Bruce Boxleitner

Boxleitner was born on May 12, 1950, in Elgin, Illinois.{{cite web|title=Bruce Boxleitner|url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/bruce-boxleitner/3030498210/|website=TV Guide|access-date=May 28, 2021|archive-date=May 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210516022248/https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/bruce-boxleitner/3030498210/|url-status=live}} He attended Prospect High School in Mount Prospect, Illinois, and the Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute of Chicago (now at DePaul University).{{citation needed|date=May 2021}}

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Boxleitner is best known for his leading roles in the television series How the West Was Won, Bring 'Em Back Alive, Scarecrow and Mrs. King (with Kate Jackson and Beverly Garland), and Babylon 5 (as John Sheridan in seasons 2–5, 1994–98).{{cite web|title=BRUCE BOXLEITNER as Captain John Sheridan - Babylon 5 GENUINE AUTOGRAPH|url=https://www.amazon.co.uk/BRUCE-BOXLEITNER-Captain-John-Sheridan/dp/B0077MAMKC|publisher=amazon.co.uk|access-date=14 December 2017|archive-date=December 15, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215053525/https://www.amazon.co.uk/BRUCE-BOXLEITNER-Captain-John-Sheridan/dp/B0077MAMKC|url-status=live}}

He also starred in The Gambler (as Billy Montana, alongside Kenny Rogers: 1980, 1983 and 1987) and in such television films as Judith Krantz's Till We Meet Again and Danielle Steel's Zoya. In 2005, he co-starred as Captain Martin Duvall in Young Blades. He has also starred in several films within the Babylon 5 universe, including Babylon 5: In the Beginning (TV, 1998), Babylon 5: Thirdspace (TV, 1998), Babylon 5: A Call to Arms (TV, 1999), and the direct-to-DVD Babylon 5: The Lost Tales (2007).

Boxleitner has appeared in many other TV shows, including an appearance in 1973 as Rick Welsh, a University of Minnesota Track Star, in the season four episode, "I Gave at the Office" in The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Other appearances include Gunsmoke including the last episode of its twenty-year run, Tales from the Crypt, Touched by an Angel, The Outer Limits and She Spies, and in 1982, he played Chase Marshall in the TV film Bare Essence, with Genie Francis. He was a member of the cast of Heroes for seasons three and four, playing New York Governor Robert Malden in three episodes. He also appears on the television series Chuck as the father of Devon Woodcomb. He was in such made-for-television films as The Secret, Hope Ranch, Falling in Love with the Girl Next Door, Pandemic, Sharpshooter and Aces 'N' Eights.

Boxleitner was a guest-star on NCIS in the fall of 2010. He played Vice Admiral C. Clifford Chase, a high-ranking Navy official.{{cite web|url=http://www.tvguide.com/News/NCIS-Bruce-Boxleitner-1024308.aspx|title=Exclusive: NCIS Enlists Scarecrow and Mrs. King's Bruce Boxleitner|publisher=TVGuide.com|access-date=October 13, 2010|archive-date=October 16, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101016063737/http://www.tvguide.com/News/NCIS-Bruce-Boxleitner-1024308.aspx|url-status=live}} He reprised this role in the spring of 2017. Boxleitner also lends his voice to the animated version of his iconic character Tron in the animated series Tron: Uprising. The series premiered on Disney XD on June 7, 2012. He also reprises the character Alan Bradley/Tron from the films Tron and Tron: Legacy.{{cite web |url=http://www.blastr.com/2015-6-9/9-reasons-more-tron-uprising-answer-disneys-tron-sequel-problem |title=9 reasons more TRON Uprising is the answer to Disney's TRON sequel problem |publisher=blastr |author=Ernie Estrella |quote=...the Grid's security program, Tron (Bruce Boxleitner) is slowly dying from a virus. |date=9 June 2015 |access-date=14 March 2016 |archive-date=March 14, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314191636/http://www.blastr.com/2015-6-9/9-reasons-more-tron-uprising-answer-disneys-tron-sequel-problem |url-status=live }} From 2013 to 2015, he played Bob Beldon, the owner of the local bed and breakfast, in the Hallmark Channel series Cedar Cove.{{cite web|title=Bruce Boxleitner Added to Cast as Series Regular in Hallmark Channel's "Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove"|url=http://thefutoncritic.com/news/2013/05/20/bruce-boxleitner-added-to-cast-as-series-regular-in-hallmark-channels-debbie-macombers-cedar-cove-635111/20130520hallmark01/|work=The Futon Critic|date=May 20, 2013|access-date=December 15, 2017|archive-date=June 30, 2013|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630102518/http://thefutoncritic.com/news/2013/05/20/bruce-boxleitner-added-to-cast-as-series-regular-in-hallmark-channels-debbie-macombers-cedar-cove-635111/20130520hallmark01/|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|title=Barbara Niven Added to Cast As Series Regular in Hallmark Channel's "Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove"|url=http://thefutoncritic.com/news/2013/05/29/barbara-niven-added-to-cast-as-series-regular-in-hallmark-channels-debbie-macombers-cedar-cove-585305/20130529hallmark01/|work=The Futon Critic|date=May 29, 2013|access-date=December 15, 2017|archive-date=June 30, 2013|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630101612/http://thefutoncritic.com/news/2013/05/29/barbara-niven-added-to-cast-as-series-regular-in-hallmark-channels-debbie-macombers-cedar-cove-585305/20130529hallmark01/|url-status=dead}}

