Hal Miller (actor)

Hal Miller
Miller during a vacation in 2005
Born
Harold Miller

(1935-08-25)August 25, 1935
New York City, U.S.
DiedAugust 30, 2017(2017-08-30) (aged 82)
New York City, U.S.
Occupations
  • Actor
  • painter
  • singer
  • lyricist
  • poet
Years active1966–2017
Spouse
Lynne Miller
​
(m. 1966)​
Children2
WebsiteHaroldMiller.com (archive)

Harold Miller (August 25, 1935 – August 30, 2017) was an American actor, painter, singer, lyricist and poet, who was the second actor to play Gordon Robinson on Sesame Street from 1972 to 1974, succeeding Matt Robinson.

Career

Miller at his home in 2010

Miller began his acting career in 1966 after he received his Actors' Equity Association card while working with Joseph Papp in Henry V and his Screen Actors Guild card in 1971 after being hired by Columbia Pictures. He appeared in the Lizzie Borden film Born in Flames and also in A Man Called Adam, as well as a Quinn Martin production in San Francisco. His other theatre credits includes Twelfth Night , Richard II and Narrow Road to the Deep North. He has also toured and appeared in a number of stage productions at the New York Shakespeare Festival.

In 1972, Miller was cast as Gordon on the children's television series Sesame Street, succeeding Matt Robinson. He played the role until 1974 when he made the decision to leave the show for mainstream acting. He followed this direction making two major appearances on Law & Order. He also played a minor role in a commercial for Bristol Myers Squibb and played Captain Countdown in several Nickelodeon commercial bumpers from 1995 to 1996.

Personal life and death

Miller was married to interior designer Lynne Miller. Together they have a son and a daughter. Their son Harold Miller Jr. appeared on Sesame Street with his father during the 1970s. In addition to acting, Miller was also a painter (represented by Saatchi), a singer, a lyricist, and a published poet.

As a singer, he recorded a song on an album for CBS Records.

In his spare time, Miller enjoyed traveling around the world performing and singing, extensively Europe, China, Paris, France, Germany, England, Ireland, Holland, Japan, Switzerland and India.

Miller died on August 30, 2017, at the age of 82.

Selected filmography

Film

Film credits
Year Title Role Notes
1966 A Man Called Adam Minor role
1975 If You Don't Stop It... You'll Go Blind!!! Unknown role
1975 Distance Jesse Horne
1983 Born in Flames Cop at Precinct

Television

Television credits
Year Title Role Notes
1972–1974 Sesame Street Gordon Robinson 19 episodes
1976 The Quest Private Hayes Episode: "The Seminole Negro Indian Scouts"
1992, 1996 Law & Order Judge Cyrus Metcalfe, Marcus Tate 2 episodes; final roles

Commercials

Commercial credits
Year Title Role Notes
1995–1996 Nickelodeon Captain Countdown

Theatre

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Harold, Miller. "Actor Harold Miller, Résumé". Actor Harold Miller. Film & Theatre Résumé. Archived from the original on February 27, 2009. Retrieved August 3, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Leslie Gourse (2000). Jim Henson. Aladdin Paperbacks. p. 124-129. ISBN 978-0-68-983398-4.
  3. 1 2 3 Educational Television: A Policy Critique and Guide for Developing Countries. Praeger. 1976. p. 215. ISBN 978-0-27-555510-8.
  4. 1 2 Rose Kohn Goldsen (1977). The Show and Tell Machine: How Television Works and Works You Over. Dial Press. p. 255.
  5. ↑ "Help Solve A 'Sesame Street' Mystery". CBS News. November 10, 2011.
  6. ↑ Harold, Miller. "Actor Harold Miller". Archived from the original on February 25, 2009. Retrieved August 3, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Harold Miller Artist". Westbeth.org.
  8. ↑ Rose, Mary (September 3, 2017). "Sad to have learned the passing of actor Hal Miller on August 30, 2017. He and Herb Gentry were great buddies, they would go up to Harlem together to enjoy some food and have some laughs. Both of them grew up in Harlem, but a generation apart! I took this photo in the mid-1990s at our painting studio on Fifth Avenue, Friendship. They first met in the elevator at the Chelsea Hotel in the 1980s".