Addison Powell (February 23, 1921 – November 8, 2010) was an American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), l ...

whose numerous

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of Transmission (telecommunications), television tra ...

, stage and film credits included ''

Dark Shadows ''Dark Shadows'' is an American gothic soap opera that aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966, to April 2, 1971. The show depicted the lives, loves, trials, and tribulations of the wealthy Collins family of Collinspor ...

'', '' The Thomas Crown Affair'' and '' Three Days of the Condor''. He was best known for playing Dr. Eric Lang, a mad scientist who created Adam, on ''

''.

Early life

Powell was born in 1921 in

Belmont, Massachusetts Belmont is a New England town, town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. It is a western suburb of Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, United States; and is part of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, the town's p ...

. His parents, Edward Henry and Kathrene (née Barnum) Powell, were school teachers. Powell received a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original c ...

. He enlisted in the U.S.

Army Air Force The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

as a

navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's primar ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Powell ultimately flew more than 30 combat missions as a navigator on board

B-17 The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theate ...

bombers from their base in

East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He earned a second degree from the

Yale School of Drama The David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University is a graduate professional school of Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut. Founded in 1924 as the Department of Drama in the School of Fine Arts, the school provides training in e ...

(class of 1948) following the end of the war.

Career

Powell's film credits included '' The Mating Game'' (1959) with

Debbie Reynolds Mary Frances "Debbie" Reynolds (April 1, 1932 – December 28, 2016) was an American actress, singer, and businesswoman. Her career spanned almost 70 years. She was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer for her portra ...

, '' In the French Style'' (1963) with Jean Seberg, and '' The Thomas Crown Affair'' (1968), the latter in which he played Abe, a bank robber, opposite Steve McQueen. In 1975, Powell appeared in '' The Reincarnation of Peter Proud'' with Michael Sarrazin, and played a rogue CIA officer in '' Three Days of the Condor'', which starred

Robert Redford Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award from four nominations, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, the Ceci ...

. He portrayed Admiral

Chester W. Nimitz Chester William Nimitz (; February 24, 1885 – February 20, 1966) was a fleet admiral in the United States Navy. He played a major role in the naval history of World War II as Commander in Chief, US Pacific Fleet, and Commander in C ...

in the 1977 biopic, '' MacArthur,'' which starred Gregory Peck, and later appeared in the 1987 murder mystery film '' The Rosary Murders'', opposite

Donald Sutherland Donald McNichol Sutherland (born 17 July 1935) is a Canadian actor whose film career spans over six decades. He has been nominated for nine Golden Globe Awards, winning two for his performances in the television films '' Citizen X'' (1995) a ...

and

Charles Durning Charles Edward Durning (February 28, 1923 – December 24, 2012) was an American actor who appeared in over 200 movies, television shows and plays.Schudel, Matt (December 26, 2012) "''In real life and on the screen, he played countless role ...

. His television credits included roles in the first seasons of both ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering o ...

'' and '' The Mod Squad''. Powell also had a recurring role as Dr. Eric Lang in the television series, ''

'', which aired on ABC from 1966 until 1971. He guest-starred in an episode of '' Gibbsville'' in 1976 and co-starred as a

detective A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads t ...

in the 1977

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

, '' Contract on Cherry Street'', with Frank Sinatra and Martin Balsam. In 1988 he appeared as Admiral Harold Stark in the miniseries '' War and Remembrance'', opposite

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Jo ...

. He also portrayed the Gorton's Fisherman in Gorton's Fish Commercials in 1982.

Personal life

In 1950, Powell married Bunnie Rowley. The couple had three children: Mary, Julie and Michael and resided on the

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...

. They remained married until Rowley’s death in 1995.

Death

Addison Powell died on November 8, 2010, at 89 years old. Powell had resided in

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...

for twenty-two years, most recently at the Shelburne Bay Senior Living community in Shelburne.

Filmography

References

External links

*
Film Reference: Addison Powell Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Addison 1921 births 2010 deaths Male actors from Boston United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II American male television actors American male film actors American male stage actors Boston University alumni Yale School of Drama alumni People from Chittenden County, Vermont People from Belmont, Massachusetts United States Army Air Forces officers Military personnel from Massachusetts 20th-century American male actors