Bert Freed (November 3, 1919 – August 2, 1994) was an American character actor,

voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non- diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentation ...

actor, and the first actor to portray Detective

Columbo ''Columbo'' () is an American crime drama television series starring Peter Falk as Lieutenant Columbo, a homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. After two pilot episodes in 1968 and 1971, the show originally aired on NBC fr ...

Life and career

Born and raised in the Bronx, New York, Freed began acting while attending Penn State University, and made his Broadway debut in 1942. Following World War II Army service in the European theatre, he appeared in the Broadway musical ''

The Day Before Spring ''The Day Before Spring'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. Productions The 1945 touring production closed in Chicago after three days due to a crippling coal strike. The show then opened at the ...

'' in 1945 and dozens of television shows between 1947 and 1985. His film debut occurred, oddly enough, in a musical '' Carnegie Hall'' (1947). Freed portrayed Rufe Ryker in the television series ''

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'', in which Freed added a unique touch of realism by beginning the show clean-shaven and growing a beard from one week to the next, never shaving again through the season. Freed played homicide detective Lt. Columbo in a live 1960 television episode of ''

The Chevy Mystery Show ''The Chevy Mystery Show'', aka ''Sunday Mystery Hour'', is an American television anthology series featuring a different mystery each week. It was produced by the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) and Dinah Shore's production company . The p ...

'' seven years before

Peter Falk Peter Michael Falk (September 16, 1927 – June 23, 2011) was an American film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Lieutenant Columbo in the long-running television series '' Columbo'' (1968–1978, 1989–2003), for which he ...

played the role, and also before Thomas Mitchell portrayed the eccentric

police The police are a Law enforcement organization, constituted body of Law enforcement officer, persons empowered by a State (polity), state, with the aim to law enforcement, enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citize ...

detective on stage prior to the Falk version. Freed made four guest appearances on '' Perry Mason'', including the role of Ken Woodman in the 1960 episode, "The Case of the Treacherous Toupee"; murder victim Joe Marshall in the 1964 episode, "The Case of the Ruinous Road"; and Carl Holman, whose wife is the murderer in the 1962 episode "The Case of the Poison Pen-Pal." He appeared (sometimes more than once) in many other television shows such as ''

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'', '' Laramie'', '' Bonanza'', '' The High Chaparral'', '' Gunsmoke'', '' The Big Valley'', '' The Virginian'', '' Mannix'', '' Barnaby Jones'', '' Charlie's Angels'', '' Then Came Bronson'', '' Run For Your Life'', '' Get Smart'', '' The Lucy Show'', '' Hogan's Heroes'', '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'', '' Dr. Kildare'', '' Ben Casey'', '' Combat!'', '' Petticoat Junction'', '' The Outer Limits'', ''

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was r ...

'', '' Route 66'', '' Ironside'', ''

The Green Hornet The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of med ...

'', '' The Munsters'', '' The Untouchables'', and many others. He directed one episode of ''

T.H.E. Cat ''T.H.E. Cat'' is an American action drama that aired on NBC Fridays from 9:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. during the 1966–1967 television season.Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earl, ''The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows ...

''. Freed appeared as a racist club owner in '' No Way Out'' (1950), Private Slattery in '' Halls of Montezuma'' (1951), the Police Chief in '' Invaders From Mars'' (1953), Sgt. Boulanger in '' Paths of Glory'' (1957), the hangman in ''

Hang 'Em High ''Hang 'Em High'' is a 1968 American DeLuxe Color revisionist Western film directed by Ted Post and written by Leonard Freeman and Mel Goldberg. It stars Clint Eastwood as Jed Cooper, an innocent man who survives a lynching; Inger Stevens as ...

'' (1968), Max's father in '' Wild in the Streets'' (1968), as Chief of Detectives in '' Madigan'' (1968), a homosexual prison guard in '' There Was a Crooked Man...'' (1970) and Bernard's father in '' Billy Jack'' (1971) in which he got "whumped" on the side of the face by Billy Jack's right foot "just for the hell of it."

Later years and death

He retired from acting in 1986, and died of a heart attack in

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, in 1994 while on a fishing trip with his son.

