Bruce Boa
Canadian actor (1930–2004)
title: "Bruce Boa" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1930-births", "2004-deaths", "calgary-stampeders-players", "canadian-expatriates-in-england", "canadian-male-television-actors", "canadian-male-film-actors", "deaths-from-cancer-in-england", "male-actors-from-calgary", "canadian-football-people-from-calgary", "players-of-canadian-football-from-alberta", "western-mustangs-football-players", "university-of-western-ontario-alumni", "20th-century-canadian-male-actors"] description: "Canadian actor (1930–2004)" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Boa" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Canadian actor (1930–2004) ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Bruce Boa |
| image | Actor Bruce Boa.jpg |
| birth_name | Andrew Bruce Boa |
| birth_date | |
| birth_place | Port Stanley, Ontario, Canada |
| death_date | |
| death_place | Surrey, England |
| occupation | Actor |
| years_active | 1958–1997 |
| spouse | Cherry Boa |
| children | 3 |
| relatives | Marion Woodman (sister) |
| :: |
| name = Bruce Boa | image = Actor Bruce Boa.jpg | birth_name = Andrew Bruce Boa | birth_date = | birth_place = Port Stanley, Ontario, Canada | death_date = | death_place = Surrey, England | occupation = Actor | years_active = 1958–1997 | spouse = Cherry Boa | children = 3 | relatives = Marion Woodman (sister) Andrew Bruce Boa (10 July 1930 – 17 April 2004) was a Canadian actor, who found success playing the token American in British films and television, usually playing military types. Boa's most notable film role is in The Empire Strikes Back (1980) as General Carlist Rieekan. On television, his most notable role is probably as the brash, plain-speaking American guest, Mr. Harry Hamilton, in the Fawlty Towers episode "Waldorf Salad".
Early life
Bruce Boa was born on 10 July 1930 in Port Stanley, Ontario, the second of three children of Ila (née Phinn) and Andrew Boa, a clergyman. His older sister was Jungian analyst and author Marion Woodman, and his younger brother was Fraser Boa, also a Jungian analyst, who died in 1992. Boa attended the University of Western Ontario, graduating in 1952 with a degree in theology, then spent a brief period playing professional football for the Calgary Stampeders in 1952.
After travelling through Central America and Europe, he began his acting career in England in 1956 and settled there permanently in the 1960s. In a 1959 interview, when he was aged 29, he said he had also written poetry, a novel and film scripts, and hoped to make a living combining writing and acting.
Career
Boa's film credits include Man in the Middle (1964), The Adding Machine (1969), Who? (1973), The Cherry Picker (1974), The Omen (1976), Silver Bears, Superman, Carry On Emmannuelle (1978), A Touch of the Sun, The London Connection, A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square (1979), Silver Dream Racer (1980), Ragtime (1981), Octopussy (1983), Return to Oz (1985), and Screamers (1995). He also played the Marine colonel in Full Metal Jacket (1987) who chastises Matthew Modine's character over having a peace pin on his lapel while having "Born To Kill" written on his combat helmet.
On television, he appeared in Thriller (1975), in 1977 Come Back, Little Sheba, an episode of Laurence Olivier Presents, opposite Laurence Olivier and Joanne Woodward. Other television credits include: Fawlty Towers, The Avengers, Out of the Unknown, The Champions, The Troubleshooters, The Saint, Ace of Wands, Special Branch, The Onedin Line, Z-Cars, The New Avengers, The Professionals, The Omega Factor, Dempsey and Makepeace, Astronauts, Hart to Hart, Remington Steele, Howards' Way, the 1979 miniseries A Man Called Intrepid, the 1988 television film The Bourne Identity, Tales of the Unexpected, As Time Goes By, Road to Avonlea, Kavanagh QC, Bulman and Warship.
Death
Boa died from cancer on 17 April 2004 in Surrey, England.
