Mitchell Ryan

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title: "Mitchell Ryan" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1928-births", "2022-deaths", "20th-century-american-male-actors", "21st-century-american-male-actors", "american-male-film-actors", "american-male-stage-actors", "american-male-television-actors", "burials-at-woodlawn-memorial-cemetery,-santa-monica", "male-actors-from-cincinnati", "male-actors-from-louisville,-kentucky", "male-western-(genre)-film-actors", "military-personnel-from-cincinnati", "military-personnel-from-louisville,-kentucky", "united-states-navy-personnel-of-the-korean-war", "western-(genre)-television-actors"] description: "American actor and comedian (1934–2022)" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitchell_Ryan" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American actor and comedian (1934–2022) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]

Field	Value
name	Mitchell Ryan
image	Mitchell Ryan 1973.JPG
caption	Mitchell Ryan in 1973
birth_date
birth_place	Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
death_date
death_place	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
occupation	Actor, comedian
spouse
children	3
yearsactive	1958–2022
::

| name = Mitchell Ryan | image = Mitchell Ryan 1973.JPG | caption = Mitchell Ryan in 1973 | birth_date = | birth_place = Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | occupation = Actor, comedian | spouse = | children = 3 | yearsactive = 1958–2022

Mitchell Ryan (January 11, 1934 – March 4, 2022) was an American actor and comedian. With six decades of television credits, he is best known for playing Burke Devlin in the 1960s gothic soap opera Dark Shadows, and later for his co-starring role as Greg Montgomery (Thomas Gibson)'s father Edward Montgomery on Dharma & Greg. He also played the villainous General Peter McAllister in the 1987 buddy cop action film Lethal Weapon.

Early life

Mitchell Ryan was born on January 11, 1934, in Cincinnati, Ohio, and raised in Louisville, Kentucky. His father was a salesman and his mother was a writer. He served in the United States Navy during the Korean War.

Career

A life member of the Actors Studio, Ryan's Broadway theatre credits include Wait Until Dark, Medea, and The Price. His off-Broadway credits include Antony and Cleopatra (1963) and The Price (1979).

Ryan was an original cast member of the cult TV soap opera Dark Shadows, playing Burke Devlin until he was dismissed from the show in June 1967 due to his alcoholism, and replaced by Anthony George.

In 1970, Ryan was in one episode of The High Chaparral as a character named Jelks, who was on the run from the law.

He appeared in an episode of Cannon, "Fool's Gold" in 1971, and in ABC's The Streets of San Francisco episode "The Unicorn". He portrayed the title character, Chase Reddick, on the crime drama Chase (1973–74).

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Mitchell_Ryan_Chase_1973.JPG" caption="Mitchell Ryan in ''Chase''"] ::

In 1975, Ryan played in Barnaby Jones, in the episode titled "Counterfall". He portrayed the leading character, Dan Walling, on Executive Suite (1976–77) and played Blake Simmons in the drama Julie Farr, M.D. (1978–79) which paired him with lead actress Susan Sullivan, whom he reunited with to star together again in Dharma & Greg.

Ryan portrayed Cooper Hawkins on the Western series The Chisholms (1980), Sam Garrett on King's Crossing (1982) Brennan Flannery on High Performance (1983), Edward Wyler on Hot Pursuit (1984), and Porter Tremont on 2000 Malibu Road (1992).

Ryan's other acting credits include the films Liar Liar; Magnum Force, playing as "Dirty Harry" Callahan (Clint Eastwood)'s ill-fated despondent best friend and fellow police officer, a motorcycle patrolman named Charlie McCoy; Lethal Weapon, playing the key villain General Peter McAllister; Grosse Pointe Blank; Electra Glide in Blue; and Hot Shots! Part Deux, playing Senator Grey Edwards. In 1985, he portrayed Tillet Main, the patriarch of the Main family in the first North and South miniseries. In 1991, he played Ellis Blake in the sixth season Matlock episode "The Foursome".

