Hal Holbrook

Born: 1925-02-17 in Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Died: 2021-01-23

Known For: Acting

Biography

Harold Rowe Holbrook Jr. (February 17, 1925 – January 23, 2021) was an American actor, television director, and writer. He first received critical acclaim in 1954 for a one-man stage show he developed, Mark Twain Tonight!, performing as Mark Twain, while studying at Denison University. He won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play in 1966 for his portrayal of Twain. He would continue to perform his signature role for over 60 years, only retiring the show in 2017 due to his failing health. Throughout his career, he also won five Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on television and was nominated for an Academy Award for his work in film. Holbrook made his film debut in Sidney Lumet's The Group (1966). He later gained international fame for his performance as Deep Throat in the 1976 film All the President's Men. He played Abraham Lincoln in the 1976 miniseries Lincoln and 1985 miniseries North and South. He also appeared in such films as Julia (1977), The Fog (1980), Creepshow (1982), Wall Street (1987), The Firm (1993), Hercules (1997), and Men of Honor (2000). Holbrook's role as Ron Franz in Sean Penn's Into the Wild (2007) earned him both Academy Award and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor. In 2009, Holbrook received critical acclaim for his performance as recently retired farmer Abner Meecham in the independent film That Evening Sun. He also portrayed Francis Preston Blair in Steven Spielberg's Lincoln (2012). In 2003, Holbrook was honored with the National Humanities Medal by President George W. Bush. Description above from the Wikipedia article Hal Holbrook, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Filmography

2018

Interpreting Twain as Self

2017

An American Conscience: The Reinhold Niebuhr Story as Reinhold Niebuhr (voice)

2015

Blackway as Whizzer

2014

Planes: Fire & Rescue as Mayday (voice)
Holbrook/Twain: An American Odyssey as Self

2013

Savannah as Judge Harden
Rectify as Rutherford Gaines
Eastwood Directs: The Untold Story as Self
Monday Mornings as Dr. Arvin Wayne

2012

Lincoln as Preston Blair
Promised Land as Frank Yates

2011

Water for Elephants as Old Jacob
Good Day for It as Hec

2010

Hawaii Five-0 as Leonard Patterson
Flying Lessons as Harry Pleasant
The Event as James Dempsey (voice)

2009

That Evening Sun as Abner Meecham

2008

Sons of Anarchy as Nate Madock
Killshot as Papa
The Business End: Violence in Cinema as Self
The Long Shadow of Dirty Harry as Self
A Moral Right: The Politics of Dirty Harry as Self
The Evolution of Clint Eastwood as Self

2007

Into the Wild as Ronald "Ron" Franz

2006

Out of the Shadows: The Man Who Was Deep Throat as Self - Narrator (voice)
Telling the Truth About Lies: The Making of "All the President's Men" ... (Other)
Woodward and Bernstein: Lighting the Fire as Self - Narrator (voice)

2005

Grey's Anatomy as Lewis Clatch
Bones as Red Hudmore
The Seventh Day as Host

2003

NCIS as Mickey Stokes
Hope & Faith as Edward Shanowski
Shade as The Professor
The Designing Women Reunion
Butch Cassidy and the Outlaw Trail as Narrator
The Street Lawyer as Arthur Jacobs

2002

Purpose as Tom Walker
Mark Twain as Self (uncredited)
Eastwood & Co.: Making 'Unforgiven' as Narrator (voice)
Good Morning, Miami as Jim Templeton
Mark Twain as self

2001

The Majestic as Congressman Doyle
Haven as Harold L. Ickes
Dirty Harry: The Original as Self - Actor
The Legend of the Three Trees as Narrator

2000

Men of Honor as 'Mr. Pappy'
The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus as Ak - Master Woodsman of the World (voice)
Waking the Dead as Isaac Green
Founding Fathers as Benjamin Franklin (voice)

1999

The Sopranos as John Schwinn
The West Wing as Albie Duncan
Family Law as Judge Richard Lloyd
The Florentine as Smitty
The Bachelor as O'Dell
Battleships as Narrator
Lost in Middle America (and What Happened Next) as Narrator

1998

Becker as Mr. Humphries
Hush as Dr. Franklin Hill
Rusty: A Dog's Tale as Boyd Callahan
My Own Country as Lloyd Flanders
Walking to the Waterline as Man on the Beach
Beauty as Alexander Miller
Judas Kiss as Senator Rupert Hornbeck

