Actor. Born Robert Anson Jordan Jr. in New York City, he attended Hotchkiss Preparatory in Lakeville, Connecticut, the Sherbourne School as an exchange student in Great Britain, and Harvard University, where he was a member of the Dramatic Club, and where he graduated in only three years. He made his Broadway debut in December 1961 in "Take Her, She's Mine", remaining with the production for just over a year, before making his television debut in a 1962 episode of "The Naked City". Although he appeared in three more Broadway productions over the next five years, he became very active off-Broadway, co-founding the Gotham Arts Theater. He also spent eight years with the New York Shakespeare Festival while simultaneously taking television roles in such programs as "Ben Casey" and "The Defenders." He made his motion picture debut in 1971's "Lawman" opposite veteran actor Burt Lancaster, and for a second film later that year "Valdez Is Coming." Other roles followed such as his breakout in "The Friends of Eddie Coyle" in 1973, "Rooster Cogburn" in 1975, and perhaps most memorably as the sympathetic antagonist in 1976's "Logan's Run." He also served as manager of the L.A. Actors Theater in Los Angeles, California during the 1970s where he wrote, produced, and directed his own plays. A respected professional, he was more than willing to play a variety of roles, including unsympathetic characters such as Albert Speer in 1981's "The Bunker" and supporting roles such as 'Duncan Idaho' in 1984's "Dune." He also continued to appear on television in such productions as "Captains and the Kings" for which he won a Golden Globe, "The French Atlantic Affair", and a recurring role in the series "The Equalizer." He worked steadily throughout the 1980s and the first few years of the 1990s in films including "The Hunt for Red October" (1990). A friend of author Michael Shaara, he appeared in the 1993 film "Gettysburg" based upon Shaara's novel "Killer Angels", playing Confederate Army General Lewis A. Armistead. It was to be his last role. After filming began on his next project, he was forced to resign due to illness. Diagnosed with a brain tumor, he succumbed at the age of 56.
Actor. Born Robert Anson Jordan Jr. in New York City, he attended Hotchkiss Preparatory in Lakeville, Connecticut, the Sherbourne School as an exchange student in Great Britain, and Harvard University, where he was a member of the Dramatic Club, and where he graduated in only three years. He made his Broadway debut in December 1961 in "Take Her, She's Mine", remaining with the production for just over a year, before making his television debut in a 1962 episode of "The Naked City". Although he appeared in three more Broadway productions over the next five years, he became very active off-Broadway, co-founding the Gotham Arts Theater. He also spent eight years with the New York Shakespeare Festival while simultaneously taking television roles in such programs as "Ben Casey" and "The Defenders." He made his motion picture debut in 1971's "Lawman" opposite veteran actor Burt Lancaster, and for a second film later that year "Valdez Is Coming." Other roles followed such as his breakout in "The Friends of Eddie Coyle" in 1973, "Rooster Cogburn" in 1975, and perhaps most memorably as the sympathetic antagonist in 1976's "Logan's Run." He also served as manager of the L.A. Actors Theater in Los Angeles, California during the 1970s where he wrote, produced, and directed his own plays. A respected professional, he was more than willing to play a variety of roles, including unsympathetic characters such as Albert Speer in 1981's "The Bunker" and supporting roles such as 'Duncan Idaho' in 1984's "Dune." He also continued to appear on television in such productions as "Captains and the Kings" for which he won a Golden Globe, "The French Atlantic Affair", and a recurring role in the series "The Equalizer." He worked steadily throughout the 1980s and the first few years of the 1990s in films including "The Hunt for Red October" (1990). A friend of author Michael Shaara, he appeared in the 1993 film "Gettysburg" based upon Shaara's novel "Killer Angels", playing Confederate Army General Lewis A. Armistead. It was to be his last role. After filming began on his next project, he was forced to resign due to illness. Diagnosed with a brain tumor, he succumbed at the age of 56.
Bio by: Iola
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