Robert Clohessy

Robert Clohessy is an American actor born on June 10, 1957, in the Bronx, New York, where he was raised as the son of a police officer named John Clohessy. He attended Pearl River High School in Pearl River, New York, and went on to study at SUNY Purchase under Walt Witcover. In 1975, he competed in the Golden Gloves at Madison Square Garden. Through his grandparents, who emigrated from County Clare, Clohessy later obtained Irish citizenship.

Clohessy began accumulating television credits across both daytime and primetime programming. He appeared in recurring roles on the daytime dramas All My Children, Guiding Light, and Boy Meets World. His primetime work began with a role as Officer Patrick Flaherty during the seventh and final season of Hill Street Blues on NBC. He subsequently joined the ABC detective series Ohara as Lt. George Shaver, co-starring alongside Pat Morita. Additional early television work included a supporting role as Thomas Smaraldo on NBC's Tattingers from 1988 to 1989, a starring role on NBC's short-lived comedy One of the Boys in 1989, and a co-starring role on the ABC sitcom Laurie Hill in 1992, in which he played a stay-at-home freelance writer. In 1995, he appeared in an episode of the sitcom Double Rush.

Clohessy became widely recognized for his portrayal of Correctional Officer Sean Murphy on the HBO prison drama Oz, a role he held across seasons three through six. He later appeared as Warden Boss James Neary during the first two seasons of the HBO crime drama Boardwalk Empire, a role for which he shared a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Ensemble. In 2008, he held a regular role on the short-lived Fox series New Amsterdam. Beginning in 2010, he took on the recurring role of Lieutenant Sid Gormley on the CBS police drama Blue Bloods, a part he continued through 2024. In January 2012, he appeared as Jack Healy in an episode of Unforgettable.

In feature films, Clohessy played Jude's long-lost father in Across the Universe and portrayed Sergeant Silva in The Avengers in 2012. He appeared opposite Ryan Gosling in The Place Beyond the Pines and played Jack Parker in The Crimson Mask. He also appeared as a bartender in the 2008 film 27 Dresses.

On Broadway, Clohessy appeared in productions between 2004 and 2008, including Twelve Angry Men and the Roundabout Theatre Company revival of Pal Joey, in which he played the role of Mike. That production ran from November 2008 through February 2009. Clohessy was born and raised in the Bronx, New York.