Ryan appeared in NBC's The A-Team; he played Ike Hagan, as Grant Everett in a two-part Silk Stalkings episode; and as Kyle Riker, the father of Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes), in the Star Trek: The Next Generation second season episode "The Icarus Factor"; Ryan had been considered for the part of series lead Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart). He also portrayed the roles of the abusive boyfriend of Blanche Devereaux (Rue McClanahan), Rex Huntington, in The Golden Girls season 6 episode "The Bloom is off the Rose", and Jack Hanlan, a police officer in "Emission Accomplished", a 1993 season 1 episode of NYPD Blue. The same year, Ryan played Dallas Shields in Renegade. He appeared in the 1983 episode of Hart to Hart "Highland Fling". In 1994, he appeared again in Hart to Hart in one of the made-for-TV movies, Home Is Where the Hart Is. In 1995, he appeared in the films Judge Dredd and Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers as Dr. Terence Wynn (played by Robert Phalen in the original Halloween film).

Ryan played the role of Greg Montgomery (Thomas Gibson)'s father, Edward Montgomery, on the comedy Dharma & Greg (1997–2002). The following year, Ryan voiced Highfather on Justice League.

Ryan was the president of Screen Actors Guild Foundation.

Personal life and death

Ryan married Lynda Morse in 1972, and they had a son. Ryan and Morse divorced in 1982, and Ryan married Barbara Albertine in 1998. They had two children and five grandchildren.

Ryan died of heart failure at his home in Los Angeles, California, on March 4, 2022, at the age of 88.

Filmography

Film

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1958	Thunder Road	Jed Moultrie	Uncredited
1970	Monte Walsh	Shorty Austin
1971	My Old Man's Place	Martin Flood
The Hunting Party	Doc Harrison
Chandler	Chuck Kincaid
1972	The Honkers	Lowell
A Reflection of Fear	Inspector McKenna
1973	High Plains Drifter	Dave Drake
The Friends of Eddie Coyle	Waters
Electra Glide in Blue	Harvey Poole
Magnum Force	Charlie McCoy
1976	Midway	Aubrey Fitch	Uncredited
Two-Minute Warning	Priest
1987	Lethal Weapon	General Peter McCallister
1989	Winter People	Drury Campbell
1992	Aces: Iron Eagle III	General Simms
The Opposite Sex and How to Live with Them	Kenneth Davenport
1993	Hot Shots! Part Deux	Gray Edwards
1994	Blue Sky	Ray Stevens
Speechless	Lloyd Wannamaker
1995	Judge Dredd	Vartis Hammond
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers	Dr. Terrence Wynn
1996	Ed	Abe Woods
1997	The Devil's Own	Jim Kelly
Liar Liar	Mr. Allan
Grosse Pointe Blank	Bart Newberry
2005	Love for Rent	Doctor	Uncredited
::

