| David Hedison | |
|---|---|
 Hedison at the Big Apple Convention in 2009 | |
| Born |
Albert David Heditsian Jr. May 20, 1927 Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Died |
July 18, 2019 (aged 92) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Al Hedison |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1949–2005 |
| Spouse(s) | Bridget Mori Hedison (m. 1968–2016) |
| Children | 2, including Alexandra |
Albert David Hedison Jr. (May 20, 1927 – July 18, 2019) was an American film, television, and stage actor.[1] He was billed as Al Hedison in his early film work until 1959 when he was cast in the role of Victor Sebastian in the short-lived espionage television series Five Fingers. NBC insisted that he change his name and he proposed his middle name and he was billed as David Hedison from then on. He was known for his role as Captain Lee Crane in Irwin Allen's television series Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1964–1968) and as CIA agent Felix Leiter in two James Bond films, Live and Let Die (1973) and Licence to Kill (1989).
Biography[]
Early life[]
Hedison decided he wanted to be an actor after he saw Tyrone Power in the film Blood and Sand.[2]
He began his acting career with the Sock and Buskin Players at Brown University before moving to New York to study with Sanford Meisner and Martha Graham at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre and with Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio.[3][4]
Theatre[]
He acted at Newport Casino Theatre. In 1951 he won a Barter Theatre Award for most promising young actor, entitling him to work at a theatre in Virginia.[5] He did radio in North Carolina and worked on stage in Pittsburgh.[4]
His work on the New York stage includes an appearance in Much Ado About Nothing (1952).[6] He was studying with Uta Hagen who recommended him for a role in the Broadway production of A Month in the Country (1956), directed by Michael Redgrave.[7] It ran for 48 performances on Broadway. The Theatre World declared Hedison as one of the most promising theatre personalities of the 1955–56 season.[8]
20th Century Fox[]
After his role in A Month in the Country, Hedison signed a film contract with 20th Century Fox in May 1957.[9] His first movie with them was the classic war film The Enemy Below (1957), which also starred Robert Mitchum.[10][11]
He followed that up with the lead role in the horror film The Fly (1958) with Vincent Price as his brother.[6] Hedison got the role after Rick Jason turned it down. This was very successful at the box office.[12]
Hedison went to England to play the lead role in The Son of Robin Hood (1958).[11][13]
David Hedison[]
Hedison was cast in the lead of a TV series made by Fox for NBC, Five Fingers (1959).[9] He was reluctant to make it, especially when NBC insisted he change his first name to David. The series only lasted one season.[4][14]
Hedison had the lead role in an adventure film The Lost World (1960), directed by Irwin Allen.[15]
Hedison guest starred on some Fox shows, Hong Kong and Bus Stop. He co-starred with Tom Tryon in Marines, Let's Go (1961).[16]
Hedison worked regularly on television, guest starring in Perry Mason and The Farmer's Daughter. He co-starred in an episode of The Saint, starring Roger Moore who became a great friend. The episode's plot propheticly involves Moore's Saint mistaken for 007 and David as an FBI agent — roles they would play seven years later as 007 and Felix Leiter in Live and Let Die.[12] He was one of many stars in the film The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965).[9]
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea[]
Irwin Allen offered Hedison the role of Captain Lee Crane in the television series Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, co-starring with Richard Basehart, which ran from 1964 to 1968.[17]
London[]
After Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea concluded, Hedison was offered the role of Mike Brady on The Brady Bunch, but turned it down, stating, "after four years of subs and monsters, who needs kids and dogs?" The role eventually went to Robert Reed.[15]
