Michael Ontkean

Michael Leonard Ontkean (born 24 January 1946) is a Canadian retired actor.[1] Born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, Ontkean relocated to the United States to attend the University of New Hampshire on a hockey scholarship before pursuing a career in acting in the early 1970s.

Michael Ontkean
Ontkean in The Rookies (1973)
Born
Michael Leonard Ontkean

(1946-01-24) 24 January 1946
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Alma materUniversity of New Hampshire
OccupationActor
Years active1955–2011
Spouse(s)
    Frances E. Knight
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1971⁠–⁠1980)​
      Jamie Smith-Jackson
      ​
      ​
      (m. 1987⁠–⁠2019)​
        Susan Sennett Nash
        ​
        (m. 2019)​
        Children2

        He initially came to prominence portraying Officer Willie Gillis on the crime drama series The Rookies from 1972 to 1974, followed by lead roles in the hockey sports comedy film Slap Shot (1977) and the romantic comedy Willie & Phil (1980). In 1982, he had a starring role opposite Harry Hamlin and Kate Jackson in the drama Making Love, in which he portrayed a married man who comes to terms with his homosexuality. Ontkean continued to appear in films, such as Clara's Heart (1988) and Postcards from the Edge (1990) before being cast as Sheriff Harry S. Truman on David Lynch's Twin Peaks (1990–1991), the role for which he is probably best known.

        Early life

        Ontkean was born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, the son of Muriel (née Cooper), an actress, and Leonard Ontkean, a boxer and actor.[2] He was a child actor in Vancouver, appearing on the Canadian television series Hudson's Bay (1959).[3] His family later relocated to Toronto, where he attended St. Michael's Choir School and Holy Rosary Catholic School before attending St. Michael's College School. He grew up playing hockey and he earned a hockey scholarship to the University of New Hampshire, a Division I program playing in the ECAC. In his three years on the varsity program, Ontkean scored 63 goals and 111 points in 85 games played.[4] He led the team in goal scoring his junior year with 30 goals, and was second behind fellow Canadian Louis Frigon his senior year.

        Career

        Ontkean began in Hollywood by guest starring in The Partridge Family in 1971, and he was a television guest player on such shows as Ironside and Longstreet, but his break was in the ABC series The Rookies (1972–1976),[1] in which he played Officer Willie Gillis for the first two seasons. Ontkean's hockey skill played a large role in his landing the role of Ned Braden in Slap Shot (1977),[1] as he performed all of his on-ice shots himself. In 1979, he appeared in the first episode of Tales of the Unexpected.

        Other early movie roles included Necromancy (1972) with Orson Welles; Voices (1979) with Amy Irving; Willie & Phil (1980) with Margot Kidder; The Blood of Others (1984); The Allnighter and Maid to Order (both 1987) (the latter with Ally Sheedy); Clara's Heart (1988) with Whoopi Goldberg, and Bye Bye Blues (1989).[5]

        Making Love

        Making Love (1982) is about a married man who discovers his homosexuality. Ontkean was not the director's first choice for the film: Arthur Hiller had previously approached Tom Berenger, Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, William Hurt and Peter Strauss to play the lead, before finally approaching Ontkean. According to Hiller, the reaction of most actors was to tell him not to even consider them for the role.[6] The film reunited Ontkean with Kate Jackson; the two had previously co-starred together in The Rookies. Many years later, Ontkean tried to prevent clips from the film from being included in The Celluloid Closet, a 1996 documentary about LGBT characters in film, but he was unsuccessful.[7]

        Twin Peaks

        Ontkean appeared as Sheriff Harry S. Truman in David Lynch and Mark Frost's Twin Peaks (1990).[8] He filmed scenes for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me but, like many others from the original TV series, his scenes were deleted from the final film.[9]

        After Twin Peaks

        Ontkean subsequently appeared in many film and television productions including Kids Don't Tell (1985) with JoBeth Williams; The Right of the People (1986); In Defense of a Married Man (1990); In a Child's Name (1991) with Valerie Bertinelli; Legacy of Lies (1992); Rapture and Vendetta II: The New Mafia (both 1993); Swann: A Mystery and The Stepford Husbands (both 1996); Summer of the Monkeys and A Chance of Snow (both 1998; the latter again with JoBeth Williams); Bear with Me (2000), and Mrs. Ashboro's Cat (2003).

        Ontkean had a recurring role on Fox's short-lived series North Shore in 2004, and also appeared in the 2008 comedy TV show Sophie.

        Final Role To Date: The Descendants

        He had a very small role in the 2011 film The Descendants, which was his last role to date before he decided to retire from acting.[10] The movie was filmed in Hawaii, where he lives.

        Twin Peaks: The Return

        Ontkean was approached to reprise his role as Sheriff Truman for the 2017 revival of Twin Peaks. At first, Ontkean was excited about returning to the role, and enlisted Twin Peaks authority Brad Dukes to help him find the jacket which his character once wore on the show. Dukes located a suitable replica, bought it and sent it to Ontkean. However, in 2015, Ontkean officially dropped out of the Twin Peaks revival, for reasons which were never made public. Dukes recalled: "We last spoke in August and he informed me he wasn’t going to Washington after all. I told him I was heartbroken to hear that. Aside from being heartbroken, I am puzzled. Twin Peaks is not Twin Peaks without Michael Ontkean as Sheriff Harry S. Truman."[11]

        Ontkean's role was replaced by Robert Forster, playing Sheriff Truman's brother Frank. Forster was initially David Lynch's first choice to play Harry Truman in 1990.[12]

        Personal life

        Michael was married to Jamie Smith-Jackson, an actress and design director and owner of Jamie Jackson Design. The couple later divorced; they have two daughters, Jenna Millman and Sadie Sapphire Ontkean.[13][14][15]

        Michael Ontkean remarried, this time to Susan Sennett Nash, and the two now live together in Hawaii.

