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James Olson

Cast & creator

James Olson

1930-10-08 (died at 91) Evanston, Illinois, USAIMDb

Best known for Columbo, Bonanza, Murder, She Wrote

James Olson (October 8, 1930 – April 17, 2022) was an American actor. From 1952 until 1954, he was a military policeman in the United States Army. He performed stage work in and around Chicago before his 1956 film debut in The Sharkfighters. His Broadway credits include Of Love Remembered (1967), Slapstick Tragedy (1966), The Three Sisters (1964), The Chinese Prime Minister (1964), Romulus (1962), J.B. (1958), The Sin of Pat Muldoon (1957), and The Young and Beautiful (1955). He starred alongside Joanne Woodward in the Academy Award nominee for Best Picture Rachel, Rachel in 1968. He made numerous stage, feature film, and TV appearances from the mid-1950s until 1990, when he retired. On television, Olson portrayed Mickey Mantle in The Life of Mickey Mantle. His other TV appearances included guest roles on scores of shows, including episodes of Kraft Television Theatre; Ironside; Murder, She Wrote; Little House on the Prairie; Hawaii Five-O; Battlestar Galactica; Lou Grant; The Bionic Woman; Wonder Woman; Mannix; Bonanza; Have Gun-Will Travel; Marcus Welby, M.D.; Police Woman; Barnaby Jones; The New Land; Columbo; Maude; The Virginian; The Streets of San Francisco; and Cannon. Description above from the Wikipedia article James Olson (actor), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Movies

36

film credits

Series

46

television credits

Career

82

1950–1990 · acting roles

Credit score

6.6

average across scored titles

Signature credits

Known for

Ordered by popularity

Columbo

Columbo

Paul Rifkin · 1971

Bonanza

Bonanza

Vance · 1959

Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote

Clarence La Rue · 1984

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O

Mariss · 1969

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O

Stoner · 1969

Across film & television

Filmography (82)

Search filmography

Showing 82 of 82 credits

Columbo

Columbo

Paul Rifkin

Bonanza

Bonanza

Vance

Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote

Clarence La Rue

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O

Mariss

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O

Stoner

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O

Bernie Brown

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O

Travis Marshall

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O

Dr. Kenneth Ames

American Playhouse

American Playhouse

Jack Canon

Mannix

Mannix

Mannix

Mannix

Donald Jordan

Little House on the Prairie

Little House on the Prairie

Reverend Jacob Danforth

Ironside

Ironside

Ironside

Ironside

Marvin Bosner

Have Gun, Will Travel

Have Gun, Will Travel

Cannon

Cannon

Robert Montgomery Presents

Robert Montgomery Presents

Capt. Dicer

Jake and the Fatman

Jake and the Fatman

The F.B.I.

The F.B.I.

Sheriff Bill Temple

The F.B.I.

The F.B.I.

George Breen

The F.B.I.

The F.B.I.

Carl Slovich

Route 66

Route 66

Barnaby Jones

Barnaby Jones

Randall Stone

Police Woman

Police Woman

Medical Center

Medical Center

Dave Toland

The Rookies

The Rookies

Gunsmoke

Gunsmoke

Bede Stalcup

The Streets of San Francisco

The Streets of San Francisco

The Streets of San Francisco

The Streets of San Francisco

Dr. Jonas Rabb

McCloud

McCloud

Matt Houston

Matt Houston

The Bionic Woman

The Bionic Woman

Harry O

Harry O

Police Story

Police Story

Battlestar Galactica

Battlestar Galactica

Thane

Maude

Maude

Sen. Bob Myers

Wonder Woman

Wonder Woman

Wotan

McMillan & Wife

McMillan & Wife

W.T. Knox

Lancer

Lancer

Commando

Commando

Major General Franklin Kirby

Project U.F.O.

Project U.F.O.

Hallmark Hall of Fame

Hallmark Hall of Fame

General George A. Custer

The Mafu Cage

The Mafu Cage

David

The Andromeda Strain

The Andromeda Strain

Dr. Mark Hall

Amityville II: The Possession

Amityville II: The Possession

Father Adamsky

The Family Man

The Family Man

The Runaways

The Runaways

San Francisco International Airport

San Francisco International Airport

Professor Theodore Tragis

Ragtime

Ragtime

Father

The Stalking Moon

The Stalking Moon

Cavalry Officer (uncredited)

The New Land

Wild Rovers

Wild Rovers

Joe Billings

North Beach and Rawhide

North Beach and Rawhide

Bill Cassidy

Incident on a Dark Street

Incident on a Dark Street

Joe Dubbs

Kung Fu

Kung Fu

Damion

Rachel, Rachel

Rachel, Rachel

Nick Kazlik

Moon Zero Two

Moon Zero Two

Capt. William H. Kemp

Manhunter

Manhunter

Walt Hovis

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

McShane

Visions of Christmas Past

Visions of Christmas Past

The Groundstar Conspiracy

The Groundstar Conspiracy

Senator Stanton

Man on the Outside

Man on the Outside

Gerald Griffin

The Sex Symbol

The Sex Symbol

Calvin Bernard

The Court-Martial of George Armstrong Custer

The Court-Martial of George Armstrong Custer

Gen. George Armstrong Custer

Law and Order

Law and Order

Insp. Ed Shea

No Prince for My Cinderella

No Prince for My Cinderella

Burt Williams

The Three Sisters

The Three Sisters

Baron Tuzenbach

The Strange One

The Strange One

Roger Gatt

Crescendo

Crescendo

Georges Ryman / Jacques Ryman

The Family Nobody Wanted

The Family Nobody Wanted

Carl Doss

Someone I Touched

Someone I Touched

Sam Hyatt

An Enemy of the People

An Enemy of the People

Strange New World

Strange New World

Surgeon

Cave-In!

Cave-In!

Tom Arlen

Rachel River

Rachel River

Jack Canon

The Parade

The Parade

Andy Janacek

The Sharkfighters

The Sharkfighters

Ens. Harold Duncan

The Spell

The Spell

Glenn

Paper Man

Paper Man

Art Fletcher

One Police Plaza

One Police Plaza

Whitney Zangline

Legend in Granite

Mas McGee

The Silent Lovers

The Silent Lovers

Victor Seastrom