Roger Bowen

Roger Wendell Bowen (May 25, 1932 – February 16, 1996) was an American comedic actor and novelist, best known for his portrayal of Lt. Col. Henry Blake in the 1970 film '' M*A*S*H''.

Bowen considered himself a writer who only moonlighted as an actor. He wrote eleven novels (including ''Just Like a Movie'') as well as sketches for Broadway and television. He was also one of the co-founders of Chicago's comedy and acting troupe The Second City.

Life and career

A native of Providence, Rhode Island, Bowen majored in English at Brown University, then attended graduate school at the University of Chicago. While writing theater reviews for '' The Chicago Maroon'', he was asked to pen material for an improvisational troupe that included Alan Arkin and Mike Nichols. The troupe, Compass Players, evolved into The Second City. Bowen spent most of the 1960s playing "preppie" types on a number of TV & radio commercials. His first film role was 1968's '' Petulia'', but his big movie break came in 1970 when he landed the role of Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake in Robert Altman's film '' M*A*S*H''. Bowen had in fact served in the U.S. Army in Korea, albeit after the Korean War had ended. (After serving in Japan as a Special Agent in the Counter Intelligence Corps (441st CIC Detachment – Beppu Field Office) from 1957–58, Bowen was sent to the 308th CIC Detachment in Seoul, South Korea in 1958.)

After ''M*A*S*H'', Bowen returned to television and gained a fan following as Hamilton Majors Jr., the pleasantly snooty Ivy League CEO of Continental Flange and supportive boss of Herschel Bernardi on the TV sitcom '' Arnie'' (1970–72). He then joined the cast of '' The Brian Keith Show'', and returned to TV commercials and smaller movie roles. In 1976, Bowen appeared in the TV parody film ''Tunnel Vision'', doing a convincing Henry Kissinger impersonation that he was often asked to perform at parties around Hollywood. (The film featured a galaxy of comic stars including Chevy Chase, John Candy, Howard Hesseman and Joe Flaherty, but Bowen received top billing as the others were still relatively unknown at the time.) Bowen also played minor roles in such films as '' Heaven Can Wait'' (1978), '' The Main Event'' (1979) and '' Zapped!'' (1982).

Bowen was a tournament chess player who participated in several events in the 1970s. In the early 1980s, Bowen enjoyed another round of weekly TV work with recurring roles on '' House Calls'' (starring former ''M*A*S*H'' sitcom alumnus Wayne Rogers), ''At Ease'', and '' Maggie Briggs''. He made his final credited film appearance in the 1991 comedy '' What About Bob?'' starring Bill Murray and Richard Dreyfuss.

Personal life

Bowen met and married the Bronx-raised Ann Raim, in Chicago. After they moved to San Francisco, Ann formed the ''Pitschel Players'', an improvisational comedy group, and directed the group of political and social satirists, that played for ten years, performing with Country Joe McDonald, at Episcopal Church of St. John the Evangelist, San Francisco, on weekends at the Intersection for the Arts and other venues in San Francisco and the Bay Area. The Pitschel Players included Paul Willson, John Pray, Robin Menken, John Bailey, James Carroll Pickett III, Gene Babo (musical director) and Edie McClurg (beginning 1975). In 1974, producer Joe Roth and the Pitschel Players relocated to Los Angeles. Soon after 11 November 1973, Roth and Bowen leased 8162 Melrose Avenue, as the ''Pitschel Players Cabaret'', which was the former ''Ash Grove'' nightclub site, and the later L.A. Improv. Al Franken and Tom Davis performed at the ''Pitschel Players Cabaret''. David Lander and Michael McKean " moonlighted" by performing at the ''Pitschel Players Cabaret''. The ''Pitschel Players'' appeared in 1977's '' Cracking Up''.

In 1980, Bowen and Ann moved back to New York.

Bowen died of a heart attack at the age of 63 while on vacation in Marathon, Florida. His death came one day after that of McLean Stevenson, who played Blake for the first three seasons of the ''M*A*S*H'' television series. (Stevenson also died from a heart attack; because of this strange coincidence, Bowen's family did not make the news of his death public until a week afterward in an attempt to minimize any confusion over the two actors and their obituaries.)

Filmography

Bibliography

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References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowen, Roger
1932 births
1996 deaths
20th-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American male writers
20th-century American novelists
Male actors from Providence, Rhode Island
American male comedians
American male film actors
American male novelists
American male television actors
Brown University alumni
Military personnel from Rhode Island
United States Army personnel of the Korean War
United States Army soldiers
University of Chicago alumni
Writers from Providence, Rhode Island
Comedians from Rhode Island