Sam Anderson facts for kids
This page is about the American actor. For other people, see Samuel Anderson.
Quick facts for kids
Sam Anderson
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Anderson in 2006
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| Born | April 2, 1947 Clark, South Dakota, U.S.
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| Alma mater | University of North Dakota, Antelope Valley College |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1969–present |
| Children | 2 |
Sam Anderson (born April 2, 1947) is an American actor. He is best known for his character roles such as Sam Gorpley on Perfect Strangers, Principal Willis DeWitt on Growing Pains, Holland Manners on Angel, dentist Bernard Nadler on Lost, Doctor Harad in Friends, and in film, as the principal in Forrest Gump.
Early life
Anderson was born in Wahpeton, North Dakota. He received a Master of Arts degree in American literature and creative writing at the University of North Dakota and the University of Wisconsin. During the 1970s, he taught drama at Antelope Valley College in Lancaster, California.
Career
Anderson is best known for his roles as mailroom supervisor Mr. Gorpley on Perfect Strangers, Mike Seaver's adversarial Principal DeWitt on Growing Pains, a chief of Cardiology on ER, the lawyer Holland Manners on the first two seasons of Angel and as Bernard on Lost. In addition, he was one of the recurring actors on various episodes of WKRP in Cincinnati, playing various roles, including an immigration officer in the episode "The Americanization of Ivan". In film, he notably played the school principal in Forrest Gump.
Anderson is also known as the assistant manager of the Hotel Royale in Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Royale", and as Doctor Harad in Friends. His other guest-starring roles include Remington Steele, Hill Street Blues, The Golden Girls, Murder, She Wrote, Picket Fences, The West Wing, Everybody Loves Raymond, and many other shows. Anderson guest-starred in Season 8 of NCIS as Walter Carmichael, a middle school teacher whose classroom becomes a crime scene where one of his students is kidnapped.
Anderson's most recent (2024) role is being a part of the reboot of the Matlock series on CBS. He plays the husband (Edwin) of Kathy Bates character Matty Matlock.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | The Swap | Paul | |
| 1982 | Airplane II: The Sequel | Man in white | |
| The Tragedy of King Lear | Duke of Albany | ||
| 1985 | Movers & Shakers | Ray Berg | |
| 1987 | La Bamba | Mr. Ludwig | |
| 1988 | Critters 2: The Main Course | Mr. Morgan | |
| 1990 | Dark Angel | Warren | |
| 1992 | Memoirs of an Invisible Man | Chairman of the House Committee | |
| 1994 | Forrest Gump | Principal | |
| The Puppet Masters | Culbertson | ||
| 1997 | After the Game | Jimmy Walsh | |
| 1998 | Permanent Midnight | Dr. Olsen | |
| 1999 | Sonic Impact | Alex Holmes | |
| 2000 | The Independent | Ed | |
| The Distance | John Harrison | ||
| 2002 | Slackers | Charles Patton | |
| 2003 | The Commission | Dr. Robert Roeder Shaw | |
| 2004 | 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover | George | |
| 2005 | Touched | Dr. Reynolds | |
| 2006 | Dirty Habit | Bishop | |
| 2011 | Water for Elephants | Mr. Hyde | |
| 2012 | 3, 2, 1... Frankie Go Boom | Dad (Chris) | |
| Breaking the Girls | Professor Nolan | ||
| 2014 | Devil's Due | Father Thomas | |
| 2016 | Do You Take This Man | Steven | |
| Ouija: Origin of Evil | Mr. Browning | ||
| 2017 | Maybe Someday | Douglas Donnelly | |
| 2018 | Song of Back and Neck | Jarred Foxen | |
| 2021 | Echoes of Violence | Conroy | |
| 2022 | Where the Crawdads Sing | Tate Walker old |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Police Story | Jaques | Episode: "The Broken Badge" |
| 1979–1981 | WKRP in Cincinnati | Various roles | 4 episodes |
| 1980 | The Stockard Channing Show | Arnold | Episode: "Catch a Falling Star" |
| 1983 | St. Elsewhere | Mr. McGrath | Episode: "Dog Day Hospital" |
| Gloria | Mr. Copley | Episode: "An Uncredited Woman" | |
| Murder 1, Dancer 0 | Paul Iberville | TV movie | |
| Remington Steele | Store manager | Episode: "Altared Steele" | |
| Policewoman Centerfold | Druggist | TV movie | |
