Person Details

Birthday: 1919-11-03 17:21:39

Death: 1994-08-02 17:21:39

Aliases: No known aliases

Gender: Male

Place of birth: The Bronx, New York USA

Homepage:

Movie Involvements: 43

TV Involvements: 41


Most Famous Work

Biography

​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.   Bert Freed (November 3, 1919 — August 2, 1994) was a prolific American character actor, voice over actor, and the first actor to portray "Detective Columbo" on television. Born and raised in The Bronx, New York, Freed began acting while attending Penn State University, and made his Broadway debut in 1942. Following World War II Army service in the European Theatre, he appeared in the Broadway musical The Day Before Spring in 1945 and dozens of television shows between 1947 and 1985. His film debut occurred, oddly enough, in a musical Carnegie Hall (1947). A prominent role was as the villainous Ryker in the television series Shane, in which Freed added a unique touch of realism by beginning the show clean-shaven and growing a beard from one week to the next, never shaving again through the season. Freed played Columbo in a live 1960 episode of the "Chevy Mystery Theatre" seven years before Peter Falk played the role. Thomas Mitchell also played the part on stage prior to Falk's version, which is probably where many of the eccentric Columbo traits originated; only a few were visible in Freed's straightforward interpretation, although the character as played by Freed is recognizably Columbo. He appeared (sometimes more than once) in television shows such as The Rifleman, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The Big Valley,The Virginian, Mannix, Barnaby Jones, Charlie's Angels, Then Came Bronson, Run For Your Life, Get Smart, The Lucy Show, Hogan's Heroes, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Dr. Kildare, Ben Casey, Perry Mason, Combat!, Petticoat Junction, The Outer Limits, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Route 66, Ironside, The Green Hornet, The Munsters, and many, many more. He directed one episode of T.H.E. Cat. Freed appeared as a racist club owner in No Way Out (1950), a gangster in Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town (1950), a Marine private in Halls of Montezuma (1951 film), an Army sergeant in Take the High Ground! (1953), the Police Chief in Invaders From Mars (1953), Sgt. Boulanger in Paths of Glory (1957), the hangman in Hang 'Em High (1968), Max's father in Wild in the Streets (1968), as Chief of Detectives in Madigan (1968), a homosexual prison guard in There Was a Crooked Man... (1970) and Bernard's father in Billy Jack (1971) in which he got "whumped" on the side of the face by Billy Jack's right foot "just for the hell of it." He retired from acting in 1986, and died of a heart attack in Canada in 1994 while on a fishing trip with his son. Description above from the Wikipedia article Bert Freed,  licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Most Famous Work

Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Average
8
Perry Mason
Average
8

Perry Mason

(1957) Joe Marshall
Combat!
Average
8

Combat!

(1962) Sgt. Weber
Dr. Kildare
Average
6

Dr. Kildare

(1961) Director
The Big Valley
Average
6

The Big Valley

(1965) Homer Roberts
Knight Rider
Average
8

Knight Rider

(1982) Anthony Solan
The Virginian
Average
6

The Virginian

(1962) Jason Ainsworth
Charlie's Angels
Average
7

Charlie's Angels

(1976) Stambler

Acting

Year Character Movie/Tv
1982 Anthony Solan
1981 N/A
Carlo
1980 Bishop
1979 Sam Dakin
1978 Jack
N/A
Dr. Sawyer
1977 Dr. Julius Korein
Mayor John Randolph
1976 Stambler
1975 Det. Ross
N/A
1974 N/A
N/A
Edwin Stanton
1973 Marchand, A Businessman
N/A
Det. Capt. Ben Wyatt
1972 N/A
N/A
N/A
1971 N/A
Doc Kincaid
Mr. Stuart Posner
1970 Skinner
Fletcher
Board of Military Judges
N/A
1969 Editor Carson
1968 N/A
N/A
N/A
Schmidt
Max Jacob Flatow Sr.
Chief of Detectives Hap Lynch
Police Lieutenant
1967 N/A
Telford Burris
N/A
N/A
1966 Police Captain
Leon Chandler
Rufe Ryker
Police Sgt. Bert Clark
N/A
Quince
1965 N/A
N/A
Maj. Bernsdorf
Homer Roberts
Henry Marvin
Judge Ben Coulter
Sheriff Parsons
1964 Dillon
Sheriff
N/A
Frank Josephson
1963 Sheriff Buck Wheeler
N/A
Detective Horton
Lorimer
Joe Hayden
N/A
N/A
1962 Ben Golden
Sgt. Weber
Milo Henderson
Jason Ainsworth
1961 N/A
N/A
Director
Dr. Donald White
Dave Reed
1960 N/A
Bartender
Adler
Lt. Jenkins
1959 N/A
Michael Dannora
N/A
Benson
N/A
Lieutenant
Kester
N/A
N/A
1958 N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Lester Brackman
1957 Sgt. Boulanger
Lieutenant Rosenberg
Carl Holman
Harry Parker
Joe Marshall
Ken Woodman
N/A
1956 Dayton Colonel
1955 Tom Winston
Capt. Harvey Ellison
Cooper
Al Clovis
Chris Thornton
Abe Irwin
M / Sgt. Matthew Brogan
1954 Chick
Lt. (jg) Andrew Szymanski
Foreman
1953 Sgt. Vince Opperman
Police Chief A.C. Barrows
Kozad
Armstrong
Mitch Green
1952 Emil Jablons
1951 Pete Johnson
Sgt. Randall
Det. Dakis
Smitty (plainclothesman)
Slattery
1950 Rocky Miller - Beaver Canal Resident (uncredited)
Det. Sgt. Paul Klein
Steve Marshak (uncredited)
Emmy's Husband
Dutch (Third New York Henchman)
1948 Chick
Lt. Burke
Mike Jannis
Malone
Al Rago
N/A
1947 Herron, a Man in Alley Mob
Year Character Movie/Tv

Directing

Year Role Movie/Tv
1966 Director
Year Role Movie/Tv

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