Bert Freed
Bert Freed
Biography
​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.   Bert Freed (November 3, 1919 — August 2, 1994) was a prolific American character actor, voice over actor, and the first actor to portray "Detective Columbo" on television. Born and raised in The Bronx, New York, Freed began acting while attending Penn State University, and made his Broadway debut in 1942. Following World War II Army service in the European Theatre, he appeared in the Broadway musical The Day Before Spring in 1945 and dozens of television shows between 1947 and 1985. His film debut occurred, oddly enough, in a musical Carnegie Hall (1947). A prominent role was as the villainous Ryker in the television series Shane, in which Freed added a unique touch of realism by beginning the show clean-shaven and growing a beard from one week to the next, never shaving again through the season. Freed played Columbo in a live 1960 episode of the "Chevy Mystery Theatre" seven years before Peter Falk played the role. Thomas Mitchell also played the part on stage prior to Falk's version, which is probably where many of the eccentric Columbo traits originated; only a few were visible in Freed's straightforward interpretation, although the character as played by Freed is recognizably Columbo. He appeared (sometimes more than once) in television shows such as The Rifleman, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The Big Valley,The Virginian, Mannix, Barnaby Jones, Charlie's Angels, Then Came Bronson, Run For Your Life, Get Smart, The Lucy Show, Hogan's Heroes, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Dr. Kildare, Ben Casey, Perry Mason, Combat!, Petticoat Junction, The Outer Limits, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Route 66, Ironside, The Green Hornet, The Munsters, and many, many more. He directed one episode of T.H.E. Cat. Freed appeared as a racist club owner in No Way Out (1950), a gangster in Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town (1950), a Marine private in Halls of Montezuma (1951 film), an Army sergeant in Take the High Ground! (1953), the Police Chief in Invaders From Mars (1953), Sgt. Boulanger in Paths of Glory (1957), the hangman in Hang 'Em High (1968), Max's father in Wild in the Streets (1968), as Chief of Detectives in Madigan (1968), a homosexual prison guard in There Was a Crooked Man... (1970) and Bernard's father in Billy Jack (1971) in which he got "whumped" on the side of the face by Billy Jack's right foot "just for the hell of it." He retired from acting in 1986, and died of a heart attack in Canada in 1994 while on a fishing trip with his son. Description above from the Wikipedia article Bert Freed,  licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
140
Gender
Male
Birthday
1919-11-03 (105 years old)
Place of Birth
The Bronx, New York USA
Acting

1986

Are You My Mother? as Bert

1982

Knight Rider as Anthony Solan

1981

The Fall Guy as Not available

1980

Skag as Bishop

1979

Norma Rae as Sam Dakin

1978

Vega$ as Not available

1978

Till Death as Dr. Sawyer

1978

Barracuda as Jack

1977

In the Matter of Karen Ann Quinlan as Dr. Julius Korein

1977

Love and the Midnight Auto Supply as Mayor John Randolph

1976

Charlie's Angels as Stambler

1975

Bronk as Not available

1975

Death Scream as Det. Ross

1974

Kolchak: The Night Stalker as Capt. Akins

1974

Lincoln as Edwin Stanton

1974

Paper Moon as Not available

1973

Barnaby Jones as Det. Capt. Ben Wyatt

1973

Police Story as Not available

1973

Incident at Vichy as Marchand, A Businessman

1972

The Streets of San Francisco as Not available

1972

The Rookies as Not available

1972

The Sixth Sense as Not available

1971

Cannon as Not available

1971

Billy Jack as Mr. Stuart Posner

1971

Evel Knievel as Doc Kincaid

1970

McCloud as Not available

1970

The Andersonville Trial as Board of Military Judges

1970

Breakout as Fletcher

1969

Then Came Bronson as Editor Carson

1968

The Mod Squad as Not available

1968

The Outsider as Not available

1968

Lancer as Not available

1968

Hang 'em High as Schmidt

1968

Madigan as Chief of Detectives Hap Lynch

1968

Wild in the Streets as Max Jacob Flatow Sr.

