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Dig A Hole: Character actor Henry Beckman, Hollywood cop

July 1st, 2008 by Scott Marks

Henry Beckman

Clockwise: Cmdr. Paul Richards in Flash Gordon (1955), Peyton Place’s George Anderson (1964) and as Alf Skully in Check It Out (1985)

Character actor Henry Beckman, a prolific 50s and 60s television staple, died June 17 in Barcelona, Spain. He was 86.

Mr. Beckman appeared in hundreds of TV shows, movies and commercials in the U.S. and Canada. Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, he served in the Canadian military during WWII and survived the Normandy invasion. After the war he married Cheryl Maxwell, a one-time actress and Broadway producer. She remained his bride up until the time of her death in 1998.

His first television appearance was in the Pretend I Am A Stranger episode of The Philco Television Playhouse (1951). Following their 1955 marriage, Henry and Cheryl eventually purchased The Dukes Oak Theatre in Cooperstown, New York. Two years after that, they sold the theatre and moved to Hollywood where Henry pursued an on-camera career.

His first recurring television role was as Cmdr. Paul Richards on six episodes of the ultra-cheapo TV version of Flash Gordon (1955). His two longest running TV hits were roles as George Anderson on Peyton Place and Colonel harridan in “McHale’s Navy.

Mr. Beckman was known for playing heavies or small roles that required regional dialects or foreign languages. Great gunsel that he was, Henry was at his best when he wore a badge and answered his call on the Hollywood squad roll. He played just about every type of hard-line lawman one could imagine: a Motorcycle Cop (Niagara), a Beat Cop (The Twilight Zone, Tashlin’s The Man from the Diner’s Club, I Dream of Jeannie, Sweet Charity), Lieutenants (My Favorite Martian and the mind altering Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre), Sheriffs (Mannix, The Rockford Files, Quincy), Detectives (Hitchcock’s Marnie, The X-Files), a Narc (Breakfast at Tiffany’s) even the D.A. in an episode of The Monkees!

In 1977, Henry and Cheryl were awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Medal for “contributions to Canadian culture and the esteem in which they were held by their peers”. (I wonder what the Queen thought of his performance in David Cronenberg’s The Brood?) His work in Canada earned two Canadian film awards in best-supporting actor category including a Genie in 1978 for Blood and Guts.

1979 the journeyman actor wrote and published How to Sell Your Film Project, a guide on how to make and market independent films.

Beckman also wrote film scripts, and was a member of the Writer’s Guild of Canada, the Screen Writers Guild of America, SAG, AFTRA, ACTRA and the Director’s Guild of Canada.

He is survived by two sons, Brian and Stuart.

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One Response to “Dig A Hole: Character actor Henry Beckman, Hollywood cop”

  1. Joel Wicklund on July 2nd, 2008 7:59 am

    Didn’t really have a frame of reference for Mr. Beckman until you mentioned “The Brood.” What a terrific performance. I love the scene where he calls his son-in-law (the terminally bland Art Hindle in the lead - the weak link in an otherwise great cast) from his house and drunkenly goes from total depression (”This house has got the best of me”) to ticked off (”We’ll go down there together and kick their asses”) in seconds…just before the brood makes their presence known. “The Brood” is 30 years old next year. Still one of my favorite Cronenberg flicks.

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