1997

Hercules as Amphitryon (voice)
Cats Don't Dance as Cranston (voice)
All the Winters that Have Been as Uncle Ren Corvin
Operation Delta Force as Admiral Henshaw
Eye of God as Sheriff Rogers
The Third Twin as Pete
Trail of Hope as Narrator
Lewis & Clark - The Journey of the Corps of Discovery as Narrator (voice)

1993

The Firm as Oliver Lambert
Bonds of Love as Jim Smith

1992

Eastwood & Co.: Making 'Unforgiven' as Narrator (voice)

1990

Evening Shade as Evan Evans
A Killing in a Small Town as Dr. Beardsley

1989

Day One as Gen. George Marshall
Fletch Lives as Hamilton "Ham" Johnson
Sorry, Wrong Number as Jim Coltrane

1988

American Experience as Narrator (voice)
Superman's 50th Anniversary: A Celebration of the Man of Steel as Self
The Unholy as Archbishop Mosely
I'll Be Home for Christmas as Joseph Bundy
The Fortunate Pilgrim as Dr. Andrew McKay
Emma: Queen of the South Seas as Jonas Coe

1987

Wall Street as Lou Mannheim
Plaza Suite as Sam Nash

1986

Designing Women as Reese Watson
All Star Party for Clint Eastwood as Self
Under Siege as President Maxwell Monroe
Dress Gray as Gen. Charles Hedges

1985

North and South as Abraham Lincoln
92 Grosvenor Street

1984

The Three Wishes of Billy Grier as Grandpa Grier
George Washington as John Adams
Celebrity as Calvin Sledge

1983

The Star Chamber as Benjamin Caulfield
America Remembers John F. Kennedy as Host
Hazardous Waste: The Search for Solutions as Narrator (voice)

1982

Creepshow as Henry Northrup (segment "The Crate")
Girls Nite Out as Jim MacVey

1981

The Killing of Randy Webster as John Webster

1980

The Fog as Father Malone
The Kidnapping of the President as President Adam Scott
Off the Minnesota Strip as Bud Johansen

1979

Natural Enemies as Paul Steward
Murder by Natural Causes as Arthur Sinclair
The Legend of the Golden Gun as J.R. Swackhammer
When Hell Was in Session as Cmdr. Jeremiah A. Denton

1978

Tartuffe as Self - Host
The Awakening Land as Portius Wheeler - The Solitary

1977

Our Town as Stage manager
Julia as Alan
Capricorn One as Dr. James Kelloway
Rituals as Harry

1976

Midway as Cmdr. Joseph Rochefort
All the President's Men as Deep Throat
The Time of Your Life as Self - Host

1975

Saturday Night Live as Self (uncredited)

1974

Dinah! as Self
The Girl from Petrovka as Joe
Lincoln as Abraham Lincoln

1973

Magnum Force as Lieutenant Briggs
Jonathan Livingston Seagull as Elder (voice)
Pueblo as Capt. Lloyd Bucher
The Hero Cop: Yesterday and Today as Self

1972

They Only Kill Their Masters as Dr. Warren G. Watkins
That Certain Summer as Doug Salter

1971

Great Performances as Self - Host
Suddenly Single as Larry Hackett
Goodbye, Raggedy Ann as Harlan Webb
Travis Logan, D.A. as Matthew Sand
Appointment With Destiny as Narrator

1970

The Great White Hope as Cameron
The Wacky Zoo of Morgan City as Mitch Collins
A Clear and Present Danger as Hays Stowe
The People Next Door as David Hoffman
The Bold Ones: The Senator as Senator Hays Stowe

1969

The Whole World Is Watching as Chancellor Graham

1968

The Dick Cavett Show as Self - Guest
The Name of the Game as John Adrian
The Brotherhood as Man at the Table (uncredited)
Wild in the Streets as Senator Fergus

1967

Mark Twain Tonight! as Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens)

1966

The Group as Gus Leroy
The Glass Menagerie as her son
CBS Playhouse

1965

The F.B.I. as Christopher Simes

1962

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson as Self
The Merv Griffin Show as Self

1961

The Mike Douglas Show as Self

1957

Tonight Starring Jack Paar as Self

1956

Tony Awards as Self - Presenter

1954

The Wonderful World of Disney as Mitch Collins

1948

The Ed Sullivan Show as Self