Hedison moved to London. "I liked London very much," he later said. "I just wanted to go and spend a couple years there ... It's two years I'm not sorry for. The problem was, when I came back to the U.S., it was more difficult getting work then."[18]
Hedison guest starred on Journey to the Unknown; Love, American Style; ITV Sunday Night Theatre; the BBC's Play of the Month; The F.B.I.; and The New Perry Mason. He could be seen in Kemek (1970), A Kiss Is Just a Kiss (1971), Crime Club (1973), The Cat Creature, and The Man in the Wood. He was most proud of doing an adaptation of Summer and Smoke with Lee Remick.[18]
James Bond and television[]
Hedison played Felix Leiter in Live and Let Die (1973), starring his friend Roger Moore as the new James Bond.[19] Bond scholars Pfeiffer and Worrall praised the friendship between Leiter and Bond for being depicted with "genuine chemistry" between the two.[20]
Sixteen years later, Hedison returned to play Leiter in Licence to Kill (1989), with Bond now being portrayed by Timothy Dalton.[18] Hedison became the first actor to reprise the role of Felix Leiter and is the only actor to play Leiter with two different James Bonds.[18][21]
1980s[]
Hedison toured with Barbara Anderson and Anita Gillette in Neil Simon's Chapter Two in 1979 and 1980.[22]
He could be seen in North Sea Hijack (1980), episodes of Charlie's Angels, Nero Wolfe, Hart to Hart, T. J. Hooker, Matt Houston, Amanda's, Dynasty, Fantasy Island, Partners in Crime, The Fall Guy, The Love Boat, Simon & Simon, Double Trouble, Finder of Lost Loves, Knight Rider, Crazy Like a Fox, The A-Team, Trapper John, M.D., Hotel, The Colbys, Who's the Boss?, The Law & Harry McGraw, and Murder, She Wrote.[6][9]
He was in The Awakening of Cassie for Romance Theatre, Kenny Rogers as The Gambler: The Adventure Continues and The Naked Face (1984) with Moore.[23]
Hedison appeared in the West Coast premiere of Forty Deuce in 1985.[24]
Hedison was the first actor to play James Bond's ally Felix Leiter in more than one film when he reprised the role in Licence to Kill (1989).[1] Hedison thought he was asked back because "there was much more to do in the film than in the past, and they were afraid of using an unknown or someone they were not quite sure of."[18]
"I think in this kind of film, it won't lead to other work unless you do something stand-out with a really wonderfully written scene," added Hedison." Otherwise you're just doing a job, part of the ensemble. And in this case, I have lots of action scenes, but no one scene that is memorable ... Felix is a fairly one-dimensional character, you never get into any depth. You do what you can. There's not much to play. All you can do is perform it with a simple reality ... It was running around, bang bang, getting wet, screaming and yelling, and all kinds of fun, but not serious acting."[18]
Later career[]
From 1991 to 1996, Hedison was a regular on the long-running soap opera Another World.[11]
He also starred in the New York City premiere of First Love with Lois Nettleton in 1999. He returned to the Cape Playhouse to appear in Tale of the Allergist's Wife (2002), and at Monmouth University's Pollak Theatre, in Love Letters with Nancy Dussault in 2007.[25]
He had a role in The Young and the Restless and could be seen in The Reality Trap (2005).[26]
In 2006, he acted in The Scent of Jasmine at the Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles on November 13. In 2008, Hedison performed Uncle Vanya at the Actor's Studio West. He also participated in performances of The Cherry Orchard and I Never Sang for My Father in Los Angeles in 2009. He later appeared in The Marriage Play by Edward Albee.[12]
He was in Superman and the Secret Planet and Confessions of a Teenage Jesus Jerk.[27]
Personal life[]
His parents were Albert David Hedison (Heditsian) Sr. and Rose Boghosian; they were Armenian.[28] He and his wife Bridget were married in London on June 29, 1968. Bridget Hedison died of breast cancer on February 22, 2016.[29] They had two daughters, actor/director/photographer Alexandra Hedison and editor/producer Serena Hedison. Alexandra Hedison has appeared in L.A. Firefighters and The L Word and is married to actress and director Jodie Foster.