Boxleitner later recurred on Supergirl portraying Baker, the vice-president of the United States who is later sworn in as the new president after Lynda Carter's character Olivia Marsdin is outed as a Durlan by Mercy Graves and Otis Graves. He gained the role after Brent Spiner stepped down due to a scheduling conflict related to a family matter.{{cite web|title='Supergirl's' Brent Spiner Exits as Season 4 Role Recast With Bruce Boxleitner|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/supergirl-brent-spiner-exits-bruce-boxleitner-cast-1136264|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=August 21, 2018|access-date=August 22, 2019|archive-date=July 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190723153958/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/supergirl-brent-spiner-exits-bruce-boxleitner-cast-1136264|url-status=live}}

From 2019, Boxleitner had a recurring role on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries series of films The Matchmaker Mysteries.{{cite web

| title = About the Movies

| website = Hallmark Movies and Mysteries

| date = April 17, 2020

| url = https://www.hallmarkmoviesandmysteries.com/matchmaker-mysteries-movies/about-the-movies

| access-date = June 22, 2021

| archive-date = June 24, 2021

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210624204127/https://www.hallmarkmoviesandmysteries.com/matchmaker-mysteries-movies/about-the-movies

| url-status = live

}}

File:Bruce Boxleitner by Gage Skidmore.jpg

He has also appeared in several films, including Tron (in which he played the title role) and The Baltimore Bullet (1980) with James Coburn. He reprised his role in the Tron sequel Tron: Legacy and in the video game Tron: Evolution which was released alongside the film Tron: Legacy, as he did for the sequel video game named Tron 2.0, and Disney/Square Enix crossover video game Kingdom Hearts II. Boxleitner also voiced Col. John Konrad in video game Spec Ops: The Line. He also starred as Confederate General James Longstreet in the 2003 film Gods and Generals. He provides the voice of Colin Barrow in the animated science fiction horror film Dead Space: Downfall, based on the video game Dead Space. Other films he has performed in include Kuffs, The Babe, Brilliant, Snakehead Terror, Legion of the Dead, King of the Lost World, Shadows in Paradise and Transmorphers: Fall of Man.

In July 2015, Boxleitner said that he is done with the Tron franchise, as "it's been too up and down for me. I would rather not just keep going. I don't want to repeat my career anymore."{{cite web|url=http://www.slashfilm.com/bruce-boxleitner-on-tron-3/|title=Exclusive: Bruce Boxleitner on 'Tron 3′ – "I'm Done With It. I've Moved On"|first=Fred|last=Topel|date=July 30, 2015|publisher=Slashfilm|access-date=August 4, 2015|archive-date=August 2, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150802184249/http://www.slashfilm.com/bruce-boxleitner-on-tron-3/|url-status=live}}

From 1986 to 1989, Boxleitner appeared in advertisements for Estee Lauder's "Lauder For Men".

Boxleitner is the author of two science fiction novels with a Western setting, Frontier Earth (1999){{Cite book|last1=Boxleitner|first1=Bruce|title=Frontier Earth: HC|year=1999|publisher=Ace Hardcover|isbn=978-0-441-00589-5}} and Searcher (2001).{{Cite book|last1=Boxleitner|first1=Bruce|title=Frontier Earth: Searcher|year=2001|publisher=Ace Books|location=New York|isbn=978-0-441-00799-8|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/frontierearthsea00boxl}}

Boxleitner played a major role in the audio dramatization of The Great Secret, part of the Golden Age of Fiction series by L. Ron Hubbard. He also played Captain Gavin Blaire in the unabridged version of World War Z.{{citation needed|date=February 2016}}

Boxleitner's first marriage was to American actress Kathryn Holcomb, who co-starred with him on How The West Was Won as his on-screen sister Laura. They had two sons together.

