James Olson
Known for Acting · 73 credits
- Born
- 1930-10-08
- Died
- 2022-04-17
- Place of birth
- Evanston, Illinois, USA
Biography
James Olson (October 8, 1930 – April 17, 2022) was an American actor.
From 1952 until 1954, he was a military policeman in the United States Army. He performed stage work in and around Chicago before his 1956 film debut in The Sharkfighters.
His Broadway credits include Of Love Remembered (1967), Slapstick Tragedy (1966), The Three Sisters (1964), The Chinese Prime Minister (1964), Romulus (1962), J.B. (1958), The Sin of Pat Muldoon (1957), and The Young and Beautiful (1955). He starred alongside Joanne Woodward in the Academy Award nominee for Best Picture Rachel, Rachel in 1968. He made numerous stage, feature film, and TV appearances from the mid-1950s until 1990, when he retired.
On television, Olson portrayed Mickey Mantle in The Life of Mickey Mantle. His other TV appearances included guest roles on scores of shows, including episodes of Kraft Television Theatre; Ironside; Murder, She Wrote; Little House on the Prairie; Hawaii Five-O; Battlestar Galactica; Lou Grant; The Bionic Woman; Wonder Woman; Mannix; Bonanza; Have Gun-Will Travel; Marcus Welby, M.D.; Police Woman; Barnaby Jones; The New Land; Columbo; Maude; The Virginian; The Streets of San Francisco; and Cannon. Description above from the Wikipedia article James Olson (actor), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
TV Shows (37)
Columbo
1971
as Paul Rifkin
Murder, She Wrote
1984
as Clarence La Rue
Little House on the Prairie
1974
as Reverend Jacob Danforth
Bonanza
1959
as Vance
Robert Montgomery Presents
1950
as Capt. Dicer
Hawaii Five-O
1968
as Mariss / Stoner / Bernie Brown / Travis Marshall / Dr. Kenneth Ames
Have Gun, Will Travel
1957
Ironside
1967
as Marvin Bosner
Mannix
1967
as Donald Jordan
American Playhouse
1982
as Jack Canon
Maude
1972
as Sen. Bob Myers
Jake and the Fatman
1987
The F.B.I.
1965
as Sheriff Bill Temple / George Breen / Carl Slovich
Route 66
1960
Cannon
1971
Gunsmoke
1955
as Bede Stalcup
Barnaby Jones
1973
as Randall Stone
Police Woman
1974
The Bionic Woman
1976
Medical Center
1969
as Dave Toland
The Rookies
1972
McCloud
1970
McMillan & Wife
1971
as W.T. Knox
Matt Houston
1982
The Streets of San Francisco
1972
as Dr. Jonas Rabb
Battlestar Galactica
1978
as Thane
Police Story
1973
Harry O
1974
Wonder Woman
1975
as Wotan
Lancer
1968
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951
as General George A. Custer
Project U.F.O.
1978
The Runaways
1978
The New Land
1974
The Family Man
1990
San Francisco International Airport
1970
as Professor Theodore Tragis
Kung Fu
1972
as Damion
Movies (36)
Commando
1985
as Major General Franklin Kirby
The Andromeda Strain
1971
as Dr. Mark Hall
Amityville II: The Possession
1982
as Father Adamsky
Manhunter
1974
as Walt Hovis
The Mafu Cage
1978
as David
Ragtime
1981
as Father
The Stalking Moon
1968
as Cavalry Officer (uncredited)
Moon Zero Two
1969
as Capt. William H. Kemp
Rachel, Rachel
1968
as Nick Kazlik
Someone I Touched
1975
as Sam Hyatt
The Groundstar Conspiracy
1972
as Senator Stanton
North Beach and Rawhide
1985
as Bill Cassidy
The Strange One
1957
as Roger Gatt
Incident on a Dark Street
1973
as Joe Dubbs
The Spell
1977
as Glenn
Crescendo
1970
as Georges Ryman / Jacques Ryman
Strange New World
1975
as Surgeon
An Enemy of the People
1966
Man on the Outside
1975
as Gerald Griffin
Rachel River
1989
as Jack Canon
The Sex Symbol
1974
as Calvin Bernard
Paper Man
1971
as Art Fletcher
One Police Plaza
1986
as Whitney Zangline
The Sharkfighters
1956
as Ens. Harold Duncan
The Three Sisters
1966
as Baron Tuzenbach
Wild Rovers
1971
as Joe Billings
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
1974
as McShane
The Family Nobody Wanted
1975
as Carl Doss
The Court-Martial of George Armstrong Custer
1977
as Gen. George Armstrong Custer
The Silent Lovers
1980
as Victor Seastrom
The Parade
1984
as Andy Janacek
Cave-In!
1983
as Tom Arlen
Legend in Granite
1973
as Mas McGee
Law and Order
1976
as Insp. Ed Shea
Visions of Christmas Past
1979
No Prince for My Cinderella
1978
as Burt Williams
About James Olson
James Olson (October 8, 1930 – April 17, 2022) was an American actor. From 1952 until 1954, he was a military policeman in the United States Army. He performed stage work in and around Chicago before his 1956 film debut in The Sharkfighters. His Broadway credits include Of Love Remembered (1967), Slapstick Tragedy (1966), The Three Sisters (1964), The Chinese Prime Minister (1964), Romulus (1962), J.B. (1958), The Sin of Pat Muldoon (1957), and The Young and Beautiful (1955). He starred alongside Joanne Woodward in the Academy Award nominee fo… With 73 credits spanning from 1950 to 1990, James Olson has appeared in 36 films and 37 TV shows.
Fans searching for James Olson movies, James Olson filmography, or the latest projects starring James Olson can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular James Olson Movies
- Commando (1985) — as Major General Franklin Kirby
- The Andromeda Strain (1971) — as Dr. Mark Hall
- Amityville II: The Possession (1982) — as Father Adamsky
- Manhunter (1974) — as Walt Hovis
- The Mafu Cage (1978) — as David
Where to Watch James Olson Films
Most James Olson movies and series are available to stream on Bowood.TV in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring James Olson, check our movies catalogue and browse page.