Michael Fox Biography

Michael Fox (February 27, 1921 – June 1, 1996) was an American character actor who was in numerous movies and television roles. Some of his most famous recurring roles were as various autopsy physicians in Perry Mason, as Coroner George McLeod in Burke's Law, as Amos Fedders in Falcon Crest, and as Saul Feinberg in The Bold and the Beautiful. He is also notable for being the reason Michael J. Fox registered his name with a middle initial when he first joined the Screen Actors Guild (to differentiate his name from "Michael Fox").

Career

Michael Fox began acting in stage plays in southern California circa 1945. Through his stage endeavors, Fox met Harry Sauber who introduced him to Sam Katzman.

Two of his regular TV roles were as the coroner in the courtroom drama Perry Mason, and as Saul Feinberg on the CBS soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful from 1989-1996.

Among his earlier television work was the next-to-last episode of Adventures of Superman, as the ringleader of a criminal gang that tried to conduct a Perils of Pauline-style series of murder attempts on the show's various protagonists. He also appeared in several episodes on the 1955-1957 television series Science Fiction Theatre.

The Dr. Fox Effect

Fox also made an important contribution to the scholarly field of education, as the actor who portrayed "Dr. Myron L. Fox" in a study that would give rise to the Dr. Fox effect, and also participated in the generation of additional materials in at least one follow-up study. In the initial demonstration of this effect, Fox delivered an engaging and expressive lecture that contained no meaningful content, and yet, the audience rated Fox just as highly as a genuine professor's lecture. The Dr. Fox effect has been often cited as a critique of the validity of student evaluations of teaching.

Personal life and death

He was married to Hannah, an actress he met while acting in the stage play The Dybbuk, in a Los Angeles area theatre run by Lou Smuckler, father-in-law of Lee J. Cobb. Borrowing a car from Dorothy Gish, Fox drove Hannah to a judge and married her in between the matinee and evening performances of The Story of Mary Surratt.

Fox died of pneumonia June 1, 1996, in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California.

Acting roles

Non-recurring multiple roles in television series

• Science Fiction Theatre

Beyond (1955) Radar Man

The Brain of John Emerson (1955) Dr. Franklin

The Frozen Sound (1955) Dr. Gordine

The Flicker (1956) Dr. James Kincaid

The Missing Waveband (1956) Dr. Maxwell

Jupitron (1956) Dr. Norstad

Signals from the Moon (1956) Dr. Edwards

• The Ford Television Theatre

The Payoff (1956) Lieutenant Bernard Shuman

Catch at Straws (1956) Jed Hartan

Front Page Father (1956) Malcolm Slade

Miller's Millions (1957) Judge Patterson

• Wanted: Dead or Alive

Reunion for a Revenge (1959) The Quaker

The Hostage (1959) Bartender Tom

• Alcoa Theatre

30 Pieces of Silver (1959) Mr. Hammeker

The Observer (1960) Father Holze

• The Rifleman

Letter of the Law (1959) Abel

The Trade (1959) Trager

Miss Millie (1960) Jim Oxford

The Hangman (1960) Joe Hannah

• Richard Diamond, Private Detective

Marineland Mystery (1959) Paul Schofield

Coat of Arms (1960)

The Popskull (1960)

• The Twilight Zone

Nightmare as a Child (1960) Doctor

Mr. Dingle, the Strong (1961) Martian

Sounds and Silences (1964) Psychiatrist

• The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor

The Queen of Craven Point (1961) Lab Man

The Reason (1961) Andy

• The Untouchables

The Stryker Brothers (1962) Lieutenant Miller

Death for Sale (1961) Bradley

• The Dick Powell Show

Somebody's Waiting (1961)

The Big Day (1962) Phil

The Hook (1962)

The Legend (1962) Attorney

The Old Man and the City (1963)

• The Virginian

The Brazen Bell (1962) Prisoner Guard

No Drums, No Trumpets (1966) General Howard

The Price of Love (1969) Coroner

• Gunsmoke

Carter Caper (1963) Waiter

Wishbone (1966) Buffalo Hunter

The Raid: Part 1 (1966) Mr. Simms - Hotel Clerk

Hard Luck Henry (1967) Jed Walsh

• The Big Valley

Forty Rifles (1965) De Koven

The Iron Box (1966) MacGowan

Point and Counterpoint (1969) Jonathan Williams

• Honey West

A Matter of Wife and Death (1965) Lieutenant Kovacs

Come to Me, My Litigation Baby (1966) Mr. Strate

• Batman

Holy Rat Race (1966) Leo Gore

Smack in the Middle (1966) Inspector Basch

Hi Diddle Riddle (1966) Inspector Basch

• Lost in Space

Cave of the Wizards (1967) Alien on Computer Screen

The Ghost Planet (1966) Cybernetic Leader/Supreme Brain

• Ironside

A Very Cool Hot Car (1967) Technician

Beyond a Shadow (1969) Dr. Leonard Marcus

Death by the Numbers (1972) Dr. Albert Gold

• Hogan's Heroes

The Well (1969) Captain Ritter

It's Dynamite (1970) Berger

Get Fit or Go Fight (1970) Major Kimmel

• Quincy, M.E.

