Warren Albert Stevens (November 2, 1919 – March 27, 2012) was an American stage, screen, and television actor.

Early life and career

Born in

Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania Clarks Summit is a borough in Lackawanna County, northwest of Scranton in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 5,108 at the 2020 census. It is also the northern terminus of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Northeast Extension, I-476. Histor ...

, Stevens entered the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

in 1937 but was medically discharged in 1940. During World War II he served in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

as a pilot. Warren Stevens

A founding member of the

Actors Studio The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights at 432 West 44th Street between Ninth and Tenth avenues in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was founde ...

in New York, Stevens received notice on

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 ...

in the late 1940s, and thereafter was offered a Hollywood contract at

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...

. His first Broadway role was in '' The Life of Galileo'' (1947) and his first movie role followed in '' The Frogmen'' (1951). As a young studio contract player, Stevens had little choice of material, and he appeared in films that included ''

Phone Call from a Stranger ''Phone Call from a Stranger'' is a 1952 American film noir drama film directed by Jean Negulesco from a screenplay by Nunnally Johnson, based on the 1950 novelette of the same name by I. A. R. Wylie. The film centers on the survivor of an airc ...

'' (1952), '' Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie'' (1952), and ''

Gorilla at Large ''Gorilla at Large'' is a 1954 American horror mystery film made in 3-D. The film stars Cameron Mitchell, Anne Bancroft, Lee J. Cobb and Raymond Burr, with Lee Marvin and Warren Stevens in supporting roles. Directed by Harmon Jones, it was ma ...

'' (1954). A memorable movie role was that of the ill-fated "Doc" Ostrow in the science fiction film '' Forbidden Planet'' (1956). He also had supporting roles in '' The Barefoot Contessa'' (1954) with

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart (; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American film and stage actor. His performances in Classical Hollywood cinema films made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film In ...

and '' Intent to Kill'' (1958). Despite occasional parts in big films, Stevens was unable to break out consistently into A-list movies, so he carved out a career in television as a journeyman dramatic actor. Stevens was a Democrat who supported the campaign of Adlai Stevenson during the 1952 presidential election.

Television career

He co-starred as Lt. William Storm in '' Tales of the 77th Bengal Lancers'' (

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

, 1956–1957), a prime time adventure series set in India. Stevens also provided the voice of John Bracken in season one of ''

Bracken's World ''Bracken's World'' is an American drama television series that aired on NBC from September 19, 1969, to December 25, 1970. The series was created and produced by Dorothy Kingsley. The Lettermen performed the second-season theme song "Worlds" ...

'' (NBC, 1968–1970). He played the role of Elliot Carson in the daytime series '' Return to Peyton Place'' during its two-year run (1972-1974). He appeared in over 150 prime time shows from the 1950s to the early 1980s, including: *

Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the '' Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages, Gold being the first and the one during which the G ...

anthology series (''

'', '' Campbell Playhouse'', ''

The Web The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an information system enabling documents and other web resources to be accessed over the Internet. Documents and downloadable media are made available to the network through we ...

'', ''

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

'', '' Philco Television Playhouse'', '' Studio One'', ''

The United States Steel Hour ''The United States Steel Hour'' is an anthology series which brought hour long dramas to television from 1953 to 1963. The television series and the radio program that preceded it were both sponsored by the United States Steel Corporation (U. S ...

'', '' Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre'', '' Route 66''), * Mysteries ''

Hawaiian Eye ''Hawaiian Eye'' is an American detective television series that ran from October 1959 to April 1963 on the ABC television network. Premise Private investigator Tracy Steele ( Anthony Eisley) and his half-Hawaiian partner, Tom Lopaka ( Robert ...

'' (4 episodes), '' Perry Mason'', '' The Untouchables'', ''

Climax! ''Climax!'' (later known as ''Climax Mystery Theater'') is an American television anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS progra ...

'', ''

Checkmate Checkmate (often shortened to mate) is any game position in chess and other chess-like games in which a player's king is in check (threatened with ) and there is no possible escape. Checkmating the opponent wins the game. In chess, the king is ...

'' (2 episodes), '' Surfside 6'' (2 episodes), ''

77 Sunset Strip ''77 Sunset Strip'' is an American television private detective drama series created by Roy Huggins and starring Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Roger Smith, Richard Long (from 1960 to 1961) and Edd Byrnes (billed as Edward Byrnes). Each episode was o ...

'' (2 episodes), '' Behind Closed Doors'', ''

I Spy I spy is a guessing game where one player (the ''spy'' or ''it'') chooses an object within sight and announces to the other players that "I spy with my little eye something beginning with...", naming the first letter of the object. Other players a ...

'', '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'', '' Ironside'' (3 episodes), ''

The Mod Squad ''The Mod Squad'' is an American crime drama series, originally broadcast for five seasons on ABC from September 24, 1968, to March 1, 1973. It starred Michael Cole as Peter "Pete" Cochran, Peggy Lipton as Julie Barnes, Clarence Williams III ...

'', ''

Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that ran from 1967 to 1975 on CBS. It was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer Bruce Geller. The title character, Joe Mannix, is a private in ...

