Fritz William Weaver (born January 19, 1926) is an American stage and screen actor. Weaver has a long and wide variety of performances in television, stage, and motion picture acting and is well known for his roles in 2 seminal television films, the mini-series Holocaust and the made-for-television movie The Legend of Lizzie Borden. He is also known for his work in science fiction and fantasy, especially in television series and movies like The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, The X-Files, Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles and Demon Seed. Weaver continues to work as a narrator for educational TV programs.
[from an interview in 1988] When you play the great roles, you get spoiled and think you'll have a whole career playing nothing but great roles and of course you can't. You play a lot of junk most of the time. Television is junk, most of it.
2
[on acting in plays written by William Shakespeare] The old boy -- he's the one who makes the maximum challenge to the actor. That high charge on all the lines he writes -- you've got to measure up. You just can't saunter into that stuff; you've got to bring your whole life into it.
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Fact
1
A tall man -- Fritz stood 6-foot-3 -- who was blessed with a deep, resonant voice. Fritz found parts in every medium, often cast as the aristocratic villain. Weaver, a Tony Award-winning character actor, who played Sherlock Holmes and Shakespearian kings on Broadway while he created memorable roles on television and film from "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" to "Marathon Man".
2
He was the son of Elsa (Stringaro) and John Carson Weaver. His father had English and German ancestry. His mother was an Italian immigrant, born in Trieste, Provincia di Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy.
3
He was awarded the 1981 Drama-Logue Award for Outstanding Performance for the play, "A Tale Told" at the Mark Taper Forum Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
Has made guest appearances on both of the longest running prime-time dramas in United States television history: Gunsmoke (1955) and Law & Order (1990).
He studied drama at HB Studio in Greenwich Village, New York City.
8
He was awarded the 2004 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play for "Trying", at the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago, Illinois.
Won Broadway's 1970 Tony Award as Best Actor (Dramatic) for "Child's Play". He had previously been nominated as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Dramatic) in 1956 for Enid Bagnold's "The Chalk Garden".
14
Was a conscientious objector during the Second World War.
15
The voice of History Channel specials.
Actor
Title
Year
Status
Character
Mission: Impossible
1966-1971
TV Series
George Berlinger / Emil Skarbeck / Erik Hagar / ...
Night Gallery
1971
TV Series
Dr. Mazi (segment "A Question of Fear")
Company of Killers
1971
TV Movie
John Shankalien
The F.B.I.
1966-1971
TV Series
Charles Ridgeway / Paul Winters / John Thomas Whiting / ...
Men at Law
1971
TV Series
John C. Tilton
Dan August
1971
TV Series
Dr. Michael Serling
Berlin Affair
1970
TV Movie
Joe Mallicent
A Walk in the Spring Rain
1970
Roger Meredith
Ironside
1970
TV Series
Paul Friedland
All My Children
1970
TV Series
Hugo Marick (1992, 1998)
The Maltese Bippy
1969
Mischa Ravenswood
The Big Valley
1967-1969
TV Series
Hebron Grant / Burke Jordan
The Felony Squad
1969
TV Series
Bender
The Name of the Game
1969
TV Series
Col. Walter Scharz
The Outcasts
1968
TV Series
Sam Croft
CBS Playhouse
1968
TV Series
David Hoffman
N.Y.P.D.
1968
TV Series
Lipton
Gentle Ben
1968
TV Series
Oce Franklin
Premiere
1968
TV Series
Niklaus
The Invaders
1967
TV Series
Deputy Ambassador Peter Borke
The Crucible
1967
TV Movie
Reverend John Hale
NBC Experiment in Television
1967
TV Series
The Borgia Stick
1967
TV Movie
Anderson
Gunsmoke
1967
TV Series
Marshal Burl Masters
Combat!
