Kurtwood Smith
Kurtwood Larson Smith (born July 3, 1943) is an American television and film actor. He is known for playing Clarence Boddicker in RoboCop (1987) and Red Forman in That '70s Show, as well as for his many appearances in science fiction films and television programs (Lou Grant, Star Trek, The X-Files). He also starred in the seventh season of 24.
Kurtwood Smith | |
|---|---|
 Smith at the 2010 Comic Con in San Diego | |
| Born | July 3, 1943 New Lisbon, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Education | |
| Occupation | Actor, voice actor |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Spouse(s) |
|
| Children | 2 |
Early life
Smith was born in New Lisbon, Wisconsin, the son of Mabel Annette Lund (née Larson) and George Smith.[1] Smith's mother was a fan of a country singer named Kurt (or Curt) in the early 1940s. However, she thought "Kurt Smith" was too short a name, so she added "wood" ("she just tacked it on to the end", he said); Smith has said that he is likely the only Kurtwood.[2] Smith's father was a Major during the Second World War and was killed in Europe.[3]
Smith grew up in the San Fernando Valley and graduated from Canoga Park High School in Canoga Park, California in 1961; he was class president in his senior year.[1] Smith graduated from San Jose State College in 1965 with a B.A. and Stanford University in 1969 with an M.F.A.[4]
Career
On stage, Smith won three Drama-Logue Awards for his performances in Billy Budd, Idiot's Delight, and Green Grow the Lilacs. In his film career, he portrayed Clarence Boddicker in Paul Verhoeven's science fiction action movie RoboCop and the father role as Red Forman on the Fox sitcom That '70s Show, which ran from 1998 to 2006. After That '70s Show ended, Smith played Senator Blaine Mayer in the seventh season of the action thriller 24, and portrayed Dick Clayton in the CBS series Worst Week. He enjoyed a recurring role as a rogue FBI agent in Seasons 3–5 of the NBC (later CBS) series Medium, appearing in later episodes as a ghost after his character's death. He played the main character Henry Langston in the ABC sci-fi/drama Resurrection which ran for two seasons (2014–15). Currently, he is a regular on the Amazon original dramedy series Patriot.
His other roles included playing Mr. Sue on Fox's "espionage comedy" The New Adventures of Beans Baxter in 1987. He also starred as the strict father of Robert Sean Leonard's Neil in 1989's Dead Poets Society. He made a number of appearances in the Star Trek franchise, playing the President of the Federation in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, a Cardassian named Thrax in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Things Past", and a Krenim scientist named Annorax in the Star Trek: Voyager two-part episode "Year of Hell".
He also has an extensive voice acting résumé, appearing in computer games such as Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel, and FreeSpace 2, and on a number of animated series. He played a recurring role on the claymation series Gary & Mike as the vengeful Officer Dick and voiced the dinosaurian military commander character General Galapagos in the Savage Steve Holland produced Fox animated series Terrible Thunderlizards. He played the voice of Bob Johnson on Squirrel Boy and provided the voice of Kanjar Ro in Green Lantern: First Flight and starred as the sheriff in Last of the Dogmen. Smith appeared on the Netflix show The Ranch as Mr. Peterson, a farmer dying of brain cancer.
Personal life
Smith married Cecilia Souza in 1964. The couple divorced in 1974. Smith then married Joan Pirkle, who appeared with him in Robocop, in 1988. She played the secretary of Ronny Cox's character, Dick Jones. Smith has one daughter, Laurel Garner, and one son, Shannon Smith. Smith lives in Lafayette, California.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Roadie | Security Guard | |
| 1981 | Zoot Suit | Sergeant Smith | |
| 1983 | Staying Alive | Choreographer | |
| Going Berserk | Clarence | ||
| 1984 | Flashpoint | Carson | |
| 1987 | RoboCop | Clarence Boddicker | |
| The Delos Adventure | Arthur McNeil | ||