Selected filmography

* '' Boomerang'' (1947) as Herron, Man in Alley Mob (uncredited) * '' Carnegie Hall'' (1947) as Moving Man (uncredited) * '' Twelve O'Clock High'' (1949) as Officer Standing at Bar (uncredited) * '' Key to the City'' (1950) as Emmy's Husband * '' Black Hand'' (1950) as Prosecutor * '' Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town'' (1950) as Dutch, 3rd New York Henchman * ''

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'' (1950) as Det. Paul Klein * '' 711 Ocean Drive'' (1950) as Steve Marshak (uncredited) * '' No Way Out'' (1950) as Rocky Miller (uncredited) * '' Halls of Montezuma'' (1951) as Slattery * ''

The Company She Keeps ''The Company She Keeps'' is a 1951 drama film starring Lizabeth Scott, Jane Greer and Dennis O'Keefe. The film was directed by John Cromwell, whose film the previous year, ''Caged'', also concerned a woman sent to prison. It marked Jeff Brid ...

'' (1951) as Smitty * '' Detective Story'' (1951) as Det. Dakis * '' Red Mountain'' (1951) as Sgt. Randall * '' Anything Can Happen'' (1952) as Immigration Officer (uncredited) * '' The Atomic City'' (1952) as Emil Jablons * '' The Snows of Kilimanjaro'' (1952) as American Soldier (uncredited) * '' Tangier Incident'' (1953) as Kozad * '' Invaders From Mars'' (1953) as Police Chief A.C. Barrows (uncredited) * ''

Take the High Ground! ''Take the High Ground!'' is a 1953 American war film directed by Richard Brooks and starring Richard Widmark and Karl Malden as drill sergeants who must transform a batch of everyday civilians into soldiers during the Korean War. Plot In May 195 ...

'' (1953) as Sgt. Vince Opperman * '' The Long, Long Trailer'' (1953) as Foreman * '' Men of the Fighting Lady'' (1954) as Lt. (jg) Andrew Szymanski * '' The Cobweb'' (1955) as Abe Irwin * '' The Desperate Hours'' (1955) as Tom Winston * '' Paths of Glory'' (1957) as Staff Sergeant Boulanger * '' The Goddess'' (1958) as Lester Brackman * '' The Gazebo'' (1959) as Lt. Joe Jenkins * ''

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'' (1960) as Adler * '' The Subterraneans'' (1960) as Bartender * '' What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?'' (1962) as Ben Golden * '' Twilight of Honor'' (1963) as Sheriff B.L. 'Buck' Wheeler * '' Shock Treatment'' (1964) as Frank Josephson * '' Invitation to a Gunfighter'' (1964) as Sheriff * ''

Fate Is the Hunter Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although ofte ...

'' (1964) as Dillon * '' Nevada Smith'' (1966) as Quince * ''

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'' (1966) as Police Captain * ''Sail to Glory'' (1967) as Horace Greeley * '' Madigan'' (1968) as Chief of Detectives Hap Lynch * '' Wild in the Streets'' (1968) as Max Jacob Flatow Sr. * ''

'' (1968) as Schmidt, the Hangman * '' There Was a Crooked Man...'' (1970) as Skinner * '' Billy Jack'' (1971) as Mr. Stuart Posner * ''

Evel Knievel Robert Craig "Evel" Knievel (; October 17, 1938 – November 30, 2007) was an American stunt performer and entertainer. Over the course of his career, he attempted more than 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps. Knievel was inducted into the Motor ...

'' (1971) as Doc Kincaid * '' Death Scream'' (1975) as Detective Ross * ''Love and the Midnight Auto Supply'' (1977) as Mayor John Randolph * '' Till Death'' (1978) as Dr. Sawyer * ''

Barracuda A barracuda, or cuda for short, is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus ''Sphyraena'', the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which ...

'' (1978) as Papa Jack * '' Norma Rae'' (1979) as Sam Dakin

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Freed, Bert 1919 births 1994 deaths American male stage actors American male film actors American male television actors American male voice actors People from the Bronx Military personnel from New York City 20th-century American male actors United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army soldiers American television directors