Robert Lansing (actor)

Robert Lansing (born Robert Howell Brown, June 5, 1928 – October 23, 1994) was an American stage, film, and television actor. Lansing's motion picture roles included A Gathering of Eagles with Rock Hudson and Under the Yum Yum Tree opposite Jack Lemmon. On television, he appeared in episodes of such hits as Star Trek, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Twilight Zone and Murder, She Wrote. Lansing is probably best remembered as the authoritarian Brig. Gen. Frank Savage in 12 O'Clock High (1964), the television drama series about World War II bomber pilots.

Early life
Born in San Diego, California, Lansing reportedly took his acting surname from the state capital of Michigan. As a young actor in New York City, he was hired to join a stock company in Michigan but was told he would first have to join the Actors' Equity Association. Equity would not allow him to join as "Robert Brown" because another actor was using that name. Because the stock company was based in Lansing, this became the actor's new surname.

Lansing served two years in the United States Army and was stationed in Osaka, Japan, where he worked at Armed Forces Radio.

Stage, film and television career
During his long career, which spanned five decades, Lansing appeared in 245 episodes of 73 television series, 11 TV movies, and 19 motion pictures. He gained early acting experience at the Actors Studio.

During the late 1940s and early 1950s, he worked under his real name Bob Brown as a radio announcer at WANE in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He also was active as an actor in a Fort Wayne theater group. Lansing first appeared on Broadway in the play Stalag 17 (1951) directed by José Ferrer, replacing Mark Roberts in the role of Dunbar at the 48th Street Theater. His rugged good looks, commanding stage presence and stentorian voice earned him continuing stage work and throughout his film career he periodically returned to the New York stage, making his last such appearance in 1991.

José Ferrer asked Lansing to perform in a series of plays at the New York City Center, including as a Cadet of Gascoyne in Cyrano de Bergerac and as the Marquis of Dorset in Richard III. He appeared in Tennessee Williams' Suddenly, Last Summer and Eugene O'Neill's The Great God Brown in the title role. Other stage performances included roles in Charley's Aunt, Elmer Rice's Cue for Passion, The Lovers, and The Cut of the Axe. Off-Broadway, his work included The Father, the "Sea Plays" of Eugene O'Neill and two one-man shows, Damien and The Disciple of Discontent.

On film, Lansing starred in the 1959 science fiction film 4D Man. He also starred as marine biologist Hank Donner in the 1966 nature drama film Namu, the Killer Whale, which featured one of the first orcas ever displayed in captivity. His other films included Under the Yum Yum Tree, A Gathering of Eagles, The Grissom Gang, Bittersweet Love, Scalpel (a.k.a. False Face), Empire of the Ants and The Nest.

Lansing first appeared on TV on Kraft Television Theatre in 1956. In the 1961–1962 television season, Lansing was cast as Detective Steve Carella on NBC's 87th Precinct series, based on the Ed McBain detective novels. His costars were Gena Rowlands, Ron Harper, Gregory Walcott, and Norman Fell. In 1961, he played the outlaw Frank Dalton in a two-part episode of NBC's Outlaws with Barton MacLane. Also in 1961, he played Jed Trask, a troubled shooter, in the Bonanza episode, "Cutthroat Junction." He played Doc Holliday in an episode of NBC's The Tall Man, with Barry Sullivan and Clu Gulager. Lansing would star alongside Clu Gulager again in a 1965 episode of NBC's The Virginian TV series titled "The Brothers". Again on NBC, in 1966, Lansing guest-starred as General Custer in a three episode segment of Branded called "Call to Glory".

Robert Lansing is probably best known for his role as Brigadier General Frank Savage in the first season of the Quinn Martin production, 12 O'Clock High, which aired on the ABC Television Network from 1964 to 1967. At the end of that season, the studio executives reported that a younger-looking lead actor was needed. But another account states that he was fired for being difficult to work with and not showing enough respect. In the first episode of the second season, General Savage was killed in action and replaced by Colonel Joe Gallagher, played by Paul Burke. Burke, though considered more youthful-looking than Lansing, was actually two years older, a fact that TV critics were quick to point out.

