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IMDbPro

Donald Moffat(1930-2018)

  • Actor
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Donald Moffat in HouseSitter (1992)
Trailer
Play trailer0:31
The Evening Star (1996)
20 Videos
33 Photos
The cinema took a while to discover him. Born in England, the son of an insurance agent, RADA-trained Donald Moffat first appeared on the Shakespearean stage with the Old Vic. In 1954, he stage managed the popular revue "Salad Days". Then, 'discontentment' (which, he later explained, had much to do with the class system in Britain) prompted a permanent relocation to the United States. Accompanying his American actress wife to her home state in Oregon, Moffat initially tried his hand at bartending and as a lumberjack. After six months, he concluded that he was not cut out for outdoorsy pursuits and decided to return to his original muse. A "motivating stimulus", as he would later explain, was that "America seemed much more theatrically vibrant than things were at home".

Modest beginnings with an amateur theatre group in Princeton provided a meagre income of $25 a week which necessitated temporarily making ends meet as a carpenter. That situation improved in the wake of Moffat's 1957 debut on Broadway in "Under Milkwood". From then on, he managed to keep himself exceedingly busy for some three decades -- both on and off-Broadway -- in roles ranging from O'Neill and Chekhov to Ibsen and Miller. Stops along the way included the Ohio Shakespeare Festival in Akron, as well as theatres in New York (where he made a memorable Falstaff in 1987), Cincinnati, Chicago and Los Angeles. In the early 60s, Moffat enjoyed a lengthy tenure as a member of the ensemble of the Association of Producing Artists (APA) Phoenix Repertory Company.

Having lost his British accent early on, Moffat excelled at slotting into diverse roles as totally believable Americans, be they dignified, self-effacing, doleful, tough or acerbic. This was very much in keeping with his working credo: "respect the text - you fit the part, not the other way around". Instantly recognisable in appearance -- lean, long-faced and bushy-browed -- he was a subtle actor who made good use of a mellow but resonant voice which combined with a strong stage presence. On the screen, Moffat began as a TV supporting player with numerous guest roles in hit shows, including Hawaii Five-O (1968), Bonanza (1959), Mission: Impossible (1966), Mannix (1967) and The West Wing (1999), playing an assortment of judges, doctors, reverends, politicians and army officers, even a quirky android named Rem in the short-lived CBS series Logan's Run (1977). His cinematic debut did not eventuate until 1968 as the (deceased) father of Joanne Woodward's titular protagonist in Rachel, Rachel (1968). Other memorable roles include the shady president in Tom Clancy's Clear and Present Danger (1994), the ill-fated station commander Garry in John Carpenter's The Thing (1982) and Lyndon B. Johnson in The Right Stuff (1983).

Described as a consummate professional, Obie award-winning actor Donald Moffat retired in 2005 and passed away on 20 December 2018 at the age of 87.
BornDecember 26, 1930
DiedDecember 20, 2018(87)
BornDecember 26, 1930
DiedDecember 20, 2018(87)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Awards
    • 1 nomination

Photos33

Dana Elcar and Donald Moffat in The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid (1972)
R.G. Armstrong, Luke Askew, Barry Brown, Dana Elcar, Robert H. Harris, Donald Moffat, and Cliff Robertson in The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid (1972)
Barry Brown, Dana Elcar, Robert H. Harris, Donald Moffat, and Cliff Robertson in The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid (1972)
Keith David, Richard Dysart, Charles Hallahan, Peter Maloney, Donald Moffat, and Joel Polis in The Thing (1982)
Olympia Dukakis and Donald Moffat in Tales of the City (1993)
Olympia Dukakis and Donald Moffat in Tales of the City (1993)
Olympia Dukakis and Donald Moffat in Tales of the City (1993)
Donald Moffat in Tales of the City (1993)
Donald Moffat in Tales of the City (1993)
Donald Moffat in Tales of the City (1993)
Donald Moffat in Tales of the City (1993)
Barbara Garrick and Donald Moffat in Tales of the City (1993)

