# Spotting a Familiar Actor in a Surprising Place - Part Deux **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 26, 2017, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931 "2017-06-26T19:06:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2017, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/161 "2017-07-15T20:24:34Z")
Stephen Dillane who played Stannis Baratheon on GOT has a small part in Zero Dark Thirty. (Gandolfini also has a small part too) He also played Jefferson in the mini series John Adams. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/162 "2017-07-16T01:39:02Z")
Robert Blake playing an adolescent shepherd in \*Have Gun Will Travel. - After Paladin is beaten to a pulp, the Blake character brings him back to town in a wheel barrow. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/163 "2017-07-18T04:44:44Z")
Laurie Metcalf, aka “Miz Mary Cooper,” was divorced neighbor Marcie in John Candy’s _ **Uncle Buck** _. Pert Kelton, the original Alice on _ **The Honeymooners** _ before she was blacklisted, was Robert Duvall’s mother in “Miniature,” tonight’s episode of _ **Twilight Zone** _. A young Barbara Barrie (aka “Mrs Barney Miller”) was his sister, and a cigarette-smoking William Windom was his psychiatrist. His boss was played by Barney Phillips, aka “Doc Kaiser” on _ **12 O’Clock High** _. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/164 "2017-07-18T13:27:40Z")
Laurie Metcalf also played Fraiser’s first wife, and was Dick’s blind date who was allergic to everything on 3rd Rock From The Sun. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/165 "2017-07-18T15:08:07Z")
I apologize if this has been mentioned - I skimmed the thread and didn’t see it-- but for me the Coneheads movie is a treasure trove for this. Drew Carey is a taxi cab passenger. Michael Richards (Cosmo Kramer) is a motel clerk. Ellen Degeneris is a coach. Tom Arnold shows up as a golfer and Jon Lovitz as a dentist. Every now and then I will rewatch this movie just for all the little surprise cameos and appearances of then barely known performers. > **[Coneheads (1993) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106598/fullcredits/)** > > Coneheads (1993) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. And director Barry Sonnenfeld has a small part in his movie “Addams Family Values”. He plays Mr. Glicker, the father of a nerdy Jewish camper and is shown bickering with his wife. It’s a small thing but as a personal friend of the Sonnenfeld family I can see how deeply personal that little scene was. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/166 "2017-07-18T15:26:12Z")
This sorta ties in with it, but. . . Many, many years ago, I was watching some commercial, and the voice really struck me: “Holy Cow! That sounds like Race Bannon!” It was an insurance or something commercial. I just remember the actor was wearing a fireman’s hat. A few days later, I was watching a rerun of ‘The Wild Wild West,’ and heard the same voice–and noticed the actor was the same one from the insurance (or whatever) commercial a few days earlier. Carefully watching the credits, I caught the name, and sure enough, it was “Mike Road,” the voice behind Race Bannon. Then later I started seeing him in supporting roles in various TV programs from the late 50s thru the 60s. ---
**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:** [July 18, 2017, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/167 "2017-07-18T15:48:33Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Laurie Metcalf also played Fraiser’s first wife, and was Dick’s blind date who was allergic to everything on 3rd Rock From The Sun. She also played the title character’s sister on _Roseanne_, and did the voice of the mom in the _Toy Story_ movies. A very talented actress. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Hamsandwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4bbf92/32.png) [@Darth\_Hamsandwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Hamsandwich)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/168 "2017-07-18T16:00:43Z")
I was watching the movie _Heartburn_ the other night and this scene with a young, thuggish Kevin Spacey threw me for a loop: [link](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zz9abuE2D7Y) ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/169 "2017-07-18T16:01:26Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > This sorta ties in with it, but. . . > > Many, many years ago, I was watching some commercial, and the voice really struck me: “Holy Cow! That sounds like Race Bannon!” > > It was an insurance or something commercial. I just remember the actor was wearing a fireman’s hat. > > A few days later, I was watching a rerun of ‘The Wild Wild West,’ and heard the same voice–and noticed the actor was the same one from the insurance (or whatever) commercial a few days earlier. Carefully watching the credits, I caught the name, and sure enough, it was “Mike Road,” the voice behind Race Bannon. > > Then later I started seeing him in supporting roles in various TV programs from the late 50s thru the 60s. A while ago I saw the classic Outer Limits episode _Demon With a Glass Hand_. Robert Culp is easy to recognize in that (and the Bradbury Building), but I decided to look up the actress to see if she had done anything else. Arlene Martel, turned out I’d been seeing her for years. She was T’Pring in _Star Trek_, and I caught her in old episodes of _The Rockford Files_ and _Banacek_, plus a few others. I hope it’s a compliment to an actress to say that I never even realized it was her. