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James Gregory

1911 - 2002 (age 90) • Acting

James Gregory (December 23, 1911 – September 16, 2002) was an American actor. His best-known roles include Schaffer in Al Capone (1959), the McCarthy-like Sen. John Iselin in The Manchurian Candidate (1962), General Ursus in Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970), and Inspector Frank Luger in the television sitcom Barney Miller (1975–1982). Gregory grew up in New Rochelle, NY. In high school, he was elected president of the Drama Club. He went to work on Wall Street as a runner shortly after the 1929 crash. Gregory performed in drama groups and achieved pro status as a summer stock player in 1935. He performed in plays throughout New York, New Jersey and Maryland. His troupe of performers toured small towns in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, towing a trailer full of theatre props; they performed in school gyms, churches and YMCAs, earning $25 for a week of one-night stands. In 1939, Gregory made his Broadway debut in a production of "Key Largo". Over the next 16 years, he performed in approximately 25 Broadway productions. His career was interrupted by WWII; he served for 3 years in the Navy and Marine Corps. His tour of duty took him to the Pacific where he spent 83 days on Okinawa. He married Anne Miltner in 1944; they were married for 58 years (until his death). During his Broadway career, Gregory earned consistently favorable reviews by drama critics from the New York Press, Boston Globe, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Hollywood Reporter and Variety. Gregory did a few TV spots as early as 1951, and in 1955 he made the transition from the Broadway stage to live television. The following year, after a couple of earlier uncredited movie appearances, he would also begin his movie career in earnest. He worked steadily throughout the early years of TV, working for major live television productions from New York to Hollywood. In 1959, Gregory made television history by costarring in the pilot episode of the The Twilight Zone (1959); the episode "Where Is Everybody?" concerning the relevant topic of the USA winning the space race by sending a manned spaceship to the moon sold the series. Gregory would play Dean Martin's exasperated boss MacDonald in the first 3 of the Matt Helm movies: The Silencers (1966), Murderers' Row (1966) and The Ambushers (1967). One of his final roles, perhaps his most acclaimed, was as Inspector Frank Luger for the entire run of Barney Miller (1975 - 1982). As the Inspector, he would be lovable, irritating, ingratiating, exasperating, and humorous, sometimes all at the same time. Gregory retired from acting in 1983, with over 100 TV and movie credits.

Known For

Star Trek

80%

Dr. Tristan Adams

1966

The Twilight Zone

85%

Air Force General / Confederate Sergeant

1959

Columbo

81%

David Buckner

1971

The Manchurian Candidate

75%

Sen. John Yerkes Iselin

1962

M*A*S*H

79%

General Kelly

1972

Bonanza

75%

Sgt. Mike Russell / Mulvaney / Whitney Parker

1959

Mission: Impossible

76%

Unknown

1966

The Sons of Katie Elder

70%

Morgan Hastings

1965

Wait Till Your Mother Gets Home

56%

Dan Peters

1983

The Flight of Dragons

68%

Bryagh / Smrgol (voice)

1982

Goldie and the Boxer Go to Hollywood

80%

Leo Hackett

1981

Gridlock

57%

Gen. Caribou Caruthers

1980

The Comeback Kid

60%

Scotty

1980

Detective School

60%

Unknown

1979

The Main Event

53%

Gough

1979

Flying High

63%

Unknown

1978

The Love Boat

63%

Milton Benson

1977

Off the Wall

70%

Producer

1977

Quincy, M.E.

75%

Tony Gordon /

1976

Francis Gary Powers: The True Story of the U-2 Spy Incident

70%

James Donovan

1976

All's Fair

77%

Unknown

1976

The Strongest Man in the World

62%

Chief Blair

1975

Barney Miller

73%

Inspector Frank Luger / Frank Luger

1975

The Abduction of Saint Anne

80%

Pete Haggerty

1975

Kolchak: The Night Stalker

77%

Captain Quill

1974

Miracle on 34th Street

70%

District Attorney

1973

Police Story

70%

Unknown

1973

The Weekend Nun

70%

Sid Richardson

1972

The Streets of San Francisco

71%

Unknown

1972

M*A*S*H

79%

General Kelly

1972

Search

71%

Unknown

1972

The Paul Lynde Show

53%

Unknown

1972

Temperatures Rising

75%

James Jerome

1972

A Very Missing Person

78%

Oscar Piper

1972

Emergency!

80%

Unknown

1972

Sanford and Son

75%

Unknown

1972

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