| 1988 | Rambo III | Robert Griggs | |
| Two Idiots in Hollywood | District Attorney | ||
| 1989 | True Believer | Robert Reynard | |
| Dead Poets Society | Mr. Perry | ||
| Heart of Dixie | Professor Flournoy | ||
| 1990 | Quick Change | Russ Crane/Vince Lombino | |
| 1991 | Oscar | Lt. Toomey, Chicago PD | |
| Company Business | Elliot Jaffe, CIA | ||
| Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country | Federation President | ||
| Shadows and Fog | Vogel's Follower | ||
| 1992 | Fortress | Prison Director Poe | |
| 1993 | Boxing Helena | Dr. Alan Harrison | |
| The Crush | Cliff Forrester | ||
| Heart and Souls | Patterson | Uncredited | |
| Big Wave Daves | Jack Lord | ||
| RoboCop 3 | Clarence Boddicker | Flashback footage from 1987 film | |
| 1994 | Dead on Sight | Julian Thompson | |
| 1995 | To Die For | Earl Stone | |
| Under Siege 2: Dark Territory | General Stanley Cooper | ||
| Last of the Dogmen | Sheriff Deegan | ||
| 1996 | Citizen Ruth | Norm Stoney | |
| Broken Arrow | Secretary of Defense, Baird | ||
| A Time to Kill | Stump Sisson | ||
| 1997 | Prefontaine | Curtis Cunningham | |
| 1998 | Shelter | Tom Cantrell | |
| Deep Impact | Otis Hefter | ||
| 1999 | Girl, Interrupted | Dr. Crumble | |
| 2002 | Teddy Bears' Picnic | Secretary of Transportation, William Easter | |
| 2004 | Evil Remains | Dr. Theodore Rosen | |
| 2005 | The Trouble with Dee Dee | William Rutherford | |
| 2006 | Hard Scrambled | Benno | |
| 2007 | Entry Level | Nick | |
| 2009 | Green Lantern: First Flight | Kanjar Ro | Voice |
| All in the Bunker | Adolf Hitler | Short film | |
| 2011 | Cedar Rapids | Orin Helgesson | |
| 2012 | Men in a Box | Dr. Skinner | Short film |
| Hitchcock | Geoffrey Shurlock | ||
| 2013 | Turbo | The CEO | Voice |
| 2015 | Raise the ToyGantic | Ted Greenley | Short film |
| Regular Show: The Movie | Gene | Voice | |
| 2017 | Amityville: The Awakening | Dr. Milton | |
| El Camino Christmas | Sheriff Bob Fuller |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Soap | Man in laundromat | 1 episode |
| Me and Maxx | Dwayne | Episode: "Some Are Savers" | |
| 1980–1981 | Lou Grant | DeGaetano / DeRopp / Fire Captain | 3 episodes |
| 1983 | Renegades | Captain Scanlon | 6 episodes |
| 1984 | The A-Team | Mr. Carson | Episode: "The Battle of Bel Air" |
| Blue Thunder | Bill Spradley | Episode: "Revenge in the Sky" | |
| Riptide | Merle Wilson | Episode: "The Orange Grove" | |
| 1985 | Stir Crazy | Bo Carter | Episode: "The Ping Pong Caper" |
| The Midnight Hour | Captain Warren Jensen | Television film | |
| The Best Times | Sam Ballard | Episode: "Volleyball" | |
| The Paper Chase | Episode: "Security" | ||
| It's a Living | Senior Agent | Episode: "Hail to the Chef" | |
| Deadly Messages | Lieutenant Burton | Television film | |
| 1986 | Stingray | Sgt. Edward Fiddler | Episode: "Sometimes You Gotta Sing the Blues" |
| North and South | Col. Hiram Berdan | Miniseries | |
| Newhart | Chet | Episode: "Dick the Kid" | |
| The Christmas Gift | Jake Richards | Television film | |
| 1987 | 21 Jump Street | Spencer Phillips | 2 episodes |
| The New Adventures of Beans Baxter | Mr. Sue | 5 episodes | |
| 1988 | It's Garry Shandling's Show | Paul Bosgang | Episode: "Save the Planet" |
| 1989 | The Nightmare Years | Dr. Joseph Goebbels | Miniseries |
| 1990 | 12:01 PM | Myron Castleman | Television short film |
| The Famous Teddy Z | Episode: "Loyalty" | ||
| 1993 | Picket Fences | Barry Jenkins | Episode: "Be My Valentine" |
| Big Wave Dave's | Jack Lord | 6 episodes | |
| 1993–1996 | Eek! The Cat | Dinosaur Military Commander (voice) | 6 episodes |
| 1993–1997 | The Terrible Thunderlizards | General Galapagos | |
| 1994 | While Justice Sleeps | Leonard Rosenglass | Television film |
| 1995 | 500 Nations | (voice) | 3 episodes |
| 1996 | The X-Files | Agent Bill Patterson | "Grotesque" |
| Star Trek: Deep Space Nine | Thrax | Episode: "Things Past" | |
| 1997 | Men in Black: The Series | Agent H / Forbis (voice) | 2 episodes |
| Star Trek: Voyager | Annorax | Episode: "Year of Hell" | |
| 1998 | The Magnificent Seven | Col. Emmett Anderson | Episode: "Ghosts of the Confederacy" |
