Warren Frost (June 5, 1925 – February 17, 2017) was an American actor. His work was mainly in theater, but he worked in films and television sporadically from 1958. He is known for television roles on '' Matlock'' and ''

Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as a fictionalized version of himself and ...

'', and particularly as Doctor Hayward on ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cancellation in 1991. The show returned in 2017 ...

'', a series co-created by his son

Mark Frost Mark Frost (born November 25, 1953) is an American novelist, screenwriter, film-and-television producer and director. He is the co-creator of the mystery television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991; 2017) and was a writer and executive story ...

. He has also appeared in TV movies, such as '' Psycho IV: The Beginning'' (1990) and ''

The Stand ''The Stand'' is a post-apocalyptic dark fantasy novel written by American author Stephen King and first published in 1978 by Doubleday. The plot centers on a deadly pandemic of weaponized influenza and its aftermath, in which the few survivin ...

'' (1994).

Early life

Frost was born in 1925 in

Newburyport, Massachusetts Newburyport is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, northeast of Boston. The population was 18,289 at the 2020 census. A historic seaport with vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island. The mo ...

, and was raised in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

and

Essex Junction, Vermont Essex Junction is a city in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 10,590. It was incorporated as a village on November 15, 1892. Essex Junction became Vermont’s 10th city on July 1, 2022. Am ...

. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, and served aboard the destroyer escort in Europe during the

Normandy landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

. At the age of 21, he enrolled as an English major at

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all 5 ...

in Vermont under the G.I. Bill.

Career

Frost spent much of his career in the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in sta ...

, teaching at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

and serving as artistic director of the Chimera Theater in

St. Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

. He had a small yet memorable role in the film adaptation of ''Slaughterhouse Five'' (1972), which was shot in the

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origin ...

area. Frost's Hollywood work in shows such as ''Twin Peaks'' and ''Matlock'' was essentially his second career, following his retirement from teaching and stage direction. He was aged 60 when his son Mark, co-creator of ''Twin Peaks'' with

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

, cast him in the role of Dr. Will Hayward. Frost appeared in thirty episodes of the series, and reprised the role in the feature film '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' although his scenes were cut. His appearance in ''Twin Peaks'' led to a recurring role in the legal drama '' Matlock''. In the ''

'' TV series he played Henry Ross, father of Susan Ross,

George Costanza George Louis Costanza is a fictional character in the American television sitcom ''Seinfeld'' (1989–1998), played by Jason Alexander. He is a short, stocky, balding man who struggles with numerous insecurities, often dooming his romantic rela ...

's fiancée. His onscreen wife in ''Seinfeld'' was played by his ''Twin Peaks'' co-star Grace Zabriskie. Frost returned to play Doc Hayward in the revived series of ''

'', which began airing in May 2017.

Personal life

Frost married Mary Virginia Calhoun in 1949 and was the father of novelist, television screenwriter, and producer

, actress Lindsay Frost, and writer

Scott Frost Scott Andrew Frost (born January 4, 1975) is a former American football coach and player. He was the head football coach at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln from 2018 to 2022. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, Frost played college football as a qu ...

. He was the grandfather of baseball player

Lucas Giolito Lucas Frost Giolito (born July 14, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He attended Harvard-Westlake School in Studio City, California, and was selected by the Washington N ...

and actor Casey Giolito. He also has a grandson from his oldest son Mark. Frost died at his home in

Middlebury, Vermont Middlebury is the shire town (county seat) of Addison County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 9,152. Middlebury is home to Middlebury College and the Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History. History One ...

, on February 17, 2017, following a long illness at the age of 91.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Frost, Warren 1925 births 2017 deaths People from Newburyport, Massachusetts Middlebury College alumni Male actors from Massachusetts Male actors from Vermont American male stage actors American male film actors American male television actors United States Navy personnel of World War II University of Minnesota faculty Frost family