He died on July 18, 2019, at his home in Los Angeles.[11][30][31]
Filmography[]
Film[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1957 | The Enemy Below | Lt. Ware | |
| 1958 | The Fly | Andre Delambre | |
| 1958 | The Son of Robin Hood | Jamie | |
| 1958 | Rally Round the Flag, Boys! | Narrator | Voice, Uncredited |
| 1960 | The Lost World | Ed Malone | |
| 1961 | Marines, Let's Go | Pfc. Dave Chatfield | |
| 1965 | The Greatest Story Ever Told | Philip | |
| 1970 | Kemek | Nick | |
| 1973 | Live and Let Die | Felix Leiter | |
| 1980 | North Sea Hijack | Robert King | |
| 1984 | The Naked Face | Dr. Peter Hadley | |
| 1986 | Smart Alec | Frank Wheeler | |
| 1989 | Licence to Kill | Felix Leiter | |
| 1990 | Undeclared War | US Ambassador | |
| 1999 | Fugitive Mind | Senator Davis | Direct-to-video |
| 2001 | Mach 2 | Stuart Davis | |
| 2001 | Megiddo: The Omega Code 2 | Daniel Alexander | |
| 2004 | Spectres | William | |
| 2005 | The Reality Trap | Morgan Jameson | |
| 2013 | Superman and the Secret Planet | Jor-El | Direct-to-video |
| 2017 | Confessions of a Teenage Jesus Jerk | Interviewee #2 | (final film role) |
Television[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | Danger | Episode: "Padlocks" | |
| 1955 | Kraft Television Theatre | Episode: "Eleven O'Clock Flight" | |
| 1956 | Star Tonight | Episode: "The Mirthmaker" | |
| 1959–1960 | Five Fingers | Victor Sebastian | 16 episodes |
| 1961 | Hong Kong | Roger Ames | Episode: "Lesson in Fear" |
| 1961 | Bus Stop | Max Hendricks | Episode: "Call Back Yesterday" |
| 1962 | Perry Mason | Damion White | Episode: "The Case of the Dodging Domino" |
| 1964 | The Saint | Bill Harvey | Episode: "Luella" |
| 1964 | The Farmer's Daughter | Richard Barden | Episode: "The Mink Machine" |
| 1964–1968 | Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea | Captain Lee Crane | 110 episodes |
| 1967 | Hollywood Squares | Himself | 5 episodes |
| 1967 | The Mike Douglas Show | Himself | 1 episode |
| 1967 | The Merv Griffin Show | Himself | 1 episode |
| 1968 | Journey to the Unknown | William Searle | Episode: "Somewhere in a Crowd" |
| 1969 | Love, American Style | Rob | Segment: "Love and the Other Love" |
| 1971 | A Kiss Is Just a Kiss | Kit Shaeffer | Television film |
| 1972 | ITV Sunday Night Theatre | Bill Kromin | Episode: "A Man About a Dog" |
| 1972 | Play of the Month | John Buchanan | Episode: "Summer and Smoke" |
| 1972–1973 | The F.B.I. | Scott Jordan / Lou Forrester | 2 episodes |
| 1973 | Crime Club | Nick Kelton | Television film |
| 1973 | The Cat Creature | Prof. Roger Edmonds | Television film |
| 1973 | The New Perry Mason | Calvin Ryan | Episode: "The Case of the Frenzied Feminist" |
| 1973 | The Man in the Wood | Edmund Hardy | Television film |
| 1973–1975 | Cannon | David Farnum / John Sandler / Gordon Bell | 3 episodes |
| 1974 | Shaft | Gil Kirkwood | Episode: "The Capricorn Murders" |
| 1974 | Medical Center | Dave | Episode: "Dark Warning" |
| 1974 | The Wide World of Mystery | Herbert Kasson | Episode: "Murder Impossible" |
| 1974 | The Compliment | Steve Barker | Television film |
| 1974 | The Manhunter | Jeffrey Donnenfield | Episode: "The Man Who Thought He Was Dillinger" |
| 1974 | The ABC Afternoon Playbreak | Clay | Episode: "Can I Save My Children?" |
| 1975 | For the Use of the Hall | Allen | Television film |
| 1975 | Adventures of the Queen | Dr. Peter Brooks | Television film |
| 1975 | The Lives of Jenny Dolan | Dr. Wes Dolan | Television film |
| 1975 | The Art of Crime | Parker Sharon | Television film |
| 1975 | Bronk | Lyle Brewster | Episode: "Betrayal" |
| 1976 | Ellery Queen | Roger Woods | Episode: "The Adventure of the Eccentric Engineer" |
| 1976 | Family | Peter Towne | 2 episodes |
| 1977 | Barnaby Jones | Paul Nugent | Episode: "The Deadly Charade" |
| 1977 | Murder in Peyton Place | Steven Cord | Television film |
| 1977 | Wonder Woman | Evan Robley | Episode: "The Queen and the Thief" |
| 1977 | Gibbsville | Episode: "The Grand Gesture" | |
| 1977–1985 | The Love Boat | Cliff Jacobs / Barry Singer / Bradford York / Allan Christensen / Sherman / Buddy Stanfield | 7 episodes |
| 1978 | The Bob Newhart Show | Steve Darnell | Episode: "It Didn't Happen One Night" |
| 1978 | Project U.F.O. | Frederick Flanagan | Episode: "Sighting 4011: The Dollhouse Incident" |
| 1978 | Colorado C.I. | David Royce | Television film |
| 1978 | Flying High | Glen Dodson | Episode: "High Rollers" |
| 1978–1981 | Charlie's Angels | John Thornwood / Carter Gillis | 2 episodes |
