Dan O'Herlihy | |
|---|---|
 O'Herlihy in 1955 | |
| Born | Daniel Peter O'Herlihy (1919-05-01)1 May 1919 |
| Died | 17 February 2005(2005-02-17) (aged 85) Malibu, California, U.S. |
| Citizenship |
|
| Alma mater | University College Dublin |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1944–1998 |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 5, includingGavan andLorcan |
| Relatives | Michael O'Herlihy (brother) Micaela O'Herlihy (granddaughter) |
Daniel Peter O'Herlihy[1] (1 May 1919 – 17 February 2005) was an Irish[2] and American actor of film, television and radio.[3] His best-known roles included hisOscar-nominated portrayal of the title character inLuis Buñuel'sRobinson Crusoe (1954),[4] Brigadier General Warren A. Black inFail Safe (1964),Marshal Ney inWaterloo (1970),Conal Cochran inHalloween III: Season of the Witch (1982), Grig inThe Last Starfighter (1984), "The Old Man" inRoboCop (1987) and its1990 sequel, and Andrew Packard in the television seriesTwin Peaks (1990–91).[5]
O'Herlihy was born inWexford,County Wexford in 1919, but moved with his family toDublin when he was young. He was educated atChristian Brothers College inDún Laoghaire and later studied atUniversity College Dublin, graduating in 1944 with a degree in architecture, following in his father's footsteps.[4]
He developed a keen interest in acting during his university studies. He joined several amateur theatre groups and joined theAbbey Theatre as a bit player. After graduating from the university, he decided to pursue acting full-time, working at the Abbey andGate Theatre, first as a set designer, then later as an actor.[3]
O'Herlihy's first notable acting role came in 1944, when he played the lead in the Gate's production ofRed Roses For Me, written and directed bySeán O'Casey. He appeared in some fifty plays at the Gate.[6] He made his film debut in 1947 inCarol Reed'sOdd Man Out,[7] which was shot on location inBelfast, and also worked extensively in radio.[3] His first American film role was asMacduff inOrson Welles' version ofMacbeth (1948),[7] followed by supporting roles in films such as theRed Scare fantasyInvasion, U.S.A., theKiplingesqueSoldiers Three and a series ofswashbucklers, such asThe Black Shield of Falworth (1954).
His career took an upward turn in 1954 when he played the title role inLuis Buñuel'sRobinson Crusoe, which earned him anAcademy Award nomination for Best Actor.[7] O'Herlihy recalled that the producers of the film wanted Buñuel to use Orson Welles for the role, with Buñuel refusing, saying he was too big and too fat.[7] They arranged a screening of Welles'Macbeth to show how a bearded Welles would look, but O'Herlihy's performance as Macduff convinced Buñuel to cast O'Herlihy instead.[8]
O'Herlihy was later featured in 1959 inThe Young Land as Judge Millard Isham and as Dave Edwards inDouglas Sirk's remake ofImitation of Life. The following year he played Sir Harry Ivers, an upper-class English drifter who joinsAlan Ladd in a plot to ruin an Arizona cattle town by robbing its bank, in the westernOne Foot in Hell. O'Herlihy was also cast as Dr. Caligari inThe Cabinet of Caligari,Robert Bloch's reimagining of the Germansilent classic, in 1962.
In 1964, he starred inFail Safe in the role of General Black, or "Blackie", who nukes New York on presidential orders. In 1969, he was cast inThe Big Cube and100 Rifles. In 1970, he starred in the epicWaterloo, playing the part ofMichel Ney, the marshal of France. In 1982, he starred inHalloween III: Season of the Witch as Conal Cochran and in 1984, he appeared inThe Last Starfighter as Grig, Alex Rogan's reptilian co-pilot, navigator and sidekick. In 1986'sThe Whoopee Boys he played a judge and in 1987, he appeared inRoboCop as "The Old Man". That same year, he was cast inJohn Huston'sThe Dead. In 1990, he appeared inRoboCop 2, the sequel to the 1987 film.
