden age of alpinism, its plot concerns a y ...

'' (1959) - Klaus Wesselhoft * ''

Please Turn Over ''Please Turn Over'' is a 1959 British comedy film written by Norman Hudis, produced by Peter Rogers and directed by Gerald Thomas. It featured Ted Ray, Julia Lockwood, Jean Kent, Joan Sims, Leslie Phillips, Charles Hawtrey, Lionel Jeffries ...

'' (1959) - Rod, the Wrestler (uncredited) * '' October Moth'' (1960) - Finlay * ''

'' (1960) - Reldresal * '' The Ceremony'' (1963) - Nicky * ''The Search for the Evil One'' (1969) - Becker * ''

'' (1972) - George Dunn * '' Airplane II: The Sequel'' (1982) - Phoenix Six Captain * ''

Death Wish 3 ''Death Wish 3'' is a 1985 American action thriller film directed and edited by Michael Winner. It is the third film and the last to be directed by Winner in the ''Death Wish'' film series. It stars Charles Bronson as the vigilante killer Paul Ke ...

'' (1985) - TV Newscaster * '' Bullseye!'' (1990) - Darrell Hyde * '' Healer'' (1994) - Sergeant Gaylor (final film role)

References

External links

* * *
Clips from ''Texas'' episodes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Lee 1929 births 2007 deaths Canadian male film actors Canadian male soap opera actors Canadian male television actors Male actors from Los Angeles Male actors from Vancouver Warner Bros. contract players People from Galveston, Texas Deaths from lung cancer Deaths from emphysema Deaths from cancer in Texas