Darren McGavin

ActorWriterProducerDirector May 7 (died age 83) Spokane, Washington, U.S. 1945–2005 (60 year career)

5.9 avg rating

Biography

Darren McGavin (born William Lyle Richardson; May 7, 1922 – February 25, 2006) was an American actor best known for playing the title role in the television horror series Kolchak: The Night Stalker and his portrayal of the grumpy father given to bursts of profanity in the film A Christmas Story. He appeared as the tough-talking, funny detective in the 1950s television series Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer. From 1959-1961, McGavin starred in the NBC western series Riverboat, first with Burt Reynol…

Known For

Film

A Christmas Story

The Old Man

Film

Billy Madison

Brian Madison

Film

The Natural

Gus Sands (uncredited)

Film

Raw Deal

Chief Harry Shannon

Film

The Man with the Golden Arm

Louie

Film

Summertime

Eddie Yaeger

Film

Kolchak: The Night Stalker

Carl Kolchak

Film

Dead Heat

Dr. Ernest McNab

Filmography

Acting (158)

Movies (86)

Pros & Cons

1999

as Mr. Stanford

2.8

Christmas Unwrapped: The History of Christmas

1997

as Mr. Parker (archive footage)

Small Time

as Sam

Billy Madison

as Brian Madison

Derby

as Lester Corbett

A Perfect Stranger

as John Henry Phillips

4.5

Mysteries of the Ancient World

1994

The American Clock

1993

as Older Arthur Huntington

Mastergate

as Folsom Bunting

Perfect Harmony

as Mr. Hobbs

Happy Hell Night

as Henry Collins

Clara

as Albert Kroll

Blood and Concrete

1991

as Hank Dick

5.5

Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker

1991

as actor (archive footage) (uncredited)

7.7

Captain America

1990

as General Fleming

4.5

By Dawn's Early Light

as Condor

Child in the Night

as Os Winfield

Kojak: It's Always Something

1990

as Wainwright

6.0

Unclaimed Fortunes II

1990

as Host

Dead Heat

as Dr. Ernest McNab

Inherit the Wind

as E.K. Hornbeck

The Diamond Trap

as Chief Walter Vadney

5.5

Tales from the Hollywood Hills: Natica Jackson

as A. Z. Nathan

From the Hip

as Craig Duncan

Raw Deal

as Chief Harry Shannon

5.8

Turk 182!

1985

as Det. Kowalski

5.9

My Wicked, Wicked Ways: The Legend of Errol Flynn

1985

as Dr. Gerrit Koets

6.5

The Natural

1984

as Gus Sands (uncredited)

6.9

The Return of Marcus Welby, M.D.

1984

as Dr. David Jennings

The Baron and the Kid

1984

as Jack Beamer

A Christmas Story

as The Old Man

Firebird 2015 A.D.

as Red

Waikiki

as Capt. McGuire

Hangar 18

as Harry Forbes

The Martian Chronicles

1980

as Sam Parkhill

Ike

1979

as Gen. George S. Patton

Donovan's Kid

as Timothy Donovan

Love for Rent

as Coach John Martin

Zero to Sixty

as Michael Nolan

Hot Lead & Cold Feet

as Mayor Ragsdale

The Users

as Henry Waller

Airport '77

as Stan Buchek

Brinks: The Great Robbery

1976

as James McNally

Demon and the Mummy

as Carl Kolchak

Crackle of Death

as Carl Kolchak

No Deposit, No Return

1976

as Duke

6.2

Law and Order

1976

as Deputy Chief Brian O'Malley

B. Must Die

1975

as Pal Kovak

4.0

The Six Million Dollar Man

as Oliver Spencer

The Night Strangler

as Carl Kolchak

Here Comes the Judge

as Judge

The Night Stalker

as Carl Kolchak

Something Evil

as Paul Worden

The Rookies

as Sgt. Eddie Ryker

43: The Richard Petty Story

1972

as Lee Petty

6.5

Sam Cade

1972

Say Goodbye, Maggie Cole

1972

as Dr. Lou Grazzo

6.8

Banyon

1971

as Lieutenant Pete Cordova

Mooch Goes to Hollywood

1971

as Darren McGavin (uncredited)

