American actor (1936?2023)
Charles Kimbrough
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Born
| (
1936-05-23
)
May 23, 1936
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Died
| January 11, 2023
(2023-01-11)
(aged 86)
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Occupation
| Actor
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Years active
| 1950s?2018
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Spouses
|
Mary Jane Wilson
(
m.
1961;
div.
1991)
(
m.
2002; died 2015)
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Children
| 1
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Charles Mayberry Kimbrough
(May 23, 1936 ? January 11, 2023) was an American actor, best known for his role as the straight-faced
anchorman
Jim Dial on
Murphy Brown
. In 1990, his performance in the role earned him a nomination for an
Emmy Award
for "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series".
[1]
Biography
[
edit
]
Born in
St. Paul, Minnesota
, Kimbrough had extensive stage experience. He studied theater and drama at
Indiana University Bloomington
, and graduated in 1958. He earned a Masters of Fine Arts degree at
Yale University's School of Drama
. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Kimbrough and his first wife Mary Jane Wilson were part of the resident company of the
Milwaukee Repertory Theatre
where they appeared in such plays as
Georges Feydeau
's
Cat Among the Pigeons
and
Jules Feiffer
's
The White House Murder Case
. In 1971, he was nominated for a
Tony
for best featured actor in a musical as Harry in
Stephen Sondheim
's
Company
. In 1984, he performed in the original Broadway cast of Sondheim's
Sunday in the Park with George
. He starred in the original Off-Broadway production of
A.R. Gurney
's comedy
Sylvia
in 1985.
[2]
Around 1976 to 1977, he appeared in a
Chef Boyardee
Spaghetti & Meatballs commercial.
In 1988, Kimbrough was cast as Jim Dial, a veteran network news anchor with the integrity and experience of an
Edward R. Murrow
or
Walter Cronkite
, on the
CBS
sitcom
Murphy Brown
. The series ran for 247 episodes over ten seasons, winning 17
Emmy Awards
and three Golden Globes. Kimbrough was nominated for a
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
in 1990.
In 1996, he voiced Victor, a
gargoyle
, in
Disney
's
animated feature
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
, a role he reprised in its direct-to-video sequel,
The Hunchback of Notre Dame II
and
Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance
.
Kimbrough was part of the cast of the
Roundabout Theater Company
's 2012 Broadway revival of
Mary Chase
's
Pulitzer prize
-winning play
Harvey
playing William R. Chumley, M.D., with
Jim Parsons
in the lead as Elwood P. Dowd. The show ran from June 14 to August 5, 2012, at New York's
Studio 54
Theatre.
[3]
The 2018 revival of
Murphy Brown
had Kimbrough return playing a retired Jim Dial for a multi-episode arc.
[4]
Personal life and death
[
edit
]
In 2002, Kimbrough married actress and fellow
Company
castmate
Beth Howland
, known for her television work as Vera Louise Gorman-Novak on the sitcom
Alice
. Howland died of
lung cancer
in December 2015 at the age of 76. Her death was not reported to the media until May 24, 2016.
[5]
Kimbrough's son, John, founded, sang and played guitar for the St. Paul?based alternative rock band
Walt Mink
.
Kimbrough died in
Culver City, California
, on January 11, 2023, at the age of 86.
[6]
[7]
Filmography
[
edit
]
Television
[
edit
]
Year
|
Television
|
Role
|
Notes
|
1975?1976
|
Kojak
|
Rudy, A.D.A Greg Burton
|
3 episodes
|
1975?1983
|
Great Performances
|
Dr. Spiga, Benton Arrelsford, Editor
|
3 episodes
|
1981
|
For Ladies Only
|
Bob Merlis
|
Television film
|
1985
|
Tales of the Unexpected
|
Eric
|
Episode: "Scrimshaw"
|
1986?1988
|
Spenser: For Hire
|
Louis Groton, Roger Thornwood
|
2 episodes
|
1986
|
Another World
|
Dr. Abbott
|
Unknown episodes
|
1988?1998, 2018
|
Murphy Brown
|
Jim Dial
|
250 episodes
Nominated?
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Nominated?
Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
|
1988
|
Hothouse
|
Mr. Austen
|
Episode: "Nancy: Part 1"
|
1992
|
Dinosaurs
|
Dr. Ficus
|
Episode: "Germ Warfare"
|
1994
|
Mighty Max
|
Dr. Bob
|
Voice, episode: "Scorpio Rising"
|
1998
|
Pinky and the Brain
|
Sandy Dreckman
|
Voice, episode: "You'll Never Eat Food Pellets in This Town Again!"
|
Love Boat: The Next Wave
|
Rich
|
Episode: "Affairs to Remember"
|
2000
|
Family Guy
|
Jim Dial
|
Voice, episode: "A Picture Is Worth $1,000 Bucks"
|
The Angry Beavers
|
Narrator
|
Voice, episode: "Canucks Amuck"
|
Batman Beyond
|
Stage
Gordon
|
Voice, episode: "Out of the Past"
|
2002
|
Ally McBeal
|
Charlie Fish
|
Episode: "What I'll Never Do for Love Again"
|
The Zeta Project
|
Pat Jensen
|
Voice, episode: "On the Wire"
|
Film
[
edit
]
Video games
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Charles Kimbrough"
. Movies & TV Dept.
The New York Times
. 2008. Archived from
the original
on February 18, 2008.
- ^
Sylvia
Archived
May 30, 2015, at the
Wayback Machine
Internet Off-Broadway Database, accessed August 1, 2015
- ^
Turgeon, Jessica (June 20, 2012).
"
'Harvey' hops its way to Broadway this summer"
.
TicketNews
. Retrieved
October 18,
2021
.
- ^
Ausiello, Michael (August 5, 2018).
"Murphy Brown Boss Focusing Revival 'Through Prism of the Press,' Reveals [Spoiler] Will Return for Arc"
.
TVLine
. Retrieved
September 28,
2018
.
- ^
Grimes, William (May 24, 2016).
"Beth Howland, accident prone waitress from the sitcom Alice dies at 74"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
May 25,
2016
.
- ^
Williams, Alex (February 5, 2023).
"Charles Kimbrough, Actor Best Known for 'Murphy Brown,' Dies at 86"
.
The New York Times
.
ISSN
0362-4331
. Retrieved
February 7,
2023
.
- ^
Williams, Alex (February 5, 2023).
"Charles Kimbrough, Actor Best Known for 'Murphy Brown,' Dies at 86"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
February 5,
2023
.
External links
[
edit
]
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International
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National
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Artists
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