# Actors On More Than One Show During A Given Season **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 4, 2013, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497 "2013-12-04T18:17:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/1 "2013-12-04T18:17:57Z")
This season I’ve noticed two actors who appear on more than one show: • **[Allison Janney](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005049/)** is on both _Mom_ (as a co-star) and _Masters of Sex_ (in a smaller, but recently featured role). • **[Michiel Huisman](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0401264/)** is on both _Nashville_ (in a featured role, but one that has been downplayed this season) and _Treme_ (more prominently); he did both shows last season, too. Does HBO film earlier than the network shows, perhaps? Are there other actors who have had recurring roles (not just cameos) on more than one show during the same season? ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/2 "2013-12-04T18:24:08Z")
[Frank Cady](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Cady) not only had a recurring character on three shows at once, he played the same character in all three shows. > [@](#): > > Cady was prolific in television and was the only actor to play a recurring character on three television sitcoms at the same time, The Beverly Hillbillies, Green Acres, and Petticoat Junction, from 1968 to 1969. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/3 "2013-12-04T18:27:12Z")
Richard Anderson, as Oscar Goldman, was for a good long while simultaneously the second-billed castmember on **The Six Million Dollar Man** and **The Bionic Woman**. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/4 "2013-12-04T18:30:53Z")
I just posted another reply to a thread about movie/TV production which is relevant to this. Oftentimes, shooting schedules are set up based on the availability of actors. Especially for a bit character, you may try to schedule all of their scenes in one particular week (or whatever) so that they’re not having to come out to the studio every couple of weeks. So it’s possible for someone to spend a short period of time early in the shooting schedule for series A and then a short period of time late in the shooting schedule for series B, even if both series air at the same time. And, of course, we shouldn’t forget that many shows are shot on the same lots. If all you have to do is change makeup and walk across the parking lot, you could be all over the place. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/5 "2013-12-04T18:35:46Z")
Do we get to count William Daniels on **Knight Rider** during all those years while he was racking up Emmy nominations on **St Elsewhere**? ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/6 "2013-12-04T18:44:58Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > [Frank Cady](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Cady) not only had a recurring character on three shows at once, he played the same character in all three shows. > [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Richard Anderson, as Oscar Goldman, was for a good long while simultaneously the second-billed castmember on **The Six Million Dollar Man** and **The Bionic Woman**. For my purposes, playing the same character doesn’t count; that happens often enough to be unremarkable, IMO. > [@dracoi](#): > > So it’s possible for someone to spend a short period of time early in the shooting schedule for series A and then a short period of time late in the shooting schedule for series B, even if both series air at the same time. It’s fairly unusual, though, right? I watch a decent amount of TV, and don’t recall the last time I noticed one actor playing different recurring characters on different shows in the same season. > [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Do we get to count William Daniels on **Knight Rider** during all those years while he was racking up Emmy nominations on **St Elsewhere**? Even though KITT was a voice role, I think that counts; good one! ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/7 "2013-12-04T18:54:05Z")
Heather Locklear - way back when - did it appearing as Stacey Sheridan on TJ Hooker and as Sammy Jo Carrington on Dynasty (I had to look up the character names). I remember a fuss being made over it at the time. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/8 "2013-12-04T18:55:09Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > For my purposes, playing the same character doesn’t count; that happens often enough to be unremarkable, IMO. Well, as a guest appearance, sure. But as the second-billed castmember? That said, 30 ROCK had solid recurring roles for two of Liz’s boyfriends: Jon Hamm while MAD MEN was making him a star, and Jason Sudeikis while still on SNL. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/9 "2013-12-04T18:55:37Z")
Andrew Rannels recently starred in The New Normal and had a reoccurring role in Girls. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/10 "2013-12-04T19:09:47Z")
