Paul Burke (actor)

Paul Burke
1965 photo of Burke as Joe Gallagher in 12 O'Clock High
Born	Paul Raymond Burke[1] (1926-07-21)July 21, 1926 New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Died	September 13, 2009(2009-09-13) (aged 83) Palm Springs, California, U.S.
Alma mater	Pasadena Playhouse
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1951–1990
Spouses	Peggy Pryor (born Alice Louise Wikan) ​ ​ (m. 1946⁠–⁠1972)​ Lyn Peters ​ (m. 1979⁠–⁠2009)​
Children	4
Relatives	Alia Shawkat (granddaughter)

Paul Raymond Burke (July 21, 1926 – September 13, 2009)^[2] was an American actor, best known for his lead roles in two 1960s ABC television series, Naked City and 12 O'Clock High. He was twice nominated for an Emmy Award for his portrayal of New York Police Department detective Adam Flint in Naked City.^[3]

Life and career

Burke was born in New Orleans, the son of Santa Maria (née Palermo) and Martin Joseph "Marty" Burke, a boxer who fought Gene Tunney and later owned a restaurant and nightclub known as Marty Burke's in the New Orleans French Quarter.^[4]

After training at the Pasadena Playhouse, Burke's film career began with a small role in the movie Golden Girl. Early in his career, Burke guest-starred in the syndicated series Highway Patrol and Men of Annapolis. In 1956–57, Burke was cast as Dr. Noah McCann in Noah's Ark, a weekly program produced by Jack Webb which aired on NBC, the story of a pair of dedicated veterinarians. Victor Rodman played the older colleague, Dr. Sam Rinehart.

After Five Fingers Burke was cast in the lead role of the police show Naked City, in which he appeared as Adam Flint from 1960 to 1963. Burke then appeared in the starring role of Captain (later Maj., then Col.) Joe Gallagher on 12 O'Clock High between 1964 and 1967, during which time he met his wife, Lyn. The 12 O'Clock High role was Burke's last lead television role.

In 1967, Burke starred in the film Valley of the Dolls as Lyon Burke, the young lawyer who befriended all three female stars and had a tempestuous relationship with Anne Welles. He also played a police officer who pursued a bank robber played by Steve McQueen in The Thomas Crown Affair.^[3] He appeared in supporting roles in a number of television series, including recurring roles in Dynasty from 1982 to 1988 and in Tom Selleck's Magnum, P.I., from 1981 to 1985 as Rear Admiral Hawkes. Burke also served as a television commercial spokesman for the electronics retailer RadioShack.

Racketeering charges

In 1989, Burke and Harry Connick Sr., the New Orleans district attorney, were indicted on racketeering charges for aiding and abetting a gambling operation by returning gambling records to an arrested gambler.^[5] They were both acquitted of the charges.^[6]

Later years and death

Burke is the grandfather of actress Alia Shawkat, whose mother is Burke's daughter, Dina. He retired from acting in the early 1990s. Suffering from leukemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, he died in 2009 at his home in Palm Springs, California, aged 83.^[3] His second wife, Lyn Peters, died in Palm Springs on September 10, 2013, at the age of 72.^[7]