1968

P.J. as Police Lieutenant

1967

Ironside as Not available

1967

The High Chaparral as Telford Burris

1967

Mannix as Not available

1967

The Guns of Will Sonnett as Not available

1966

Mission: Impossible as Leon Chandler

1966

Mission: Impossible as Gen. Brenner

1966

Tarzan as Not available

1966

The Green Hornet as Police Sgt. Bert Clark

1966

Shane as Rufe Ryker

1966

Nevada Smith as Quince

1966

The Swinger as Police Captain

1965

Hogan's Heroes as Maj. Bernsdorf

1965

The Big Valley as Judge Ben Coulter

1965

The Big Valley as Henry Marvin

1965

The Big Valley as Homer Roberts

1965

Run for Your Life as Sheriff Parsons

1965

Get Smart as Not available

1965

The Loner as Not available

1964

The Munsters as Not available

1964

Fate Is the Hunter as Dillon

1964

Shock Treatment as Frank Josephson

1963

Petticoat Junction as Detective Horton

1963

The Outer Limits as Joe Hayden

1963

Mr. Novak as Lorimer

1963

Arrest and Trial as Not available

1963

The Dakotas as Not available

1963

Twilight of Honor as Sheriff Buck Wheeler

1962

The Lucy Show as Miller

1962

Combat! as Sgt. Weber

1962

The Virginian as Milo Henderson

1962

The Virginian as Jason Ainsworth

1961

Ben Casey as Not available

1961

Dr. Kildare as Dr. Donald White

1961

Dr. Kildare as Director

1961

Target: The Corruptors! as Not available

1961

Cain's Hundred as Dave Reed

1960

Route 66 as Not available

1960

The Chevy Mystery Show as Lt. Columbo

1960

The Gazebo as Lt. Jenkins

1960

The Subterraneans as Bartender

1960

Why Must I Die as Adler

1959

The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis as Not available

1959

Adventures in Paradise as Michael Dannora

1959

Riverboat as Kester

1959

Law of the Plainsman as Benson

1959

Bourbon Street Beat as Not available

1959

The Detectives as Not available

1959

Johnny Staccato as Not available

1959

Tightrope as Not available

1958

The Rifleman as Not available

1958

Peter Gunn as Not available

1958

77 Sunset Strip as Not available

1958

Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse as Not available

1958

The Goddess as Lester Brackman

1958

The Plot to Kill Stalin as Sokolovsky

1957

Perry Mason as Ken Woodman

1957

Perry Mason as Harry Parker

1957

Perry Mason as Carl Holman

1957

Perry Mason as Joe Marshall

1957

The Thin Man as Not available

1957

Decoy as Lieutenant Rosenberg

1957

Paths of Glory as Sgt. Boulanger

1955

The Millionaire as M / Sgt. Matthew Brogan

1955

Alfred Hitchcock Presents as Capt. Harvey Ellison

1955

Gunsmoke as Al Clovis

1955

Gunsmoke as Chris Thornton

1955

The Desperate Hours as Tom Winston

1955

The Cobweb as Abe Irwin

1954

The Long, Long Trailer as Foreman

1954

Men of the Fighting Lady as Lt. (jg) Andrew Szymanski

1954

The Strike as Chick

1953

General Electric Theater as Mitch Green

1953

General Electric Theater as Armstrong

1953

Take the High Ground! as Sgt. Vince Opperman

1953

Invaders from Mars as Police Chief A.C. Barrows

1953

Tangier Incident as Kozad

1952

The Snows of Kilimanjaro as American Soldier (uncredited)

1952

The Atomic City as Emil Jablons

1951

Hallmark Hall of Fame as Pete Johnson

1951

Halls of Montezuma as Slattery

1951

Detective Story as Det. Dakis

1951

Red Mountain as Sgt. Randall

1951

The Company She Keeps as Smitty (plainclothesman)

1950

Where the Sidewalk Ends as Det. Sgt. Paul Klein

1950

No Way Out as Rocky Miller (uncredited)

1950

711 Ocean Drive as Steve Marshak (uncredited)

1950

Key to the City as Emmy's Husband

1950

Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town as Dutch (Third New York Henchman)

1948

The Philco Television Playhouse as Not available

1948

Studio One as Chick

1948

Studio One as Malone

1948

Studio One as Mike Jannis

1948

Studio One as Lt. Burke

1947

Boomerang! as Herron, a Man in Alley Mob
Crew

1966

T.H.E. Cat Director