Bruce Boxleitner

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox person Bruce William Boxleitner (born May 12, 1950)<ref name="UPI">Template:Cite news</ref> is an American actor and science fiction and suspense writer. He is known for his leading roles in the television series: How the West Was Won, Bring 'Em Back Alive, Scarecrow and Mrs. King (with Kate Jackson) and Babylon 5 (as John Sheridan in seasons 2–5, 1994–98). He is also known for his dual role as the characters Alan Bradley and Tron in the 1982 Walt Disney Pictures film Tron, a role which he reprised in the 2003 video game Tron 2.0, the 2006 Square-Enix/Disney crossover game Kingdom Hearts II, the 2010 film sequel, Tron: Legacy<ref name="tron">Template:Cite web</ref> and the animated series Tron: Uprising. He co-starred in most of the Gambler films with Kenny Rogers, where his character provided comic relief. He also voiced General Moss in the films AniMen: Triton Force and AniMen: The Galactic Battle.

Early life

Boxleitner was born on May 12, 1950, in Elgin, Illinois.<ref name="TV Guide">Template:Cite web</ref> He attended Prospect High School in Mount Prospect, Illinois, and the Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute of Chicago (now at DePaul University).Template:Citation needed

Career

Television

Template:BLP sources section Boxleitner is best known for his leading roles in the television series How the West Was Won, Bring 'Em Back Alive, Scarecrow and Mrs. King (with Kate Jackson and Beverly Garland), and Babylon 5 (as John Sheridan in seasons 2–5, 1994–98).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

He also starred in The Gambler (as "Billy Montana", alongside Kenny Rogers: 1980, 1983 and 1987) and in such television films as Judith Krantz's Till We Meet Again and Danielle Steel's Zoya. In 2005, he co-starred as Captain Martin Duvall in Young Blades. He has also starred in several films within the Babylon 5 universe, including Babylon 5: In the Beginning (TV, 1998), Babylon 5: Thirdspace (TV, 1998), Babylon 5: A Call to Arms (TV, 1999), and the direct-to-DVD Babylon 5: The Lost Tales (2007).

Boxleitner has appeared in many other TV shows, including an appearance in 1973 as Rick Welsh, a University of Minnesota Track Star, in the season four episode, "I Gave at the Office", of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Other appearances include Gunsmoke, including the last episode of its twenty-year run; Tales from the Crypt; Touched by an Angel; The Outer Limits and She Spies. In 1982, he played Chase Marshall in the TV film Bare Essence, with Genie Francis. He was a member of the cast of Heroes for seasons three and four, playing New York Governor Robert Malden in three episodes. He also appears on the television series Chuck as the father of Devon Woodcomb. He was in such made-for-television films as The Secret, Hope Ranch, Falling in Love with the Girl Next Door, Pandemic, Sharpshooter and Aces 'n' Eights.

Boxleitner was a guest-star on NCIS in the fall of 2010. He played Vice Admiral C. Clifford Chase, a high-ranking Navy official.<ref>Template:Cite web He reprised this role in the spring of 2017.</ref> Boxleitner also lends his voice to the animated version of his iconic character Tron in the animated series Tron: Uprising. The series premiered on Disney XD on June 7, 2012. He also reprises the character Alan Bradley/Tron from the films Tron and Tron: Legacy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> From 2013 to 2015, he played Bob Beldon, the owner of the local bed and breakfast, in the Hallmark Channel series Cedar Cove.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Boxleitner later recurred on Supergirl portraying Baker, the Vice-President of the United States who is later sworn in as the new President after Olivia Marsdin (Lynda Carter) is revealed as an extraterrestrial. He gained the role after Brent Spiner stepped down due to a scheduling conflict.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

From 2019, Boxleitner had a recurring role on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries series of films The Matchmaker Mysteries.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Film

Bruce Boxleitner at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con in July 2010

He has appeared in several theatrical films, including Tron (in which he played the title role) and The Baltimore Bullet (1980) with James Coburn. He reprised his role in the Tron sequel Tron: Legacy and in the video game Tron: Evolution which was released alongside the film Tron: Legacy, as he did for the sequel video game named Tron 2.0, and Disney/Square Enix crossover video game Kingdom Hearts II. Boxleitner also voiced Col. John Konrad in video game Spec Ops: The Line. He also starred as Confederate General James Longstreet in the 2003 film Gods and Generals. He provides the voice of Colin Barrow in the animated science fiction horror film Dead Space: Downfall, based on the video game Dead Space. Other films he has performed in include: Kuffs, The Babe, Brilliant, Snakehead Terror, Legion of the Dead, King of the Lost World, Shadows in Paradise and Transmorphers: Fall of Man.

In July 2015, Boxleitner said that he is done with the Tron franchise, as "it's been too up and down for me. I would rather not just keep going. I don't want to repeat my career anymore."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Modeling

From 1986 to 1989, Boxleitner appeared in advertisements for Estee Lauder's "Lauder For Men".