1966
TV Series
Major Chaplain Ernest Miller
The Fugitive
1966
TV Series
Joe Tucker
Rawhide
1964
TV Series
Jonathan Damon
12 O'Clock High
1964
TV Series
Col. Peter Raff
The Rogues
1964
TV Series
Gen. Baldassare Cione
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
1964
TV Series
Andrew Vulcan
Fail-Safe
1964
Colonel Cascio
The Great Adventure
1964
TV Series
Colonel Thomas Rose
Espionage
1964
TV Series
Richard Keller
The Doctors and the Nurses
1962-1964
TV Series
Father Wickford
The Defenders
1961-1963
TV Series
Vincent Kayle / Leo Graves
Dr. Kildare
1963
TV Series
Arthur Hobler
The United States Steel Hour
1956-1962
TV Series
Francis / Carl Schard / Douglas Oberon
Cain's Hundred
1962
TV Series
Martin Weir
The Power and the Glory
1961
TV Movie
Schoolmaster
The New Breed
1961
TV Series
Arthur Grissom
The Asphalt Jungle
1961
TV Series
Victor Vanda
The Twilight Zone
1960-1961
TV Series
Chancellor / William Sturka
Jane Eyre
1961
TV Movie
Mason
'Way Out
1961
TV Series
Dr. Landy
The DuPont Show of the Month
1957-1961
TV Series
Horace, Sr. / Barsad / Charlie Castle
Play of the Week
1961
TV Series
James Califer
Festival
1960
TV Series
Brutus
CBS Repertoire Workshop
1960
TV Series
Writer
Playhouse 90
1959
TV Series
King
Omnibus
1958
TV Series
Newspaper Photographer
Armstrong Circle Theatre
1958
TV Series
Milovan Djilas
Studio One in Hollywood
1957
TV Series
George Hanley
The Congressman
2016
Harlan Lantier
The Cobbler
2014
Mr. Solomon
We'll Never Have Paris
2014
Phillipe
Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight
2013
Hugo Black
This Must Be the Place
2011
Cheyenne's Father (voice)
Law & Order
1991-2005
TV Series
Nathan Fogg / Larry Weber / Philip Woodleigh
The Thomas Crown Affair
1999
John Reynolds
Frasier
1998
TV Series
Sir Trevor Ainsley
Promised Land
1998
TV Series
Oliver Hooper
Rescuers: Stories of Courage: Two Women
1997
TV Movie
Father Theas (segment "Woman on a Bicycle")
The X-Files
1996
TV Series
Senator Albert Sorenson
Floating Palaces
1996
TV Movie
Narrator
Broken Trust
1995
TV Movie
Spring Awakening
1994
TV Movie
Capt. Von Koster
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
1994
TV Series
Kovat
L.A. Law
1994
TV Series
Dr. Aaron Pierce
Pointman
1994
TV Movie
Jason
Class of '96
1993
TV Series
Professor Bennenger
Blind Spot
1993
TV Movie
Simon
Citizen Cohn
1992
TV Movie
Sen. Everett Dirksen
Ironclads
1991
TV Movie
John Ericsson
The Three Little Pigs
1991
Short
Narrator (voice)
Against the Law
1990
TV Series
Skipper Haverhill
American Masters
1990
TV Series documentary
Narrator
Matlock
1989
TV Series
Pastor James Hubert
Monsters
1989
TV Series
Mr. Hallet
Friday the 13th: The Series
1989
TV Series
Asteroth
My Name Is Bill W.