Other television roles include portrayals of an alcoholic college professor in ABC's drama Channing, as Gil Green in the 1963 episode "Fear Begins at Forty" on the NBC medical drama The Eleventh Hour, as a bounty hunter on Gunsmoke, as a parole officer in a 1968 episode ("A Time to Love — A Time to Cry") of The Mod Squad, and as interstellar secret agent Gary Seven in the episode "Assignment: Earth" (1968) of Star Trek. The episode was a backdoor pilot for a new series that would have starred Lansing and Teri Garr, but the series never materialized.

Lansing played an international secret agent in The Man Who Never Was, and Lt. Jack Curtis on Automan. He also played a recurring role, known only as "Control", on 29 episodes of The Equalizer between 1985 and 1989, which then was spun-off into the made-for-TV movie Memories of Manon which aired on 13 February 1989. He guest-starred in The Twilight Zone episode "The Long Morrow" and in the Thriller episode "Fatal Impulse." He also guest-starred on other television productions such as NBC's Law & Order. In the 1980s he did a series of television commercials for Liberty National Bank in Louisville, Kentucky as well as the popular supermarket chain Giant Eagle.

Robert Lansing's final television role was that of Police Captain Paul Blaisdell, on the series Kung Fu: The Legend Continues. The role was written specifically for Lansing by series writer and Executive Producer Michael Sloan, who had worked with Lansing on the series The Equalizer in the 1980s although Lansing had already been diagnosed with cancer. Despite continuing health problems, Lansing performed in 24 episodes in the first and second season. In the final episode of season 2, titled "Retribution", Lansing's character of Blaisdell was written out, with the possibility of the character returning if the actor's health improved. Unfortunately, the final episode filmed in February 1994, was Lansing's final acting performance. The episode aired on November 28, 1994, a month after the actor died, and was dedicated to his memory.

Personal life
Lansing had craggy good looks, a stentorian voice, commanding presence, and characteristic bushy eyebrows.

Lansing had a son, Robert Frederick Orin Lansing (1957–2009), with his first wife, actress Emily McLaughlin; the couple eventually divorced. About a year and a half later, he married Gari Hardy, but this marriage also ended in divorce. The couple had a daughter, Alice Lucille Lansing. His last wife was Anne Pivar, with whom he remained until his death.

From 1991 to 1993, he was president of The Players Club, a theatrical fraternal organization founded by Edwin Booth in 1888.

Lansing was a heavy smoker and died from cancer in 1994 at age 66, one year into his last regular series, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues. He was buried at Union Field Cemetery in Ridgewood, Queens.

Film roles

 * 4D Man (1959) as Dr. Scott Nelson
 * The Pusher (1960) as Steve Carella
 * A Gathering of Eagles (1963) as Sergeant Banning
 * Under the Yum Yum Tree (1963) as Charles Howard
 * Namu, the Killer Whale (1966) as Hank Donner
 * An Eye for an Eye (1966) as Talion
 * It Takes All Kinds (1969) as Tony Gunther
 * The Grissom Gang (1971) as Dave Fenner
 * The Astronaut (1972) as John Phillips
 * Wild in the Sky (1972) as Major Reason
 * Acapulco Gold (1976) as Carl Solborg
 * Bittersweet Love (1976) as Howard
 * Scalpel (a.k.a. False Face)'' (1977) as Dr. Philip Reynolds
 * Empire of the Ants (1977) as Dan Stokely
 * S*H*E (1980) as Owen Hooper
 * Island Claws (1980) as Moody
 * The Nest (1988) as Elias Johnson
 * After School (1988) as C.A. Thomas

Stage roles

 * Stalag 17 (1951) as Dunbar (replacement)
 * Cyrano de Bergerac (1953) as Cadet of Gascoyne
 * Richard III (1953) as Marquis of Dorset
 * Charley's Aunt (1953) as Jack Chesney
 * The Lovers (1956) as Herstal de la Crux
 * Cue for Passion (1958) as Lloyd Hilton
 * Suddenly, Last Summer (1958) as Dr. Cukrowicz
 * The Great God Brown (1959) as William A. Brown
 * All About Love (1959)
 * Cut of the Axe (1960) as Paul Carr
 * Under the Yum Yum Tree (1960)
 * Antony and Cleopatra (1967)
 * Brightower (1970) as Daniel Brightower
 * Finishing Touches (1973) as Jeff Cooper
 * The Father (1973) as The Captain
 * The Line (1977)
 * Phaedra (1977)
 * SS Glencairn (1977–1978)
 * The Dance of Death (1980–1981)
 * Damien (1981)
 * The Little Foxes (1981) as Benjamin Hubbard (replacement)
 * The Bathers (1983–1984)
 * The Cost of Living (1985)
 * John Brown's Body (1989)
 * Mi Vida Loca (1990) as Ajay
 * The Sum of Us (1990) as Dad (replacement)

