David Hemblen (16 September 1941 – 16 November 2020) was an English actor who frequently worked in

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

film, television and theatre who grew up in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. He is known for his role as George in '' La Femme Nikita'', Customs inspector in Atom Egoyan's ''

Exotica Exotica is a musical genre, named after the 1957 Martin Denny Exotica (Martin Denny album), album of the same name that was popular during the 1950s to mid-1960s with Americans who came of age during World War II. The term was coined by Simon Wa ...

'', Lord Dread/Lyman Taggert in '' Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future'', Detective Dick Hargrove in '' T. and T.'' and as Inspector Winterguild in ''

TekWar ''TekWar'' is a series of science fiction novels created by Canadian actor William Shatner and ghost-written by American writer Ron Goulart, published by Putnam beginning in October 1989. The novels gave rise to a comic book series, video game, an ...

''. He is also known for his role as Johnathan Doors in '' Earth: Final Conflict'' and for voicing the character of

Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...

in the

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in Uncanny X-Men, ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in ...

animated series An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have eith ...

from 1992 to 1997.

Early life and education

Born in London, England, Hemblen grew up in

, where he pursued a classical education before turning to theatre. He received an M.A. in English and was working towards a Ph.D. in medieval studies when he was spotted during a rehearsal of a university production by Clifford Williams of the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

. Hemblen was offered a season at Toronto's

Royal Alexandra Theatre The Royal Alexandra Theatre, commonly known as the Royal Alex, is a theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located near King and Simcoe Street. Built in 1907, the 1,244-seat Royal Alex is the oldest continuously operating legitimate theatre in Nort ...

. In the 1960s, Hemblen was a political activist and member of the Young Socialists.

Career

Hemblen began his career in theatre in the 1960s. His stage career includes more than 70 productions as actor/director at major Canadian theatres, including the

Stratford Festival The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival ...

and four seasons at the renowned

Shaw Festival The Shaw Festival is a not-for-profit theatre festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. It is the second largest repertory theatre company in North America. The Shaw Festival was founded in 1962. Originally, it only featured productio ...

Niagara-on-the-Lake Niagara-on-the-Lake is a town in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the Niagara Peninsula at the point where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario, across the river from New York, United States. Niagara-on-the-Lake is in the Niagara Region of O ...

. For his portrayal of Dr. Astrov in Toronto's Tarragon Theater production of ''

Uncle Vanya ''Uncle Vanya'' ( rus, Дя́дя Ва́ня, r=Dyádya Ványa, p=ˈdʲædʲə ˈvanʲə) is a play by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. It was first published in 1898, and was first produced in 1899 by the Moscow Art Theatre under the di ...

'', Hemblen received a Dora nomination for Best Leading Actor.

Film and television

Hemblen was a mainstay on the television series '' Earth: Final Conflict'', playing Jonathan Doors, a role he is best known for. He appeared in the first two seasons as a main character and remained in the third season as a recurring character until being killed off in season four. He played recurring roles in ''

A Nero Wolfe Mystery ''Nero Wolfe'' is a television series adapted from Rex Stout's series of detective stories that aired for two seasons (2001–2002) on A&E. Set in New York City sometime in the 1940s–1950s, the stylized period drama stars Maury Chaykin as Ne ...

'' (Lewis Hewitt) and '' La Femme Nikita'' (George). He voiced

on the popular show '' X-Men: The Animated Series'', the Night Master on ''

Yin Yang Yo! ''Yin Yang Yo!'' is a flash-animated television series created by Bob Boyle for Jetix. Produced by Jetix Animation Concepts as the third Jetix original series, it first aired on August 26, 2006, as a sneak peek and premiered on September 4, 2006 ...

'', the Vaultkeeper in ''

Tales from the Cryptkeeper ''Tales from the Cryptkeeper'' is an animated horror children's television series made by Canadian studio Nelvana. The series was broadcast on YTV in Canada and on ABC in the United States, and on ITV in the United Kingdom. It was based on ...

,'' Lord Dread/Lyman Taggart on '' Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future,'' and Asmodeus Poisonteeth in '' Redwall''. Hemblen played a ruthless henchman Jones in ''

Short Circuit 2 ''Short Circuit 2'' is a 1988 American science fiction comedy film, the sequel to the 1986 film ''Short Circuit''. It was directed by Kenneth Johnson and starred Fisher Stevens as Ben Jahveri, Michael McKean as Fred Ritter, Cynthia Gibb as Sandy ...

'' (1988), Reverend Buckley in ''

Where the Spirit Lives ''Where the Spirit Lives'' is a 1989 television film about Aboriginal children in Canada being taken from their tribes to attend residential schools for assimilation into majority culture. Written by Keith Ross Leckie and directed by Bruce ...

'' (1989), and appeared as

Christopher Newport Christopher Newport (1561–1617) was an English seaman and privateer. He is best known as the captain of the '' Susan Constant'', the largest of three ships which carried settlers for the Virginia Company in 1607 on the way to found the sett ...

in '' Pocahontas: The Legend'' (1999). He has also been featured in several

Atom Egoyan Atom Egoyan (; hy, Աթոմ Եղոյեան, translit=Atom Yeghoyan; born July 19, 1960) is a Canadian filmmaker. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge in the 1980s from Toronto known as the Toronto New Wave. Egoyan m ...

films, such as ''

Speaking Parts ''Speaking Parts'' is a 1989 Canadian drama film directed by Atom Egoyan. It earned a Best Motion Picture nomination, and five other nominations, at the 1989 Genie Awards. It was also nominated for Gold Hugo in 1989 Chicago International Film ...

'', '' The Sweet Hereafter'' (1997), '' Where the Truth Lies'' (2005), and ''

Family Viewing ''Family Viewing'' is a 1987 Canadian drama film. The second feature directed by Atom Egoyan, it stars David Hemblen, Aidan Tierney, Gabrielle Rose, Arsinée Khanjian, and Selma Keklikian. The plot follows a young man from a dysfunctional family ...

'' (1987), for which he was nominated for a

Genie Award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978; also known as the "Etrog Awards," for sc ...

. In 1975, he starred in the children's television serial '' The Adventures of Timothy Pilgrim''.

Personal life

Hemblen lived most of the year in Toronto and made an annual winter visit to his second home in the south of France. He had one daughter, Kate, who is also an actress.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hemblen, David 1941 births 2020 deaths Canadian socialists English emigrants to Canada English male film actors English male television actors English male voice actors Male actors from London Male actors from Toronto 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors