Andrew Robinson (actor)

Andrew Jordt Robinson (born February 14, 1942) is an American actor and the former director of the Master of Fine Arts acting program at the University of Southern California.[1] Originally a stage actor, he works predominantly in supporting roles on television and in low-budget films. He is known for his portrayals of the serial killer Scorpio in the crime film Dirty Harry (1971), Larry Cotton in the horror film Hellraiser (1987), and Elim Garak in the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993–1999). He and his wife Irene have a daughter, actress Rachel Robinson, who appeared in Deep Space Nine episode "The Visitor".

Andrew Robinson
Andrew Robinson at an ExpoTrek Convention in Hannover, Germany, 2000
Born
Andrew Jordt Robinson

(1942-02-14) February 14, 1942
New York City, U.S.
Other namesAndy Robinson
OccupationActor
Former Director of the Master of Fine Arts Acting program at the University of Southern California
Years active1969–present
Spouse(s)
Irene Robinson
(
m. 1970)
Children1

Early life

Robinson was born in New York City.[2] His middle name, Jordt, was given to him to honor his grandfather, though he did not begin using it in his professional credits until the 1996 Deep Space Nine episode, "Body Parts".[3] His father was a soldier in World War II and was killed when Robinson was three years old. After his father's death, he and his mother moved to Hartford, Connecticut, where he was raised with her family. In his later childhood, Robinson had become a juvenile delinquent and was eventually sent to St. Andrew's School, a boarding school in Rhode Island.[2]

After graduating from high school, Robinson attended the University of New Hampshire. After he picketed the school's ROTC program his degree was withheld by the university, so he transferred to The New School for Social Research in New York City and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English. He originally intended to become a journalist but went into acting after earning a Fulbright Scholarship. After graduating, he went to the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art on the scholarship.[4]

Robinson began acting in high school and college theatre. While attending the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), he studied Shakespeare and voice training.

Career

Robinson's first professional roles were as a stage actor and playwright in New York. His first role in New York was in the play MacBird!. He went on to appear in productions in North America and Europe, including Woyzeck, Futz, Werner Liepolt's "The Young Master Dante" and The Cannibals.[2] In 1969, he had his first television role with a guest part on N.Y.P.D. at the age of 26. In 1971, he began acting in feature films.

Dirty Harry

Robinson's first feature film role was in 1971's Dirty Harry. Don Siegel, the film's director, and Clint Eastwood picked Robinson for the role after seeing him in a production of Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Idiot.[5] Robinson was cast as the Scorpio Killer, the antagonist of the film. The Scorpio Killer was largely based on the contemporary real life Zodiac Killer, and Robinson integrated many known aspects of that serial killer's personality into his acting, such as a disturbed sense of humour and a sadistic inclination to taunt his pursuers. In the film, his character murders a young woman, a 10-year old boy, a teenage girl and a police officer and takes a school bus full of young children hostage. His portrayal was so convincing that he received death threats after the film's release. Director Don Siegel noted that he cast Robinson because he had the face of "a choir boy."[5]

Critical reactions to Robinson were generally positive. Box Office Magazine wrote: "Andy Robinson is the maniacal Scorpio ... a good blending of cunning and savagery."[6] His role as Scorpio gave him widespread exposure, but Robinson also found himself typecast as "psycho" characters. He claimed the role severely limited his casting options, as film producers were reluctant to cast him in any "good guy" roles.[7] Some of his notable "psycho" roles include a demented and ill-fated military barber in Child's Play 3 (1991) and the character Frank Cotton (in the skin of Larry Cotton, Robinson's actual character) in the horror film Hellraiser (1987), in which Robinson had his first lead role in a feature film.[8]

Film and television, 1971–1992

Robinson starred in Charley Varrick, a 1973 film that starred Walter Matthau and was directed by Don Siegel. Robinson played Frank Ryan on the soap opera Ryan's Hope from 1976–78, for which he received a Daytime Emmy nomination. Robinson has had many one-time and recurring roles on a wide variety of television shows. His filmography includes guest roles on Bonanza, Marcus Welby, M.D., Kung Fu, Ironside, S.W.A.T., The Streets of San Francisco, Kojak, The Incredible Hulk, CHiPs, Mrs. Columbo, Barnaby Jones, Vega$, Falcon Crest, The Greatest American Hero, The Dukes of Hazzard, Hart to Hart, The A-Team, Matt Houston, Moonlighting, L.A. Law, Matlock, Law & Order, Walker, Texas Ranger, Murder, She Wrote, The X-Files, The Practice, and Without a Trace.[8]

He met his wife Irene after wrapping a production of Springvoices and the two married in 1970. He has two stepsons from his wife's previous marriage and one daughter named Rachel, who became an actress as well.[9]

In 1975 he co-starred as the sleazy, ill-fated chauffeur in the detective drama The Drowning Pool, starring Paul Newman.