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/170 "2017-07-18T19:32:53Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Laurie Metcalf also played Fraiser’s first wife, and was Dick’s blind date who was allergic to everything on 3rd Rock From The Sun. On _ **Cheers!** _, Frasier’s first wife was played by Emma Thompson. Dina Spybey played a much younger version of her on _ **Frasier** _. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/171 "2017-07-18T19:36:30Z")
As an aside, I didn’t even recognize Laurie in _ **Uncle Buck** _. I had to look her up on IMDB. She was actually quite hot back then! :o ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/172 "2017-07-18T19:38:47Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > A young Barbara Barrie (aka “Mrs Barney Miller”) was his sister, and a cigarette-smoking William Windom was his psychiatrist. I just saw Barbara Barrie as a cold, would-be murderess on an episode of “Rawhide”. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/173 "2017-07-18T19:41:11Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > [Laurie Metcalf] also played the title character’s sister on _Roseanne_, and did the voice of the mom in the _Toy Story_ movies. A very talented actress. She just won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a play for her performance in _A Doll’s House, Part 2_ ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/174 "2017-07-18T19:41:49Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Arlene Martel, turned out I’d been seeing her for years. She was T’Pring in _Star Trek_, and I caught her in old episodes of _The Rockford Files_ and _Banacek_, plus a few others. She was in one of the first episodes of _ **Twilight Zone** _, “What You Need,” along with several episodes of **Hogan’s Heroes**. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/175 "2017-07-18T20:08:30Z")
Going back to the soap _Ryan’s Hope_ on page one, Kate Mulgrew’s sister was played by Marg Helgenberger, from original flavor _CSI_. And the actor who played their brother when the show originated (there was more than one) was Andrew Robinson, who was the punk that Clint Eastwood was talking to when he said, ““Do I feel lucky?” Well, do ya, punk?” in\*\* Dirty Harry\*\*. Christian Slater was also in _Ryan’s Hope_, as Yasmine Bleeth’s boyfriend. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2017, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/176 "2017-07-18T21:38:03Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > … Arlene Martel, turned out I’d been seeing her for years. She was T’Pring in _Star Trek_, and I caught her in old episodes of _The Rockford Files_ and _Banacek_, plus a few others. I hope it’s a compliment to an actress to say that I never even realized it was her. Arlene Martel had great small roles on three original-run Columbo episodes, too (“A Friend in Deed,” “The Greenhouse Jungle,” and “Double Exposure,” on which she was voice-only). _Columbo_ is a reliable source of cameo roles for familiar actors–a favorite of mine is _F Troop_’s Larry Storch as a fussy driving instructor in the 1974 “Negative Reaction.” (Larry’s still with us, by the way, in his mid-90s. His bit (as himself) in the 2005 stand-up comedy documentary\* The Aristocrats\* is impressive and memorable.) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/177 "2017-07-19T00:34:01Z")
A digression, if I may. In _Wanted Dead or Alive_, her partner shot Josh Randall’s girlfriend. Randall shot him five times in the gut with .45/70s. Do not annoy the man. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/178 "2017-07-19T01:09:33Z")
Was just watching a “Rifftrax” epi, and they were riffing on a B&W short from 1964 (very poor quality in every department) called, “David and Hazel: A Story in Communication.” At one point, the only black actor in the film sits down at a table with the two male stars; he really looks familiar and when he speaks–YES! It’s Percy Rodrigues! ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/179 "2017-07-19T02:53:38Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > A digression, if I may. > In _Wanted Dead or Alive_, her partner shot Josh Randall’s girlfriend. > Randall shot him five times in the gut with .45/70s. Do not annoy the man. Are you referring to the TV series with Steve McQueen, or the '80s movie with Rutger Hauer? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931/180 "2017-07-19T03:00:15Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Robert Blake playing an adolescent shepherd in \*Have Gun Will Travel. > > - After Paladin is beaten to a pulp, the Blake character brings him back to town in a wheel barrow. He was famous for selling Humphrey Bogart the winning lottery ticket in _ **The Treasure of the Sierra Madre** _. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-a-familiar-actor-in-a-surprising-place-part-deux/789931.md?page=10)