Filmography

Film
Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref
1951	Call Me Mister	Soldier	Uncredited
1951	Golden Girl	Bandit	Uncredited
1951	Fixed Bayonets!	Doggie	Uncredited
1952	Francis Goes to West Point	Sergeant Swazey	Uncredited
1952	Fearless Fagan	Pvt. Hawkins	Uncredited
1953	South Sea Woman	Ensign at court-martial
1953	Three Sailors and a Girl	Actor	Uncredited
1954	Return from the Sea	Gunnery Officer
1955	Spy Chasers	Michael	Uncredited
1955	Francis in the Navy	Tate
1956	Screaming Eagles	Cpl. Dreef
1957	The Disembodied	Tom Maxwell
1964	Della	Barney Stafford	Alternative title: Fatal Confinement
1967	Valley of the Dolls	Lyon Burke
1968	The Thomas Crown Affair	Lt. Eddy Malone
1969	Daddy's Gone A-Hunting	Jack Byrnes
1969	Once You Kiss a Stranger	Jerry Marshall
1975	Psychic Killer	Lt. Jeff Morgan
1987	Maharlika	Bob Reynolds	Completed in 1970 International title: Guerilla Strike Force
Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref
1955	Big Town	Gardiner	Episode: "The Blood Profiteer"
	Navy Log	Sparks	Episode: "Sky Pilot"
	Highway Patrol	Patrolman Halsey	Episode: "Prison Break"
	Stage 7	Tommy	Episode: "Fox Hunt"
1955-1956	‘’Adventures of Superman’’	Moxy	Episode: “Superman Week and The Phantom Ring’’
1957	Men of Annapolis	Wesley Edmont	Episode: "Seawall"
1958	Tales of Wells Fargo	Bud Crawford	Episode: "The Killer"
1959	The Millionaire	Bill Nellis	Episode: "The Karl Miller Story"
1960	Hawaiian Eye	Brad Finley	Episode: "Second Fiddle"
	Hotel de Paree	Tad Frisbee	Episode: "Sundance and the Long Trek"
	Wanted: Dead or Alive	Daniel Trenner	Episode: "The Trial"
1960-1963	Naked City	Detective Adam Flint	99 episodes
1963	The Lieutenant	Captain Kenneth Thomson	Episode: "Captain Thomson"
1964	The Great Adventure	Captain Richard Pratt	Episode: "The Special Courage of Captain Pratt"
	Combat!	Sgt. O'Neill	Episode: "Point of View"
	Slattery's People	Dr. Robert Harrison	Episode: "Question: What is a Genius Worth This Week?"
1964-1967	12 O'Clock High	Colonel Joseph Anson Gallagher	48 episodes
1970	Crowhaven Farm	Ben Porter	Television movie
1972	The Rookies	Neil Montgomery	Television movie
	Lieutenant Schuster's Wife	Lt. Lou Schuster	Television movie	[8]
1973	Thriller	Brad Hunter	Episode: “An Echo of Theresa”
	The New Perry Mason	Herbert Newton	Episode: "The Case of the Murdered Murderer"
	Shaft	Elliot Williamson	Episode: "The Kidnapping"
1974	Hawkins	Fred Hyatt	Episode: "Candidate for Murder"
	Police Woman	Joe Fenner	Episode: "The End Game"
	Harry O	Philip Ballinger	Episode: "Ballinger's Choice"
	Mannix	Penn Anderson	Episode: "The Survivor Who Wasn't"
1975	McMillan & Wife	Les Walker	Episode: "Night Train to L.A."
1976	Petrocelli	John Fleming	Episode: "Any Number Can Die"
	Starsky & Hutch	Lt. Ted Cameron	Episodes: "The Las Vegas Strangler" (Parts 1 & 2)
1977	Little Ladies of the Night	Frank Atkins	Television movie
1978	Wild and Wooly	Tobias Singleton	Television movie
	What Really Happened to the Class of '65?	McDonald	Episode: "Mr. Potential"
1978	Fantasy Island	Bill Fredricks	Episode: Lady Of The Evening/The Racer
1979	Beach Patrol	Wes Dobbs	Television movie
	The Littlest Hobo	Andy McClelland	Episode: "The Defector"
1980	Charlie's Angels	Clifford Burke	Episode: "Of Ghosts and Angels"
	Trapper John, M.D.	Dr. Malcolm	Episode: "Hot Line"
1981	Vega$	Curtis Green	Episode: "The Killing"
1982-1988	Dynasty	Neal McVane	23 episodes
1983	T. J. Hooker	Capt. Frank Medavoy	Episode: "Blue Murder"
1984	The Red-Light Sting	Brockelhurst	Television movie
	Santa Barbara	C.C. Capwell	21 episodes
1985	Finder of Lost Loves	Richard Foster	Episode: "Deadly Silence"
	Murder, She Wrote	Herbert Upton	Episode: "Murder in the Afternoon"
1986	Hot Shots	Nicholas Broderick	13 episodes
1988	Cagney & Lacey	Winston Prentiss	Episode: "Yup"
1990	Columbo	Horace Sherwin	Episode: "Uneasy Lies the Crown" (final appearance)

References

1. U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947
2. "Paul Burke, New Orleans-born actor, dies". The Times-Picayune. September 13, 2009. Archived from the original on September 17, 2009. Retrieved September 13, 2009.
3. "Naked City actor Paul Burke dies", Laredo Morning Times, Laredo, Texas, September 14, 2009, p. 9A
4. Dennis, McLellan (September 15, 2009). "Paul Burke dies at 83; actor starred in gritty TV show 'Naked City'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 17, 2009.
5. "New Orleans Official Denies Aiding Gambler". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 22, 1989.
6. Fox, Margalit (September 16, 2009). "Paul Burke, Actor Who Starred in TV's 'Naked City,' Is Dead at 83". The New York Times. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
7. "Lyn Burke". New Orleans Times-Picayune. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
8. Lieutenant Schuster's Wife, Rotten Tomatoes, retrieved September 26, 2022

External links

• Paul Burke at IMDb
• "Star With a Wall Around Him," TV Guide, May 1962