# Last Remaining Cast Members **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [January 1, 2021, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464 "2021-01-01T20:16:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/81 "2021-01-12T15:06:30Z")
Lydia Reed (Hassie) is the last remaining regular from _The Real McCoys._ ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/82 "2021-01-12T17:12:57Z")
As is Renee Lippin, who played Michelle, another group therapy patient, and was actually in more episodes than Oliver Clark or Pat Finley. ---
**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:** [January 12, 2021, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/83 "2021-01-12T17:53:57Z")
I see that Larry Gelman, who played Dr Bernie Tupperman, is also still alive. And was working as recently as 2018. So is Howard Platt, who played Dr Phil Newman. I guess the secret to a long life was playing a doctor on that show. ---
**Author:** ![TiberiusNeroClaudius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f04885/32.png) [@TiberiusNeroClaudius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TiberiusNeroClaudius)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2021, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/84 "2021-01-12T23:10:23Z")
Darryl Hickman (born 1931) is the last one left alive from 1940s “The Grapes of Wrath”. ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2021, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/85 "2021-01-13T00:25:00Z")
Ron Glass died in 2016, which based on your list just leave Linden and Gail from _Barney Miller_ ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/86 "2021-01-14T20:29:59Z")
It looks like Sidney Poitier is the only remaining cast member of The Blackboard Jungle. ---
**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:** [January 14, 2021, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/87 "2021-01-14T20:35:42Z")
> [@Author\_Balk](#): > > It looks like Sidney Poitier is the only remaining cast member of The Blackboard Jungle Jamie Farr is still alive. _The Blackboard Jungle_ was one of his first roles and he was still going by his birth name, Jameel Farah. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/88 "2021-01-14T20:38:46Z")
I think Earl Holliman is the last remaining actor (or at least major actor) from **Forbidden Planet** > **[Earl Holliman - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0391096/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cl_t7)** > > Earl Holliman. Actor: Forbidden Planet. Ruggedly handsome, slack-jawed actor Earl Holliman was born on September 11, 1928, in northeastern Louisiana amid meager surroundings. His father, a farmer named William Frost, died several months before Earl's... ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/89 "2021-01-14T20:51:06Z")
Of the six actors who appeared in 30+ episodes of _Sanford and Son_ (1972-77), only Demond Wilson (age 74) is still alive. It doesn’t help that most of the regulars were in their 50s or older when the show was in production. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats2)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/90 "2021-01-14T22:52:44Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Of the six actors who appeared in 30+ episodes of _Sanford and Son_ (1972-77), only Demond Wilson (age 74) is still alive. It doesn’t help that most of the regulars were in their 50s or older when the show was in production. Smitty and Hoppy are still around. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2021, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/91 "2021-01-14T23:02:57Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](#): > > Smitty and Hoppy are still around. Indeed they are, but they didn’t make my cutoff of 30+ episodes out of the series total of 135 (and, in fact, other than Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson, no other actor appeared in more than 48 episodes). [IMDB shows](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068128/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast) that Smitty (Hal Williams) and Hoppy (Howard Platt) only appeared in 20 episodes. ---
**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:** [January 14, 2021, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/92 "2021-01-14T23:12:00Z")
Gabriel Melgar is the only surviving cast member from _Chico and the Man_. Which is not surprising; he was twelve years old when he joined the show in its fourth (and final) season. The rest of the cast were all adults. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2021, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/93 "2021-01-15T01:11:30Z")
Mark Russell, at age 87, is the last surviving cast member from Kojak. The only other actors with more than 10 credits are: - Telly Savalas - Dan Frazer - Kevin Dobson (just passed away last September) - George Savalas - Roger Robinson Borah Silver was in 10 episodes and appears to be still alive. ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2021, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/94 "2021-01-15T12:20:13Z")
Bruce Kirby is the only living person on Columbo who has been on more than six episodes. But, only four people have been on more than six. ---
**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:** [January 16, 2021, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/95 "2021-01-16T02:02:01Z")
> [@Author\_Balk](#): > > Bruce Kirby is the only living person on Columbo who has been on more than six episodes. I’ll be annoyed at him if he dies this year as I picked him as an alternate on my Death Pool list. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2021, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/96 "2021-01-16T20:36:43Z")
I tried checking cast members of Rawhide and Clint Eastwood is the only original regular still alive. ---
**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:** [January 16, 2021, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/97 "2021-01-16T21:48:52Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > > [@River\_Hippie](#): > > > > Heh…I recently saw tontine used at another board and had to look it up. > > > > (tips hat) > > It was a plot device in one M \* A \* S \* H episode: > > [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ize5lZoIlBk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ize5lZoIlBk) I saw that episode when it aired and one line has stuck with me ever since. Harry Morgan was an underrated actor. To Ryan, who died in W.W.I, the war to end all wars. To Gianelli, who died in the war after that. ---
**Author:** ![Kadmos1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/13edae/32.png) [@Kadmos1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kadmos1)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2021, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/98 "2021-01-16T22:06:30Z")
William Thomas Gray, who turned 83 on Jan. 13, is the last remaining cast member of the original movie version of “The Day the Earth Stood Still”. That film turns 70 on Sep. 18. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/99 "2021-01-17T05:29:50Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I saw that episode when it aired and one line has stuck with me ever since. Harry Morgan was an underrated actor. > > To Ryan, who died in W.W.I, > the war to end all wars. To Gianelli, who died > in the war after that. Yes, that scene has stayed with me all these years. Morgan was superb. ---
**Author:** ![TCMF-2L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tcmf-2l/32/16553_2.png) [@TCMF-2L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TCMF-2L)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2021, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464/100 "2021-01-17T14:06:56Z")
The UK sitcom **Dads Army** , set during WW2, began broadcasting in 1968 and continued until 1977 and had characters (and the actors portraying them) who were already elderly. **Arnold Ridley** who portrayed **Private Godfrey** was born in 1896 and both the actor and the character served in WW1. Although always an ensemble cast, only six actors appeared in all 80 episodes. Of those only one survives. That is, appropriately, the youngest. Actor **Ian Lavender** who portrayed **Private “Stupid Boy” Pike** and he was born in 1946 so is now 74 years old. The only other surviving actor, even when you look at the other recurring character roles, is **Frank Williams** who portrayed **Reverend Farthing** in 40 episodes. He was born in 1931 making him 89 now. One of the main cast died during the production run. But rather than one of the older actors it was the comparatively young **James Beck** who portrayed the ‘Spiv’ **Private Walker**. Born 1929 he died aged 44 in 1973 having appeared in the first 60 episodes. TCMF-2L [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/last-remaining-cast-members/929464.md?page=6)