Paul Gleason

Paul Xavier Gleason (May 4, 1939 – May 27, 2006) was an American film and television actor. He was known for his roles on television series such as All My Children and films such as The Breakfast Club, Trading Places, and Die Hard.

Gleason was born on May 4, 1939, in Jersey City, New Jersey,^[2] the son of Eleanor (née Doyle), a registered nurse, and George L. Gleason, a restaurateur, professional boxer, iron worker, and roofing manufacturer.^[1] Gleason was raised in Miami Beach, Florida. At age 16, he ran away from home and hitchhiked across the east coast, sleeping on beaches and playing baseball.^[2] He attended North Miami High School and Florida State University, where he played football with Burt Reynolds.^[3] He signed a professional baseball contract with the Cleveland Indians, but played just briefly in two minor league seasons between 1959 and 1960.^[4]

In 1960, a West Coast trip led to an introduction to sitcom icon Ozzie Nelson, which, in turn, led to an appearance on Ozzie and Harriet (per Nelson's habit of hiring athletes for guest spots on the show). Suddenly, acting was an option, and an increasingly attractive one, given Gleason's failing baseball career. He moved to New York City, eventually joining The Actors Studio,^[5][6] where he would study for four years before moving to Los Angeles.^[7]

Gleason starred in many movies, often as an antagonistic figure, and became well-known initially as Dr. David Thornton on All My Children, playing the role from 1976 to 1978. He then portrayed Capt. Ernest "Tex" Lee in the 1979 television miniseries Ike. He guest-starred in "The Trouble with Harry" and "Fire", Columbo and two episodes of The A-Team. Additionally, Gleason played the villainous Clarence Beeks, the Duke brothers' security consultant and fixer, in the 1983 comedy Trading Places starring Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy.

Gleason played the disciplinarian Vice Principal Richard Vernon, in the 1985 coming-of-age film The Breakfast Club opposite many members of the Brat Pack. The film has been noted as one of the most prominent and well-remembered of its genre,^[8] and many reviews praised Gleason's performance as the vice principal who was frequently at odds with members of the titular group, particularly Judd Nelson's John Bender. In an on-set interview, Gleason spoke at length about the skill of the teenage actors he worked with, adding that he believed he "could never have been as good at [their] age."^[9] He also described the finale of the film, during which Vernon reads an essay from the Club dismantling his assertions about them, as a satori for the character, stating that Vernon is "supposed to realize something about the fact that he has let these kids down, and that he really hasn't understood them."^[9]

He played similar characters in the 1988 film Johnny Be Good (as a high school football coach), the 2002 film Van Wilder (as an antagonistic professor), and on several episodes of the TV sitcom Boy Meets World (as a university dean). He directly parodied his Breakfast Club role in the 2000 A-Teens music video for "Dancing Queen" and in the 2001 comedy film Not Another Teen Movie. In 2006, The Breakfast Club received a special citation at the MTV Movie Awards, honoring the film's continued influence; Gleason and several other members of the cast were present to accept the award.^[10] When Gleason passed the same year, his NPR obituary referred to his turn as Vernon, referring to Gleason as "a 'principal' screen presence."^[10]

Gleason was known to Star Wars fans for his role as Jeremitt Towani in the 1985 made-for-TV film Ewoks: The Battle for Endor. In 1988, Gleason played Deputy Police Chief Dwayne T. Robinson in the Bruce Willis action film, Die Hard. In his review of the film, critic Roger Ebert described Gleason's character as having "one purpose: to be consistently wrong at every step of the way," ^[11] and as a foil for Willis and Reginald VelJohnson.

In 2002, Gleason appeared in episodes of Dawson's Creek as Larry Newman, the sex-and-violence obsessed chief of a B movie studio. He appeared as a nonsensical judge in an episode of Drake & Josh, as well as in an episode of George Lopez as the brother of George's boss, a crazy old drunk. In 2005, he appeared as the Sheriff in the horror film Abominable. Gleason made a guest appearance on Friends as Jack, Phoebe's boss at an investment company, in the season 6 episode "The One That Could Have Been," and also appeared in one episode of Seinfeld, as the man ultimately responsible for George Costanza (Jason Alexander) being hired by the New York Yankees. His final appearance before his death was in an independent film called The Book of Caleb.

Gleason, in addition to his acting career, participated in many celebrity charity golf events each year, and was known to mingle with fans and sign autographs during these golf tournaments. Shortly before his death, he also published a book of poetry.^[10] During his Minor League Baseball career, he also struck up a friendship with Ted Williams, which he later discussed in the book Ted Williams: A Tribute, published in 1997.^[12] Actor Jimmy Hawkins, a friend of Gleason's stated after his passing that "he always had great stories to tell."^[10]

From 1971 to 1978, he was married to actress Candy Moore; they had one daughter, Shannon. From 1995 until his death, he was married to Susan Kehl; they had one daughter, Kaitlin. At the time of his passing, he also had a granddaughter.^[10]

Gleason died on May 27, 2006 at a Burbank, California hospital from pleural mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lung connected with asbestos, which he is thought to have contracted from asbestos exposure on building sites while working for his father as a teenager. Gleason was 67 years old.^[2] He is buried near the southeast corner of the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Westwood, Los Angeles.

• Voisin, Scott, "Character Kings: Hollywood's Familiar Faces Discuss the Art & Business of Acting." BearManor Media, 2009. ISBN 978-1-59393-342-5.

• Paul Gleason at IMDb
• Paul Gleason at the TCM Movie Database
• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• Paul Gleason at Find a Grave