        Filmography

        Film
        Year Title Role Notes
        1971The Peace KillersJeff
        1972NecromancyFrank Brandon
        1972Pickup on 101Chuck
        1972Girls on the RoadWill
        1977Slap ShotNed Braden
        1979VoicesDrew Rothman
        1980Willie & PhilWillie Kaufman
        1982Making LoveZach
        1984The Blood of OthersJean
        1984Just the Way You ArePeter Nichols
        1985Kids Don't TellJohn RyanTelevision film
        1986The Right of the PeopleChristopher WellsTelevision film
        1987The AllnighterMickey
        1987Maid to OrderNick McGuire
        1987Street JusticeCurt Flynn
        1988Clara's HeartBill Hart
        1989Bye Bye BluesTeddy Harper
        1989Cold FrontDerek McKenzie
        1990Postcards from the EdgeRobert Munch
        1990In Defense of a Married ManRobertTelevision film
        1992Legacy of LiesZach ResnickTelevision film
        1992Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with MeSheriff Harry S. TrumanScenes deleted. Later featured in Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces.
        1993RaptureJeff LiskerTelevision film
        1993Whose Child Is This? The War for Baby JessicaJan DeBoerTelevision film
        1993Bride of Violence 2Hank ParnellTelevision film
        1996The Man Next DoorEli CooleyTelevision film
        1996The Stepford HusbandsMick DavisonTelevision film
        1996SwannStephen
        1998Summer of the MonkeysJohn Lee
        1998A Chance of SnowMatthew ParkerTelevision film
        1998Nico the UnicornTom Gentry
        1999Just a Little Harmless SexJeff
        2000Bear with MeGreg Bradley
        2000Green SailsJohn ScottTelevision film
        2002A Killing SpringTom KeatonTelevision film
        2004Ghost CatWes MerrittTelevision film
        2011The DescendantsCousin MiloFinal Role (to date)
        2014Twin Peaks: The Missing PiecesSheriff Harry S. TrumanScenes originally filmed for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992).

        Television
        Year Title Role Notes
        1959Hudson's BayJeremy WarrantEpisode: "Pierre's Three Evils"
        1970IronsideManEpisode: "Noel's Gonna Fly"
        1970Dan AugustMike FoschkeEpisode: "The Soldier"
        1971Walt Disney's Wonderful World of ColorAlcideEpisode: "The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou"
        1971The Partridge FamilyLester BraddockEpisode: "Not With My Sister, You Don't!"
        1971LongstreetDavid De CarieEpisode: "So, Who's Fred Hornbeck?"
        1972–1974The RookiesOfficer Willie Gillis47 episodes
        1979Tales of the UnexpectedTommyEpisode: "The Man from the South"
        1989The HitchhikerGordon BrooksEpisode: "Square Deal"
        1990–1991Twin PeaksSheriff Harry S. Truman30 episodes
        1991In a Child's NameKenneth TaylorMiniseries
        1994Family AlbumWard ThayerMiniseries
        1999PSI Factor: Chronicles of the ParanormalJohn Doe / Wesley AddisonEpisode: "John Doe"
        1997–2000The Outer LimitsDr. Field / Dr. Charles McCamber2 episodes
        2004–2005North ShoreGordon Matthews4 episodes
        2008SophieVictor Hearst3 episodes (Final television role to date)

        Awards and nominations
        Year Award Category Production Result
        1990 Genie Award Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Bye Bye Blues Nominated
        1991 Soap Opera Digest Award Outstanding Hero: Prime Time Twin Peaks Nominated

        References
        1. "Michael Ontkean". The New York Times.
        2. "Michael Ontkean Biography". Filmreference.
        3. "CTVA Canada – "Hudson's Bay" (1959–60)". Archived from the original on 25 December 2010. Retrieved 11 December 2010.
        4. "Michael Ontkean profile". HockeyDB. 28 January 2019.
        5. Holden, Stephen (24 August 1990). "Review/Film; Balladlike Wartime Tale Of Maturing". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
        6. Rutledge, Leigh (1996). The Book of Lists. Boston: Alyson Publications. p. 135. ISBN 978-1555833596.
        7. Baker, Robin; Hanson, Briony (1996). Celluloid Icons. London, UK: Channel 4. p. 17. ISBN 978-1851441723.
        8. O'Connor, John J. (6 April 1990). "TV WEEKEND; A Skewed Vision of a Small Town In 'Twin Peaks'". The New York Times.
        9. "'Twin Peaks': Watch 'Fire Walk With Me' lost scenes before entire series hits Blu-ray -- EXCLUSIVE". Entertainment Weekly. 15 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
        10. "Michael Ontkean Filmography". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
        11. https://welcometotwinpeaks.com/news/michael-ontkean-not-new-twin-peaks/
        12. Testa, Yohana (4 May 2017). "Who's Missing from This Spine-Tingling Twin Peaks Teaser?". Vanity Fair.
        13. "Mildred Smith". Marshall Democrat-News. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
        14. "Jamie Jackson Design Director and Owner". Jamie Jackson Design. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
        15. "FASHION I". Sadie Sapphire. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
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