# One Actor, Multiple Administrations **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 14, 2011, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505 "2011-06-14T23:47:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/1 "2011-06-14T23:47:57Z")
Which actor has made recurring appearances as a staff member or leader of different cinematic or television White Houses (be it fictional or historical)? Please keep it to the executive branch (no Congressional roles) and active administrations (no failed campaigns or retired heads-of-state) Examples: Martin Sheen: POTUS in _The West Wing_, Chief of Staff in _The American President_ Dennis Haysbert: POTUS in _24_, Secret Service agent in _Absolute Power_ What others can you think of? ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2011, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/2 "2011-06-14T23:53:29Z")
Edward Herrmann (FDR) and William Daniels (both Adams’) have made careers out of playing the same president (s) over and over. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/3 "2011-06-15T00:28:36Z")
Michael Douglas was the President in _American President_ and the Drug Czar in _Traffic_. ---
**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:** [June 15, 2011, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/4 "2011-06-15T00:34:07Z")
Frank Langella played the White House chief of staff in Dave, and Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/5 "2011-06-15T00:44:50Z")
> [@ArchiveGuy](#): > > Which actor has made recurring appearances as a staff member or leader of different cinematic or television White Houses (be it fictional or historical)? Please keep it to the executive branch (no Congressional roles) and active administrations (no failed campaigns or retired heads-of-state) > > Examples: > > Martin Sheen: POTUS in _The West Wing_, Chief of Staff in _The American President_ > Dennis Haysbert: POTUS in _24_, Secret Service agent in _Absolute Power_ > > What others can you think of? Martin Sheen was also _envisioned_ as President in “The Dead Zone”. ---
**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/6 "2011-06-15T01:24:04Z")
> [@Andy\_L](#): > > Martin Sheen was also _envisioned_ as President in “The Dead Zone”. _And_ he played attorney general Robert Kennedy in _The Missiles of October_. ---
**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:** [June 15, 2011, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/7 "2011-06-15T01:35:12Z")
E. G. Marshall deserves some sort of award for this. His roles include: George Washington U. S. Grant Grover Cleveland Harry Truman Dwight Eisenhower John Foster Dulles (Eisenhower’s Sec. of State) John Mitchell (Nixon’s Attorney General) Plus the President in Superman II. Raymond Massey made a career of playing Lincoln over and over again. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/8 "2011-11-04T19:11:53Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > Michael Douglas was the President in _American President_ and the Drug Czar in _Traffic_. And a veteran Secret Service agent on the White House Detail in _The Sentinel_. Dennis Quaid played a George W. Bush-like President in _American Dreamz_, Bill Clinton himself in _The Special Relationship_ (and did pretty well at it), and a Secret Service agent on the White House Detail in _Vantage Point_. Harrison Ford played CIA analyst Jack Ryan in several movies, and the President in _Air Force One_. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/9 "2011-11-04T20:00:32Z")
Penny Johnson Jerald played President David Palmer’s (ex) wife on 24, and also played Condoleeza Rice in a couple of TV movies about 9/11. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/10 "2011-11-04T20:02:38Z")
Henry Fonda played “the President” (yes, he’s just “the President” in the credits) in Sean Connery’s godawful disaster movie _ **Meteor** _ and in the Cold War drama _ **Fail-Safe.** _ He was also a future President in _ **Young Mr. Lincoln.** _ And he was NOMINATED to be Secretary of State in Advise & Consent (but his nomination is withdrawn after the President dies, and the Vice President decides he wants someone else for the job). ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/11 "2011-11-04T20:05:11Z")
> [@Andy\_L](#): > > Martin Sheen was also _envisioned_ as President in “The Dead Zone”. > [@postcards](#): > > _And_ he played attorney general Robert Kennedy in _The Missiles of October_. Not to mention JFK himself in [Kennedy](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_(TV_miniseries)). ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/12 "2011-11-04T20:11:46Z")
Anthony Hopkins played Richard Nixon in _ **Nixon** _, and former President John Quincy Adams in _ **Amistad.** _ ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/13 "2011-11-04T20:13:43Z")
Dewey Finn reminded me… Kevin Kline was President Ulysses S. Grant in _ **The Wild Wild West** _. He also played both the comatose real President AND a lookalike filling in for him, in the comedy _ **Dave.** _ ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/14 "2011-11-04T20:21:04Z")
Does this count? Lloyd Bridges was President “Tug” Benson in _ **Hot Shots! Part Deux.** _ He was also Confederate President Jefferson Davis in the TV miniseries _ **North and South.** _ ---
**Author:** ![Crown\_Prince\_of\_Irony](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ed655f/32.png) [@Crown\_Prince\_of\_Irony](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crown_Prince_of_Irony)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/15 "2011-11-04T20:21:31Z")
[Glenn Morshower](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenn_Morshower) has played Aaron Pierce, a Secret Service agent, on the first 5 seasons of 24, and I believe was reinstated in Season 7, so - what… 4 different administrations? Plus, he’s played countless other cop/army/politician types, including as another Secret Service agent in _Air Force One_, and I believe a recurring role on _The West Wing_. If you include all the high-ranking military officials he’s played (which technically report up to the executive branch) I’d say he has a lock on the most fictional administrations served. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/16 "2011-11-04T20:27:17Z")
Sam Waterston played Honest Abe in both the TV miniseries \*\*\* The Civil War \*\*\*and in the TV miniseries version of _ **Gore Vidal’s Lincoln.** _ He also played “the President” in _ **Shadow Conspiracy.** _ and a liberal President facing a military coup, in the TV movie _ **The Enemy Within.** _ ---
**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:** [November 4, 2011, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/17 "2011-11-04T20:31:04Z")
Maybe a trick answer but the television mini-series _Backstairs at the White House_ covered the household staff who worked in the White House through eight administrations. So Leslie Uggams, for example, played a character who worked for eight administrations. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/18 "2011-11-04T20:31:22Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Sam Waterston played Honest Abe in both the TV miniseries \*\*\* The Civil War \*\*\*and in the TV miniseries version of _ **Gore Vidal’s Lincoln.** _ > > He also played “the President” in _ **Shadow Conspiracy.** _ and a liberal President facing a military coup, in the TV movie _ **The Enemy Within.** _ He also played the President in an episode of “Masters of Science Fiction,” called “A Clean Escape” ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/19 "2011-11-04T20:32:30Z")
James Whitmore got a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his one-man show \*\*\*Give 'Em Hell, Harry, \*\*\*in which he played Harry Truman. He later did a similar one-man show in which he played Teddy Roosevelt. He also played the President in the TV miniseries _ **Favorite Son** _. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505/20 "2011-11-04T20:35:20Z")
Donald Moffat played a blustering Vice President Lyndon Johnson in _ **The Right Stuff** _. He also played President Bennet, Harrison Ford’s boss in _ **Clear and Present Danger.** _ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-actor-multiple-administrations/585505.md?page=2)