Tim Matheson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tim Matheson
Matheson in a Bonanza publicity photo, 1972
Born	Timothy Lewis Matthieson (1947-12-31) December 31, 1947 (age 77) Glendale, California, U.S.
Other names	Tim Matthieson (early credits)
Occupation	Actor, director
Years active	1961–present
Spouse(s)	Jennifer Leak ​ ​ (m. 1968; div. 1971)​ Megan Murphy Matheson ​ ​ (m. 1985; div. 2010)​ Elizabeth Marighetto ​ ​ (m. 2018)​
Children	3

Tim Matheson (born Timothy Lewis Matthieson; December 31, 1947) is an American actor and director. He is famous for playing Eric "Otter" Stratton in the 1978 comedy film National Lampoon's Animal House. He also voiced the main character in the 1960s animated Jonny Quest TV series. Later, he had a recurring role as Vice President John Hoynes in the TV drama The West Wing. This role earned him two nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.

Early Life and Beginnings

Tim Matheson was born in Glendale, California, which is a city near Los Angeles. His father, Clifford Matthieson, was a training pilot. Tim also served in the United States Marine Corps Reserve.

He started acting at age 13. His first role was Roddy Miller in the TV series Window on Main Street (1961–1962). He also appeared in two episodes of Leave It to Beaver as Mike Harmon.

Acting Career Highlights

In 1964, Tim Matheson became the voice of the main character in the cartoon series Jonny Quest. He also voiced Sinbad Jr. in Sinbad Jr. and his Magic Belt and Jace in Space Ghost.

He played Mike Beardsley in the 1968 film Yours, Mine and Ours. This movie starred famous actors Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda.

Matheson as Jim Horn

In 1969, Matheson joined the TV Western show The Virginian as Jim Horn. Later, in the final season of Bonanza (1972–1973), he played Griff King. Griff was a parolee who worked at the Ponderosa Ranch.

In 1973, he appeared in the film Magnum Force, playing a police officer named Phil Sweet. He also had a guest role in the comedy My Three Sons.

In 1978, Matheson was part of the cast of National Lampoon's Animal House. The next year, he worked with John Belushi again in Steven Spielberg's film 1941. In 1980, he tried out for the role of Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but Harrison Ford got the part.

He starred in the comedy film To Be or Not to Be (1983). He also played Rick Tucker in the TV show Tucker's Witch (1982–1983). Other comedy films he starred in include Up the Creek (1984) and Fletch (1985).

Matheson and Bruce Campbell at San Diego Comic-Con, July 22, 2010

From 1999 to 2006, Tim Matheson had a recurring role as Vice President John Hoynes on the TV show The West Wing. For this role, he was nominated for two Primetime Emmy awards.

In 1996, Matheson played a con man in A Very Brady Sequel. He also appeared in the film Van Wilder (2002). In this movie, he played the father of the main character, who was inspired by his own character from Animal House.

More recently, he played Dr. Brick Breeland on Hart of Dixie from 2011 to 2015. Since 2019, Matheson has starred as Doc Mullins in the Netflix series Virgin River. He also directs episodes of this show.

Directing Work

Besides acting, Tim Matheson is also a director. He has directed episodes for many popular TV shows. These include Third Watch, Ed, The Twilight Zone, Cold Case, Without a Trace, The West Wing, Psych, White Collar, Criminal Minds, Suits and Burn Notice. He even acted in Burn Notice sometimes.

In 2009, Matheson directed the first episode (pilot) of Covert Affairs. He also directed pilot episodes for The Good Guys (2010), Criminal Behavior (2011), and Wild Card (2011).

Personal Life

Tim Matheson has been married three times. His first marriage was to actress Jennifer Leak from 1968 to 1971. They met while working on the film Yours, Mine, and Ours. In 1985, he married Megan Murphy, and they had three children together. They divorced in 2010. In March 2018, he married Elizabeth Marighetto. They live in Hollywood, California.

Selected Filmography

Film

Television

Theme Parks

As Director

See also

In Spanish: Tim Matheson para niños