Bert Freed
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Bert Freed (November 3, 1919 — August 2, 1994) was a prolific American character actor, voice over actor, and the first actor to portray "Detective Columbo" on television. Born and raised in The Bronx, New York, Freed began acting while attending Penn State University, and made his Broadway debut in 1942. Following World War II Army service in the European Theatre, he appeared in the Broadway musical The Day Before Spring in 1945 and dozens of television shows between 1947 and 1985. His film debut occurred, oddly enough, in a musical Carnegie Hall (1947). A prominent role was as the villainous Ryker in the television series Shane, in which Freed added a unique touch of realism by beginning the show clean-shaven and growing a beard from one week to the next, never shaving again through the season. Freed played Columbo in a live 1960 episode of the "Chevy Mystery Theatre" seven years before Peter Falk played the role. Thomas Mitchell also played the part on stage prior to Falk's version, which is probably where many of the eccentric Columbo traits originated; only a few were visible in Freed's straightforward interpretation, although the character as played by Freed is recognizably Columbo. He appeared (sometimes more than once) in television shows such as The Rifleman, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The Big Valley,The Virginian, Mannix, Barnaby Jones, Charlie's Angels, Then Came Bronson, Run For Your Life, Get Smart, The Lucy Show, Hogan's Heroes, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Dr. Kildare, Ben Casey, Perry Mason, Combat!, Petticoat Junction, The Outer Limits, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Route 66, Ironside, The Green Hornet, The Munsters, and many, many more. He directed one episode of T.H.E. Cat. Freed appeared as a racist club owner in No Way Out (1950), a gangster in Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town (1950), a Marine private in Halls of Montezuma (1951 film), an Army sergeant in Take the High Ground! (1953), the Police Chief in Invaders From Mars (1953), Sgt. Boulanger in Paths of Glory (1957), the hangman in Hang 'Em High (1968), Max's father in Wild in the Streets (1968), as Chief of Detectives in Madigan (1968), a homosexual prison guard in There Was a Crooked Man... (1970) and Bernard's father in Billy Jack (1971) in which he got "whumped" on the side of the face by Billy Jack's right foot "just for the hell of it." He retired from acting in 1986, and died of a heart attack in Canada in 1994 while on a fishing trip with his son. Description above from the Wikipedia article Bert Freed, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
Are You My Mother?
as Bert
Are You My Mother?
as Bert
Skag
as Bishop
Skag
as Bishop
Norma Rae
as Sam Dakin
Norma Rae
as Sam Dakin
Barracuda
as Jack
Barracuda
as Jack
Till Death
as Dr. Sawyer
Till Death
as Dr. Sawyer
In the Matter of Karen Ann Quinlan
as Dr. Julius Korein
In the Matter of Karen Ann Quinlan
as Dr. Julius Korein
Love and the Midnight Auto Supply
as Mayor John Randolph
Love and the Midnight Auto Supply
as Mayor John Randolph
Death Scream
as Det. Ross
Death Scream
as Det. Ross
Incident at Vichy
as Marchand, A Businessman
Incident at Vichy
as Marchand, A Businessman
Evel Knievel
as Doc Kincaid
Evel Knievel
as Doc Kincaid
Billy Jack
as Mr. Stuart Posner
Billy Jack
as Mr. Stuart Posner
Breakout
as Fletcher
Breakout
as Fletcher
There Was a Crooked Man...
as Skinner
There Was a Crooked Man...
as Skinner
The Andersonville Trial
as Board of Military Judges
The Andersonville Trial
as Board of Military Judges
Then Came Bronson
as Editor Carson
Then Came Bronson
as Editor Carson
Wild in the Streets
as Max Jacob Flatow, Sr.
Wild in the Streets
as Max Jacob Flatow, Sr.
Hang 'em High
as Schmidt
Hang 'em High
as Schmidt
Madigan
as Chief of Detectives Hap Lynch
Madigan
as Chief of Detectives Hap Lynch
P.J.
as Police Lieutenant
P.J.
as Police Lieutenant
The Swinger
as Police Captain
The Swinger
as Police Captain
Nevada Smith
as Quince
Nevada Smith
as Quince
Invitation to a Gunfighter
as Sheriff
Invitation to a Gunfighter
as Sheriff
Shock Treatment
as Frank Josephson
Shock Treatment
as Frank Josephson
Twilight of Honor
as Sheriff Buck Wheeler
Twilight of Honor
as Sheriff Buck Wheeler
The Goddess
as Lester Brackman
The Goddess
as Lester Brackman
Paths of Glory
as Sgt. Boulanger
Paths of Glory
as Sgt. Boulanger
Unidentified Flying Objects: The True Story of Flying Saucers
as Dayton Colonel
Unidentified Flying Objects: The True Story of Flying Saucers
as Dayton Colonel
The Desperate Hours
as Tom Winston
The Desperate Hours
as Tom Winston
The Cobweb
as Abe Irwin
The Cobweb
as Abe Irwin
Men of the Fighting Lady
as Lt. (jg) Andrew Szymanski
Men of the Fighting Lady
as Lt. (jg) Andrew Szymanski
The Long, Long Trailer
as Foreman
The Long, Long Trailer
as Foreman
Take the High Ground!
as Sgt. Vince Opperman
Take the High Ground!
as Sgt. Vince Opperman
Invaders from Mars
as Police Chief A.C. Barrows
Invaders from Mars
as Police Chief A.C. Barrows
The Snows of Kilimanjaro
as American Soldier (uncredited)
The Snows of Kilimanjaro
as American Soldier (uncredited)
Detective Story
as Det. Dakis
Detective Story
as Det. Dakis
Red Mountain
as Sgt. Randall
Red Mountain
as Sgt. Randall
Halls of Montezuma
as Slattery
Halls of Montezuma
as Slattery
No Way Out
as Rocky Miller (uncredited)
No Way Out
as Rocky Miller (uncredited)
Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town
as Dutch (Third New York Henchman)
Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town
as Dutch (Third New York Henchman)
Key to the City
as Emmy's Husband
Key to the City
as Emmy's Husband
Boomerang!
as Herron, a Man in Alley Mob
Boomerang!
as Herron, a Man in Alley Mob