Ed Kemmer

Ed Kemmer (October 29, 1921 – November 9, 2004) was an American motion picture and television actor.

Life
Kemmer was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, and served as a fighter pilot in World War II. He was shot down and sent to a POW camp. He briefly escaped from the camp for two weeks before he was recaptured.

Kemmer made his television debut in 1951 and starred in the live television science fiction action-drama Space Patrol between 1951 and 1956. Kemmer made his film debut in 1956 (Behind the High Wall). He had a starring role as a pilot in the film The Hot Angel (1958), but his big-screen work was mostly small roles in low-budget B movies such as Giant from the Unknown (1958). The bulk of Kemmer's work was for the small screen.

In 1958, he guest-starred in two consecutive episodes of the ABC/Warner Brothers western series, Sugarfoot, starring Will Hutchins in the title role. In "The Wizard" he is Sheriff Mike Collins; in "The Ghost", with fellow guest-star Tommy Rettig, he is deputy sheriff Joe Wilkes.

After Space Patrol, Kemmer was a guest star in various prime-time television series, including the classic Twilight Zone episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", in which former space hero Kemmer co-starred with future space hero William Shatner. He also made two guest appearances on Perry Mason. In 1960 he played Roger Porter in "The Case of the Frantic Flyer," and in 1961 he played murder victim Leslie Hall in "The Case of the Pathetic Patient."

Kemmer starred for two years as an American astronaut in the soap opera The Clear Horizon, leading to the later phase of his career as a leading player in various daytime drama series, including The Edge of Night (on which he met his wife, actress Fran Sharon) as Malcolm Thomas, The Secret Storm as Paul Britton #2, As the World Turns as attorney Dick Martin, and Somerset as attorney Ben Grant. He also made appearances as a doctor on All My Children.

He was married twice and had three children, Jonathan, Todd, Kimberly. He suffered a stroke on November 5, 2004, and died four days later.

Selected filmography

 * Behind the High Wall (1956)
 * Earth vs. the Spider (1958)
 * Giant from the Unknown (1958)
 * Official Detective "Loan Companies" as Joe Esposito (1958)
 * Executive Action (1973)