Lewis J. Stadlen

Lewis J. Stadlen, born March 7, 1947, in Brooklyn, New York, is an American stage and screen character actor whose Broadway career spans from 1966 to 2018. The son of voice actor Allen Swift, Stadlen trained under two prominent acting teachers, Sanford Meisner and Stella Adler. He published an autobiography, Acting Foolish, through Bear Manor Media in 2009.

Stadlen made his Broadway debut in 1970, originating the role of Groucho Marx in the musical comedy Minnie's Boys, a performance that earned him both a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Performance and a Theatre World Award that same year. His subsequent Broadway work encompassed a wide range of roles, including Senex in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Banjo in a revival of The Man Who Came to Dinner, Dr. Pangloss in the 1973 production of Candide, and Milt in Laughter on the 23rd Floor. He has received two Tony Award nominations over the course of his career. Later Broadway credits include The Front Page, Fish in the Dark, The Nance, The People in the Picture, and 42 Seconds from Broadway. In 1972, Stadlen appeared in a Los Angeles revival of The Time of Your Life at the Huntington Hartford Theater, alongside Henry Fonda, Richard Dreyfuss, Gloria Grahame, Jane Alexander, and Strother Martin, with Edwin Sherin directing.

Stadlen's film work includes Portnoy's Complaint (1972), Serpico (1973), The Verdict (1982), To Be or Not to Be (1983), Windy City (1984), and In & Out (1997). His television career began in 1966 with a single appearance on The Edge of Night, in which he played a newsboy. Through the 1970s his television work consisted primarily of guest appearances. In 1979 he was cast as series regular John Taylor, Governor Gatling's chief of staff, in the first season of Benson. Finding the role unsatisfying due to ongoing disagreements with producers over scripts and his character's direction, Stadlen requested release from his contract. He was subsequently replaced in the second season by René Auberjonois, who took on the role of Clayton Endicott. Stadlen later appeared in both Law & Order and The Sopranos, where he is perhaps best known for his recurring role as Ira Fried.