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Raye Birk (born May 27, 1943) is an Americanfilm andtelevisionactor. He appeared as Pahpshmir in the first and third installments of theNaked Gun films, and his television appearances includeThe Wonder Years,The Golden Girls,Wings, andCheers, where he portrayed the mailman Walt Twitchell.

Birk appeared as a villain inThe Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) andNaked Gun33+1⁄3: The Final Insult (1994). His other film credits include roles inBest Defense (1984),Amazon Women on the Moon (1987),Throw Momma from the Train (1987),Doc Hollywood (1991) andStar Trek: Insurrection (1998).

In addition to these roles, he had a frequently occurring role as theassistant principal Mr. Diperna onThe Wonder Years; starting with the pilot episode, when he had a conference with Kevin Arnold's parents for throwing food in the cafeteria. (He originally read for the role of Coach Ed Cutlip).^[1] While generally antagonistic, a more sympathetic role on the show was seen in the award-winning episode "Goodbye" where he confides in Kevin that he is Kevin's new math teacher as Kevin's hardnosed algebra teacher has just died.

Furthermore, in 1985, 1986 and 1992, he appeared in three episodes ofCheers as Walt Twitchell, a mailman who got into minor altercations withCliff Clavin. Birk reprised the role of Twitchell in a 2002 episode of theCheers spinoff series,Frasier, in which the title character (played byKelsey Grammer) returned to Boston and re-acquainted himself with old friends from the bar. He also appeared three times onALF as Lenny Scott and Officer Griswald. Raye appeared in several episodes on the TV seriesNight Court. He was also on a pair ofThe Golden Girls episodes, both times playing a wedding caterer. He played a recurring role onCoach as university band director Riley Pringle from 1989 to 1993. He also appeared in an episode ofMr. Belvedere as an accordion player.

Birk has also guest starred inDue South as the terrorist Francis Bolt in the Episodes "All the Queens Horses", "Red, White and Blue", "Call of the Wild Part One" and "Call of the Wild Part Two". He also had roles inWings,The X-Files andBabylon 5. He was also on an episode ofHome Improvement as one of Tim's poker buddies. His other appearances includeSeinfeld,Touched by an Angel,ER, and the soap operaDays of Our Lives.

From 2004 to 2008, he playedEbenezer Scrooge inA Christmas Carol at theGuthrie Theater inMinneapolis.^[2]

• Raye Birk atIMDb

• 1943 births
• American male film actors
• American male television actors
• Male actors from Genesee County, Michigan
• Actors from Flint, Michigan
• Living people
• Jewish American male actors
• 21st-century American male actors
• 20th-century American male actors

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