Larry Hovis
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Larry Hovis (February 20, 1936 – September 9, 2003) was an American singer and actor best known for the 1960s television sitcom '' Hogan's Heroes''.


Early life and career

Hovis was born in
Wapato, Washington Wapato is a town in Yakima County, Washington, Yakima County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population was 4,607 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It has a Hispanic majority. History Origins The town was founded ...
, and moved to
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
, Texas, as a small child. Wapato is within the external boundaries of the Yakama Nation and is not a part of the
Yakama Indian Reservation The Yakama Indian Reservation (spelled Yakima until 1994) is a Native American reservation in Washington state of the federally recognized tribe known as the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation. The tribe is made up of Klikitat, ...
. As a youth, he was a singer, appearing on
Arthur Godfrey Arthur Morton Godfrey (August 31, 1903 – March 16, 1983) was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer who was sometimes introduced by his nickname The Old Redhead. At the peak of his success, in the early-to-mid 1950s, Godf ...
's ''Talent Scouts''. Hovis attended the
University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...
. During the mid-1950s, Hovis sang in
nightclubs A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...
with groups including the Mascots. He wrote songs and signed with Capitol Records, which released one album. His biggest song was "We Could Have Lots of Fun". He was part of the Houston-based Bill Gannon Trio and appears on their 1959 Carlton album, ''Sweet Singing Swing''. 1966 screenplay credit in the Universal film "Out of Sight" Hovis began appearing in local theater productions. After some success, he moved to New York City in 1959 and appeared in the 1960
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own dur ...
''
From A to Z ''From A to Z'' is a musical revue with a book by Woody Allen, Herbert Farjeon, and Nina Warner Hook and songs by Jerry Herman, Fred Ebb, Mary Rodgers, Everett Sloane, Jay Thompson, Dickson Hughes, Jack Holmes, Paul Klein, Norman Martin, William Dy ...
'', which showcased his singing and comedy talents.


Television

Hovis moved to California in 1963, where he performed comedy and tried to break into television. In 1964, he was discovered by
Andy Griffith Andy Samuel Griffith (June 1, 1926 – July 3, 2012) was an American actor, comedian, television producer, southern gospel singer and writer whose career spanned seven decades in music and television. Known for his Southern drawl, his character ...
's manager and was hired to appear on the TV series '' Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'', where he played "Pvt. Larry Gotschalk". He also appeared on ''
The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color. The ...
.'' In 1965, when another actor backed out of the television show '' Hogan's Heroes'', Hovis was cast as "Sgt. Andrew Carter", a POW in a German prison camp who was an expert on explosives. In the pilot episode, Carter was a lieutenant, and was only going to appear in that one episode. For the series, the character became Sgt. Carter, replacing a character played by
Leonid Kinskey Leonid Kinskey (1893/1894 – September 8, 1998) was a Russian-born American film and television actor, best known for his role as "Sascha" in the film ''Casablanca'' (1942). His last name was sometimes spelled Kinsky. Life and career Kinskey ...
in the pilot. (Kinskey decided after the pilot that he did not want to stay with a show that had actors pretending to be Nazis.) In the series, Carter was of Sioux ancestry. A few sources say that Hovis was partly of
Yakama The Yakama are a Native American tribe with nearly 10,851 members, based primarily in eastern Washington state. Yakama people today are enrolled in the federally recognized tribe, the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation. Their ...
Indian ancestry, but no documentation supports his membership within the Yakama Nation. Later, in an episode of the comedy '' Alice'', Hovis played an American Indian police detective who arrests a fake American Indian conman. While Hovis was a regular on ''Hogan's Heroes'', he also did other work in the entertainment industry, including writing the screenplay for the 1966 spy-
spoof Spoof, spoofs, spoofer, or spoofing may refer to: * Forgery of goods or documents * Semen, in Australian slang * Spoof (game), a guessing game * Spoofing (finance), a disruptive algorithmic-trading tactic designed to manipulate markets __NOTOC__ ...
''
Out of Sight ''Out of Sight'' is a 1998 American crime comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Scott Frank, adapted from Elmore Leonard's 1996 novel of the same name. The first of several collaborations between Soderbergh and actor Georg ...
''. He also co-wrote
Mitzi Gaynor Mitzi Gaynor (born Francesca Marlene de Czanyi von Gerber; September 4, 1931) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Her notable films include '' We're Not Married!'' (1952), '' There's No Business Like Show Business'' (1954), '' The Birds ...
's 1968 and 1969 television specials, and appeared in and wrote comedy bits for ''
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians Da ...
''.


