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Charles Aidman (1925-1993)

Stage Holdup, October 25, 1958 Written by John Meston, Story by Les Crutchfield, Directed by Ted Post, Guest Cast: Bob Morgan, John Anderson, Charles Aidman

Unwanted Deputy, March 5, 1960 Written by John Meston, Story by Marian Clark, Directed by Andrew McLaglen, Guest Cast: Charles Aidman, Mary Carver, Marlowe Jenson, Dick Rich

About Chester, February 25, 1961Written by John Meston Story by Frank Paris, Directed by Alan Crosland, Jr., Assistant Director Robert Beche, Guest Cast: Charles Aidman, House Peters, Jr, Mary Munday, Harry Shannon, George Eldredge

The Money Store, December 30, 1968 Written by William Blinn, Directed by Vincent McEveery, Guest Cast: Charles Aidman, Eric Shea, Pamelyn Ferdin, William Schallert, Virginia Vincent, Ralph James

The Intruder, March 3, 1969 Written by Jim Byrnes, Directed by Vincent McEvecty, Guest Cast: Charles Aidman, John Kellogg, Gail Kobe, Eric Shea, Ralph James

He was another of those actors whose voice was his "bread and butter", even though he was an actor, writer and composer. He was tall, dark and handsome with expressive eyes but it was his voice that stood out. It was creaky, twangy and croaky but perfect for narratives for which he often utilized it. He was born in Frankfort, Indiana on January 31, 1925, the son of a doctor, and grew up there. He earned a football scholarship to Indiana University and later served in the U.S. Navy from 1946-48. He studied acting with Sanford Meisner at New York City's Neighborhood Playhouse and played Marc Antony in New York's Shakespeare Festival's production of "Julius Caesar" in 1956. He made his TV debut in 1954 in an episode of "The Web." He co-founded the "Theatre West" in Los Angeles with actor Curt Conway and developed the play "Spoon River Anthology" which he produced at UCLA and later brought to Broadway, winning him a Tony Award. Although he was primarily a TV actor he appeared in a number of films including: Hitchcock's "The Wrong Man" (1956) with Henry Fonda, his film debut in an uncredited role as a Jail Medical Attendant; "Pork Chop Hill" (1959) as Harrold; "Hour of the Gun" (1967) as Horace Sullivan; "Countdown" (1968) as Gus; "Tell Them Willie Boy is Here" (1969) as Benby; "Kotch" (1971) with Walter Matthau, as Gerald Kotcher; "Dirty Little Billy" (1972) as Ben Antrim; "Twilight's Last Gleaming" (1977) as Bernstein; "Zoot Suit" (1981) as George; "Uncommon Valor" (1983) as Sen. Hastings and "Innerspace" (1987) with Martin Short, as Speaker at Banquet, his last film. On TV he appeared in one of the first "Twilight Zone" episodes and became its narrator for the revival of the series, "The New Twilight Zone" (1985-87). He was a regular on "The Wild , Wild West" (1968-69) as Jeremy Pike. He appeared in numerous made for TV movies including: "Menace on the Mountain" (1970); "Amelia Earhart" (1976); "Alcatraz: the Whole Shocking Story" (1980) and "Marian Rose White." He also guested on such series as: "Wanted: Dead or Alive"; "Black Saddle"; "Gunsmoke"; "Perry Mason"; "Bonanza"; "The Dick Van Dyke Show"; "The Fugitive"; "Cannon" and "The Rockford Files." He died of cancer on November 7, 1993 in Beverly Hills, California at age 68.

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