Jack Riley

Jack Riley

Birthdate
December 30, 1935 (88 years old)
Place of Birth
Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Date of Death
August 19, 2016
Known For
Acting

Details

Birthdate
December 30, 1935 (88 years old)
Place of Birth
Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Date of Death
August 19, 2016
Known For
Acting

Biography

John Albert Riley Jr. (December 30, 1935 – August 19, 2016) was an American actor, comedian and writer. He was known for playing Elliot Carlin, a chronic psychology client of the main character on The Bob Newhart Show, and for voicing Stu Pickles, one of the parents in the animated Rugrats franchise.

Riley was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Agnes C. Riley (née Corrigan) and John Albert Riley. After attending Saint Ignatius High School and John Carroll University, he served in the U.S. Army.

After being discharged, Riley became a popular radio personality in Cleveland, along with his radio partner and "straight man" Jeff Baxter; The Baxter & Riley Show on WERE (1300 AM) featured not only music but comedy sketches and a slew of offbeat characters that Riley and Baxter voiced. Riley gave up the radio show in the mid-1960s and moved to Los Angeles, where his Cleveland friend Tim Conway helped him obtain work writing comedy sketches, which later led to acting opportunities.

First a semi-regular in the cast of the 1960s sitcom Occasional Wife, a short-lived show on NBC in which he played Wally Frick, Riley was perhaps most famous for playing Elliot Carlin, the neurotic, sour, and selfish patient on The Bob Newhart Show 1972–1978. In 1973, he was cast as Gomez Addams in The Addams Family Fun-House, then in 1979, he starred in ABC's holiday telefilm The Halloween That Almost Wasn't (a.k.a. The Night Dracula Saved The World) as Warren the Werewolf (Wolf Man) of Budapest. Riley then, in 1980, appeared in a comedy special for HBO called The Wild Wacky Wonderful World of Winter. He was a regular cast member in The Tim Conway Show, a comedy-variety show that aired on CBS from March 1980 through late summer 1981, acting in sketch comedy in each episode. In 1985, he reprised his Bob Newhart Show role of Elliot Carlin on St. Elsewhere, and did so again in a 1987 episode of ALF.

Among his other TV credits are multiple appearances on such shows as Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (parodying Lyndon Johnson), M*A*S*H, Barney Miller, Hogan's Heroes, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, One Day at a Time, Gomer Pyle, Diff'rent Strokes, and Night Court. He was also a favorite of Mel Brooks, appearing in several of his films: High Anxiety (1977), History of the World: Part I (1981), To Be or Not to Be (1983), and (cameo only) Spaceballs (1987).

Riley often provided voiceovers for television and radio commercials, most notably in spots for Country Crock margarine. He also voiced the character "P.C. Modem, the computer genius" in radio commercials for CompUSA that aired in the 1990s. In the 1990s and early 2000s, Riley was known for voicing Stu Pickles (father of the main protagonist Tommy) in the animated series Rugrats. The franchise consisted of the TV series, the spin-off All Grown Up! and the film trilogy.

He continued to make guest appearances during the 1990s in popular sitcoms, showing up in episodes of Seinfeld, Son of the Beach, Friends, Coach, The Drew Carey Show, That '70s Show, and, in a gag appearance, as an unnamed but obvious Mr. Carlin in a 1988 episode of Newhart. He made a cameo appearance on the November 23, 2013, episode of Saturday Night Live, as a subway passenger during the sketch "Matchbox 3". That episode would be his final acting role.

Jack Riley's LGBTQ+ Titles

Boogie Nights
Boogie Nights
Lawyer

Acting (118)