O'Herlihy had a fairly extensive career in television, having appeared onRawhide,The DuPont Show with June Allyson,Adventures in Paradise andTarget: The Corruptors!. He portrayed Larry "Ace" Banner in the first season ofThe Untouchables in the episode titled "The Big Squeeze". He was cast as Stephen Jordan in the last season ofCheckmate episode " "Referendum on Murder". He also appeared onThe Americans andThe Man from U.N.C.L.E. in the episodes "The Fiddlesticks Affair" and "The Yo-Ho-Ho and a Bottle of Rum Affair" and onRoute 66 in the episode "To Walk with the Serpent". In 1962, he was cast as Glenn Kassin in "The Earth Mover" episode ofEmpire. He appeared onBonanza (episode: "The Artist" as Matthew Raine).
In 1963–1964, he was inThe Travels of Jaimie McPheeters. OnThe Long, Hot Summer, O'Herlihy became the lead star, having replacedEdmond O'Brien in the part of Will Varner midway through the program's single-season run. In 1966, he appeared in the episode "Have You Seen theAurora Borealis?" ofThe Road West, starringBarry Sullivan. In 1974, he appeared inQB VII and played the Senior American Officer, Col. Max Dodd in the second series of BBC's POW dramaColditz. In the same year he took a role in the film,The Tamarind Seed, which starredOmar Sharif andJulie Andrews.
In 1976, he guest-starred in an episode ofGibbsville. In 1978, he guest-starred in the second part of theBattlestar Galactica episode "Gun on Ice Planet Zero" as Dr. Ravishol. O'Herlihy also portrayed the ill-fated lumber tycoon Andrew Packard in the cult television programTwin Peaks (1991) and in theBatman: The Animated Series episode "Deep Freeze", voicing the villainous theme park mogul Grant Walker. In 1998, O'Herlihy acted in his last film,The Rat Pack, playingJoseph P. Kennedy Sr.[8]
Dan O'Herlihy married Elsie Bennett in 1945.[4] He was the brother of directorMichael O'Herlihy,[9] and the father of actorGavan O'Herlihy,[10] architectLorcan O'Herlihy,[11] and visual artist-turned-theatrical producer Olwen O'Herlihy.[12] One grandchild,Micaela O'Herlihy,[citation needed] is a filmmaker whose work has been shown at theSundance Film Festival.[13] Another, Alana O'Herlihy,[citation needed] is a photographer and director who has collaborated withMiley Cyrus.[14]
O'Herlihy became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1983.[15]
O'Herlihy died of natural causes inMalibu,California in 2005, aged 85.[16] His personal papers are held in theUniversity College Dublin Archives.[17]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | Hungry Hill | Harry Brodrick | |
| 1947 | Odd Man Out | Nolan | |
| 1948 | Macbeth | MacDuff | |
| 1948 | Larceny | Duke | |
| 1948 | Kidnapped | Alan Breck | |
| 1950 | The Iroquois Trail | Lieutenant Blakely | |
| 1951 | Soldiers Three | Sergeant Murphy | |
| 1951 | The Highwayman | Robin | |
| 1951 | The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel | Commando Captain | Uncredited |
| 1951 | The Blue Veil | Hugh Williams | |
| 1951 | The Last Half Hour: The Mayerling Story | Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria | |
| 1952 | At Sword's Point | Aramis Jr. | |
| 1952 | Actor's and Sin | Alfred O'Shea / The Narrator (segment "Actor's Blood") | |
| 1952 | Operation Secret | Mike Duncan | |
| 1952 | Invasion, U.S.A. | Mr. Ohman | |
| 1953 | Sword of Venus | Danglars | |
| 1954 | Robinson Crusoe | Robinson Crusoe / Crusoe's father | |
| 1954 | The Black Shield of Falworth | Prince Hal | |
| 1954 | Bengal Brigade | Captain Ronald Blaine | |
| 1955 | The Purple Mask | Brisquet | |
| 1955 | The Virgin Queen | Lord Derry | |
| 1957 | That Woman Opposite | Dermot Kinross | |