Television

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1959	Brenner	Detective Mack	Episode: "Record of Arrest"
1961	'Way Out	Bill Fontaine	Episode: "Soft Focus"
1961–1963	Naked City	Various	5 episodes
1961–1965	The Defenders	Harry Cook/Jack Bostick	2 episodes
1966–1967	Dark Shadows	Burke Devlin	107 episodes
1967	Coronet Blue	Oscar Davis	Episode: "Faces"
1967–1969	N.Y.P.D.	Joseph Robert Maloney/Mr. Whitaker	2 episodes
1970	The High Chaparral	Jelks	Episode: "Jelks"
1971	O'Hara, U.S. Treasury	Brad Fletcher	Episode: "Operation: Pay Off"
1971–1975	Cannon	Alexander Roper/John Flatow/Ed Farrell	3 episodes
1973	The Fuzz Brothers	Ben	Television film
The Streets of San Francisco	Abel Hoffman	Episode: "The Unicorn"
1973–1974	Chase	Captain Chase Reddick	23 episodes
1974	The Manhunter	Tom Bailey	Episode: "The Man Who Thought He Was Dillinger"
Kodiak	Prisoner	Episode: "Thunder Mountain"
1975	Barnaby Jones	Dennis Kelly	Episode: "Counterfall"
The Rockford Files	Colonel Hopkins	Episode: "2 Into 5.56 Won't Go"
The Entertainer	Mr. Pasko	Television film
Baretta	Bax Baxter	Episode: "Nobody in a Nothing Place"
1976	The Blue Knight	Peter Stryker	Episode: "Cop Killer"
The Hemingway Play	Ernest Hemingway	Television film
1976–1977	Executive Suite	Dan Walling	18 episodes
1977	Most Wanted	Keith Garner	Episode: "The Spellbinder"
Escape from Bogen County	Ambler Bowman	Television film
Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion	Jethro Lundy	Television film
Christmas Miracle in Caufield, U.S.A.	Matthew Sullivan	Television film
1978	Having Babies III	Dr. Blake Simmons	Television film
Sergeant Matlovich vs. the U.S. Air Force	Lieutenant Colonel Applegate	Television film
Family	Mike Dunston	Episode: "Expectations"
1978–1979	Julie Farr, M.D.	Dr. Blake Simmons	8 episodes
1979	Flesh & Blood	Jack Fallon	Television film
1980	The Chisholms	Cooper Hawkins	9 episodes
Angel City	Silas Creedy	Television film
1981	The Choice	Jerry Clements	Television film
The Monkey Mission	Keyes	Television film
The Five of Me	Dr. Ralph B. Allison	Television film
Death of a Centerfold	Hugh Hefner	Television film
Of Mice and Men	Slim	Television film
1982	King's Crossing	Sean Garrett	Episode: "Long Ago Tomorrow"
1983	Uncommon Valor	Chief Tom Riordan	Television film
High Performance	Brennan Flannery	2 episodes
Medea	Jason	Television film
The Gambler: The Adventure Continues	Charlie McCourt	Television film
Hart to Hart	Ramsey MacLeish	Episode: "Highland Fling"
1984	Hardcastle and McCormick	Sheriff Stretch Carter	2 episodes
1985	Hotel	Steve Cutler	Episode: "Lifelines"
Dallas	Captain Merwin Fogarty	3 episodes
Hot Pursuit	Mr. Wyler	2 episodes
Fatal Vision	Paul Strombaugh	Episode: "1.2"
Robert Kennedy and His Times	Robert McNamara	Episode: "1.1"
Riptide	Colonel John Litvak	Episode: "Boz Busters"
The A-Team	Ike Hagen	Episode: "Waste 'Em!"
North and South	Tillet Main	6 episodes
Hostage Flight	Captain Malone	Television film
Hell Town	Howard Bane	Episode: "My Girlfriend, Annie"
Northstar	Colonel Even Marshall	Television film
1985–1995	Murder, She Wrote	Various	4 episodes
1986	All My Children	Alex Hunter	Episode: "1.4186"
Penalty Phase	Donald Faulkner	Television film
1987	St. Elsewhere	George Deaton	Episode: "Rites of Passage"
1988	The English Programme	Slim	5 episodes
Favorite Son	Vice President Dan Eastman	Episode: "Part One"
1989	The Ryan White Story	Tom	Television film
Star Trek: The Next Generation	Kyle Riker	Episode: "The Icarus Factor"
Double Exposure: The Story of Margaret Bourke-White	General George S. Patton	Television film
Mission: Impossible	Edgar Sheppard	Episode: "Submarine"
Santa Barbara	Anthony Tonell	36 episodes
Hardball	Captain Jake Griffin	Episode: "The Fighting 52nd"
1989–1990	Jake and the Fatman	Lieutenant Dan Gorecki/Ethan Mitchell	2 episodes
1990	Who's the Boss?	Jack	Episode: "Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind?"
Judgment	Dave Davis	Television film
L.A. Law	Duncan Young	Episode: "Smoke Gets In Your Thighs"
1991	The Golden Girls	Rex Huntington	Episode: "The Bloom is Off the Rose"
Hunter	Tom Reed	Episode: "Shadows of the Past"
Deadly Game	Admiral Mark Nately	Television film
In a Child's Name	Peter Chappell	2 episodes
Matlock	Ellis Blake	Episode: "The Foursome"
1992	Civil Wars	Judge Kosarin	Episode: "Denise and De Nuptials"
Mann & Machine	Bennet Tyler	Episode: "Water, Water ,Everywhere"
The Young Riders	Marshall Luke Murphy	Episode: "Lessons Learned"
Dirty Work	Frank Esposito	Television film
2000 Malibu Road	Porter Tremont	4 episodes
Majority Rule	John Wade	Television film
1993	Reasonable Doubts	Hugh Mandrake	Episode: "Wish You Were Here"
Star	Harrison Barclay	Television film
NYPD Blue	Jack Hanlan	Episode: "Emission Accomplished"
General Hospital	Frank Smith	2 episodes
1993–1994	Renegade	Dallas Bronson/Ted Shields	4 episodes
1994	Hart to Hart: Home is Where the Hart Is	Chief Carson	Television film
Walker, Texas Ranger	Judge Riley	Episode: "The Committee"
One West Waikiki	Cosmetic Surgeon	Episode: "'Til Death Do Us Part"
1995	Gramps	Oliver	Television film
The Single Guy	Mr. Brimley	2 episodes
Silk Stalkings	Grant Everett	2 episodes
1996	A Face to Die For	Joe Thomas	Television film
Raven Hawk	White	Television film
Champs	Mr. Shuester	Episode: "We'll Never Have Paris"
Wings	Jonathan Clayton	3 episodes
1997	Dark Skies	William Paley	Episode: "To Prey in Darkness"
Spy Game	Morganthal	Episode: "What, Micah Worry?"
The Practice	Judge George Nelson	Episode: "The Civil Right"
1997–2002	Dharma & Greg	Edward Montgomery	119 episodes
1998	Life of the Party: The Pamela Harriman Story	W. Averell Harriman	Television film
1999	Aftershock: Earthquake in New York	Frank Agostini	2 episodes
2003	Justice League	Highfather (voice)	title=Mitchell Ryan (visual voices guide)
2004	The West Wing	Senator Roland Pierce	Episode: "The Supremes"
The Drew Carey Show	Woody	Episode: "Drew Hunts Silver Fox"
2021	Smartphone Theatre	Harry	Episode: "What Friends Do (#Expendables)"
::

