Conard Fowkes (January 4, 1933 in
Washington, D.C. – December 14, 2009 in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
) 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 ...
. He was best known for acting in
soap opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
s, including ''
Kitty Foyle'', ''
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 Edge of Night
''The Edge of Night'' is an American television mystery crime drama series and soap opera, created by Irving Vendig and produced by Procter & Gamble Productions.
It debuted on CBS on April 2, 1956, and ran as a live broadcast on that networ ...
'', ''
The Secret Storm
''The Secret Storm'' is an American soap opera that the CBS television network transmitted from February 1, 1954, to February 8, 1974. It was created by Roy Winsor, who also created the long-running soap operas '' Search for Tomorrow'' and '' L ...
'', ''
Hidden Faces
People often see hidden faces in things. Depending on the circumstances, this is referred to as pareidolia, the perception or recognition of a specific pattern or form in something essentially different. It is thus also a kind of optical illusion ...
'', ''
Search for Tomorrow
''Search for Tomorrow'' is an American television soap opera. It began its run on CBS on September 3, 1951, and concluded on NBC, 35 years later, on December 26, 1986.
Set in the fictional town of Henderson in an unspecified state, the show foc ...
'', ''
A Flame in the Wind'', and ''
As the World Turns
''As the World Turns'' (often abbreviated as ''ATWT'') is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956, to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created ''As the World Turns'' as a sister show to her other soa ...
''.
He also appeared in
feature film
A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...
s, including:
*1968: ''
What's So Bad About Feeling Good?
''What's So Bad About Feeling Good?'' is a 1968 American comedy film directed by George Seaton and starring George Peppard and Mary Tyler Moore.
The film was a box office disappointment.
Plot
Pete ( George Peppard) is a former advertising ex ...
'' as Board Member (uncredited)
*1973: ''
Serpico
''Serpico'' is a 1973 American neo-noir biographical crime drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Al Pacino in the title role. The screenplay was adapted by Waldo Salt and Norman Wexler from the book of the same name written by P ...
'' as Cop in Narcotics Raid (uncredited)
*1974'':
Lovin' Molly'' as Eddie White
*1981: ''
Prince of the City
''Prince of the City'' is a 1981 American neo-noir crime drama film directed and co-written by Sidney Lumet. The film follows Daniel Ciello, an officer of the New York Police Department who chooses, for idealistic reasons, to expose corruption in ...
'' as Agent Elroy Pendleton
*1989: ''
Family Business
A family business is a commercial organization in which decision-making is influenced by multiple generations of a family, related by blood or marriage or adoption, who has both the ability to influence the vision of the business and the willin ...
'' as 'Caper' Detective (final film role)
In addition to his work in film and television, Fowkes did some stage acting. He performed in
Jean-Claude van Itallie
Jean-Claude van Itallie (May 25, 1936 – September 9, 2021) was a Belgian-born American playwright, performer, and theatre workshop teacher. He is best known for his 1966 anti-Vietnam War play '' America Hurrah;'' ''The Serpent'', an ensemble p ...
's ''
America Hurrah
''America Hurrah'' is a satirical play by Jean-Claude van Itallie, which premiered at the Pocket Theatre in New York City on November 7, 1966. Directed by Jacques Levy and Joseph Chaikin, the play was an early expression of the burgeoning 1960s ...
'' during the 1960s at the Pocket Theater in
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 ...
. He also performed in
Julie Bovasso
Julia Anne Bovasso (August 1, 1930 – September 14, 1991) was an American actress of stage, screen, and television.
Life and career
Bovasso was born in Brooklyn, New York and raised in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of that borough, the daughter ...
's ''Standard Safety'' and ''The Nothing Kid'' at
La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club
La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club (La MaMa E.T.C.) is an Off-Off-Broadway theatre founded in 1961 by Ellen Stewart, African-American theatre director, producer, and fashion designer. Located in Manhattan's East Village, the theatre began in th ...
in 1974, then in Bovasso's ''Schubert's Last Serenade'', ''The Final Analysis'', and ''The Super Lover'' at La MaMa in 1975.
Fowkes was elected to
Equity's Council in 1973, and served as the Actors' Equity Association's secretary and treasurer from 1988 to 2009. In 1977, he co-founded VITA, AEA's Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program. The program has assisted thousands of AEA members with their
income tax
An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...
es. Fowkes's advocacy also contributed to the
Qualified Performing Artist Deduction in the
Federal Tax Code in 1986.
References
External links
*
*
*
Fowkes' page on La MaMa Archives Digital Collections
1933 births
2009 deaths
American male soap opera actors
Male actors from Washington, D.C.
American activists
20th-century American male actors
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