Robert Michael Morris (May 6, 1940 – May 30, 2017) was an American actor. He was known for his co-starring role as Mickey Deane in the

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

spoof '' The Comeback'' and as Mr. Lunt in the short-lived series '' Running Wilde''. He also wrote over 100 plays.

Biography

Born in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgini ...

, Morris obtained a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in English and art from the

University of Dayton The University of Dayton (UD) is a private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the nation and the second-largest private university in Ohio. The uni ...

, as well as a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts a ...

in playwriting from the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U. ...

. He taught both high school and college theater before becoming a professional actor relatively late in life and relocating to

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 ...

. "I moved to New York so I could find out what it was like to be a professional actor because my students were all asking questions and all I had was academic knowledge. I didn't have any real professional knowledge."Robert Michael Morris is “Running Wilde” Again
/ref> Michael Patrick King, one of Morris's students, and

Lisa Kudrow Lisa Valerie Kudrow ( ; born July 30, 1963) is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter. She rose to fame for her role as Phoebe Buffay in the sitcom ''Friends'' (1994–2004), which has since been named one of the greatest television cha ...

wrote his role in ''The Comeback'' with him in mind; King asked him to audition. Morris also had notable guest appearances in such series as '' Will & Grace'', ''

How I Met Your Mother ''How I Met Your Mother'' (often abbreviated as ''HIMYM'') is an American sitcom, created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS. The series, which aired from September 19, 2005 to March 31, 2014, follows the main character, Ted Mosby, and ...

'', '' Better Things'' and '' 2 Broke Girls''. Morris died on May 30, 2017, at age 77.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Robert Michael 1940 births 2017 deaths American male television actors Drama teachers University of Dayton alumni Catholic University of America alumni 21st-century American male actors Male actors from Kentucky American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers