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George Dzundza
George Dzundza (/ˈzʊndzə/ ZUUND-zə;[1] born July 19, 1945)[2] is a retired[3] American actor. He is known for his varied work in film and on television, including The Deer Hunter (1978), Skokie (1981), No Way Out (1987), The Beast (1988), Impulse (1990), White Hunter Black Heart (also 1990), The Butcher's Wife (1991), Basic Instinct (1992), Crimson Tide (1995), Dangerous Minds (also 1995), and City by the Sea (2002). Dzundza's television roles include Sergeant Max Greevey on the first season of Law & Order (1990-91), Tom Grzelack on Hack (2002-03), Harold O'Malley on Grey's Anatomy (2005-07), and the voices of Arnold Wesker/The Ventriloquist and Perry White in the DC Animated Universe. He also starred on the short-lived sitcom Open All Night (1981). Along with the ensemble cast, Dzundza won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his performance in the Robert Altman film Streamers (1983). Early life and educationDzundza was born in Rosenheim, Germany, to Ukrainian father Roman Dzundza[4] and Polish mother Maria Humenecka, who respectively originated from Kalush and Lviv in what is now Ukraine. After the Nazis forced his parents into factory labor, Dzundza spent his early years living in displaced persons camps with them.[5][6] Dzundza's family moved to Amsterdam in 1949, then moved to the US in 1956, settling in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City.[7] He became a naturalized US citizen.[2] He attended Xavier High School and St. Johns University, and studied under Stella Adler and Harold Clurman.[8][9] CareerDzundza began acting in his freshman year of college at the insistence of another student.[10] However, his professional stage debut was in a 1973 New York Shakespeare Festival production of King Lear,[7] which was later aired as an episode of Great Performances. He starred in the Festival's 1973-74 national tour of That Championship Season.[11] He also starred in the Broadway productions The Ritz and Legend,[11] and in A Prayer for My Daughter at the Public Theatre.[12] In 1979 he played the role of Cully Sawyer in the horror film, Salem's Lot. Dzundza starred in a short-lived 1981 sitcom series Open All Night,[10] about the owner of a "Store 364" convenience store in Inglewood, California.[13] He portrayed American Nazi leader Frank Collin in the 1981 television film Skokie.[14] In 1983, he starred in Robert Altman's film Streamers, based on the David Rabe play of the same name.[15] The film's ensemble cast collectively won the Best Actor Award at the 40th Venice International Film Festival. In 1987, Dzundza played Sam Hesselman, a disabled man in a wheelchair, in No Way Out[16][8] and Commander Daskal in The Beast in 1988.[17] Other major film roles of his include The Deer Hunter,[15] Impulse,[15] White Hunter Black Heart, [15] The Butcher's Wife,[15] Basic Instinct,[15] Crimson Tide,[15] Dangerous Minds[15] and City by the Sea.[8] He was an original cast member of the NBC drama Law & Order,[15] playing NYPD Sergeant Max Greevey in the first season only. Dzundza left after the first season of the show.[18] His other acting work includes an appearance on The Waltons (1975),[15] and playing the Archie Bunker-like father in the short-lived Christina Applegate sitcom Jesse.[15] He voiced supervillain the Ventriloquist in Batman: The Animated Series,[15] and Perry White in Superman: The Animated Series.[15] In 2005, he played Anubis (aka "Jim") in the Stargate SG-1 episode "Threads".[15] Dzundza portrayed George O'Malley's father Harold on Grey's Anatomy.[15] Personal lifeDzundza has been married to Mary Jo Vermeulen since 1982.[9] They have three daughters and two grandchildren.[9][2] Now semi-retired, Dzundza resides in Astoria, Oregon, where he directs community and regional theatre productions.[3] FilmographyFilm
Television
Video games
Stage appearances
Awards and nominations
References
Notes
External links |
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