Filmography
Film
::data[format=table]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Man in the Moon | Roy | Film debut |
| 1964 | Man in the Middle | Major Lawson | |
| 1968 | The Mini-Affair | American Newman | |
| 1969 | Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness? | Car Salesman | Uncredited |
| The Adding Machine | Detective | ||
| 1970 | The Revolutionary | Guest at Party | |
| 1974 | The Cherry Picker | Dr. Softman | |
| Who? | Miller | ||
| 1976 | The Omen | Thorn's Aide | |
| 1977 | Silver Bears | American Banker | |
| 1978 | Carry On Emmannuelle | US Ambassador | |
| Superman | Joint Chief of General Staff | Extended Version, Uncredited | |
| 1979 | The London Connection | Colonel | |
| Unidentified Flying Oddball | Air Force Officer | Uncredited | |
| A Touch of the Sun | Jim Coburn | ||
| A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square | Morgan Stanfield | ||
| 1980 | The Ninth Configuration | Sergeant in Combat Shack | |
| The Empire Strikes Back | General Carlist Rieekan | ||
| Silver Dream Racer | 2nd TV Reporter | ||
| 1981 | Ragtime | Jerome | |
| 1983 | Octopussy | General Peterson | |
| 1984 | Scream for Help | Surgeon | |
| The Razor's Edge | Henry Maturin | ||
| 1985 | Water | US Advisor | |
| Return to Oz | Policeman | ||
| 1986 | The American Way | Colonel Parker | |
| Ping Pong | American Tourist | ||
| 1987 | Full Metal Jacket | POGE Colonel | |
| 1988 | Hawks | Byron Deckermensky | |
| 1989 | Slipstream | Guard Supervisor | |
| Murder Story | Corrigan | ||
| 1990 | The Serpent of Death | Bartlet | |
| 1991 | White Light | Clay Avery | |
| 1993 | For the Moment | Mr. Anderson | |
| The Neighbor | Bishop | ||
| 1995 | Screamers | Secretary Green | Final film |
| :: |
Television
::data[format=table]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958-1960 | ITV Television Playhouse | Various | 4 episodes |
| 1958-1961 | Armchair Theatre | Psychologist/Brewster | 2 episodes |
| 1959 | The Four Just Men | Cop/Connolly | |
| BBC Sunday Night Theatre | Unknown | 1 episode | |
| Interpol Calling | Driver (uncredited) | Episode: "The Man's a Clown" | |
| 1962 | Studio 4 | Dr. Baird | Episode: "Flight into Danger" |
| Out of This World | Monty Archer | Episode: "Immigrant" | |
| The Avengers | Bob Slade | Episode: "Dead on Course" | |
| 1963-1968 | The Saint | Various | 3 episodes |
| 1963 | Zero One | Simon | Episode: "Downdraft" |
| The Third Man | Insp. McDonald | Episode: "No Word for Danger" | |
| Suspense | Anaethetist/Dr. Ridgeway | 2 episodes | |
| ITV Play of the Week | H.C./Judge Windelman | ||
| The Plane Makers | Vegra | Episode: "Strings in Whitehall" | |
| 1964 | Drama 61-67 | Potter | Episode: "Studio 64: Better Luck Next Time" |
| Espionage | Larry | Episode: "Some Other Kind of Wonderful" | |
| The Sullavan Brothers | Ashley | Episode: "The Man from New York" | |
| 1965-1969 | The Troubleshooters | Jean-Paul Godin/Bill Douglas | 7 episodes |
| 1966 | Out of the Unknown | K.G. Bullen | Episode: "Satisfaction Guaranteed" |
| 1968 | Man in a Suitcase | Inspector Bergson | Episode: "The Revolutionaries" |
| Detective | Wesselman | Episode: "Lesson in Anatomy" | |
| 1968-1971 | ITV Playhouse | Various | 3 episodes |
| 1969 | The Champions | American Colonel | Episode: "Autokill" |
| Department S | President of the USA (voice) | Episode: "The Last Train to Redbridge" | |
| Counterstrike | General | Episode: "Joker One" | |
| 1970 | Ace of Wands | Mr. America | Episode: "On and One and One are Four Part Three" |
| 1970-1974 | Special Branch | Lester Swift/Evans | 2 episodes |
| 1971-1973 | ITV Saturday Night Theatre | American Tourist/The Client | |
| 1972 | BBC Play of the Month | Dr. Buchanan | Episode: "Summer and Smoke" |
| 1972-1974 | The Onedin Line | Captain Franks/Draygon | 2 episodes |
| 1973 | Madigan | Vern | Episode: "The Lisbon Beat" |
| Crown Court | Morton Lass | Serial: "Sunset of Arms" | |