Jury Duty (1981) Dr. Feld

Cover-Up (1980) Fire Captain

Singular appearances in television series

• The Mickey Rooney Show - Pilot (1954) Julie's Father
• Hopalong Cassidy - Grubstake (1954) Brock Fain
• The Lone Wolf - The Runaway Story (1954) Lt. Joe Neeley
• Celebrity Playhouse - The Hoax (1955)
• Warner Brothers Presents - Hand of Fate (1955) Sasha
• The Man Behind the Badge - The Case of the Red Letter Day (1955) Stranger
• My Little Margie - Corpus Delecti (1955) Roland Roberts
• Cavalcade of America - Monument to a Young Man (1956) George Wooley
• Tombstone Territory - Desert Survival (1957) Warren
• Highway Patrol - Efficiency Secretary (1957) Dusty Dunn
• The Thin Man - Come Back Darling Asta (1957) Police Lt. Heldon
• Meet McGraw - The Fighter (1957) Sorrento
• Undercurrent - Front Page Father (1957) Malcolm Slade
• Alfred Hitchcock Presents - Crackpot (1957) Carpenter
• Dr. Christian - The Alien (1957) Rausch
• The Walter Winchell File - Muggy Night on Times Square: File #39 (1958) Harris
• The Adventures of Jim Bowie - The Puma (1958) Captain
• Adventures of Superman - The Perils of Superman (1958) The Lead Masked Criminal
• Harbor Command - Four to Die (1958)
• Man with a Camera - The Bride (1959) Father Ehrlich
• The David Niven Show - The Last Room (1959)
• The Grand Jury - Accident by Appointment (1959)
• Shotgun Slade - Charcoal Bullet (1960) Doctor Miller
• Johnny Ringo - Soft Cargo (1960) Clint Logan
• The DuPont Show with June Allyson - Slip of the Tongue (1960) Harvey
• Dennis the Menace - Dennis and the Rare Coin (1960) Hathaway
• 87th Precinct - Lady Killer (1961) Dr. Ben Danlela
• Miami Undercover - The Big Frame (1961) Chandler
• Dante - Dial D for Dante (1961) Joe Conway
• Empire - Long Past, Long Remembered (1962) Chester Arkins
• Target: The Corruptors! - License to Steal (1962)
• Follow the Sun - A Choice of Weapons (1962) Ernie Glazer
• Breaking Point - And James Was a Very Small Snail (1963)
• Wagon Train - The Molly Kincaid Story (1963) Al the Bartender
• I'm Dickens, He's Fenster - Is There a Doctor in the House? (1963) Dr. Levy
• The Rogues - Hugger-Mugger, by the Sea (1964) Hogan
• My Favorite Martian - Who Am I? (1964) Dr. Gilbert
• The New Twilight Zone -Examination Day/A Message from Charity (1985) Tom Carter
• Kraft Suspense Theatre - Kill No More (1965) Howard Link
• Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea - Deadly Invasion (1966) General Haines

• Felony Squad - Prologue to Murder (1966) Dr. Kilmer
• Mission: Impossible - Operation Heart (1967) Dr. Levya
• Laredo - The Seventh Day (1967) Bartender
• The Ghost & Mrs. Muir - The Ghost Hunter (1968) Prof. Maxwell
• The Wild Wild West - The Night of the Death-Maker (1968) Gillespie
• The Flying Nun - A Fish Story (1968) Ogden
• The Bold Ones: The Senator - The Day the Lion Died (1970) Kellerman
• The Governor & J.J. - Charley's Back in Town (1970) Abel Mellon
• The Partners - New Faces (1971) Dr. Mitchell
• The Mod Squad - And a Little Child Shall Bleed Them (1971) Doctor
• The Doris Day Show - A Fine Romance (1971) Capt. Mallory
• The Bold Ones: The New Doctors - An Inalienable Right to Die (1972) Carl Hedge
• The Rookies - The Good Die Young (1972) Dr. Parkman
• Columbo - Etude in Black (1972) Dr. Benson
• Temperatures Rising - Good Luck, Leftkowitz (1972) General
• O'Hara, U.S. Treasury - Operation: Dorias (1972) Dr. Julian
• Chase - The Garbage Man (1973) Franco
• Emergency! - Inheritance Tax (1973) Marshall
• Shaft - The Killing (1973) Judge Graves
• Kolchak: The Night Stalker - The Energy Eater (1974) Frank Wesley
• Lucas Tanner - Cheers (1974) Dr. Wells
• The Rockford Files - Just by Accident (1975) The Announcer
• Gemini Man - Night Train to Dallas (1976) Conductor
• Charlie's Angels - Angels in the Wings (1977) Austin Wells
• Fantasy Island - Seance/Treasure (1979) Mr. McCloud
• Concrete Cowboys - Episode #1.1 (1981) The Deacon
• Buck Rogers in the 25th Century - Time of the Hawk (1981) High Judge
• Voyagers! - The Travels of Marco... and Friends (1982) Isaac Wolfstein
• Hunter - Pen Pals (1984) Judge
• Dallas - Fools Rush In (1984)
• Simon & Simon - The Skull of Nostradamus (1985) Convention Official
• St. Elsewhere - Tears of a Clown (1985)
• Knight Rider - Custom Made Killer (1985) Phil
• Comedy Factory - Man About Town (1986) Man in Museum
• MacGyver - Every Time She Smiles (1986) Bulgarian Officer
• Cagney & Lacey - Right to Remain Silent (1987) Nat Weinreich
• TV 101 - The Last Temptation of Checker: Part 1 (1989) Jack Gregory
• The Hogan Family - The Franklin Family (1990) Jerry Grundig
• Bodies of Evidence - Eleven Grains of Sand (1993) Earl Stern
• ER - Blizzard (1994) Mr. Bozinsky
• NYPD Blue - Torah! Torah! Torah! (1995) Rabbi Rosenthal
• Perry Mason - The Case of the Artful Dodger Autopsy Surgeon

