J. Kenneth Campbell

J. Kenneth Campbell is an American film, stage, and television actor who has been cast in over 80 roles. He was born in Flushing, New York. Campbell studied acting under theatrical fight director Patrick Crean, and was an acting instructor himself at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival.

J. Kenneth Campbell
Born
Flushing, New York, US
EducationCheshire Academy
University of Arizona
OccupationActor
Years active1970–present
Parents
RelativesClay Clement (great-uncle)
Kim Gruenenfelder (niece)
Military career
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Marine Corps
Battles/warsVietnam War
AwardsPurple Heart

Early life

James Kenneth Campbell II was born in Flushing, New York to Dorothea Burke and lawyer James Kenneth Campbell.[1][2] His father, who served as the longtime Village Justice of Saltaire, New York and was a senior partner at the law firm of Alexander and Green,[3] authored a bill for Governor Nelson Rockefeller to improve conditions at psychiatric hospitals in New York, which the New York State Legislature subsequently passed and the governor signed.[1]

The second of seven children, Campbell was raised on Long Island and graduated from Cheshire Academy. Campbell began his studies at the University of Arizona, but left to study under Sanford Meisner. Having been drafted into the United States Army in 1967, Campbell enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. Wounded in action during the Vietnam War, Campbell was awarded a Purple Heart and honorably discharged.

Career

Television

Campbell has made several appearances in television shows, made-for-TV movies, miniseries, and specials. Campbell appeared on the daytime soap operas Another World and Search for Tomorrow in the 1980s. He also had guest appearances on several popular TV series through the years as well, including: The Mod Squad, The Rookies and Baa Baa Black Sheep in the 1970s. In the 1980s, he appeared in Spenser: For Hire, Matlock and Cheers. The 1990s saw him appearing in popular series L.A. Law, Touched by an Angel, Melrose Place, and Walker, Texas Ranger. Then in the 2000s, he landed guest roles in Diagnosis Murder, Charmed and Frasier.[4][5]

Stage

On stage, Campbell played the Viscount de Valvert in the 1973 musical Cyrano, and appeared in The Philadelphia Story, which ran from 1980-81 at the Vivian Beaumont Theater. In 1981 he starred as Macduff in the Broadway revival of William Shakespeare's Macbeth at the Vivian Beaumont Theater, alongside Philip Anglim, Maureen Anderman, and Kelsey Grammer.[6] He starred as King Henry VIII in A Man for All Seasons alongside Charlton Heston in 1986 and 1987, at the Union Square Theatre, as part of the Roundabout Theatre Company.[4] His Broadway credits included The Boys of Winter (1985), The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (1983), The Philadelphia Story (1908), The Freedom of the City (1974), and Cyrano (1973).[7]

In 2017, Campbell portrayed President Lyndon Baines Johnson in an Actors' Playhouse production of All the Way in Miami.[8]

Personal life

Campbell is a grandnephew of Clay Clement, an actor who was one of the earliest members of the Screen Actors Guild.[1] Campbell's niece, through his sister Carol, is author Kim Gruenenfelder.[9]

Partial filmography
Feature Films
YearTitleRoleNotes
1979Love and BulletsNewscasterUncredited
1980The Changeling[10]Security guard #1
1985Sudden Death[11]Kosakowski
1987The Survivalist[4][lower-alpha 1]President's spokesman
1988Waxwork[12]Marquis de Sade
1989 The Abyss[5]DeMarco
An Innocent Man[4]Lieutenant Freebery
1990The Last of the Finest[4][lower-alpha 2]Calvert
1991Flight of the Intruder[5]Lieutenant Commander 'Cowboy' Parker
1992 Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot[11]Detective Ross
Interceptor[11]Engineer
1993Deadfall[4]Huey
1994Cobb[5]Professor Cobb
1996Mars Attacks![11]Doctor
1997 Turbulence[4]Captain Matt Powell
Ulee's Gold[4]Sheriff Bill Floyd
1998Bulworth[5]Anthony
1999 Blue Streak[4][lower-alpha 3]FBI section commander Peterson
Sonic Impact[4]Pilot Tom Rush
2001 Tomcats[13]Mr. MacDonald
Free[4]James Jenkins
2002Collateral Damage[11]Ed Coonts
2005Guess Who[13]Nathan Rogers
2009The Only Good Indian[13]McCoy
2013Bluebird[11]Deputy
Note: His filmography does not include uncredited roles.


Notes
  1. Also known as Jack Tillman: The Survivalist
  2. Also known as Blue Heat and Street Legal
  3. Also known as Der Diamanten–Cop

References
  1. Frey, Emma (1969). The History of the Frey Family. pp. 8–14. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  2. "Paid Notice: Deaths CAMPBELL, J. KENNETH (KEN), SR". New York Times. April 1, 2004. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
  3. "Paid Notice: Deaths CAMPBELL, J. KENNETH (KEN), SR". New York Times. April 1, 2004. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
  4. "Campbell, J. Kenneth". Encyclopedia.com.
  5. "J. Kenneth Campbell". TVGuide.
  6. Shakespeare, William (1981). "Macbeth". Playbill. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  7. "J. Kenneth Campbell". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  8. Dolen, Christine (March 30, 2017). "Political lessons of epic 'All the Way' stand tall". The Miami Herald. p. C 1. Retrieved October 26, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. Frey, Emma (1969). The History of the Frey Family. p. 14. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  10. Muir, John Kenneth (2010). Horror Films of the 1980s. McFarland. p. 76. ISBN 978-0-7864-5501-0.
  11. "J. Kenneth Campbell". Rotten Tomatoes.
  12. Muir, John Kenneth (2010). Horror Films of the 1980s. McFarland. p. 709. ISBN 978-0-7864-5501-0.
  13. "J. Kenneth Campbell". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on March 28, 2019.
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