References

References

1. [https://web.archive.org/web/20210125095745/http://mitchellryan.net/biography.shtml Bio]
2. (September 30, 1973). "'Chase' – Jack Webb's Newest Dramatic Series". Sunday News.
3. Medina, Eduardo. (2022-03-05). "Mitchell Ryan, Who Played the Villain in 'Lethal Weapon,' Dies at 88". The New York Times.
4. Garfield, David. (1980). "A Player's Place: The Story of The Actors Studio". MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc..
5. "Mitchell Ryan". The Broadway League.
6. "Mitchell Ryan". Lucille Lortel Foundation.
7. "MItchell Ryan – The Fall Of A Sparrow".
8. "The Stars of Dark Shadows: Where Are They Now? Mitchell Ryan".
9. ''Barnabas & Company: The Cast of the TV Classic Dark Shadows'', Craig Hamrick & R. J. Jamison: Ryan is quoted as saying "I was so drunk that year, I barely remember what it was about" in a 1976 ''[[TV Guide]]'' interview
10. (2011). "Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010". McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers.
11. "Letters of Note: STAR TREK/Casting".
12. (June 21, 2003). "Screen Actors Guild Foundation Launches Storyline Online II".
13. California Marriage Index 1960–1985; Ancestry.com
14. (March 5, 2022). "Mitchell Ryan, Actor in 'Lethal Weapon' and 'Dharma & Greg,' Dies at 88".
15. "Mitchell Ryan (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors.

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