Known for

The Thing (1982)
The Thing
8.2
  • Garry
  • 1982
Clear and Present Danger (1994)
Clear and Present Danger
6.9
  • President Bennett
  • 1994
Robin Williams and Shelley Duvall in Popeye (1980)
Popeye
5.3
  • The Taxman
  • 1980
The Right Stuff (1983)
The Right Stuff
7.8
  • Lyndon B. Johnson
  • 1983

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • Fred Thompson, Bebe Neuwirth, Jerry Orbach, Kirk Acevedo, and Amy Carlson in Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005)
    Law & Order: Trial by Jury
    • Judge Matthew Sherwood
    • TV Series
    • 2005
  • Rob Lowe, Martin Sheen, Allison Janney, Dulé Hill, Moira Kelly, Janel Moloney, Richard Schiff, John Spencer, and Bradley Whitford in The West Wing (1999)
    The West Wing
    • Talmidge Cregg
    • TV Series
    • 2003
  • 61* (2001)
    61*
    • Ford Frick
    • TV Movie
    • 2001
  • Bull (2000)
    Bull
    • Robert 'The Kaiser' Roberts
    • TV Series
    • 2000
  • Julianne Moore, Liv Tyler, Glenn Close, Chris O'Donnell, Charles S. Dutton, and Patricia Neal in Cookie's Fortune (1999)
    Cookie's Fortune
    • Jack Palmer
    • 1999
  • The Sleep Room (1998)
    The Sleep Room
    • Joseph Rauh
    • 1998
  • A Smile Like Yours (1997)
    A Smile Like Yours
    • Dr. Felber
    • 1997
  • Jane Seymour, Chad Allen, Joe Lando, and Shawn Toovey in Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (1993)
    Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman
    • Walt Whitman
    • TV Series
    • 1997
  • Just in Time
    • Ernie (uncredited)
    • Short
    • 1996
  • Jack Nicholson and Shirley MacLaine in The Evening Star (1996)
    The Evening Star
    • Hector Scott
    • 1996
  • Nicolas Cage, Dana Carvey, Jon Lovitz, and Vic Noto in Trapped in Paradise (1994)
    Trapped in Paradise
    • Clifford Anderson
    • 1994
  • Is There Life Out There? (1994)
    Is There Life Out There?
    • Grandpa Walter
    • TV Movie
    • 1994
  • Clear and Present Danger (1994)
    Clear and Present Danger
    • President Bennett
    • 1994
  • Eric Roberts, Mädchen Amick, and John Lithgow in Love, Cheat & Steal (1993)
    Love, Cheat & Steal
    • Frank Harrington
    • TV Movie
    • 1993
  • Tales of the City (1993)
    Tales of the City
    • Edgar Halcyon
    • TV Mini Series
    • 1993

Videos20

Music Box
Clip 1:18
Music Box
Trailer
Trailer 0:31
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 2:10
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:25
Trailer
The Terminal Man
Trailer 3:03
The Terminal Man
Alamo Bay
Trailer 2:16
Alamo Bay
The Evening Star
Trailer 0:31
The Evening Star
Tales of the City: 20th Anniversary Collection
Trailer 1:22
Tales of the City: 20th Anniversary Collection
Mary White
Trailer 1:15
Mary White
The Thing
Trailer 1:54
The Thing
Tales Of The City: Episode 6
Trailer 1:57
Tales Of The City: Episode 6
Tales Of The City-Vol. 3
Trailer 0:51
Tales Of The City-Vol. 3

Personal details

Edit
  • Official site
    • Broadway org.
  • Alternative name
    • Donald Moffatt
  • Height
    • 6′ 1½″ (1.87 m)
  • Born
    • December 26, 1930
    • Plymouth, Devon, England, UK
  • Died
    • December 20, 2018
    • Sleepy Hollow, New York, USA(complications from a stroke)
  • Spouses
      Gwen ArnerJune 13, 1970 - December 20, 2018 (his death, 2 children)
  • Children
      Kathleen Wendy Moffat
  • Other works
    Plays USG in "A Few Stout Individuals" play by John Guare (Signature Theater Company, New York City, New York, USA).
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Article

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    He and Kurt Russell are the only stars of The Thing (1982) to have worked with James Arness, who played the original monster in The Thing from Another World (1951). They both worked with him on episodes of Gunsmoke (1955).
  • Trademark
      Bushy eyebrows and upright posture

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