| 1984 | Blue Thunder | Benjamin Kelty | Episode: "Arms Race" |
| T. J. Hooker | Leo Santee | Episode: "Death Strip" | |
| Mama Malone | Stanley, the announcer | 11 episodes | |
| E/R | Mr. Dobbs | Episode: "All's Well That Ends" | |
| Hill Street Blues | Kenny Sterling | Episode: "Last Chance Salon" | |
| 1985 | Hotel | Lon Schaeffer | Episode: "Fallen Idols" |
| Magnum, P.I. | Ray Jones / John Doe | Episode: "Ms. Jones" | |
| Dallas | Inspector Frank Howard | 2 episodes | |
| Tales from the Darkside | Dr. Synapsis | Episode: "Bigalow's Last Smoke" | |
| Hunter | Vinny Cochran | Episode: "Case X" | |
| Newhart | Larry's supporter | Episode: "Candidate Larry" | |
| Simon & Simon | Ellis | Episode: "Down-Home Country Blues" | |
| Eye to Eye | Walter Briggs | Episode #1.6 | |
| 1986 | Hardcastle and McCormick | Teddy Peters | Episode: "McCormick's Bar and Grill" |
| Valerie | Customer | Episode: "This Son for Hire" | |
| Rowdies | George Modell | TV movie | |
| You Again? | Judge | Episode: "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Traffic Lights" | |
| The Golden Girls | Meyer | Episode: "'Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas" | |
| 1986–1992 | Growing Pains | Principal Willis Dewitt | 13 episodes |
| 1986–1992 | Perfect Strangers | Mr. Sam Gorpley / Harrison Harper | 37 episodes |
| 1987 | Cagney & Lacey | Mike | Episode: "Easy Does It" |
| What's Happening Now!! | Ingraham | Episode: "Raj on the Double" | |
| The Charmings | Dr. Peters | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| Buck James | Elias Turner | Episode: "Sins of the Father" | |
| 1988 | 21 Jump Street | Dan Finger | Episode: "School's Out" |
| 1989 | Star Trek: The Next Generation | Assistant manager | Episode: "The Royale" |
| Hooperman | Dr. Lazlo | Episode: "Dog Day Afternoon, Morning and Night" | |
| Alien Nation | Thomas Edison | Episode: "The Game" | |
| 1990 & 1991 | Uncle Buck | Kroger | 2 episodes |
| 1991 | Married People | Beiderman | Episode: "You Were Right and I Was..." |
| 1991–1993 | L.A. Law | D.D.A. Bill Graphia | 4 episodes |
| 1992 | The New WKRP in Cincinnati | Floyd Castro | Episode: "Mama Was a Rolling Stone" |
| Jake and the Fatman | Arnie Crane | Episode: "Nightmare" | |
| 1992–1995 | Picket Fences | FBI Agent Donald Morrell | 7 episodes |
| 1993 | A Place to Be Loved | Judge Thomas S. Kirk | Television film |
| Danger Theatre | Andre the Gourmet | Episode: "An Old Friend for Dinner" | |
| Melrose Place | Agent Hill | 2 episodes | |
| 1993–1996 | Murder, She Wrote | Various roles | 4 episodes |
| 1994 | In the Heat of the Night | Drew Ward | Episode: "Maybelle Returns" |
| Confessions: Two Faces of Evil | Father Dominic | TV movie | |
| The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. | Simon Wolfe | Episode: "Brooklyn Dodgers" | |
| The Stand | Whitney Horgan | Miniseries | |
| Thunder Alley | Mr. Riley | Episode: "Speak No Evil" | |
| 1994 & 2000 | Diagnosis: Murder | Dr. Hjortsberg / Ernie Pitt | 3 episodes |
| 1994–2007 | ER | Dr. Jack Kayson | 20 episodes |
| 1995 | Pointman | Phil Lettamar | Episode: "Trading Up in the Pale Moonlight" |
| Live Shot | Marvin Seaborne | 13 episodes | |
| 1996 | The Man Next Door | Dwight Cooley | TV movie |
| Nowhere Man | The Man | Episode: "Through a Lens Darkly" | |
| Norma Jean & Marilyn | Doctor | TV movie | |
| The Cape | Kevin Davis, Capcom | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| Aaahh!!! Real Monsters | Farrig / Kid #1 | Episode: "Festival of the Festering Moon/Simon's Big Score" | |
| High Incident | Gulliksen | Episode: "Who'll Stop the Bombs?" | |
| Boston Common | President Butterfield / Wesley Butterfield | 7 episodes | |
| Millennium | Agent Jack Pierson | Episode: "522666" | |
| 1997 | The Jeff Foxworthy Show | Mr. Hertford | Episode: "Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks" |
| The Sleepwalker Killing | Roth Lane | Television film | |
| The Visitor | Army General | Episode: "The Devil's Rainbow" | |
| Fame L.A. | Larry Peters | Episode: "Seize the Day" | |
| Rugrats | Salesman / Announcer | Episode: "Ransom of Cynthia/Turtle Recall" | |
| The Pretender | Dr. Curtis | Episode: "Over the Edge" | |
| 1998 | The Pentagon Wars | Congressman #2 | Television film |