| The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes | Freeling Poignton | Episode: "The Secret of the Magnifique" | |
| Warship | McFie | Episode: "Hot Pursuit" | |
| Marked Personal | Richardson | 2 episodes | |
| 1975 | Thriller | Hanley | Episode: "Good Salary – Prospects – Free Coffin" |
| Whodunnit? | Lazlo Bretz | Episode: "Too Many Crooks" | |
| 1976 | Z-Cars | Chuck Parker | Episode: "Kidnap" |
| 1976-1977 | Yanks Go Home | Sergeant Gus Pulaski | |
| 1977 | The New Avengers | Mahon | Episode: "Trap" |
| 1978 | The Professionals | John Jerry Patterson | Episode: "Heroes" |
| Lillie | Joaquin Miller | Episode: "The New Helen" | |
| Play for Today | Arthur Bates | Episode: "Nina" | |
| 1979 | Fawlty Towers | Mr Hamilton | Episode: "Waldorf Salad" |
| Leave it to Charlie | Glenn Rickenbacker | Episode: "Ole Brown Eyes" | |
| The Omega Factor | Masson | Episode: "After-Image" | |
| 1980 | Turtle's Progress | J.B. Grimsdell | 1 episode |
| 1981 | Metal Mickey | Saloon Barman | Episode: "Marshall Mickey" |
| BBC2 Playhouse | Charlie Oakhampton | Episode: "Virginia Fly is Drowning" | |
| 1981–83 | Astronauts | Beadle | 13 episodes |
| 1982 | A Woman Called Golda | Mr. Macy | TV film |
| 1983 | Philip Marlowe, Private Eye | Don Luigi | Episode: "The Pencil" |
| Hart to Hart | William Eady | Episode: "Passing Chance" | |
| 1984 | Lace | Mr. Hale | 2 episodes |
| The First Olympics: Athens 1896 | President Francis Patton | ||
| Cold Warrior | Colonel Elliott | Episode: "What's Good for General Bullmoose" | |
| Remington Steele | Wallace Carlisle | Episode: "Maltese Steele" | |
| Ellis Island | Doctor Moore | TV Mini-series | |
| 1985 | The Dirty Dozen: Next Mission | US Colonel | TV film |
| John and Yoko: A Love Story | Houston Lawyer | ||
| 1986 | Dempsey & Makepeace | Coltrane | Episode: "The Burning (2-part)" |
| 1986–90 | Howards' Way | Robert Hudson | 3 episodes |
| 1987-1989 | Screen Two | Channel President/Dean Webb | 2 episodes |
| 1987 | The Two Mrs. Grenvilles | Hunnicutt | |
| Hold the Dream | Dale Stevens | First episode | |
| 1988 | Tales of the Unexpected | Mr. Groober | Episode: "The Verger" |
| The Bourne Identity | Senator Crawford | 2 episodes | |
| 1989 | Starting Out | Chairman | Episode: "A Piece of the Cake" |
| Anything More Would Be Greedy | Brock Cashman | Episode: "Georgian Silver" | |
| The Nightmare Years | Nick Roosevelt | 4 episodes | |
| 1991 | Deadly Betrayal: The Bruce Curtis Story | Al Podgis | TV film |
| 1992 | E.N.G. | Dirk Jackman | Episode: "After the Fire" |
| 1992–93 | Road to Avonlea | Mr. Harrison | 2 episodes |
| 1993 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | Ambassador Kerens | Episode: "Vienna, November 1908" |
| JFK: Reckless Youth | Admiral Dodson | 2 episodes | |
| 1994 | Scarlett | Minister | First episode |
| 1995 | As Time Goes By | Young Rocky | Episode: "Improvements" |
| 1997 | Kavanagh QC | Governor Stamford Cotton | Episode: "In God We Trust" |
| :: |
References
References
- Phillips, Michael Scott. (18 May 2018). "Quite Quite Fantastic! The Avengers for Modern Viewers". Lulu.com.
- ""Fawlty Towers" Waldorf Salad (TV Episode 1979) - Bruce Boa as Mr. Harry Hamilton".
- Library and Archives Canada; Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Seventh Census of Canada, 1931; Folder Number: T-27260; Census Place: Elgin West, Ontario, Canada; Page Number: 4
- (19 July 2018). "Marion Woodman, Explorer of the Feminine Mind, Dies at 89". [[The New York Times]].
- "Bruce Boa".
- (12 November 1959). "Canadian Trying His Talents". The Gazette.
- "Bruce Boa".
- "Full Metal Jacket (1987)".
- "Come Back Little Sheba (1977)".
- "Bruce Boa".
- (2008). "Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2004: Film, Television, Radio, Theatre, Dance, Music, Cartoons and Pop Culture". McFarland.
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