THE HAT SQUAD: HENRY BECKMAN (#2900)

Every time I read that another character actor has passed away, Joni Mitchell shows up in my head: "You don't know what you've got til it's gone."

Sometimes their work is just so good, it becomes expected. And even when you don't see them as often anymore, you just expect that sooner or later they'll show up in your new favorite shows.

It was that way with Henry Beckman for me. He first entered my consciousness as Clancey in 'Here Come The Brides', and made enough of an impression that I made a point to remember his name immediately. After that, it always brought a smile to my face to see him turn up in small guest turns in TV shows and even the movies - "Silver Streak" being the best example for me of that.

He was equally at home in sitcoms as well as dramas. I think his forte was playing cops - patrolmen as well as detectives - but he also counted several district attorneys, scientists, military officers, and a herd of cowboys among his characters.

I guess the last time I actually saw him in anything would have been his guest appearances on 'The X-Files' for the Eugene Tooms stories. And I remember thinking that for the role of a long-retired, grizzled old police detective, they couldn't have found anyone better than Henry Beckman. Although had the show not been filming in Vancouver, they might have tried.

Henry Beckman passed away at the age of 86 on June 17th.

Here is the registry of characters from Toobworld whom Henry Beckman brought to life:

REGULAR ROLES
"Check It Out" - Alf Scully

"Here Come the Brides" - Captain Roland Francis Clancey

"Peyton Place" - George Anderson

"Flash Gordon" - Commander Paul Richards

RECURRING ROLES
"The X Files" - Detective Frank Briggs

Squeeze (24 September 1993)

Tooms (22 April 1994)

"Werewolf" - Doc

Nightwatch (18 July 1987)

King of the Road (7 February 1988)

"Run Buddy Run"

Steam Bath & Chicken Little (12 September 1966) - Jake

Goodbye, Wendell (21 November 1966) - Jake

"My Living Doll"

Boy Meets Girl (27 September 1964) - Dr. Carl Miller

Uninvited Guest (11 October 1964) - Dr. Carl Miller

"The Lieutenant"

The Alien (28 December 1963) - Major Barker

O'Rourke (4 January 1964) - Major Barker

Between Music and Laughter (25 January 1964) - Major Al Barker

GUEST STAR ROLES
"The Chris Isaak Show"

Our Place (25 June 2001) - Old Janitor

"Cold Squad"

The Unsinkable Iwa Gudang (31 March 2001) - Old Man Douglas

"Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show"

Honey, I'm Not Just Clowning Around (29 May 1999) - The Judge

"The Sentinel"

The Waiting Room (1 March 1999)

"The Marshal"

Rainbow Comix (11 September 1995)

"The Outer Limits"

Under the Bed (26 May 1995) - Brad Hoffman

"The X Files"

Chinga (8 February 1998) - Old Man

"The Commish"

The Witches of Eastbridge (31 October 1992) - Dr. Kranz

"The Ray Bradbury Theater"

The Handler (27 October 1992) - Mr. Merriwell Blythe

"Street Justice"

The Long Way Home (2 May 1992) - Pine's Father

"MacGyver"

Rush to Judgement (16 April 1990) - Judge

"Booker"

Booker (24 September 1989) - Judge Alvarez

"The Beachcombers"

Constance (1 January 1989) - Blackie Bowman

"Street Legal"

Equal Partners (9 December 1988) - Saul Gold

Murder (4 January 1991) - Lou Staples

"St. Elsewhere"

Ewe Can't Go Home Again (21 October 1987)

"Simon & Simon"

I Thought the War Was Over (5 March 1987) - Mr. Brennan

"Fame"

His Majesty Donlon (23 November 1985) - William Rosenkrantz

"Jessie"

The Lady Killer (25 September 1984)

"Matt Houston"

Criss-Cross (27 January 1984) - Talbot

"Seeing Things"

Someone Is Watching (22 January 1984) - Harper

"Trapper John, M.D."

The Final Cut (6 November 1983)

"The Littlest Hobo"

Guardian Angel (3 April 1980) - Priest

"The Rockford Files"

Deadlock in Parma (10 January 1980) - Sheriff Neal

"Welcome Back, Kotter"

The Breadwinners (8 June 1979) - Samson Malone

"Fantasy Island"

Superstar/Salem (25 March 1978) - Mr. Weaver

"The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams"

A Gentleman Tinker (8 February 1978)

"Happy Days"

Nose for News (13 December 1977) - Professor Garrity

"Quincy M.E."

