Gary Morgan (born January 2, 1950) is an American actor and

stunt man A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...

Early life

Morgan was born Gary Panansky to

vaudevillian Vaudeville (; ) is a theatre, theatrical genre of variety show, variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comic ...

parents, who adopted the professional surname "Morgan". As a child, he acted in his parents' acts on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

and was an

acrobat Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro d ...

as well.

Career

He had roles on television series, including '' Naked City'', ''

The Partridge Family ''The Partridge Family'' is an American musical sitcom created by Bernard Slade, which was broadcast in the United States from September 1970 to March 1974 on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. After the final first-run telecast on ABC in March ...

'', ''

Adam-12 ''Adam-12'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created by Robert A. Cinader and Jack Webb and produced by Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. The series follows Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers Pe ...

'', and ''

Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marsha ...

'', as well in several

TV movies 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 terrest ...

, including '' The California Kid'' (1974) and ''

Pinocchio Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel, ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a poor man named Geppetto in a Tuscan vil ...

'' (1976) starring

Sandy Duncan Sandra Kay Duncan (born February 20, 1946) is an American actress, comedian, dancer and singer. She is known for her performances in the Broadway revival of ''Peter Pan'', the sitcom '' The Hogan Family'', and the Disney films '' The Million D ...

. He also appeared as the son in the original

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

for '' Head of the Family'' (an unsold show that was ultimately reworked to become ''

The Dick Van Dyke Show ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961, to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Productions"Calv ...

''). Feature films include '' The Night God Screamed'' (1971), '' Fuzz'' (1972), ''

Summer School Teachers ''Summer School Teachers'' is a 1974 feature film directed and written by Barbara Peeters and starring Candice Rialson. It is about three female friends who all teach at a school over the summer. The film was an unofficial follow up to '' The S ...

'' (1974), ''

Logan's Run ''Logan's Run'' is a science fiction novel by American writers William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson. Published in 1967, the novel depicts a dystopic Malthusian future society in which both population and the consumption of resources ...

'' (1976), '' Pete's Dragon'' (1977), '' Matilda'' (1978, title role), '' The North Avenue Irregulars'' (1979), '' The Final Countdown'' (1980), ''

The Devil and Max Devlin ''The Devil and Max Devlin'' is a 1981 American fantasy–comedy film produced by Walt Disney Productions, directed by Steven Hilliard Stern and starring Elliott Gould, Bill Cosby and Susan Anspach. The film was considered to be controversial ...

'' (1981) and '' Outrageous Fortune'' (1987). He has done extensive

stunt work A stunt is an unusual, difficult, dramatic physical feat that may require a special skill, performed for artistic purposes usually for a public audience, as on television or in theaters or cinema. Stunts are a feature of many action films. Befo ...

, including appearances in ''

Cujo ''Cujo'' () is a 1981 horror novel by American writer Stephen King about a rabid Saint Bernard. The novel won the British Fantasy Award in 1982 and was made into a film in 1983. Cujo's name was based on the alias of Willie Wolfe, one of th ...

'' (1983), ''

Batman Forever ''Batman Forever'' is a 1995 American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Batman by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. It is the third installment of the ''Batman'' film series, acting as a standalone sequel to ''Batman Returns''. Directe ...

'' (1995) and ''

The Muppets The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an surreal humor, absurdist, slapstick, burlesque, and self-referential humor, self-referential style of Musical theatre, musical Variety show, variety-sketch comedy. Cre ...

'' (2011). Due to his height (5' 5"), he changed to general stunt work. His daughter is contortionist Bonnie Morgan.Squires, John (September 2, 2016)
"Meet the Contortionist Bringing Samara Back to Life in ‘Rings’"
''

Bloody Disgusting Bloody Disgusting is an American independent multi-media company, which began as a horror genre-focused news website specializing in information services that covered various horror media. The company expanded into other media including podcast ...

''. Retrieved March 25, 2022.

References

External links

* * *
Facebook page (official)
1950 births Living people 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors American stunt performers Male actors from New Jersey {{US-screen-actor-1950s-stub