Melvin Richard "Dakin" Matthews (born November 7, 1940) is an American actor,

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

, and theatrical scholar. He is best known as Herb Kelcher in '' My Two Dads'' (1987–1989), Hanlin Charleston in '' Gilmore Girls'' (2000–2007), Joe Heffernan in ''

The King of Queens ''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, with a total of 207 half-hour episodes spanning nine seasons. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who al ...

'' (1998-2007), and as Reverend Sikes in '' Desperate Housewives'' (2004–2012).

Early life

Melvin Richard Matthews was born in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

. He initially aspired to become a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

priest, studying in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

and then at Gregorian University in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

in the 1960s. However, his growing interest in drama led him to the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

, where he taught, among others, Kevin Kline and Patti LuPone. He acted and taught at the American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) in San Francisco where

Annette Bening Annette Carol Bening (born May 29, 1958) is an American actress. With a career spanning over four decades, she is known for List of Annette Bening performances, her versatile work across screen and stage. Bening has received List of awards an ...

was one of his students. He also attended

graduate school Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachel ...

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

. He is an

Emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

Professor of English at

California State University, East Bay California State University, East Bay (Cal State East Bay, CSU East Bay, or CSUEB) is a public university in Hayward, California. The university is part of the California State University system and offers 136 undergraduate and 60 post-baccala ...

in Hayward, California.

Career

He began his stage career in 1965 in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

, appearing in both the Marin and California Shakespeare Festivals, eventually becoming a member of the acting ensemble of the American Conservatory Theater. In the late 1980s, settling permanently in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, Matthews began guest-starring in

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

and appearing in films. He starred in series such as '' Down Home'', '' Soul Man'' and, most successfully, ''

The Jeff Foxworthy Show ''The Jeff Foxworthy Show'' is an American sitcom television series created by Tom Anderson, starring comedian Jeff Foxworthy and based on Foxworthy's stand-up comedy routine. The series originally aired on ABC from September 12, 1995, to May ...

''. In 1989 he starred in the preshow for EPCOT Center's Body Wars attraction in The Wonders Of Life Pavilion. He also has made many guest appearances on television, including '' Remington Steele'', ''

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

'', '' Murder She Wrote'', ''

L.A. Law ''L.A. Law'' is an American legal drama television series created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher for NBC. It ran for eight seasons and List of L.A. Law episodes, 172 episodes from September 15, 1986, to May 19, 1994. The series cente ...

'', '' The Nanny'', '' True Blood'', '' Just Shoot Me!'', '' Star Trek: Voyager'', '' The West Wing'', '' Gilmore Girls ''(as Headmaster Charleston), '' Ally McBeal'', '' Coach'', ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy i ...

'', '' Who's the Boss?'', '' Charmed'', '' Diagnosis Murder'', ''

'' (as Doug Heffernan's father Joe), ''

NYPD Blue ''NYPD Blue'' is an American police procedural television series set in New York City, exploring the struggles of the fictional 15th Precinct detective squad in Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwines several plots involving an ensemble ca ...

'', '' Desperate Housewives'' (appearing in every Season except 5 as Reverend Sykes), '' House M.D.'' (appearing in 2004 in " Damned If You Do" the 5th episode of the 1st season playing the role of Marvin/Santa Claus), ''

The Big Bang Theory ''The Big Bang Theory'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady for CBS. It aired from September 24, 2007, to May 16, 2019, running for 12 seasons and 279 episodes. The show originally centered on five charact ...

'' as Santa (season 6 episode 11), '' Blue Bloods'' (as of 2016 appearing in " Help Me Help You" the 16th episode of the 6th season playing the role of Judge Wilson), '' Two and a Half Men, and'' '' Carnivàle.'' Matthews has appeared in more than 25

feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...

s, including '' Nuts'', '' Like Father Like Son'', '' Clean and Sober'', '' Thirteen Days'', '' Funny Farm'', '' True Grit'' (as Colonel Stonehill), Steven Spielberg's' '' Lincoln'', '' Flubber'', and '' Zero Charisma''. He played the role of Col. Cochrane in '' Child's Play 3'', and has also appeared in a number of

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

s, including '' And the Band Played On'', '' Baby M,'' and '' White Mile''. As a stage actor, he is known for his many Shakespearean roles, especially

King Lear ''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his ...

, Bottom, and Falstaff, and most recently for his portrayals of

C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer, literary scholar and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925–1954), and Magdalen ...

in South Coast Repertory's '' Shadowlands'', as " Warwick" in Shakespeare's '' Henry IV'' at the Lincoln Center Theater, as "Undershaft" in ''

Major Barbara ''Major Barbara'' is a three-act English play by George Bernard Shaw, written and premiered in 1905 and first published in 1907. The story concerns an idealistic young woman, Barbara Undershaft, who is engaged in helping the poor as a Major in ...