TV movie roles

 * Calhoun: County Agent (1964 TV Movie) as Eric Sloane
 * The Long Hunt of April Savage (1966 TV Movie) as April Savage
 * The Astronaut (1972 TV Movie) as John Phillips
 * Killer by Night (1972 TV Movie) as Warren Claman
 * Crime Club (1975 TV Movie) as Alex Norton
 * Widow (1976 TV Movie) as Harold
 * The Deadly Triangle (1977 TV Movie) as Charles Cole
 * Life on the Mississippi (1980 Nebraska Public Television Movie) as Horace Bixby
 * Shadow of Sam Penny (1983 TV Movie) as Sam Penny
 * Memories of Manon (1988 TV Movie) as "Control"
 * Bionic Showdown: The Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman (1989 TV Movie) as General McAllister
 * Submarine: Steel Boats, Iron Men (1989 TV Movie) (Narrator)

Television series

 * Kraft Television Theatre (1947–1958)
 * The Big Story (1949–1958)
 * Armstrong Circle Theatre (1950–1963)
 * General Electric Theater (1953–1962)
 * The United States Steel Hour (1953–1963)
 * Gunsmoke (1955–1975)
 * Camera Three (1955–1979)
 * Wagon Train (1957–1965)
 * Young Doctor Malone (1958–1963)
 * The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen (1958–1959)
 * The Twilight Zone (1959–1964)
 * Bonanza (1959–1973)
 * Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond (1959–1961)
 * Deadline (1959–1961)
 * Thriller (1960–1962)
 * The Tall Man (1960–1962)
 * Checkmate (1960–1962)
 * Insight (1960–1984)
 * Outlaws (1960–1962)
 * Michael Shayne (1960–1961)
 * Here's Hollywood (1960–1962)
 * Moment of Fear (1960– )
 * Dow Hour of Great Mysteries (1960)
 * The Mike Douglas Show (1961–1982)
 * 87th Precinct (1961–1962)
 * The DuPont Show of the Week (1961–1964)
 * The Virginian (1962–1971)
 * The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962–1992)
 * Saints and Sinners (1962–1963)
 * The Eleventh Hour (1962–1964)
 * Sam Benedict (1962–1963)
 * Temple Houston (1963–1964)
 * Channing (a.k.a. the Young and the Bold) (1963–1964)
 * You Don't Say! (1963–1975)
 * Daniel Boone (1964–1970)
 * Twelve O'Clock High (1964–1967)
 * Slattery's People (1964–1965)
 * Branded (1965–1966)
 * The Loner (1965–1966)
 * The American Sportsman (1965–1986)
 * Star Trek (1966–1969)
 * The Monroes (1966–1967)
 * Dream Girl of '67 (1966–1967)
 * The Man Who Never Was (1966–1967)
 * Mannix (1967–1975)
 * Ironside (1967–1975)
 * The High Chaparral (1967–1971)
 * The Flying Nun (1967–1970)
 * Cimarron Strip (1967–1968)
 * Dateline: Hollywood (1967– )
 * The Mod Squad (1968–1973)
 * The Doris Day Show (1968–1973)
 * The Name of the Game (1968–1971)
 * Journey to the Unknown (1968–1969 )
 * Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969–1976)
 * Medical Center (1969–1976)
 * It Takes Two (1969–1970)
 * The Interns (1970–1971)
 * The Virginia Graham Show (1970–1972)
 * Great Performances (1972– )
 * Celebrity Bowling (1971–1977)
 * The Rookies (1972–1976)
 * The Evil Touch (1973–1974)
 * Simon & Simon (1981–1995)
 * Hotel (1983–1988)
 * Automan (1983–1984)
 * Murder, She Wrote (1984–1996)
 * The Equalizer (1985–1989)
 * Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1985–1989)
 * American Experience (1988– )
 * Monsters (1988–1990)
 * Against the Law (1990–1991)
 * Kung Fu: The Legend Continues (1993–1997)
 * Law & Order (1990–2010)