Mrs. Pollifax — Spy

as Farrell

The Death of Me Yet

as Joe Chalk

The 48-Hour Mile

as David Ross

Berlin Affair

1970

as Paul Killian

Tribes

as Drake

The Challengers

as Jim McCabe

The Challenge

as Jacob Gallery

Anatomy of a Crime

as David Ross

Mission Mars

as Col. Mike Blaiswick

4.2

Boomerang, Dog of Many Talents

1968

as Barney B. Duncan

The Outsider

1967

as David Ross

6.0

African Gold

1965

as Mike Gregory

The Great Sioux Massacre

1965

as Captain Frederick William Benton

4.2

Bullet for a Badman

1964

as Sam Ward

6.2

Witchcraft: The Doll in Brambles

as Fred

Disneyland '59

as Self

The Case Against Brooklyn

1958

as Pete Harris

5.8

The Delicate Delinquent

as Mike Damon

Beau James

as Charley Hand

Summertime

as Eddie Yaeger

The Man with the Golden Arm

1955

as Louie

7.1

The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell

1955

as Capt. Russ Peters

6.8

A Word to the Wives...

as George Peters

Queen for a Day

as Dan

A Song to Remember

as Student (uncredited)

6.3

She Wouldn't Say Yes

1945

as The Kid - Soldier in Hospital (uncredited)

5.9

Your Next Job

1945

as Balancing hobbyist

Television (72)

Night Stalker

Millennium

as Henry Black

Gargoyles

as G.F. Benton/Dominic Dracon (voice)

Touched by an Angel

as George Zarko

Burke's Law

as Conrad Hill

The X-Files

as Agent Arthur Dales

Fallen Angels

as Old Man

Grace Under Fire

as Grace's Dad

Civil Wars

The Commish

Sisters

Around the World in 80 Days

as Benjamin Mudge

Murphy Brown

as Bill Brown

Monsters

Worlds Beyond

as Harry Hewart

Murder, She Wrote

as Martin Tremaine

Highway to Heaven

Tales from the Darkside

as Van Conway

The Hitchhiker

as Old Man

Small & Frye

Magnum, P.I.

as Buck Gibson

The Martian Chronicles

1980

as Sam Parkhill

6.9

Tales of the Unexpected

1979

as Sheriff Milt Singleton

6.7

Ike

1979

as Gen. George S. Patton

6.5

The Love Boat

1977

as Lawrence Evans

6.3

Kolchak: The Night Stalker

as Carl Kolchak

Police Story

The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts

as Self

The Evil Touch

Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law

as McClain

V.I.P. Schaukel

as Self

Love, American Style

as Corbett

Bracken's World

The Bold Ones: The Lawyers

The Name of the Game

as Jesse Gil McCray

The Outsider

as David Ross

Mannix

as Mark

Cimarron Strip

Custer

Mission: Impossible

as J. Richard Taggart

7.6

Felony Squad

1966

6.4

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

as Viktor Karmak

The Rogues

as Amos Champion

Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre

1963

as Franklin Carson

5.7

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

as Sheridan Westcott

The Virginian

as Mark Troxel

The Match Game

as Self

The Mike Douglas Show

1961

as Self

5.4

Dr. Kildare

1961

as Prof. Felix Holman

The Defenders

as Howard Potter

Ben Casey

Route 66

Stagecoach West

The Islanders

as Phil

Rawhide

as Jed Hadley

Riverboat

as Captain Grey Holden

6.2

Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer

as Mike Hammer

Tony Awards

as Self - Presenter

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

as Red Hillman

Gunsmoke

as Will Helmick

The Alcoa Hour

Climax!

as Walter

The Wonderful World of Disney

as John Jay Forrest

Omnibus

Death Valley Days

as Zacharias Gurney

Casey, Crime Photographer

1951

as Jack Casey

Tales of Tomorrow

1951

6.0

Robert Montgomery Presents

1950

as Joe Gillis

5.6

What's My Line?

1950

as Self - Mystery Guest

6.9

Suspense

1949

as Ted Larson

4.9

The Philco Television Playhouse

as Bill Starbuck

Studio One

as Will Sorrell

Crew (6)

Movies (2)

Zero to Sixty

1978

Screenplay

4.3

Happy Mother's Day, Love George

1973

Director

6.0

Television (4)

Kolchak: The Night Stalker

Producer

The Evil Touch

Director

Riverboat

Director

Buckskin

Director