Novels

Boxleitner is the author of two science fiction novels with a Western setting, Frontier Earth (1999)<ref name="frontier_earth_hc">Template:Cite book</ref> and Searcher (2001).<ref name="frontier_earth_2">Template:Cite book</ref>

Audio books

Boxleitner played a major role in the audio dramatization of The Great Secret, part of the Golden Age of Fiction series by L. Ron Hubbard. He also played Captain Gavin Blaire in the unabridged version of World War Z.Template:Citation needed

Personal life

Boxleitner's first marriage was to American actress Kathryn Holcomb, who co-starred with him on How The West Was Won as his on-screen sister Laura. They had two sons together.

Boxleitner's second marriage was to American actress Melissa Gilbert. They have a son born in 1995.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Gilbert also guest-starred as Boxleitner's on-screen wife, Anna Sheridan, during Season 3 of Babylon 5.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On March 1, 2011, Gilbert announced that she and Bruce had separated after 16 years of marriage.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On August 25 of the same year, it was reported that Gilbert had filed for divorce.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

In 2003, Boxleitner was appointed to the Board of Governors of the National Space Society, a nonprofit, educational space advocacy organization founded by Dr. Wernher von Braun.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

File:Verena King, Bruce Boxleitner on RealTVfilms.jpg

Verena King and Boxleitner in 2015

He was friends with actress Beverly Garland for nearly 30 years. He met her on an episode of How The West Was Won, and later co-starred alongside her on Scarecrow & Mrs. King, though he had very few scenes with her. Then, in 1986, Boxleitner presented Garland the Golden Boot Award. After the cancellation of Scarecrow, Boxleitner remained close to Garland, contacting her consistently, until her death, on December 5, 2008. He said in an interview: "I used to keep up with Beverly Garland until she passed. There was actually a hotel named after her. She was such a trip. She was a great lady."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Bruce is currently married to publicist Verena King.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1975	Sixpack Annie	Bobby Joe
1980	The Baltimore Bullet	Billie Joe Robbins
1982	Tron	Alan Bradley / Tron
1990	Breakaway	Joey
1991	Diplomatic Immunity	Cole Hickel
1992	Kuffs	Officer Brad Kuffs
	The Babe	Joe "Jumpin' Joe" Dugan
1999	Free Fall	Mark Ettinger
2000	The Perfect Nanny	Dr. Robert Lewis
2001	Life in the Balance	Eric Johnson
2002	Contagion	President Howard
	The Only Witness	Agent Nicholas Preston
2003	Gods and Generals	Lieutenant General James Longstreet
2004	Brilliant	Dr. Dietrich
2005	Legion of the Dead	Sheriff Jones
	King of the Lost World	Lieutenant Challenger
2007	Babylon 5: The Lost Tales	President John J. Sheridan	Direct-to-video
2008	Dead Space: Downfall	Colin Barrow	Voice, direct-to-video
2009	Transmorphers: Fall of Man	Sheriff Hadley Ryan	Direct-to-video
2010	Shadows in Paradise	Captain Dyer
	AniMen: Triton Force	General Moss	Voice
	Tron: Legacy	Alan Bradley / Tron / Rinzler
2011	51	Colonel Martin
	Tron: The Next Day	Alan Bradley	Short film
2012	AniMen: The Galactic Battle	General Moss	Voice
2013	Silver Bells	Bruce Dalton	Direct-to-video
2018	The Oath	Vice President Hogan
2023	Babylon 5: The Road Home	John Sheridan	Voice, Direct-to-video<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
	Far Haven	Ben Watkins
2024	Space Command Redemption	General Joe Haldeman

Television films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1974	The Chadwick Family	Danny
1975	A Cry for Help	Richie Danko
1976	The Macahans	Luke Macahan
	Kiss Me...Kill Me	Douglas Lane
1977	Murder at the World Series	Cisco
1978	Happily Ever After	Jack
1980	Kenny Rogers as The Gambler	Billy Montana
1981	Fly Away Home	Carl Danton
1983	Kenny Rogers as the Gambler: The Adventure Continues	Billy Montana
	I Married Wyatt Earp	Wyatt Earp
1986	Passion Flower	Larry Janson
	Louis L'Amour's Down the Long Hills	Scott Collins
1987	Angel in Green	Captain William Wicker
	Kenny Rogers as the Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues	Billy Montana
1988	Red River	Matthew Garth
	The Town Bully	Robert Doniger
1989	From the Dead of Night	Peter Langford
	Road Raiders	Charlie Rhodes
1991	Murderous Vision	Detective Kyle Robeshaw
1992	The Secret	Patrick Dunmore
	Perfect Family	Allan Bodine
	Double Jeopardy	Jack Hart
1993	Flight from Justice	Michael Shafer
	House of Secrets	Dr. Frank Ravinel
1994	Gunsmoke: One Man's Justice	Davis Healy
	Wyatt Earp: Return to Tombstone	Sam - Sheriff of Cochise County
	Gambler V: Playing for Keeps	Billy Montana
1995	Danielle Steel's Zoya	Clayton Andrews
1998	Babylon 5: In the Beginning	Captain John J. Sheridan
	Babylon 5: Thirdspace
1999	Babylon 5: A Call to Arms
2002	Perilous	Judd Ross
	Hope Ranch	J.T. Hope
2003	Killer Flood: The Day the Dam Broke	Jordan Walker
2004	Snakehead Terror	Sheriff Patrick James
	They Are Among Us	Hugh
	Saving Emily	Gregory
2005	Detective	Ketledge
	A Killer Upstairs	Detective Bruning
2006	Falling in Love with the Girl Next Door	Frank Lucas
	Double Cross	James
	Mystery Woman: Wild West Mystery	Clint Lawson
2007	Pandemic	Kenneth Friedlander
	Sharpshooter	Sheriff Gardner
2008	Bone Eater	Sheriff Steve Evans
	Aces 'N' Eights	D.C. Cracker
2010	Lego Atlantis: The Movie	Captain Ace Speedman	Voice
2011	Love's Everlasting Courage	Lloyd Davis
2013	The Thanksgiving House	Parker Mather
2015	So You Said Yes	Nick Blanche
2016	Wedding Bells	Charlie Turner
	Double Mommy	Scott Davick
2017	Gourmet Detective: Eat, Drink, and Be Buried	Jim Ross
2018	The Christmas Contract	Tim Guidry
2019	Matchmaker Mysteries: A Killer Engagement	Nick Columba
	Holiday Date	Walter Miller
2020	Roux the Day: A Gourmet Detective Mystery	Jim Ross
	Matchmaker Mysteries: A Fatal Romance	Nick Columba
2021	Matchmaker Mysteries: The Art of the Kill
2024	Christmas Under the Northern Lights	Doug Barnes	Great American Family