| 1958 | Home Before Dark | Arnold Bronn | |
| 1959 | Imitation of Life | David Edward | |
| 1959 | The Young Land | Judge Millard Isham | |
| 1960 | A Terrible Beauty | Don McGinnis | |
| 1960 | One Foot in Hell | Sir Harry Ivers | |
| 1961 | King of the Roaring '20s: The Story of Arnold Rothstein akaThe Big Bankroll | Detective Phil Butler | |
| 1962 | To Walk with the Serpent | John Westerbrook | |
| 1962 | The Cabinet of Caligari | Caligari / Paul | |
| 1962 | Bonanza | Matthew Raine | Season 4 episode 3 : "The Artist" |
| 1963 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Simon Carter | Season 1 Episode 17: "Forecast: Low Clouds and Coastal Fog" |
| 1964 | Fail Safe | General Black | |
| 1969 | How to Steal the World | Professor David Garrow | |
| 1969 | 100 Rifles | Steven Grimes | |
| 1969 | The Big Cube | Charles Winthrop | |
| 1970 | Waterloo | MarshalMichel Ney | |
| 1972 | The People | Sol Diemus | |
| 1972 | The Carey Treatment | J.D. Randall | |
| 1974 | The Tamarind Seed | Fergus Stephenson | |
| 1976 | Banjo Hackett: Roamin' Free | "Tip" Conaker | |
| 1976 | The Quest: The Longest Drive | Mathew Hatcher | |
| 1977 | Good Against Evil | Father Kemschler | |
| 1977 | MacArthur | PresidentRoosevelt | |
| 1977 | Deadly Game | Colonel Edward Stryker | |
| 1977 | Woman on the Run | Crandell | |
| 1979 | Mark Twain: Beneath the Laughter | Mark Twain | |
| 1981 | Death Ray 2000 | The Director | |
| 1981 | Artemis 81 | Albrecht Von Drachenfels | |
| 1982 | Halloween III: Season of the Witch | Conal Cochran | |
| 1983 | The Last Day | American Ambassador | |
| 1984 | The Secret Servant | Professor John Tyler | |
| 1984 | The Last Starfighter | Grig | |
| 1986 | The Whoopee Boys | Judge Stenrhill | |
| 1986 | Dark Mansions | Alexander Drake | |
| 1987 | RoboCop | The Old Man | |
| 1987 | The Dead | Mr. Browne | |
| 1988 | A Waltz Through the Hills | Uncle Tom | |
| 1988 | L.A. Law | Vernon Kepler | Season 2 Episode 20: "Chariots of Meyer" |
| 1990 | RoboCop 2 | The Old Man | |
| 1990 | Twin Peaks | Andrew Packard | |
| 1993 | Love, Cheat & Steal | Hamilton Fisk | |
| 1994 | Batman: The Animated Series | Grant Walker | Voice, Season 3 Episode 10: "Deep Freeze" |
| 1998 | The Rat Pack | Joe Kennedy |
The Irish-born Hollywood film actor and director Dan O'Herlihy died on February 18. 2005 at his home in Malibu, California. He was 85. [...] Daniel Peter O'Herlihy was born in Wexford, Ireland, on May 1, 1919. He qualified as an architect at the National University, but his real love was acting, and while still in college he started to take small parts with the Abbey and Gate theatres.
Shorts on the Frontier -- "Careless Reef" by Gerard Holthuis, The Netherlands; "The Cold Ones" by Aaron Platt, U.S.; 'Fast Film' by Virgil Widrich, Austria/Luxembourg; 'Light Is Calling' by Bill Morrison, U.S.; 'N Judah 5:30' by Sam Green, U.S.; 'Out of the Ether' by Kerry Laitala, U.S.; 'Papillon d'Amour' by Nicolas Provost, Belgium; 'Pictures From Dorothy' by Kevin Jerome Everson, U.S.; 'Song of the Firefly' by Izabella Pruska-Oldenhof, Canada; and 'Thunder Perfect Mind' by Micaela O'Herlihy, U.S.
Both women shared the news of the release on social media. 'Big love to the whole gang who helped put this together directed by Alana O'Herlihy + Miley,' Lipa tweeted. The new song is part of Cyrus's upcoming release, 'Plastic Hearts,' which is due out Nov. 27.
Clearly not a man to act precipitously, Dan O'Herlihy has become an American citizen. The 64-year-old Irish actor, nominated for an Oscar for his lead role in 'The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe,' was one of a group naturalized Friday in Los Angeles.
