James Olson (October 8, 1930 – April 17, 2022) was an American actor.
Early life Olson was born in Evanston, Illinois, on October 8, 1930, and he was a graduate of Northwestern University. From 1952 until 1954, he was a military policeman in the United States Army.
Career 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-as Owen Deaver S1 E32 (1958); Marcus Welby, M.D.; Police Woman; Barnaby Jones; The New Land; Columbo; Maude; The Virginian; The Streets of San Francisco; and Cannon.
Death Olson died at his home in Malibu, California on April 17, 2022, at the age of 91. He was survived by two nieces, Susan Baker and Robin Olson, a nephew, David James Olson, and three grandnephews.
Selected filmography The Sharkfighters (1956) as Ens. Harold Duncan The Strange One (1957) as Roger Gatt The Three Sisters (1966) as Baron Tuzenbach Rachel, Rachel (1968) as Nick Kazlik The Stalking Moon (1968) as Cavalry Officer (uncredited) Moon Zero Two (1969) as Kemp Crescendo (1970) as Georges Ryman / Jacques Ryman The Andromeda Strain (1971) as Dr. Mark Hall Wild Rovers (1971) as Joe Billings Paper Man (1971) as Art Fletcher Columbo: Etude in Black (1972, TV movie) as Paul Rifkin The Groundstar Conspiracy (1972) as Sen. Stanton The Rookies (1973) as Steve Wainz Incident on a Dark Street (1973) as Joe Dubbs The Missiles of October (1974, TV movie) as McGeorge Bundy, Special Assistant for National Security Affairs Strange New World (1975, TV movie) as Surgeon The Spell (1977) as Glenn The Mafu Cage (1978) as David Hawaii Five-O (1978) as Stoner Ragtime (1981) as Father Amityville II: The Possession (1982) as Father Adamsky Cave-In! (1983) as Tom Arlen Commando (1985) as Major General Franklin Kirby Rachel River (1987) as Jack Canon
References
External links
James Olson at Internet Off-Broadway Database James Olson at the University of Wisconsin's Actors Studio audio collection