| 1978–1984 | Fantasy Island | Daniel Garman / Phillip Camden / Captain John Day / David Tabori / Karl Dixon / Claude Duncan / Carlyle Cranston | 6 episodes |
| 1979 | Greatest Heroes of the Bible | Ashpenaz | Episode: "Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar" |
| 1979 | The Power Within | Danton | Television film |
| 1979 | Benson | John Taylor | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 1981 | Nero Wolfe | Phillip Corrigan | Episode: "Murder by the Book" |
| 1982 | Hart to Hart | Miles Wiatt | Episode: "Hart of Diamonds" |
| 1982 | T. J. Hooker | Saxon | Episode: "The Protectors" |
| 1982 | Romance Theatre | Marc | 4 episodes |
| 1982 | Matt Houston | Pierre Cerdan | Episode: "Recipe for Murder" |
| 1982–1985 | The Fall Guy | Monte Sorrenson / Milo / Jordan Stevens | 3 episodes |
| 1983 | Amanda's | David | Episode: "All in a Day's Work" |
| 1983 | Dynasty | Sam Dexter | 2 episodes |
| 1983 | Kenny Rogers as The Gambler: The Adventure Continues | Carson | Television film |
| 1984 | Partners in Crime | Davidson | Episode: "Fantasyland" |
| 1985 | Simon & Simon | Austin Tyler | 2 episodes |
| 1985 | Double Trouble | David Burke | Episode: "September Song" |
| 1985 | Finder of Lost Loves | Neil Palmer | Episode: "Haunted Memories" |
| 1985 | Knight Rider | Theodore Cooper | Episode: "Knight in Retreat" |
| 1985 | A.D. | Porcius Festus | Television miniseries |
| 1985 | Crazy Like a Fox | Ed Galvin | Episode: "Eye in the Sky" |
| 1985 | The A-Team | David Vaughn | Episode: "Mind Games" |
| 1985 | Trapper John, M.D. | Miles Warner | Episode: "The Second Best Man" |
| 1985–1987 | Hotel | Dr. Howard Bentley / Jack Fitzpatrick | 2 episodes |
| 1985–1987 | The Colbys | Roger Langdon | 9 episodes |
| 1986–1989 | Murder, She Wrote | Victor Casper / Victor Caspar / Mitch Payne | 3 episodes |
| 1987 | Who's the Boss? | Jim Ratcliff | Episode: "Mona" |
| 1987 | The Law & Harry McGraw | Blake Devaroe | Episode: "Mr. Chapman, I Presume?" |
| 1992 | Another World | Spencer Harrison | Episode dated 23 December 1992 |
| 2004 | The Young and the Restless | Arthur Hendricks | 50 episodes |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "David Hedison". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/31488/David-Hedison.
- ↑ Naylor, Donita (July 22, 2019). "R.I.-born actor David Hedison dies at 92 — star of ‘The Fly’ and ‘Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea’". The Providence Journal. https://www.providencejournal.com/news/20190722/ri-born-actor-david-hedison-dies-at-92---star-of-the-fly-and-voyage-to-bottom-of-sea.
- ↑ Garfield, David (1980). "Appendix: Life Members of The Actors Studio as of January 1980". A Player's Place: The Story of The Actors Studio. New York: MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc.. p. 278. ISBN 0-02-542650-8. https://archive.org/details/playersplacestor00garf/page/278.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 He Sold Anything and Finally Himself Hopper, Hedda. Chicago Daily Tribune July 3, 1960: b14.
- ↑ 3 PLAYERS SHARE DERWENT AWARDS: GETS ACTING PRIZE By SAM ZOLOTOW. New York Times, 21 May 1951: 23.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Nichols, Mackenzie (July 22, 2019). "David Hedison, Actor in ‘Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea’ and ‘The Fly’, Dies at 92". Variety. https://variety.com/2019/film/news/david-hedison-dead-dies-the-fly-voyage-to-the-bottom-of-the-sea-1203275257/.
- ↑ Theatre: Charming Play by Turgenev: 'Month in the Country' Staged at Phoenix By BROOKS ATKINSON. New York Times April 4, 1956: 23.
- ↑ STAGE AWARDS MADE: Theatre World Prizes Go to 'Promising Personalities' New York Times May 23, 1956: 35.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Evans, Greg (July 22, 2019). "David Hedison Dies: ‘Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea’ Actor Was 92" (in en). Deadline. https://deadline.com/2019/07/david-hedison-dead-voyage-to-the-bottom-of-the-sea-actor-obituary-1202650432/. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
- ↑ Looking at Hollywood: Chicago Daily Tribune May 25, 1957: 17.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 "David Hedison, 'Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea' Actor, Dies at 92" (in en). The Hollywood Reporter. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/david-hedison-dead-voyage-bottom-sea-actor-was-92-1226038. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Thomas, Nick (May 19, 2016). "David Hedison’s Hollywood ‘Voyage’". The Spectrum. https://www.thespectrum.com/story/entertainment/2016/05/19/david-hedisons-hollywood-voyage/84459442/.