In 1978 Robinson left acting professionally for five years and concentrated on raising his family in the small mountain community of Idyllwild, California, located about 150 miles (240 km) from Los Angeles. During that time he taught community theatre for middle and high school students and also worked as a carpenter to bring in a regular salary. He returned to acting professionally in the mid-1980s.[2]

In 1986, he played President John F. Kennedy in an episode of the 1980s revival of The Twilight Zone, "Profile in Silver".[8] In 1988 he portrayed Liberace in a television biopic. Robinson had described it as one of his favorite roles and that "The most fun was wearing his furs and jewelry and singing 'I'll be Seeing You.'"[10] The New York Times reviewer noted that "Robinson does rather well in the leading role."[11] He returned to the stage in 1993 with a Broadway production of Frank Gilroy's Any Given Day, but the play closed after only six weeks.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

In 1993, Robinson was cast in his first regular television role since Ryan's Hope in 1978. He played Elim Garak on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, a Cardassian tailor, and a former operative of the Obsidian Order. The character was intended to be an enigmatic darkly comedic foil for the character of Julian Bashir (played by Alexander Siddig), and the two were often paired together onscreen. Prior to being cast in the role, Robinson knew little of the Star Trek franchise and had never seen an episode of any of the television series.[12]

Robinson was offered the role of Garak after he originally auditioned for the role of Odo, which eventually went to René Auberjonois. He almost did not accept the role but was pressured into accepting for financial reasons.[13]

Other works

After working on Deep Space Nine for several years, Robinson began a career in television directing after directing the 1996 episode "Looking for par'Mach in All the Wrong Places." He went on to direct two episodes of Star Trek: Voyager and seven episodes of the courtroom drama Judging Amy, in which his real-life daughter, Rachel Robinson, was appearing.

In 2000, he wrote the novel A Stitch in Time, based on his character on Deep Space Nine. Robinson has stated that one of the reasons he wrote the novel was to get "total closure" of the character.[13] He starred opposite DS9 costar Michael Dorn on an episode of Martial Law.[8]

In 1993, Robinson was a founding member of The Matrix Theatre Company in Los Angeles, California.[14][15]

Filmography

Film
YearFilmRoleNotes
1971Dirty HarryThe Scorpio Killer(as Andy Robinson)
1973Charley VarrickHarman Sullivan
1975The Drowning PoolPat Reavis
A Woman for All MenSteve McCoy
Mackintosh and T.J.Coley
1985MaskDr. Vinton
1986CobraDetective Monte
1987HellraiserLarry Cotton / Frank Cotton
The Verne Miller StoryPretty Boy Floyd
1988Shoot to KillHarvey
1990Fatal CharmSheriff Harry Childs
1991Child's Play 3Sgt. Botnick
Prime TargetCommissioner
1992Trancers IIICol. Daddy Muthuh
1994Pumpkinhead II: Blood WingsSean Braddock
There Goes My BabyFrank
The Puppet MastersHawthorne
1998Running WomanCaptain Don Gibbs
Archibald the Rainbow PainterThe Super Super
2003The Making of Daniel BooneTimothy Flint
2004Homeland SecuritySenator
2005A Question of LoyaltyDr. Albert KrentzShorty