'' and "Tarleton" in '' Misalliance'' for South Coast Repertory, as "The Fixer" in ''Water and Power'' for the Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles, as "Leonato" in Shakespeare Center L.A.'s production of '' Much Ado About Nothing'' with Helen Hunt, as "Cardinal Wolsey" in '' A Man For All Seasons'' with

Frank Langella Frank A. Langella Jr. (; born January 1, 1938) is an American actor. He eschewed the career of a traditional film star by making the stage the focal point of his career, appearing frequently on Broadway. He has received four Tony Awards (out of ...

at the Roundabout, and as "Senator Carlin" in ''Gore Vidal's The Best Man ''on Broadway. In 2010, Matthews joined the cast of the ABC

soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...

'' as Judge Peter Carroll, the judge in Sonny Corinthos' trial. He is also a playwright, director, and theater scholar who has published books and articles on

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

and translations of 17th-century Spanish theater. He has been a dramaturg on numerous theatrical productions, including the 2005 Broadway revival of ''

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 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 Caesar's civil wa ...

'' starring

Denzel Washington Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. (born December 28, 1954) is an American actor, producer, and director. Known for his dramatic roles Denzel Washington on screen and stage, on stage and screen, Washington has received List of awards and nominations ...

and the 2003 revival of '' Henry IV'', winning a Drama Desk Award Special Award for his adaptation of the latter. Matthews was also Artistic Director of the Berkeley Shakespeare Festival, the California Actors Theatre, The Antaeus Theatre Company (which he co-founded in 1991),Miller, Daryl H
"A Commanding Stage Presence"
''Los Angeles Times'', July 5, 1998 and the Andak Stage Company; he is an Associate Artist of the Old Globe Theatre; and a founding member of the John Houseman's The Acting Company and

Sam Mendes Sir Samuel Alexander Mendes (born 1 August 1965) is a British film and stage director, producer, and screenwriter. In 2000, Mendes was appointed a CBE for his services to drama, and he was Knight Bachelor, knighted in the 2020 New Year Honours ...

' Bridge Project. Matthews appeared in the 2009 world tour of The Bridge Project as "Pishchick" in ''The Cherry Orchard'' and "Antigonus" in ''The Winter's Tale''. In the 2011 summer season of The Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park, he performed as "the Provost" in ''

Measure for Measure ''Measure for Measure'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603 or 1604 and first performed in 1604. It was published in the First Folio of 1623. The play centers on the despotic and puritan Angelo (Measure for ...

'' and "Lafew" in '' All's Well That Ends Well''. and as "Sir Humphrey" in the American premiere of ''Yes Prime Minister'' at the Kirk Douglas Theatre. He was nominated for an Ovation Award for Book and Lyrics of an original musical entitled ''Liberty Inn'', which he co-wrote with B. T. Ryback. In 2011, his verse translation of ''The Capulets & The Montagues'' played at the Andak Stage Company and the International Siglo de Oro Festival, winning the L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Adaptation. Matthews appeared twice as Santa Claus in ''The Big Bang Theory'' season 6 episode, " The Santa Simulation" and season 8 episode " The Clean Room Infiltration". He was the dramaturg for the Lincoln Center production of ''Macbeth'' (2013), directed by Jack O'Brien and starring Ethan Hawke. He appeared as "Richard Russell" in Robert Schenkkan's award-winning L.B.J. play '' All The Way'', starring Bryan Cranston, at A.R.T. in Cambridge in September 2013. He appeared as " Mickey Goldmill" in the Broadway musical '' Rocky the Musical'' in 2014, then in 2015, he went on to play

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

opposite Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II in Peter Morgan's '' The Audience'' on Broadway. Matthews portrayed Judge Byers in the 2015 film '' Bridge of Spies''. He originated the role "Joe" in the musical '' Waitress'' that opened on Broadway in April 2016. He returned to the role for the 2021 restaging on Broadway. From 2018 to 2020 and for a limited engagement in January 2022, he played Judge Taylor in ''

To Kill a Mockingbird ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' is a 1960 Southern Gothic novel by American author Harper Lee. It became instantly successful after its release; in the United States, it is widely read in high schools and middle schools. ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' ...

''. In 2023, he played the dual role of Merlyn/Pellinore in the fourth Broadway revival of '' Camelot''.Dakin Matthews (Performer)
/ref>

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Matthews, Dakin 1940 births 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male film actors American Roman Catholics American male television actors American theatre directors California State University, East Bay faculty Living people Male actors from Oakland, California American male voice actors