John Spencer (actor)

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John Spencer (born December 20, 1946 in New York (according to some sources New Jersey ), † December 16, 2005 in Los Angeles ; actually John Speshock ) was an American actor .

Life

Private life

John Spencer was born in New York City, the only son of a waitress and a driver . According to his parents' wishes, he should become a doctor or lawyer in order to be financially better off later. Spencer struggled with alcohol problems during his school days and was a heavy smoker until 1999 .

He was in a relationship with the actress and choreographer Patricia Mariano until his death .

Career

At the age of 16, John Spencer turned to acting and gained experience in various theaters before his first appearance in the 1963 Patty Duke show . In the late 1970s the actor made his film debut in the science fiction film Meteor alongside Sean Connery and Nathalie Wood . In addition to his work as a film and television actor, Spencer continued to appear primarily in on and off Broadway productions . 1982 John Spencer was one for his portrayal Vietnam War - veterans in the play Still Life with an Obie Award excellent.

This was followed by supporting roles in films such as WarGames - War Games with Matthew Broderick and Dabney Coleman, as well as guest appearances in television series such as Miami Vice and A Touch of Heaven . He had his international breakthrough in 1990 when he partnered with Harrison Ford in the thriller For Lack of Evidence . In the same year he joined the cast of the series LA Law - Star Lawyers, Tricks, Trials , in which he played Tommy Mullaney for the next four years .

In 1999, Spencer played one of the main roles as Chief of Staff to the fictional President of the United States Josiah "Jed" Bartlet in the hit series The West Wing . The character of Leo McGarry was like his actor a dry alcoholic and suffered a heart attack during the sixth season of the series (2004/05) . Spencer was nominated five times for an Emmy Award for his performance and received the award in 2002.

death

Like his series alter ego, the actor suffered a heart attack. He died four days before his 59th birthday at the Olympia Medical Center in his adopted home Los Angeles.

His death while filming the final season of The West Wing forced the series' producers and writers to radically revise the series concept for the remaining episodes. It was originally planned that the figure played by Spencer, Leo McGarry , should take over the office of US Vice President for the Democratic Party . At the beginning of 2006, some already wacky episodes were broadcast in the United States. Then there was a six-week interruption in the broadcasting rhythm. In the episodes that were subsequently broadcast from March 2006, Spencer / McGarry could only be seen in short excerpts, or his subsequent absence was explained more or less plausibly. As the dramatic climax of the season, McGarry finally died of the consequences of a second heart attack on election day.

Filmography (selection)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Spencer, John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Speshock, John
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-American actor
DATE OF BIRTH December 20, 1946
PLACE OF BIRTH New York City
DATE OF DEATH December 16, 2005
Place of death los Angeles