| A Bright Shining Lie | General Westmoreland | Television film | |
| Safety Patrol | Principal Tromp | Television film | |
| 1998–2006 | That '70s Show | Red Forman | Main Cast |
| 1999 | 3rd Rock from the Sun | Jacob Solomon | Episode: "Dick Solomon of the Indiana Solomons" |
| Todd McFarlane's Spawn | Robert Sullivan (voice) | Episode: "Seed of the Hellspawn" | |
| 2001 | Gary and Mike | Officer Dick | |
| Batman Beyond | Agent James Bennet(voice) | Episode: "Countdown" | |
| UC: Undercover | William Murphy | Episode: "Of Fathers and Sons" | |
| Justice League | Prosecutor (voice) | Episode: "In Blackest Night" | |
| 2001–2002 | The Zeta Project | Agent James Bennet (voice) | 14 episodes |
| 2002 | Fillmore! | Mr. Galser (voice) | Episode: "To Mar a Stal" |
| Everybody Loves Raymond | Famous Baseball Player | ||
| 2004 | Malcolm in the Middle | Principal Block | Episode: "Dirty Magazine" |
| 2004–2006 | The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy | Grim's Dad | 2 episodes |
| 2005 | ChalkZone | Himself | with Stephen Colbert |
| Robot Chicken | Various voices | 2 episodes | |
| Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go! | Ciracus (voice) | Episode: "Girl Trouble" | |
| 2006 | Handy Manny | Mr. Noodlander (voice) | Episode: "A Sticky Fix/Paint Job" |
| 2006–2007 | Squirrel Boy | Robert "Bob" Johnson (voice) | 15 episodes |
| 2006–2009 | Medium | Agent Edward Cooper | 3 episodes |
| 2007 | Psych | Captain Conners | Episode: "Forget Me Not" |
| House MD | Dr. Obyedkov | Episode: "Half-Wit" | |
| Shorty McShorts' Shorts | Truant Officer Fabian (voice) | Episode: "Troy Ride" | |
| 2008–2009 | Worst Week | Dick Clayton | 16 episodes |
| 2009 | 24 | Senator Blaine Mayer | 7 episodes |
| Family Guy | Himself (voice) | ||
| Titan Maximum | Mercury General (voice) | 2 episodes | |
| 2010 | Neighbors from Hell | Don Killbride (voice) | 10 episodes |
| Childrens Hospital | Ben Hayflick | 2 episodes | |
| 2011 | Love Bites | Ed Strathmore | Episode: "How To..." |
| CHAOS | H.J. Higgins | 13 episodes | |
| Green Lantern: The Animated Series | Shyir Rev (voice) | Episode: "Beware My Power" | |
| 2012–2017 | Regular Show | Gene (voice) | Recurring |
| 2012 | Dan Vs. | Mechanic Mike (voice) | Episode: "Dan Vs. The Mechanic" |
| Wedding Band | Hank Henderson | Episode: "I Don't Wanna Grow Up" | |
| Robot and Monster | Mr. Wheelie (voice) | Episode: "Dirty Money/What J.D. Wants" | |
| 2013 | Body of Proof | Earl Brown | Episode: "Daddy Issues" |
| 2013–2014 | Beware the Batman | Lt. James Gordon (voice) | 15 episodes |
| 2014–2015 | Resurrection | Henry Langston | 21 episodes |
| 2015 | Maron | Tier 4 | Episode: "The Node" |
| Rick and Morty | General Nathan (voice) | Episode: "Get Schwifty" | |
| Tim & Eric's Bedtime Stories | Father Krang | Episode: "Tornado" | |
| 2015–2016 | Agent Carter | Vernon Masters | 7 episodes |
| 2015–2018 | Patriot | Leslie Claret | 10 episodes |
| 2016 | TripTank | Coach (voice) | Episode: "The D.O.N.G." |
| 2016–2017 | Pig Goat Banana Cricket | Angry Old Raisin (voice) | 8 episodes |
| 2018 | F is for Family | Stan Chilsons (voice) | Episode: Summer Vacation |
| 2017–2020 | The Ranch | Old Man Peterson | Recurring in Seasons 2-4 |
| 2019 | Perpetual Grace, LTD | Uncle Dave | Season 1 Recurring Role |
| 2019 | Suits | Ted Tucker | Episode: "Scenic Route" |
| 2019 | Perfect Harmony | Tinsley | Episode: "It's Electric" |
| 2020 | Star Trek: Lower Decks | Clar | Voice |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel | General Dakker |
References
- "Kurtwood Smith biography". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved June 18, 2013.
- According to an interview with Smith on Caroline Rhea's syndicated television show
- Smith, Kurtwood (November 11, 2017). "Veterans Day at my father's grave in the Netherlands American Cemetery near Margraten. Though I never knew him I always remember him!pic.twitter.com/KZuOF5B64Y". Twitter.com.
- "Kurtwood Smith". TVGuide.com. Retrieved June 18, 2013.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kurtwood Smith. |
- Kurtwood Smith at IMDb
- Kurtwood Smith at the TCM Movie Database
- Kurtwood Smith at AllMovie
| Authority control |
|---|