ACTOR · BORN 1929 · DIED 2015
Richard Dysart
- Born
- 30 March 1929
- Died
- 5 April 2015
16 archived facts 3 topics 1 source Last reviewed Sep 2026
All facts (16)
- #001
Richard Dysart was the only actor to appear in every episode of L. A. Law (1986).
- #002
Richard Dysart was a mentor and friend to Jill Eikenberry, Michael Tucker, Corbin Bernsen, Jimmy Smits, Susan Dey and Blair Underwood.
- #003
The scene in which L. A. Law's Leland is discovered in bed with his nemesis Rosalind was ranked the 38th greatest moment on television by EGG magazine in its March 1991 issue.
- #004
Richard Dysart enjoyed dogs, writing, art, cooking, fitness, backpacking and swimming in the ocean. He was a certified open-water diver.
- #005
In 1990 he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Law degree.
- #006
He earned a master's degree in Speech Communication from Emerson College.
- #007
His third wife was the artist Kathryn Jacobi.
- #008
He had a son named Arie.
- #009
The scene in which L. A. Law's Leland McKenzie, the patriarchal founder of a successful law firm, is discovered in bed with his chief enemy/rival Rosalind Shays (played by Diana Muldaur) was rated the 38th greatest moment on television in an issue of EGG magazine. He won one Emmy Award and received three further nominations for his role as McKenzie on L. A. Law. He and Muldaur were also friends off camera.
- #010
He was a member of the Phi Alpha Tau fraternity, based at Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts.
- #011
While growing up in the Kennebac Valley in Maine, he worked at a local radio station.
- #012
He played President Harry S. Truman twice, in The Winds of War (1988) and Day One (1989).
- #013
In addition to playing Harry Truman twice, he appeared in the film "Truman" in the role of Henry L. Stimson.
- #014
He played J. Edgar Hoover twice, in "Panther" and "Marilyn & Bobby: Her Final Years."
- #015
He played Dwight Eisenhower twice, in "Churchill and the Generals" and "The Last Days of Patton."
- #016
He appeared in three films selected by the Library of Congress for the National Film Registry as "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: The Hospital (1971), Being There (1979) and The Thing (1982).
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