Donald Robert Charles Quine (born September 11, 1938) is an American author, actor, and sports promoter. He is known for his television roles playing Joe Chernak and Stacey Grainger in ''
Peyton Place'' and ''
The Virginian''. Quine also was the president of the
Professional Karate Association (PKA) whose Kick of the 80’s weekly fight series on ESPN ran for close to a decade. He wrote ''
American Karate'', a book on self-defense.
Early life
Quine was born on September 11, 1938, in Fennville, Michigan, to Irene Elizabeth Quine (1916-2008) and Robert Corkill Quine (1895-1943).
After his father, a medical surgeon and major in the
U.S. Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...
, was killed in the crash of a
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models desi ...
bomber near
Gunnison, Colorado
Gunnison is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Gunnison County, Colorado. The city population was 6,560 at the 2020 United States census. The city was named in honor of John W. Gunnison, a ...
, on July 19, 1943, his mother entrusted Quine and his younger sister, Janis, into the care of Alec Dahlke, a carpenter, and his wife Evelyn, a schoolteacher, in
Oxnard, California
Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California, United States. On California's Central Coast (California), Central Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the List of largest California cities by populati ...
. Their daughters, Phyllis and Patty babysat the two siblings, giving Don's mother the opportunity to continue working as a dental assistant while staying at the home of a friend to save up money for a place to live with her two children.
Several years later, Quine's mother remarried, and he and his sister moved to northern California with their stepfather, James Gores, who was a steeplejack.
[A ‘steeple Jack’ is one who climbs tall steeples and chimneys for repairs (British Oxford dict) ] Quine was valedictorian of his sixth grade class at Santa Fe Elementary 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 ...
, a sergeant in the school Traffic Patrol and had two paper routes as a delivery boy for ''The
Oakland Tribune
The ''Oakland Tribune'' was a daily newspaper published in Oakland, California, and a predecessor of the '' East Bay Times''. It was published by the Bay Area News Group (BANG), a subsidiary of MediaNews Group. Founded in 1874, the ''Tribune'' ...
''. He bought the first TV set in his neighborhood, a 10" RCA, and charged kids a nickel a peek to watch
Howdy Doody
''Howdy Doody'' is an American Children's television series, children's television program (with circus and Western (genre), Western frontier themes) that was created and produced by Victor F. Campbell and
Lone Ranger
The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture.
He first appeared in 1933 in a ...
, until his stepfather put an end to the operation and explained to Don that capitalism has its limits.
His teenage years were troubled and Don spent several months at a juvenile detention center in
Martinez, California
Martinez (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Martínez'') is a city in and the county seat of Contra Costa County, California, United States, in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Located on the southern shore of the Carquinez Strai ...
, for burglary. After his mother divorced Gores and married an officer in the Coast Guard, Nathan Vanger, Don moved to
Staten Island
Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...
and graduated from
New Dorp High School in 1957.
Acting career
After a semester of pre-medical studies at the
University of Colorado
The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...
, Don realized he did not want to be a doctor. While at Wagner College back in Staten Island, Don became involved in the Theatre Arts program. This led him to New York City where he studied at the
American Theatre Wing
The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...
with
Stella Adler
Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher.
A member of Yiddish Theater's Adler dynasty, Adler began acting at a young age. She shifted to producing, directing, and teaching, founding the ...
and John Stix, before landing the role of Tom Stark in
Robert Penn Warren
Robert Penn Warren (April 24, 1905 – September 15, 1989) was an American poet, novelist, literary critic and professor at Yale University. He was one of the founders of New Criticism. He was also a charter member of the Fellowship of Southern ...
’s Off-Broadway premiere of
All the King’s Men at the
East 74th Street Theater
The East 74th Street Theater, sometimes spelled as the East 74th Street Theatre, was an Off-Broadway theater at 334 East 74th Street in Manhattan, New York City, United States.
History
Frank Day Tuttle, a theatrical and radio producer and dir ...
in 1959. It was here that he was spotted by an agent and offered work in Hollywood.
Filmography and television work
*''
Torch Song
A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affect ...
'' (1993) as Joe (Movie)
*''
Clayton County Line'' (1978) as deputy
*''
Hawaii Five-O'' (1970) as Don Miles
*''
Medical Center'' (1969) as Tim Martin
*''
Lancer
A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance. Lances were used for mounted warfare in Assyria as early as and subsequently by India, Egypt, China, Persia, Greece, and Rome. The weapon was widely used throughout Eurasia during the M ...
'' (1968) as Corey
*''
Insight
Insight is the understanding of a specific causality, cause and effect within a particular context. The term insight can have several related meanings:
*a piece of information
*the act or result of understanding the inner nature of things or of se ...
'' (1968) as Mike
*''
The Virginian'' (1966–68) as Stacy Granger (55 episodes)
*''
Peyton Place'' (1965–66) as Joe Chernak (16 episodes)
*''
Sullivan's Empire'' (1967) as Kevin Sullivan (Movie)
*''
The F.B.I.'' (1966) as Frank Collins
*''
12 O'Clock High'' (1965–66) as Lt. Thourneau and Sergeant Hanson
*''
The Fugitive'' (1964–66) as Sandy/Vin/Joe
References
External links
*
''New York Times'' Professional Karate Association article*http://www.venturesnest.com
Clayton County Line - IMDb
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quine, Don
1938 births
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male writers
21st-century American novelists
21st-century American screenwriters
American male film actors
American male novelists
American male screenwriters
American male stage actors
American male television actors
American mystery writers
American science fiction writers
Balaban family
Living people
Male actors from Michigan
Novelists from New York City
Screenwriters from New York (state)