'', ''

Cannon A cannon is a large- caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder ...

'' (3 episodes), '' Griff'', '' Mission: Impossible'' (4 episodes), Combat! (1 episode). * Horror and Sci Fi '' Inner Sanctum'' (3 episodes), ''

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 ...

'' (2 episodes), ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

'' (episode " Dead Man's Shoes"), ''

One Step Beyond One Step Beyond may refer to: Music * ''One Step Beyond'' (Dungeon album) or the title song, 2004 * ''One Step Beyond'' (Jackie McLean album), 1963 * '' One Step Beyond...'', an album by Madness, or the title song (see below), 1979 * ''One Step ...

'' (episode "The Riddle"), '' The Outer Limits'' (episode " Keeper of the Purple Twilight"), ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'' (episode "

By Any Other Name "By Any Other Name" is the 22nd episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series ''Star Trek''. Written by D.C. Fontana and Jerome Bixby (based on Bixby's story) and directed by Marc Daniels, it was first broadcas ...

"), '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' (3 episodes), ''

The Time Tunnel ''The Time Tunnel'' is an American color science fiction TV series written around a theme of time travel adventure starring James Darren and Robert Colbert. The show was creator-producer Irwin Allen's third science-fiction television series an ...

'',

Science Fiction Theater ''Science Fiction Theatre'' was an American science fiction anthology television series that was produced by Ivan Tors and Maurice Ziv and originally aired in syndication. It premiered on April 9, 1955 and ended on April 6, 1957, with a total of ...

'', Land of the Giants (2 episodes) * Comedies ''

The Donna Reed Show ''The Donna Reed Show'' is an American sitcom starring Donna Reed as the middle-class housewife Donna Stone. Carl Betz co-stars as her pediatrician husband Dr. Alex Stone, and Shelley Fabares and Paul Petersen as their teenage children, Mary ...

'' (2 episodes, 1965 and 1966), ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker. T ...

'' (1 episode, Season 4, episode 13, "The Gun", Dec 2, 1975) * Westerns ('' Laramie'', '' The Rebel'', ''The Man Called Shenandoah''), ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings ...

'' (2 episodes), '' The Alaskans'', ''

Tales of Wells Fargo ''Tales of Wells Fargo'' is an American Western television series starring Dale Robertson that ran from 1957 to 1962 on NBC. Produced by Revue Productions, the series aired in a half-hour format until its final season, when it expanded t ...

'' (1 episode), ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...

'' (3 episodes), ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 13, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 432 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running western, the second-longest-running western series on ...

'' (4 episodes), ''

Daniel Boone Daniel Boone (September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyond the we ...

'' (3 episodes), '' The Virginian'' (3 episodes), ''

The Big Valley ''The Big Valley'' is an American Western drama television series that originally aired from September 15, 1965, to May 19, 1969 on ABC. The series is set on the fictional Barkley Ranch in Stockton, California, from 1884 to 1888. The one-hour ...

'' (one episode), '' Rawhide'', and '' Have Gun, Will Travel'' (3 episodes). ''Tombstone Territory'' (1 episode), ''Stoney Burke'' (1 episode). In 1970 he appeared as Paul Carson on ''The Men From Shiloh'' (rebranded name for '' The Virginian'') in the episode titled "Hannah." Stevens' appearance in the 1955 movie '' Robbers' Roost'' introduced him to Richard Boone, who hired him for a continuing television role on '' The Richard Boone Show'', an award-winning NBC anthology series which lasted for the 1963–1964 season. Stevens was a close friend of actor Richard Basehart and helped him through a difficult divorce in the early 1960s. Stevens guest-starred in a few episodes of Basehart's ABC series, '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea''. He also had a supporting role on another

Irwin Allen Irwin Allen (born Irwin O. Cohen, June 12, 1916 – November 2, 1991) was an American film and television producer and director, known for his work in science fiction, then later as the "Master of Disaster" for his work in the disaster film genr ...

production, ''

The Return of Captain Nemo ''The Return of Captain Nemo'' (theatrical title: ''The Amazing Captain Nemo'') is a 1978 American science fiction adventure television miniseries directed by Alex March and Paul Stader (the latter directed the underwater sequences), and loosely b ...

'' in 1978. In his later years, Stevens' appearances were infrequent. He guest-starred in '' ER'' in March 2006 and had two roles in 2007. For the DVD release of '' Combat!'' he provided

audio commentary An audio commentary is an additional audio track, usually digital, consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with a video. Commentaries can be serious or entertaining in nature, and can add informatio ...

for "The Gun" (S5, E1) an episode in which he had guest-starred (he also guest-starred in "The Imposter" (S3, E10))

Death

Stevens died on March 27, 2012, from complications of lung disease in his home in

Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California located in the San Fernando Valley, founded in 1927. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density tha ...

, California. He had three children.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stevens, Warren 1919 births 2012 deaths American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors People from Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania 20th-century American male actors 20th Century Studios contract players United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army personnel People from Greater Los Angeles 21st-century American male actors Male actors from Pennsylvania Deaths from lung disease California Democrats Pennsylvania Democrats Male Western (genre) film actors United States Navy midshipmen