1989
TV Movie
Dr. Burnham
Murder, She Wrote
1985-1987
TV Series
Paris Inspector Hugues Panassié / Edwin Dupont / Judge Lambert
I'll Take Manhattan
1987
TV Mini-Series
Mr. Amberville
D.C. Cops
1986
TV Movie
Maxwell Vance
Dream West
1986
TV Mini-Series
Sen. Thomas Hart Benton
Under Siege
1986
TV Movie
Bernard Hughes
Power
1986
Wallace Furman, New Mexico Gubernatorial Candidate
Tales from the Darkside
1984-1986
TV Series
Sir Edmund Halley
Dr. Fenner
The Twilight Zone
1985
TV Series
Father Matthew Karsighan (segment "The Star")
A Death in California
1985
TV Mini-Series
Van Niven
The Hearst and Davies Affair
1985
TV Movie
Arthur Beal
Hawaiian Heat
1984
TV Series
Hawthorne
The Love Boat
1984
TV Series
Mr. Weatherby
Hot Pursuit
1984
TV Series
Watkins
Tales of the Unexpected
1984
TV Series
Princey
Don't Eat the Pictures: Sesame Street at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
1983
TV Movie
Osiris
Great Performances
1974-1983
TV Series
Caterpillar
Creon
Maid in America
1982
TV Movie
Jonas
Creepshow
1982
Dexter Stanley (segment "The Crate")
Falcon Crest
1982
TV Series
Arthur Maesfield
Jaws of Satan
1981
Father Tom Farrow
Quincy M.E.
1981
TV Series
Sen. William Pike
See China and Die
1981
TV Movie
Poston
Nightkill
1980
Herbert Childs
Magnum, P.I.
1980
TV Series
Captain Cooly / Captain J. Cooly, USN
Children of Divorce
1980
TV Movie
Eli Sorenson
The Martian Chronicles
1980
TV Mini-Series
Father Peregrine
Dan August: Once Is Never Enough
1980
TV Movie
Dr. Michael Serling
Hawaii Five-O
1979
TV Series
Dr. Harvey Danworth
The Big Fix
1978
Oscar Procari Sr.
Holocaust
1978
TV Mini-Series
Dr. Josef Weiss
Captains Courageous
1977
TV Movie
Harvey Cheyne, Sr.
Wonder Woman
1977
TV Series
Dr. Solano
Demon Seed
1977
Alex Harris
Black Sunday
1977
Corley
Marathon Man
1976
Professor Biesenthal
The Jolly Corner
1975
TV Short
Spencer Brydon
Cannon
1971-1975
TV Series
Mr. Schumann / Raymond Thurston / Leo Kern
The Streets of San Francisco
1975
TV Series
Ted Whitlock
The Legend of Lizzie Borden
1975
TV Movie
Andrew Borden
Give Me Liberty
1974
TV Movie
Movin' On
1974
TV Series
Eli Hoffner
Petrocelli
1974
TV Series
Colonel William Fletcher
Barnaby Jones
1973-1974
TV Series
Laurence Sheffield / Jason Matthews
A Touch of the Poet
1974
TV Movie
Cornelius Melody
The Wide World of Mystery
1974
TV Series
Henry
Kung Fu
1974
TV Series
Hillquist
The Day of the Dolphin
1973
Harold DeMilo
Rx for the Defense
1973
TV Movie
Dr. Daniel Kemper
The Delphi Bureau
1973
TV Series
Vander
Mannix
1968-1973
TV Series
William Avery / Dr. Cameron McKenzie
Hunter
1973
TV Movie
Cirrak
The Snoop Sisters
1972
TV Series
Anton de Tourolet
Mod Squad
1972
TV Series
John Palmer
Banyon
1972
TV Series
Whitney Pemberton
Heat of Anger
1972
TV Movie
Vincent Kagel
Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law
1972
TV Series
Dr. Martin Cohen
Room 222
1972
TV Series
Janos Kulovich
Medical Center
1972
TV Series
Dr. Matthews
Self
Title
Year
Status
Character
Biography
2005
TV Series documentary
Himself - Narrator
Imaginary Witness: Hollywood and the Holocaust
2004
Documentary
Himself
Unsung Heroes of Pearl Harbor
2001
TV Movie documentary
Narrator (voice)
America's Five Star Heroes: Gods of War
1998
TV Movie documentary
Narrator (voice)
The Spanish American War
1998
TV Movie documentary
Narrator
The Infinite Voyage
1989
TV Series documentary
Narrator
We the People 200: The Constitutional Gala
1987
TV Movie
Himself - Performer
The 24th Annual Tony Awards
1970
TV Special
Himself - Winner: Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play