- ↑ $4 MILLION LATER: 20th Has Its Stars of Tomorrow Los Angeles Times August 16, 1959: E1.
- ↑ MRS. ROOSEVELT PLANS TV SERIES, New York Times, June 9, 1959: 75.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Gates, Anita (July 23, 2019). "David Hedison, Actor Who Found Fame in a Submarine, Dies at 92". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/23/arts/television/david-hedison-dead.html.
- ↑ Tryon Will Star in Marine Drama: Locale to Be Japan, Okinawa; 'Exodus' Premiere Picketed Hopper, Hedda. Los Angeles Times December 24, 1960: A4.
- ↑
- p.157 Weaver, Tom David Hedison Interview in Eye on Science Fiction: 20 Interviews with Classic SF and Horror Filmmakers McFarland, June 1, 2007
- CAMERA ANGLES: Smooth sailing for David Hedison MacMINN, ALEENE. Los Angeles Times July 4, 1965: H4.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 18.5 Goldberg, Lee (June 2, 1989). "DAVID HEDISON HOPES FOR FAME, AGAIN, IN `LICENSE TO KILL`". Chicago Tribune. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1989-06-02-8902060079-story.html.
- ↑ Moore, Roger (2008). My Word is My Bond. London: Michael O'Mara Books. p. 175. ISBN 978-1-84317-318-2.
- ↑ Pfeiffer, Lee; Worrall, Dave (1998). The essential Bond. London: Boxtree Ltd. p. 91. ISBN 978-0-7522-2477-0.
- ↑ Karasin, Ekin (July 23, 2019). "James Bond actor David Hedison dies aged 92". Metro. https://metro.co.uk/2019/07/23/james-bond-actor-david-hedison-dies-aged-92-10442326/.
- ↑ SIMON COMEDY 'CHAPTER TWO' AT FOX THEATRE, Los Angeles Times, September 26, 1979: sd4.
- ↑ Christiansen, Richard (January 29, 1985). "MOORE, STEIGER CAN`T SAVE PROFILE OF `NAKED FACE`". Chicago Tribune. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1985-01-29-8501060447-story.html.
- ↑ STAGE REVIEW `FORTY-DEUCE' LOOKS AT MALE HUSTLERS' WORLD Los Angeles Times January 23, 1985: 7.
- ↑ First Love Gets a Shot At a Rare Second Chance Newsday, November 12, 1999: B35.
- ↑ Soap star made a buzz in original Fly Soapsuds Toronto Star, January 17, 1994: C7.
- ↑ Anderson, Jenna (July 23, 2019). "The Fly Star David Hedison Dies at 92". ComicBook.com. https://comicbook.com/horror/2019/07/23/david-hedison-actor-death-the-fly-voyage-to-the-bottom-of-the-sea/.
- ↑ Karentz, Varoujan (2004). Mitchnapert the Citadel: A History of Armenians in Rhode Island. Lincoln, Nebraska: iUniverse. p. 191. ISBN 0-595-30662-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=pu1lPgv_soYC&pg=PA191.
- ↑ "Obituary". Los Angeles Times. http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/latimes/obituary.aspx?pid=177876673.
- ↑ SOD (July 22, 2019). "Soap Alum David Hedison Dies at 92". United States: American Media, Inc.. https://www.soapoperadigest.com/content/soap-alum-david-hedison-dies-at-92/.
- ↑ Nichols, Mackenzie (July 22, 2019). "David Hedison, Actor in ‘Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea’ and ‘The Fly’, Dies at 92". Variety. https://variety.com/2019/film/news/david-hedison-dead-dies-the-fly-voyage-to-the-bottom-of-the-sea-1203275257/.
External links[]
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Category:David Hedison. |
- Official website
- David Hedison at the Internet Movie Database
- David Hedison at the Internet Broadway Database
- David Hedison at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- D at the TCM Movie Database
- David Hedison at Find a Grave
- Hedison on the Felix Leiter website
- Interview with David Hedison at Classic Film & TV Cafe
- Bridget Hedison obituary
- Mi6.co.uk Interviews David Hedison[dead link]
The original article can be found at David Hedison and the edit history here.