It happens pretty regularly, and the frequency is increasing because cable shows tend to have shorter seasons and don’t need to I’m the start of their season in the fall. Alison Brie was - is - on _Mad Men_ and _Community_. John Slattery spent a season on _Desperate Housewives_ after the first season of _Mad Men_. Michael Gladis is on something called _Eagleheart_ in addition to _Mad Men_. Jared Harris did _Fringe_ overlapping with his time on _Mad Men_. Elizabeth Moss of _Mad Men_ did a mini-series called _Top of the Lake._ And Jon Hamm has been in demand all over, with several episodes on 30 Rock , _Childrens Hospital_, and _A Young Doctor’s Notebook_, though not all full-length commitments. None of that includes voice work for cartoons, which several have also done. I chose _Mad Men_ as an example to search through, but I’d be surprised if most cable shows don’t show the same pattern. A TV historian could find examples from the beginning on. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/11 "2013-12-04T19:12:58Z")
In 2004, [Stephen Culp](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Culp) appeared in recurring roles on _JAG_, _The West Wing_, _Star Trek: Enterprise_ and _ER_. According to the Wikipedia article, he was the first actor to appear in 4 shows simultaneously. I remember this very well (although I had to do some research to remember his name), because I regularly watched three of the four shows at the time. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/12 "2013-12-04T19:18:06Z")
Margo Martindale is playing Mrs. Miller on The Millers and the Russian spy master “granny” on The Americans and is pretty much stealing every scene she is in while doing both. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/13 "2013-12-04T19:18:35Z")
Scott Foley has been good at this. This year he has been a regular on _Scandal_ and starred in a (justifiably) short lived series _The Goodwin Games_. (Which has recently popped back up to fill slots of canceled shows.) Before that, he appeared on the last episode of season 4 of _True Blood_ and then more regularly in season 5. In-between he was in 15 episodes of _Grey’s Anatomy_. Not sure what constitutes “a” season here. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/14 "2013-12-04T19:18:42Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > • **[Allison Janney](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005049/)** is on both _Mom_ (as a co-star) and _Masters of Sex_ (in a smaller, but recently featured role). Beau Bridges is also on _Masters of Sex_ while appearing on _The Millers_. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that both _The Millers_ and _Mom_ are sitcoms on CBS while _Masters of Sex_ is a drama on Showtime, as Showtime is owned by CBS Corp. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/15 "2013-12-04T19:26:26Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > It’s fairly unusual, though, right? I watch a decent amount of TV, and don’t recall the last time I noticed one actor playing different recurring characters on different shows in the same season. > > Even though KITT was a voice role, I think that counts; good one! If voice roles count, what about Seth MacFarlane on _Family Guy_ and _American Dad_ (and is he on _The Cleveland Show_ too?) ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/16 "2013-12-04T19:28:04Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Beau Bridges is also on _Masters of Sex_ while appearing on _The Millers_. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that both _The Millers_ and _Mom_ are sitcoms on CBS while _Masters of Sex_ is a drama on Showtime, as Showtime is owned by CBS Corp. I’m sure it’s a lot easier for an actor to get scheduling concessions when the shows are for the same network. It happens for movies as well, some actors who do both have scheduling details written into their contracts to allow them the time to do location shoots when necessary. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/17 "2013-12-04T19:34:16Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > It’s fairly unusual, though, right? I watch a decent amount of TV, and don’t recall the last time I noticed one actor playing different recurring characters on different shows in the same season. It’s pretty unusual for people you’d actually notice, but if you look at IMDB for a lot of small-time actors, you’ll see that they do an episode here and three episodes there. They might play “Waitress #3” and “Woman in Line at the Supermarket” but they’re there. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/18 "2013-12-04T19:34:18Z")
If we’re counting voice roles, Katey Sagal was on _Futurama_ while also appearing on camera in _8 Simple Rules_ (2002-2005) and _Sons Of Anarchy_ (2008-2013). ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/19 "2013-12-04T19:41:13Z")
Darby Stanchfield in 2007: Jericho - 15 episodes Bones - 1 episode General Hospital - 10 episodes Cold Case - 1 episode Exes & Ohs - 3 episodes Mad Men - 5 episodes ---
**Author:** ![bob\_bolger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@bob\_bolger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_bolger)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497/20 "2013-12-04T19:41:54Z")
From 1999-2003 there were at least 2 actors from “OZ” that were also featured in “Law and Order: SVU” each year. Christopher Meloni played Chris Keller on “OZ” and Elliot Stabler on “Law & Order: SVU” From 99-2003. Dean Winters played Ryan O’Reilly on “OZ” and Detective Brian Cassidy on “Law & Order: SVU” from 99-2000. J.K. Simmons played Vern Schillinger on “OZ” and Dr. Emil Skoda on “Law & Order” and “Law & Order SVU” in 2000. B.D. Wong played Father Ray Mukada on “OZ” and Dr. George Huang on “Law & Order: SVU” from 2001-2003. Further, both J.K. Simmons and Dean Winters also went on to shill for rival insurance companies. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-on-more-than-one-show-during-a-given-season/675497.md?page=2)