After ''Hogan's Heroes''

Even before ''Hogan's Heroes'' was canceled in 1971, Hovis had already made appearances on other TV shows. In the mid-1970s, Hovis made appearances on the game show ''
Match Game ''Match Game'' is an American television panel game show that premiered on NBC in 1962 and has been revived several times over the course of the last six decades. The game features contestants trying to match answers given by celebrity panelis ...
'' and the comedy series ''
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians Da ...
'' alongside his ''Hogan's Heroes'' castmate
Richard Dawson Richard Dawson (born Colin Lionel Emm; 20 November 1932 – 2 June 2012) was a British-born American actor, comedian, game-show host and panelist in the United States. Dawson was well known for playing Corporal Peter Newkirk in ''Hogan's Heroe ...
, and was a co-creator for ''
Laugh-In ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians Dan ...
'' as well. Later in the decade, he produced and was a regular panelist on the game show ''
Liar's Club ''Liar's Club'' is an American game show, originally produced by Ralph Andrews, featuring a panel of celebrity guests who offered explanations of obscure or unusual objects. Contestants attempted to determine which explanation was correct in or ...
''. From 1979 to 1981, Hovis toured in the musical ''
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas ''The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas'' is a musical with a book by Texas author Larry L. King and Peter Masterson and music and lyrics by Carol Hall. It is based on a story by King that was inspired by the real-life Chicken Ranch in La Grang ...
'' as Melvin P. Thorpe. In 1982, Hovis was a writer/producer on the show ''So You Think You Got Troubles'', which was hosted by actor and ventriloquist Jay Johnson. Later in the decade, Hovis teamed up with Gary Bernstein to form Bernstein-Hovis Productions, which produced the game shows ''
Anything for Money ''Anything for Money'' is an American television game show where two contestants tried to predict the outcomes of situations in which cast members Christopher Callen and Ralph Harris attempted to coerce passers-by into participating in jokes, i ...
'', the original version of '' Lingo'' and the short-lived ''
Yahtzee Yahtzee is a dice game made by Milton Bradley (a company that has since been acquired and assimilated by Hasbro). It was first marketed under the name of Yahtzee by game entrepreneur Edwin S. Lowe in 1956. The game is a development of earlier ...
'', a TV version of the classic dice game, for which Hovis also announced and served as a regular panelist. Hovis was hired as a co-producer for the hidden-camera television show ''
Totally Hidden Video ''Totally Hidden Video'' is an American hidden-camera television show and game show that aired from 1989 to 1992. It was one of the early shows in the history of the Fox television network and held the highest viewing share for any Fox program at ...
'', but was fired by
Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...
executives who conducted an investigation of the pilot episode’s segments and found that 3 of 4 taped segments included paid actors and scripted content. The investigation was initially prompted by a lawsuit filed by '' Candid Camera'' creator Allen Funt, alleging that the new series was copying old ''Candid Camera'' situational contrivances. Beginning in the 1990s, Hovis taught drama at
Southwest Texas State University Texas State University is a public research university in San Marcos, Texas. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to the second largest university in the Greater Austin metropolitan area and the fifth largest university ...
in San Marcos, Texas – now called
Texas State University-San Marcos Texas State University is a public research university in San Marcos, Texas. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to the second largest university in the Greater Austin metropolitan area and the fifth largest university ...
.


Death

Hovis died of esophageal cancer in
Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
, on September 9, 2003. He was 67 years old.


Partial filmography

*'' Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'' (1964–1965, TV series) – Larry *''
The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color. The ...
'' (1965, TV series, episodes "The Case of the Punch in the Nose" and "Goober Takes a Car Apart") – Gilly Walker *'' Hogan's Heroes'' (1965–1971, TV series) – Sgt. Andrew Carter *''
Liar's Club ''Liar's Club'' is an American game show, originally produced by Ralph Andrews, featuring a panel of celebrity guests who offered explanations of obscure or unusual objects. Contestants attempted to determine which explanation was correct in or ...
'' (1976–1979, TV game show) – producer, regular panelist *'' Alice'' (1977, TV series, episode "The Indian Taker") – Detective Fred Scott *''
Wild in the Sky ''Wild in the Sky'' is a 1972 American action comedy film directed by William T. Naud and starring Georg Stanford Brown, Brandon De Wilde (in his final film role), Keenan Wynn, Tim O'Connor, and Dick Gautier. The film was released as ''Black Jac ...
'' (1972) – Capt. Breen *''Hello Larry'' (1981, TV series) *'' Shadow Force'' (1992) – Frank Bergmann *''Yorick'' (2002) – Archbishop *''Lone Star State of Mind'' (2002) – Doctor (final film role)


References

Notes


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hovis, Larry 1936 births 2003 deaths American male film actors American male television actors Game show announcers Male actors from Austin, Texas Male actors from Houston People from Wapato, Washington Deaths from esophageal cancer University of Houston alumni Deaths from cancer in Texas 20th-century American male actors