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Demovictory9

(32,475 posts)
Fri Jun 17, 2022, 02:50 PM Jun 2022

character actor Philip Baker Hall dies at age 90 of emphysema (library cop on Seinfeld)



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https://www.military.com/off-duty/movies/2022/06/14/army-vet-philip-baker-hall-made-deep-impression-hollywood.html

Philip Baker Hall didn't make his first on-screen acting appearance until he was almost 40, but the Army veteran made up for lost time and worked constantly in film and television for the next five decades. Hall died from complications of emphysema at age 90 on June 12, 2022.

After high school in Toledo, Ohio, Hall served in the Army as a translator in Germany before returning home to work as a school teacher. He gave Hollywood a shot after he turned 30 and did theater for a few years before he got his break in films.


Once things took off for Hall, he became a go-to actor whenever directors wanted a gravelly voiced man who could project authority, grumpiness or sometimes both.

He made appearances in television shows like "M*A*S*H," "Good Times," "The Waltons," "Quincy, M.E.," "Cagney & Lacey," "T.J. Hooker," "Miami Vice," "Family Ties," "Falcon Crest," "Murder, She Wrote, and "Cheers" before the movies discovered his talents.

He made memorable appearances as authority figures in films like "Air Force One," "Say Anything," Ghostbusters II," "The Truman Show," "Rush Hour," "The Insider," "Zodiac" and "Argo." Younger viewers may remember him as neighbor Walt Kleezak on "Modern Family."
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