Television series

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1973	The Mary Tyler Moore Show	Rick	Episode: "I Gave at the Office"
1974	Hawaii Five-O	Cam Farraday	Episode: "We Hang Our Own"
1975	Gunsmoke	Toby Hogue	Episode: "The Sharecroppers"
	Hawaii Five-O	Kevin Caulder	Episode: "And the Horse Jumped Over the Moon"
	Police Woman	Ed Krohl	Episode: "Paradise Mall"
1976	Baretta	Tom	Episode: "The Left Hand of the Devil"
	Hawaii Five-O	Paul Colburn	Episode: "The Capsule Kidnapping"
1976–1979	How the West Was Won	Luke Macahan	25 episodes
1979	The Last Convertible	George Virdon	3 episodes
1980	Wild Times	Vern Tyree	2 episodes
1981	East of Eden	Charles Trask	Episode: "Part One"
1982	Bare Essence	Chase Marshall	2 episodes
1982–1983	Bring 'Em Back Alive	Frank Buck	17 episodes
1983–1987	Scarecrow and Mrs. King	Lee "Scarecrow" Stetson	89 episodes
1989	Judith Krantz's Till We Meet Again	Jock Hampton	2 episodes
1991	Tales from the Crypt	Winton Robbins	Episode: "Top Billing"
1994	The Maharaja's Daughter	Patrick O'Riley	3 episodes
1994–1998	Babylon 5	Captain John J. Sheridan	87 episodes Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor on Television
1996	ABC Afterschool Special	Mr. Mahar	Episode: "Me and My Hormones"
1998	Touched by an Angel	Scott Tanner	Episode: "The Peacemaker"
1999	Dead Man's Gun	Frank Santee	Episode: "Bad Boys"
2000	The Outer Limits	Senator Wyndom Brody	Episode: "Decompression"
	Twice in a Lifetime	Ray Patterson / Dr. Goode	Episode: "Fallen Angel"
2003	She Spies	The Chairman	4 episodes
2005	Crossing Jordan	Foster Eldridge	Episode: "Family Affair"
	Commander in Chief	Tucker Baynes	Episode: "First Choice"
	Young Blades	Captain Martin Duvall	13 episodes
2006	American Dad!	Lee "Scarecrow" Stetson	Episode: "Tears of a Clooney"
2007	Cold Case	Huck Oberland	Episode: "The Good-Bye Room"
2008–2009	Chuck	Dr. Woody Woodcomb	2 episodes
	Heroes	Robert Malden	3 episodes
2010	NCIS	Vice Admiral C. Clifford Chase	Episode: "Broken Arrow"
2011	Chaos	Ray Bishop	Episode: "Glory Days"
2012	GCB	Burl Lourd	4 episodes
2012–2013	Tron: Uprising	Tron	Voice, 17 episodes
2013–2015	Cedar Cove	Bob Beldon	30 episodes
2017	NCIS	Vice Admiral C. Clifford Chase	Episode: "A Bowl of Cherries"
2018–2019	Supergirl	President Phillip Baker	10 episodes
2019	When Calls the Heart	Gentlemen Johnny Boone	Episode: "Hope is with the Heart"
2020	Prop Culture	Himself	Episode: "Tron"
2022	The Orville	President Alcuzan	3 episodes
2024	Blue Ridge	Robert 'Oak' Miller	2 episodes

Video games

Year	Title	Voice role	Notes
2003	Tron 2.0	Alan Bradley
2006	Kingdom Hearts II	Tron
2010	Tron: Evolution
2012	Spec Ops: The Line	Lieutenant Colonel John Konrad

External links

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