Let Me Light the Way (27 May 1977) - Leonard 'Bell' Bellwood

Matters of Life and Death (20 January 1978) - Chief of Police Hartman

Money Plague (15 November 1979) - Sheriff Tom Brady

Dead Stop (23 December 1981) - Max

On Dying High (9 February 1983)

"King of Kensington"

The Hero (1 January 1977)

Gladys' Teddy Bear (1 January 1977) - Teddy Bear

"The Lost Saucer"

Androids Come Home (31 October 1975) - Commander Stickler

"The Family Holvak"

The Devil's Chariot (26 October 1975) - Skinner

"The Six Million Dollar Man"

The Price of Liberty (28 September 1975) - Robert Meyer

"Kolchak: The Night Stalker"
Mr. R.I.N.G. (10 January 1975) - Sen. Duncan 'LaBeau' Stephens

"Cannon"

The Avenger (30 October 1974) - Billy Burrows

"Marcus Welby, M.D."

Feedback (29 October 1974)

"Barney Miller"

The Life and Times of Barney Miller (22 August 1974)

Hair (17 April 1975) - Lyman Cooper

"Tenafly"

Man Running (2 January 1974) - Reverend Matthews

"The Starlost"

The Return of Oro (15 December 1973) - William

"Police Story"

Man on a Rack (11 December 1973) - Garbash

To Steal a Million (4 February 1975) - Captain Calvelli

"Shaft"

The Killing (30 October 1973) - Stanley Hollister

"Here's Lucy"

Lucy, the Wealthy Widow (1 October 1973) - Truck Driver

"The Sixth Sense"

Whisper of Evil (8 April 1972) - Mr. Bennington

"Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law"

Until Proven Innocent (9 December 1971) - Mr. Harlen

"Funny Face"

Don't Worry, I'll Manage (20 November 1971) - Pat Harwell

"Nichols"

The Specialists (28 October 1971)

"Love, American Style"
- (segment "Love and the Guilty Conscience")

"Night Gallery"
They're Tearing Down Tim Riley's Bar (20 January 1971) - Officer McDermott

"The Immortal"

Dead Man, Dead Man (3 December 1970) - Dr. Kinneson

"The Interns"

Some Things Don't Change (2 October 1970) - Miller

"Nancy"

The Smallest Diamond in the World (1 October 1970) - Marcus

"Adam-12"

Log 51: A Jumper, Code 2 (15 February 1969) - Charles Levering

"The Outsider"

The Secret of Mareno Bay (15 January 1969) - Sheriff Damon

"I Dream of Jeannie"

The Used Car Salesman (4 November 1968) - Policeman

"Bonanza"

Child (22 September 1968) - Charlie Matson

A Time to Die (21 March 1971) - Doctor Phelps

"The Iron Horse"

The Prisoner (30 December 1967) - Dr. Thompson

"Custer"

The Raiders (27 December 1967) - Claude Ostler

"The Virginian"

A Place to Die (8 November 1967) - Corey

"The Andy Griffith Show"

Aunt Bee, the Juror (23 October 1967) - Mr. Gilbert, the Prosecutor

"Mannix"

The Cost of a Vacation (21 October 1967)

Harvest of Death (19 November 1972) - Sheriff Simkins

"The Second Hundred Years"

A Simple Son of the Soil (4 October 1967) - Ralph Wilson

"Ironside"

The Leaf in the Forest (21 September 1967) - Orator

Achilles' Heel (17 February 1972) - Durand

All Honorable Men (8 March 1973) - Clark Andrews

Fall of an Angel (19 December 1974) - The Angel

"The Monkees"

The Picture Frame (18 September 1967) - D.A.

The Monkee's Paw (29 January 1968) - Manager

"The Flying Nun"

The Flying Nun (7 September 1967) - Major Overland

"Insight"

Locusts Have No King (28 May 1967) - Manny

The Hermit (26 June 1970) - Trappist Superior

"Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre"

To Sleep, Perchance to Scream (10 May 1967) - Lieutenant Schaeffer

"Bewitched"

How to Fail in Business with All Kinds of Help (6 April 1967) - Mr. Wilkerson

Once in a Vial (4 January 1968) - Bill Walters

"Rango"

It Ain't the Principle, It's the Money (31 March 1967)

"Tarzan"

To Steal the Rising Sun (24 February 1967) - Michael O'Brien

"Blue Light"

Traitor's Blood (9 February 1966) - Schreiber

"McHale's Navy"

La Dolce 73 (25 January 1966) - Col. Douglas Harrigan

"The Wild Wild West"

The Night of the Torture Chamber (10 December 1965) - Governor Bradford

The Night of the Vicious Valentine (10 February 1967) - Paul J. Lambert

"Honey West"

A Matter of Wife and Death (8 October 1965) - Cody

"Run for Your Life"

Someone Who Makes Me Feel Beautiful (27 September 1965) - American

The Face of the Antagonist (30 January 1967) - Hank Kellogg

"The Munsters"

Hot Rod Herman (27 May 1965) - 'Leadfoot' Baylor

Herman, Coach of the Year (14 October 1965) - Ralph, the Husband

"The Man from U.N.C.L.E."