Feature-length films

• The Pathfinder (1952) Narrator
• Voodoo Tiger (1952) Karl Werner, aka Heinrich Schultz
• Last Train from Bombay (1952) Capt. Tamil
• Blackhawk (1952) Mr. Case/The Leader
• Without Warning! (1952) Cab co Dispatcher
• Killer Ape (1953) The Medical Officer
• Slaves of Babylon (1953) Narrator
• Sky Commando (1953) Major Scott
• Run for the Hills (1953) Phineas Cragg
• The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953) ER Doctor (also dialogue director)
• The Lost Planet (1953) Dr. Ernst Grood
• Siren of Bagdad (1953) Telar
• Serpent of the Nile (1953) Octavius
• The Glass Wall (1953) Inspector Toomey
• The Magnetic Monster (1953) Dr. Serny (also dialogue director)
• The Great Adventures of Captain Kidd (1953) Elias Smith
• The Silver Chalice (1954) Slave
• Riding with Buffalo Bill (1954) King Carney
• Naked Alibi (1954) Round Man
• Rogue Cop (1954) Rudy
• Down Three Dark Streets (1954) Paper Plant Superintendent
• Gog (1954) Dr. Hubertus (also dialogue director)
• The Iron Glove (1954) Opening Narrator
• Charge of the Lancers (1954) Opening Narrator
• Riders to the Stars (1954) Dr. Klinger the Shrink
• Running Wild (1955) Delmar Graves
• My Sister Eileen (1955) Shakespearean actor
• The Big Knife (1955) Prize Fight Announcer
• The Scarlet Coat (1955) Major Russell
• The Adventures of Captain Africa (1955) Prime Minister
• Conquest of Space (1955) Elsbach
• Crashout (1955) (dialogue director)
• Cha-Cha-Cha Boom! (1956) Frank
• Kiss Them for Me (1957) War Correspondent
• Plunder Road (1957) Smog Officer/Narrator (also Asst to Producer)

• The Tijuana Story (1957) .Reuben Galindo
• The Girl in the Kremlin (1957) Igor Smetka
• Top Secret Affair (1957) Reporter Lotzie
• Machine-Gun Kelly (1958) Detective Clinton
• A Nice Little Bank That Should Be Robbed (1958) Detective
• War of the Satellites (1958) Jason ibn Akad
• Let's Make Love (1960) Actor auditioning for Clement role
• Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) Motorcycle cop at beach
• The Interns (1962) Dr. Greenberg
• The New Interns (1964) Dr. Arthur Hellman, Psychiatrist
• The Misadventures of Merlin Jones (1964) Kohner, Lie Detector Operator
• A Tiger Walks (1964) Television Interviewer
• Billie (1965) Ray Case, Reporter
• Angel's Flight (1965) Jake the Bartender
• Now You See It, Now You Don't (1968) Inspector Delon
• The Legend of Lylah Clare (1968) Announcer
• Seven in Darkness (1969) The Pilot
• Bloody Mama (1970) Dr. Roth
• The Dunwich Horror (1970) Dr. Raskin
• If Tomorrow Comes (1971) Judge
• The Judge and Jake Wyler(1972) Doctor Simon
• Two for the Money (1972) Hospital Administrator
• The Missiles of October (1974) Soviet Marshal
• Young Frankenstein (1974) Helga's Father
• The Longest Yard (1974) Announcer
• Collision Course: Truman vs. MacArthur (1976) Admiral Sherman
• Dempsey (1983) Judge Dooling
• The Malibu Bikini Shop (1986) Uncle Dave
• Quicksilver (1986) Broker at Lunch
• Over the Top (1987) Jim Olson
• She Was Marked for Murder (1988)
• Skinheads (1989) Saul