Biography
After a troubled childhood that included his mother's suicide when he was 16, he made his show business debut as a stand-up comic in NYC but was soon making inroads in his first love, theater, appearing in the musical revue "John Murray Anderson's Almanac" and later acting in such Broadway productions as "Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?" (1955), "Mr. Roberts" (1956) "Nature's Way" (1957) and the musical "Subways Are For Sleeping" (1961).
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Latest Tv Credits
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Career Milestones
| Appeared as panelist on the syndicated revival of "To Tell the Truth" | ||
| Had regular role of the folksy frontier storekeeper Loren Bray in "Dr Quinn: Medicine Woman" (CBS) | ||
| Left home at age 16 after his mother's suicide | ||
| Made show business debut as stand-up comic in NYC | ||
| Portrayed Reverend Brim in last season of the syndicated soap spoof "Forever Fernwood", a revamp of "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" | ||
| Raised in Parkinsville, Vermont followed by stint in Cambridge, Massachusetts | ||
| Was a regular panelist on "To Tell the Truth" (CBS) | ||
1952 | Was a panelist on CBS' "I've Got a Secret" | |
1953 | New York stage debut, "Men of Distinction" | |
1954 | Hosted clever variety show, "The Blue Angel" (CBS), a summer replacement for "See It Now" | |
1955 | Acted in star-studded "The Best of Broadway" (CBS) presentation of "Arsenic and Old Lace", with Helen Hayes, Billie Burke, Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre and Edward Everet Horton; played Mortimer Brewster | |
1955 | Feature debut, "How to Be Very, Very Popular" | |
1955 | Starred on Broadway in "Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?" | |
1956 | Returned to Broadway as Ensign Pulver in "Mr Roberts" | |
1957 | Appeared in "Playhouse 90" production of "Charley's Aunt" | |
1959 | Played Dr Smith in "Anatomy of a Murder" | |
1959 | Regular on Merv Griffin-hosted version of "Keep Talking" (ABC) | |
1960 | Acted title role of "Mr Bevis", an eccentric young man loved by everyone and watched over by a guardian angel in a celebrated episode of "The Twilight Zone" (CBS) | |
1962 | Received Tony nomination as Best Supporting or Featured Actor in a Musical for "Subways Are for Sleeping" | |
1978 | Received Grammy nomination (with John Huston and Hans Conreid), best recording for children, for NBC's animated special "The Hobbit"; Bean was the voice of Bilbo Baggins | |
1984 | Provided the voice of Billy Rabbit for CBS animated special "Garfield in the Rough" | |
1987 | Played Lydia's editor in "Innerspace" | |
1997 | Directed a Pacific Resident Theatre Ensemble production of "The Quick-Change Room" at the Intar Theater (NYC's Theater Row); starred wife Alley Mills | |
1998 | Wrapped "Unbowed", acting in this project funded, in part, by a California state grant, under a provision of the Federal Job Training Partnership Act; Filmanthropic production company founded to provide on-the-job training to Hollywood's minorities, women, disabled and over-40 community | |
1999 | Co-starred in "Being John Malkovich" | |
2000 | Returned to series TV as co-star of "Normal, Ohio", a fall Fox sitcom starring John Goodman | |
2001 | Played Ben Franklin in the L.A. Reprise! production of "1776" | |
Awards
2000 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in Being John Malkovich |