Michael Tolan (born Seymour Tuchow, November 27, 1925 – January 31, 2011) was an American actor.

Early life and education

The son of Morris Tuchow, Tolan was born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

, Michigan. He graduated from Central High School and

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

in Detroit and studied under Stella Adler and at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...

Career

Tolan's early acting experience came on radio station WXYZ in Detroit, where he was heard on ''

The Green Hornet The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of med ...

'' and '' The Lone Ranger''. He also worked with the Actors Company. In 1948, he performed in summer stock theater in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 census, making it the second- most populous city in New England after ...

. Tolan appeared primarily in stage roles in his early career, with only minor parts in films of the early 1950s. His stage roles include '' Romanoff and Juliet'' and '' Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?'', his Broadway debut. His film credits included ''

Fort Worth Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. Accord ...

'' (1951), '' The Savage'' (1952), ''

Hiawatha Hiawatha ( , also : ), also known as Ayenwathaaa or Aiionwatha, was a precolonial Native American leader and co-founder of the Iroquois Confederacy. He was a leader of the Onondaga people, the Mohawk people, or both. According to some account ...

'' (1952), ''

The Greatest Story Ever Told ''The Greatest Story Ever Told'' is a 1965 American epic film produced and directed by George Stevens. It is a retelling of the Biblical account about Jesus of Nazareth, from the Nativity through to the Ascension. Along with the ensemble cast ...

'' (1965), '' Hour of the Gun'' (1967), '' The Lost Man'' (1969), '' John and Mary'' (1969), '' The 300 Year Weekend'' (1971), '' Talk to Me'' (1984) and '' Presumed Innocent'' (1990). He acted mostly on television from the mid-1950s on, including an appearance on the 1960 CBS summer series, '' Diagnosis: Unknown'', a role in '' The Doctors and the Nurses'', and a continuing role as Jordan Boyle on "The Senator" segments of the anthology umbrella TV series ''

The Bold Ones ''The Bold Ones'' is the umbrella title for several television series. It was produced by Universal Television and broadcast on NBC from 1969 to 1973. It was a wheel format series, an NBC programming approach also used by that network in serie ...

'' (1970–71). He appeared in a 1967 episode of The Rat Patrol, "The Fifth Wheel Raid", where he is credited as Michael Tolin (versus Tolan). He also appeared in three episodes of Mission: Impossible, entitled "Trial by Fury," "The Play," and "Terror." He had a recurring role on three episodes of ''

The Mary Tyler Moore Show ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (also known simply as ''Mary Tyler Moore'') is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns and starring actress Mary Tyler Moore. The show originally aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977. Moo ...

'', as Dan Whitfield, Mary's night-school teacher & boyfriend. He also made guest appearances on such television series as ''

The Invaders ''The Invaders'' is an American science-fiction television series created by Larry Cohen that aired on ABC for two seasons, from 1967 to 1968. Roy Thinnes stars as David Vincent, who after stumbling across evidence of an in-progress invas ...

'', ''

The F.B.I. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

'', ''

Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that ran from 1967 to 1975 on CBS. It was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer Bruce Geller. The title character, Joe Mannix, is a private in ...

'', '' Kojak'', '' Nichols'', '' The Outer Limits'', '' McMillan and Wife'', and ''

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 ...

''. His last known television appearance was on an episode of ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The seri ...

'' in 1994. Tolan appeared in the Bob Fosse film '' All That Jazz'' (1979) as lead character Joe Gideon's cardiologist, Dr. Ballinger. Tolan also helped found the American Place Theatre, of which he wrote:

"We wanted to attract some of the writers who wrote fine, intelligent, deep material about American life, and see if we could interest them in writing for the theater".

Personal life

Tolan had two marriages, both of which ended in divorce; at the time of his death, he was partnered with Donna Peck, with whom he lived in Ancram,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He had previously married actress Rosemary Forsyth on June 28, 1966. The couple had one child and divorced in 1975.

Death

Tolan died January 31, 2011, at a Hudson, New York, hospital from

kidney failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

Selected filmography

*'' The Enforcer'' (1951) - James (Duke) Malloy *'' Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison'' (1951) - Leo Daly *''

'' (1951) - Mort Springer *''

The People Against O'Hara ''The People Against O'Hara'' is a 1951 American crime film noir directed by John Sturges and based on Eleazar Lipsky's novel. The film features Spencer Tracy, Pat O'Brien, John Hodiak, and James Arness. Plot James Curtayne ( Tracy) was once a ...

'' (1951) - Vincent Korvac (uncredited) *'' The Savage'' (1952) - Long Mane *''

'' (1952) - Neyadji *''

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...

'' (1953) - Officer to Octavius *'' Second Chance'' (1953) - Antonio (uncredited) *''

'' (1965) - Lazarus *'' Roseanna'' (1967) - Elmer B. Kafka *'' Hour of the Gun'' (1967) - Pete Spence *''The Rat Patrol - Season 2 Episode 13'' (1967) - Kabir *'' Journey into Darkness'' (1968) - Craig Miller (episode 'Paper Dolls') *'' The Lost Man'' (1969) - Insp. Carl Hamilton *'' John and Mary'' (1969) - James *'' The 300 Year Weekend'' (1971) - Dr. Marshall *'' All That Jazz'' (1979) - Dr. Ballinger *'' Talk to Me'' (1984) - Dr. Ronald Webster *'' Presumed Innocent'' (1990) - Mr. Polhemus *'' Perfect Stranger'' (2007) - Judge

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tolan, Michael 1925 births 2011 deaths Male actors from Detroit American male film actors American male television actors Wayne State University alumni Male actors from Los Angeles People from Hudson, New York Stanford University alumni Deaths from kidney failure 20th-century American male actors