| Chicago Hope | Howard Sherwood | Episode: "Liver, Hold the Mushrooms" | |
| From the Earth to the Moon | Thomas O. Paine | 2 episodes | |
| The X-Files | Leamus | Episode: "The Pine Bluff Variant" | |
| Prey | Dr. Ian Copeland | 2 episodes | |
| Friends | Dr. Harad | Episode: "The One Hundredth" | |
| Fantasy Island | Mr. Gable | Episode: "Wishboned" | |
| 1999 | Ally McBeal | Mark Harrison | Episode: "In Dreams" |
| NetForce | Fox | TV movie | |
| Profiler | Ken Harker | 1 episode | |
| 2000 | Two Guys and a Girl | Dr. Harvey | Episode: "Love Shack" |
| The West Wing | John LaSalle | Episode: "Shibboleth" | |
| 2000–2001 | Angel | Holland Manners | 8 episodes |
| 2001 | The Fighting Fitzgeralds | Judge Flanagan | Episode: "One Angry Man" |
| JAG | Consulate General Raymond Dart | Episode: "Guilt" | |
| 2002 | First Monday | Kristen Bremerton's Attorney | 1 episode |
| The Chronicle | Dr. Emmanuel Fickas | Episode: "I See Dead Fat People" | |
| Everybody Loves Raymond | Special Agent Thomas Garfield | Episode: "Lucky Suit" | |
| The Court | White House Counsel Reinhart | Episode: "Life Sentence" | |
| Family Law | Carlisle Tucker | Episode: "Admissions" | |
| Wolf Lake | Arthur Van Halen | Episode: "If These Wolves Could Talk" | |
| Pasadena | Dr. Paul Darwell | 3 episodes | |
| CSI: Miami | Scott Sommer | Episode: "Golden Parachute" | |
| Presidio Med | Andy Sloan | Episode: "Pick Your Battles" | |
| 2003 | Judging Amy | Gordon Kirby | Episode: "The Best Interests of the Child" |
| Without a Trace | Congressman Whitehurst | Episode: "Kam Li" | |
| Boomtown | Scott Dawson | 2 episodes | |
| Miracles | Cinda's Father | Episode: "Mother's Daughter" | |
| Secret Santa | Mr. Gibson | Television film | |
| 2003–2004 | Married to the Kellys | Bill Kelly | 21 episodes |
| 2004 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Dr. Mercer | Episode: "Ch-Ch-Changes" |
| 2005 | Boston Legal | Boston Legal | Episode: "From Whence We Came" |
| Malcolm in the Middle | Police Commissioner | Episode: "Billboard" | |
| Medium | Dr. Eliot Peterson | Episode: "Time Out of Mind" | |
| 2005–2010 | Lost | Bernard Nadler | 21 episodes |
| 2006 | Cold Case | Ted Robinson | Episode: "Joseph" |
| CSI: NY | Dr. Richards | Episode: "And Here's to You, Mrs. Azrael" | |
| 2007 | K-Ville | Mr. Dubois | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2009 | Leverage | Henry Retzing | Episode: "The Snow Job" |
| Grey's Anatomy | Michael Whitman | Episode: "Before and After" | |
| Criminal Minds | Dr. Rawlings | Episode: "House on Fire" | |
| 2010 | The Forgotten | Train engineer | Episode: "Train Jane" |
| Memphis Beat | Councilman Orland | Episode: "Don't Be So Cruel" | |
| NCIS | Walter Carmichael | Episode: "Worst Nightmare" | |
| 2012 | Hawaii Five-0 | Owen Sutherland | Episode: "Ka Ho' Oponopono" |
| Work It | Dr. Keith Sorenson | Episode: "Shake Your Moneymaker" | |
| Harry's Law | Judge William Rothman | Episode: "Judge William Rothman" | |
| Men at Work | James Wilson | Episode: "Inventing Milo" | |
| NCIS: Los Angeles | Senator Dick Osborne | Episode: "Dead Body Politic" | |
| Scandal | Melvin Feen | Episode: "Spies Like Us" | |
| 2013 | Dallas | Dr. David Gordon | 2 episodes |
| 2013–2014 | Justified | Lee Paxton | 9 episodes |
| 2014 | Castle | Principal Dunnan | Episode: "Smells Like Teen Spirit" |
| Grimm | Rolek Porter / Old Man | 2 episodes | |
| Chasing Life | Gerald Rayburn | ||
| Bones | Hugo Sanderson | ||
| 2016 | Damien | Professor Igor Reneus | Episode: "The Beast Rises" |
| 2017 | Doubt | Judge Jonah Porter | Episode: "Then and Now" |
| This Is Us | Judge Walter Crowder | Episode: "The Most Disappointed Man" | |
| 2018 | American Woman | Raymond Turner | Episode: "Changes and the New Normal" |
| 2019 | How to Get Away with Murder | Thomas Fitzgerald | Episode: "I'm the Murderer" |
| 2023 | Painkiller | Raymond Sackler | 6 episodes |
| 2024 | Matlock | Edwin | 4 episodes |
Awards and nominations
Ovation Awards
- 2019: Nominated for Lead Actor in a Play for the role of Ichabod Banks in the Road Theatre Company production of The Bird and Mr. Banks
See also
In Spanish: Sam Anderson para niños
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Sam Anderson Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.