Bert Remsen

Herbert Birchell Remsen was born on February 25, 1925, in Glen Cove, New York, on Long Island, the son of Helen (née Birchell) and Winfred Herbert Remsen. He went on to work as an American actor and casting director, building a career that spanned stage, film, and television across several decades before his death on April 22, 1999.

Before establishing himself in film and television, Remsen appeared on Broadway between 1951 and 1956, with credits that included the comedy Diary of a Scoundrel and the play Diamond Lil. His military service preceded his professional career: during World War II, he served as Seaman 1st Class aboard the destroyer USS Laffey and was present during the Battle of Okinawa. On April 16, 1945, the Laffey endured an assault by 22 Japanese kamikaze aircraft over the course of 80 minutes, an engagement the U.S. Navy described as one of the great sea epics of war. Remsen sustained burns during the battle but returned to duty and survived.

An on-set injury later interrupted his acting work, leading Remsen to transition into casting from 1966 to 1974. During those nine years he served as casting director or casting supervisor for 31 television series and television movies, among them 25 episodes each of The F.B.I. and The Rookies. His sole screen credit during most of that period was an announcer's voice in a 1969 episode of The F.B.I. His return to acting came in 1970, when he was hired as casting director on Robert Altman's Brewster McCloud and Altman persuaded him to take a small role in the film.

That collaboration with Altman proved formative. Remsen went on to appear in character roles across a string of Altman productions, including McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), Thieves Like Us (1974), California Split (1974), Nashville (1975), Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson (1976), and A Wedding (1978). Beyond the Altman films, his screen credits included Fuzz (1972), Baby Blue Marine (1976), Uncle Joe Shannon (1978), Fast Break (1979), Carny (1980), Borderline (1980), Inside Moves (1980), Second-Hand Hearts (1981), Lookin' to Get Out (1982), The Sting II (1983), Places in the Heart (1984), Code of Silence (1985), TerrorVision (1986), Eye of the Tiger (1986), Miss Firecracker (1989), Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat (1989), Daddy's Dyin': Who's Got the Will? (1990), and Only the Lonely (1991). His final film, The Sky is Falling, was released posthumously in 2000.

Remsen's television work was equally extensive. He guest-starred as Jim Ford in the episode "Pete Henke" of the NBC western series Jefferson Drum in 1958. He was a series regular on the short-lived NBC dramatic series Gibbsville in 1976 and joined the cast of the ABC comedy It's a Living as Mario the cook for its first season from 1980 to 1981. He appeared on Dallas in 1987 as Harrison "Dandy" Dandridge and portrayed a judge in the 1993 pilot for The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.

His first marriage was to actress Katherine MacGregor, known for her role as Mrs. Oleson in the NBC series Little House on the Prairie. His daughter Kerry Remsen, an actress, was born to his second wife, Barbara Joyce Dodd, who also worked as a casting director.