Television
YearShowRoleNotes
1972BonanzaJohn HarperSeason 14 Episode 1: "Forever" (as Andy Robinson)
1972The RookiesLee BordenSeason 1 Episode 10: "To Taste of Terror" (as Andy Robinson)
1974Marcus Welby, M.D.Chris BakewellSeason 5 Episode 17: "Each Day a Miracle"
1974IronsideDavid CutterSeason 7 Episode 21: "Come Eleven, Come Twelve"
1974The Family KovackButch KovackTV movie
1975KojakLeonSeason 2 Episode 24: "I Want To Report A Dream"
1975The Streets of San FranciscoArchie KimbroSeason 4 Episode 13: "Spooks For Sale"
1976S.W.A.T.Edward StillmanSeason 2 Episode 22: "Any Second Now"
1976Once an EagleReb RayburneTV miniseries
1976–1978Ryan's HopeFrank Ryan #2Daytime Emmy nomination
1976–1980Barnaby Jones(Various)Recurring
1977The Streets of San FranciscoRon MaguireSeason 5 Episode 13: "The Cannibals"
1978The Incredible HulkDr. Stan RhodesSeason 1 Episode 10: "Life and Death"
1978The Eddie Capra MysteriesGreg ChandlerSeason 1 Episode 4: "Murder on the Flip Side"
1979From Here to EternitySergeant Maylon StarkTV miniseries
1980Vega$Derek RazzioRecurring
1980The Dukes of HazzardBilly Joe Billings
1980 & 1983Hart to HartMikeSeason 2 Episode 3 & Season 4 Episode 12
1983The A-TeamJacksonSeason 1 Episode 13: "The Beast from the Belly of a Boeing"
1985Not My KidDoctor RoyceTV movie
1985The Atlanta Child MurdersJack MallardTelevision miniseries
1986The New Twilight ZoneJohn F. KennedyEpisode #20-1 "Profile in Silver"
1987The New Twilight ZoneMr. WilliamsEpisode #33-3 "Private Channel"
1988LiberaceLiberaceMade-for-television film
1989Moonlighting (TV series)Leslie HunzigerSeason 5 Episode 4 "Plastic Fantastic Lovers"
1990MatlockStanley Hayden"The Broker"
1991Rock HudsonHenry WillsonMade-for-television film
1991MatlockFrank HayesSeason 6 Episode 9 "The Defense"
1992Law & OrderPhillip MariiettaSeason 3 Episode 10 "Consultation"
1993Murder, She WroteAmbrosseSeason 10 Episode 205 "A Killing in Cork"
1993Walker, Texas RangerCongressman Leo CabeSeason 1 Episode 3 "A Shadow in the Night"[16]
1993–1999Star Trek: Deep Space NineGarakRecurring
1994M.A.N.T.I.S.Solomon BoxRecurring
1994WingsMichael FosterSeason 7, Episode 4 "The Person Formerly Known as Lowell Mather"
1994Murder, She WroteJames HarrisSeason 11 Episode 230 "An Egg to Die For"
1999, 2004JAGAdmiral Thomas KlyRecurring
1997–1998Star Trek: Voyager Directed two episodes
1999The X-FilesDr. Ian DetweilerSeason 6, Episode 16 "Alpha"
1999–2005Judging AmyDaniel McGillDirected seven episodes
2002Presidio MedJesseRecurring
2004Without a TraceCarl MonroeSeason 3, Episode 4 "Upstairs Downstairs"
2016The Metropolitan Opera HD LiveThree MasksEpisode: "Puccini: Turandot "
gollark: Best RNG.
gollark: ```c#include <stdio.h>int main() { int i; printf("%d", i);}```
gollark: Well, every action movie needs the looming threat of orbital lasers.
gollark: Anyway, so what are you doing with this whole babel thing exæ¢tly?
gollark: I mean, books must contain traces of silicon, no?

References
  1. Andrew J. Robinson, USC School of Theater, accessed February 18, 2018.
  2. Reeves, Vicki (April 1999). "Biography of Andy Robinson". plain-and-simple.net. Archived from the original on 2004-02-14. Retrieved from Wayback Machine, July 29, 2008.
  3. Erdmann, Terry J. and Block, Paula M. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion. Pocket Books. 2000; p. 352
  4. "Andrew J. Robinson biography". Archived from the original on 2006-05-28. Retrieved 2006-02-09.. University of Southern California faculty page. Retrieved February 8, 2006.
  5. Dirty Harry DVD bonus featurette.
  6. "Dirty Harry review". Archived from the original on 2000-06-03. Retrieved 2010-08-04.. Box Office Magazine. December 20, 1971. Retrieved February 8, 2006.
  7. "First Person: Andrew Robinson". Archived from the original on 2008-05-30. Retrieved 2013-04-06.. StarTrek.com; retrieved February 8, 2006.
  8. Andrew Robinson on IMDb. Retrieved 2008-07-31.
  9. Andrew J. Robinson: Portrays Garak. StarTrek.com; retrieved February 8, 2006.
  10. "Andrew Robinson chat transcript". Archived from the original on 2008-05-28. Retrieved 2006-02-09.. StarTrek.com. May 30, 2002; retrieved February 8, 2006.
  11. Review of Andy Robinson as Liberace, The New York Times; retrieved February 28, 2006.
  12. "Andrew Robinson Interview". Archived from the original on 2006-04-04. Retrieved 2006-02-09.. SciFi Online; retrieved February 8, 2006.
  13. Sastrowardoyo, Hartriono B. (2001-10-26). "Andrew J. Robinson (Garak, DS9)". thegreatlink.org(website closed). Archived from the original on 2004-09-19.
  14. Arkatov, Janice (January 21, 1996). "THEATER : He Knows How to Handle Evil : Andrew J. Robinson has gone from 'Dirty Harry' villain to directing a revival of Pinter's mean-spirited 'The Homecoming.'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2015-10-28.
  15. Buckley, Michael (July 8, 1996). "Double Casting Coups". TheaterWeek reprint at The Matrix Theatre Company. Retrieved 2015-10-28.
  16. "A Shadow in the Night" on IMDb

Further reading
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