The Brain-Killer Affair (8 March 1965) - Dr. George Tower

"Combat!"

Dateline (23 February 1965) - Major Mueller

"The Jack Benny Program"
Andy Williams Show (9 October 1964) - Joe - Butcher

The Stradivarius Story (12 February 1965) - Commercial Man

"The Greatest Show on Earth"

Of Blood, Sawdust, and a Bucket of Tears (17 March 1964) - Spike Samson

"The Great Adventure"

Rodger Young (24 January 1964)

"Death Valley Days"

Sixty-Seven Miles of Gold (14 January 1964) - Michael Parpey

Along Came Mariana (11 May 1967) - Franklin

"My Favorite Martian"

The Man on the Couch (3 November 1963) - Lt. Harland

Going, Going, Gone (2 February 1964) - Ronald Bradley, Assistant D.A.

"The Fugitive"

Never Wave Goodbye: Part 1 (8 October 1963) - Airplane Passenger

Fatso (19 November 1963) - Brown

World's End (22 September 1964) - Keller

"Arrest and Trial"

Isn't It a Lovely View (22 September 1963) - Trella

"Dr. Kildare"

The Legacy (13 December 1962) - Salesman

"Have Gun - Will Travel"

Beau Geste (13 October 1962) - Hogan

"Gunsmoke"

Quint Asper Comes Home (29 September 1962) - Duff

Uncle Sunday (15 December 1962) - Uncle Sunday Meachem

Cowtown Hustler (11 March 1974) - Thaddius McKay

The Guns of Cibola Blanca: Part 1 (23 September 1974) - Dr. Rhodes

The Guns of Cibola Blanca: Part 2 (30 September 1974) - Dr. Rhodes

"Sam Benedict"

A Split Week in San Quentin (22 September 1962) - Gerald Spanglor

"Route 66"

Hell Is Empty, All the Devils Are Here (25 May 1962) - Wasson

"Father of the Bride"

The Duchess (13 April 1962) - Police Sergeant

"Laramie"

The Turn of the Wheel (3 April 1962)

"Hennesey"

Buttons and Bones (26 March 1962) - Manager

"Ben Casey"

All the Clocks Are Ticking (26 March 1962) - Curt Bowers

In Case of Emergency, Cry Havoc (3 January 1966)

"Target: The Corruptors"

Silent Partner (8 December 1961)

License to Steal (4 May 1962) - Gil Dayton

"Cain's Hundred"

Crime and Commitment: Part 2 (26 September 1961) - Sgt. Kaline

"The Asphalt Jungle"

The Friendly Gesture (16 April 1961) - Dunn

"Dennis the Menace"
The Christmas Horse (25 December 1960) - Mr. Flemming

The Lucky Piece (17 December 1961) - Clerk

"The DuPont Show with June Allyson"
Silent Panic (22 December 1960)

A Great Day for a Scoundrel (13 February 1961) - Police Officer

"Two Faces West"

The Man in 204 (5 December 1960)

"The Twilight Zone"

A Thing About Machines (28 October 1960) - Policeman

Valley of the Shadow (17 January 1963) - Man

"Perry Mason"

The Case of the Flighty Father (11 June 1960) - David

The Case of the Captain's Coins (13 January 1962) - Garth

The Case of the Wrongful Writ (6 May 1965) - Albert King

The Case of the Dead Ringer (17 April 1966) - William March

"Mr. Lucky"

His Maiden Voyage (26 March 1960) - Huey

"Black Saddle"

Mr. Simpson (22 January 1960) - Richard Talbott

"The Ann Sothern Show"

The Woman Behind the Throne (4 January 1960) - Chairman

"Peter Gunn"

Death Is a Red Rose (19 October 1959) - Jules Burnett

"Captain Gallant of the Foreign Legion"
Esprit de Corps (20 March 1955) - Pvt. Miller

"Studio One"

Confessions of a Nervous Man (30 November 1953) - Harry

"The Philco Television Playhouse"

Pretend I Am a Stranger (22 July 1951)

"The Great Detective"

Bloodhounds Can't Fly (????) - Pete Stevens

"I Spy"

The Amateur (????)

"The New Breed"

Episode #1.33 (????) - Sergeant Rayless

"Decoy"

Dream Fix (????) - Frank Bandiner

"Police Station"

Episode #1.1 (????) - Detective Stan Abramson

I apologize for taking so long with this tip of the hat, but the size of his contributions to Toobworld proved daunting. However, to make up for the delay, I decided to hold off with his Hat Squad tribute until now so that he could be the subject of Inner Toob post #2900.

It's not much of an honor, I suppose, but hopefully 'twill serve.

BCnU....
Toby OB