2009
Silent Laughter: The Reel Inspirations of 'Silent Movie' as Self
2009
The Garfield Show as Ghost Cat (voice) (1 episode)
2007
Avenging Angel as Elder
2006
Room 6 as James Brewster
2005
Rugrats: Tales from the Crib: Snow White as Stu (voice)
2003
Rugrats Go Wild as Stuart 'Stu' Pickles (voice)
2003
Burl's as Gym Instructor
2003
All Grown Up! (1 episode)
2003
All Grown Up! as Stu Pickles (voice) (5 episodes)
2001
Rugrats: All Growed Up as Stu Pickles (voice)
2000
Rugrats in Paris: The Movie as Stu Pickles (voice)
2000
Yes, Dear as Mr. Shipley (1 episode)
2000
Son of the Beach (10 episodes)
1999
Oh, Grow Up (1 episode)
1998
The Rugrats Movie as Stuart 'Stu' Pickles (voice)
1998
That '70s Show as Old Man Shinsky (1 episode)
1998
Chairman of the Board as Condom Boss
1997
Boogie Nights as Lawyer
1997
Working as Chaplain (1 episode)
1997
Mike Hammer, Private Eye (1 episode)
1997
George & Leo (1 episode)
1996
A Rugrats Chanukah as Stu Pickles (voice)
1995
Theodore Rex as Alaric
1995
The Drew Carey Show as Mr. Jones (1 episode)
1994
Touched by an Angel as Leo (1 episode)
1994
A Rugrats Passover as Stu Pickles (voice)
1993
Dave's World as Guy (1 episode)
1993
A Dangerous Woman as Bandleader
1992
The Player as Jack Riley
1991
The Bob Newhart Show 19th Anniversary Special as Elliot Carlin
1991
Rugrats as Stu Pickles (voice) (322 episodes)
1991
Harry and the Hendersons as Leonard (1 episode)
1989
Family Matters (1 episode)
1989
Seinfeld as Rider (1 episode)
1989
C.H.U.D. II: Bud the Chud as Wade
1989
Coach as Oliver (1 episode)
1989
Gleaming the Cube as Homeowner
1988
Portrait of a White Marriage as Roy Bloomer
1988
Payback as Coroner
1987
Rented Lips as Herb the Auditor
1987
Spaceballs as TV Newsman
1987
Married... with Children as Wendell (1 episode)
1987
Roxie (6 episodes)
1987
Mathnet as Mr. Dwight Ledbetter (1 episode)
1986
Throb (1 episode)
1986
Blacke's Magic (1 episode)
1986
The History of White People in America: Volume II as Scientist
1985
Washingtoon (12 episodes)
1985
The History of White People in America as Scientist
1985
First The Egg as Mr. White
1985
Lots of Luck as Marvin
1984
Night Patrol as Doctor Ziegler
1984
Charles in Charge as Professor Kleeman (1 episode)
1984
The Boy Who Left Home to Find Out About the Shivers as Sexton / Deacon
1984
Punky Brewster as Snipes (1 episode)
1984
Night Court as Beepo the Clown (2 episodes)
1984
Night Court as Dr. Flick (3 episodes)
1984
Night Court as Emil Dutton (1 episode)
1984
Night Court as Jim Wimberly (1 episode)
1983
To Be or Not to Be as Dobish
1983
When Your Lover Leaves as Ralph
1982
Frances as Bob Barnes
1982
St. Elsewhere (1 episode)
1982
Newhart (1 episode)
1982
Family Ties as Earl Quigley (1 episode)
1982
Faerie Tale Theatre as Sexton / Deacon (1 episode)
1982
The Rules of Marriage as Herb Gallup
1982
Love in the Present Tense as Alex
1981
Simon & Simon (1 episode)
1981
History of the World: Part I as Stoned Soldier #2 - The Roman Empire
1980
Ladies Man (1 episode)
1980
The Tim Conway Show as Self (32 episodes)
1980
Marriage Is Alive and Well as Owen
1979
The Halloween That Almost Wasn't as Wolf Man
1979
Hart to Hart (1 episode)
1979
Butch and Sundance: The Early Days as Messenger
1978
Diff'rent Strokes as Mr. Crocker (5 episodes)
1978
Attack of the Killer Tomatoes! as Salesman
1978
Joe and Valerie as Ed Sweetzer (4 episodes)
1977
High Anxiety as The Desk Clerk
1977
The World's Greatest Lover as Projectionist
1977
The Love Boat (1 episode)
1977
The Love Boat as Miles Metcalf (1 episode)
1977
Eight Is Enough (1 episode)
1976
Alice (1 episode)
1976
Silent Movie as Executive
1975
Barney Miller as Frederick Clooney (1 episode)
1975
Barney Miller as Robert Lovell (1 episode)
1974
The Rockford Files as Adrian Lyman (1 episode)
1974
Police Woman as Joe (1 episode)
1974
Harry O (2 episodes)
1974
California Split as Second Bartender
1974
The Bank Shot as Agent Jackson
1974
The Bank Shot as Jackson
1974
Happy Days (1 episode)
1973
The Snoop Sisters as Ollie Robertson (1 episode)
1973
The Long Goodbye as Riley
1972
Kung Fu as Royal (1 episode)
1972
M*A*S*H as Capt. Kaplan (1 episode)
1972
The Bob Newhart Show (15 episodes)
1972
The Bob Newhart Show as Elliot Carlin (18 episodes)
1971
In Broad Daylight as Cab Driver #3 (uncredited)
1971
Getting Together (1 episode)
1971
Columbo as Director (1 episode)
1971
Cannon (1 episode)
1971
McCabe & Mrs. Miller as Riley Quinn
1970
The Mary Tyler Moore Show as Barry Barlow (1 episode)
1970
The Mary Tyler Moore Show as Eldon Colfax (1 episode)
1970
Catch-22 as Doctor
1967
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In as Guest Performer (26 episodes)
1967
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In as Self (2 episodes)
1967
The Flying Nun (1 episode)
1966
Occasional Wife (1 episode)
1965
I Dream of Jeannie as Frank (1 episode)
1965
Hogan's Heroes (2 episodes)
1965
Hogan's Heroes as Captain (1 episode)
1964
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (2 episodes)
1963
Days of Wine and Roses as Waiter (uncredited)