Boxleitner's second marriage was to American actress Melissa Gilbert. They have a son born in 1995.{{cite web|url=http://people.com/archive/cover-story-our-tiny-miracle-vol-45-no-8/|title=Cover Story: Our Tiny Miracle – Vol. 45 No. 8|date=February 26, 1996|access-date=April 21, 2017|archive-date=April 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170422122918/http://people.com/archive/cover-story-our-tiny-miracle-vol-45-no-8/|url-status=live}} Gilbert also guest-starred as Boxleitner's on-screen wife, Anna Sheridan, during Season 3 of Babylon 5.{{cite web|title=The-Complete-Babylon-5-Double-Autograph-DA1-Bruce-Boxleitner-and-Melissa-Gilbert The-Complete-Babylon-5-Double-Autograph-DA1-Bruce-Boxleitner-and-Melissa-Gilbert Have one to sell? Sell now The Complete Babylon 5 Double Autograph DA1 Bruce Boxleitner and Melissa Gilbert|url=https://www.ebay.com/itm/The-Complete-Babylon-5-Double-Autograph-DA1-Bruce-Boxleitner-and-Melissa-Gilbert-/232311882003|publisher=ebay.com|access-date=15 December 2017|archive-date=December 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216034624/https://www.ebay.com/itm/The-Complete-Babylon-5-Double-Autograph-DA1-Bruce-Boxleitner-and-Melissa-Gilbert-/232311882003|url-status=live}} On March 1, 2011, Gilbert announced that she and Bruce had separated after 16 years of marriage.{{cite web|last=Eng|first=Joyce|title=Melissa Gilbert and Bruce Boxleitner Split|url=http://www.tvguide.com/News/Melissa-Gilbert-Boxleitner-1030237.aspx|publisher=TVGuide|access-date=March 2, 2011|archive-date=March 4, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110304030723/http://www.tvguide.com/News/Melissa-Gilbert-Boxleitner-1030237.aspx|url-status=live}} On August 25 of the same year, it was reported that Gilbert had filed for divorce.{{cite magazine|last=Fleeman|first=Mike|title=Melissa Gilbert Files for Divorce from Bruce Boxleitner|url=https://people.com/celebrity/melissa-gilbert-files-for-divorce-from-bruce-boxleitner/|magazine=People|date=August 25, 2011|access-date=November 12, 2011}}

In 2003, Boxleitner was appointed to the Board of Governors of the National Space Society, a nonprofit, educational space advocacy organization founded by Dr. Wernher von Braun.{{cite web|title=NEWS RELEASE: ACTOR BRUCE BOXLEITNER APPOINTED TO NATIONAL SPACE SOCIETY BOARD OF GOVERNORS|url=http://www.nss.org/news/releases/release44.html|date=2 June 1998|publisher=nss.org|access-date=15 December 2017|archive-date=December 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216034749/http://www.nss.org/news/releases/release44.html|url-status=live}}

File:Verena King, Bruce Boxleitner on RealTVfilms.jpg

He was friends with actress Beverly Garland for nearly 30 years. He met her on an episode of How The West Was Won, and later co-starred alongside her on Scarecrow & Mrs. King, though he had very few scenes with her. Then, in 1986, Boxleitner presented Garland the Golden Boot Award. After the cancellation of Scarecrow, Boxleitner remained close to Garland, contacting her consistently, until her death, on December 5, 2008. He said in an interview, "I used to keep up with Beverly Garland until she passed. There was actually a hotel named after her. She was such a trip. She was a great lady."{{cite web|url=http://lanterncitytv.com/forum/entry.php/16-Interview-with-Tron%E2%80%99s-Bruce-Boxleitner|title=Bruce Boxleitner interview|work=lanterncitytv.com|access-date=February 8, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150212004533/http://lanterncitytv.com/forum/entry.php/16-Interview-with-Tron%E2%80%99s-Bruce-Boxleitner|archive-date=February 12, 2015|url-status=dead}}

Bruce is currently married to publicist Verena King.{{cite web|title=Bruce Boxleitner|work=hallmarkchannel.com|url=https://www.hallmarkchannel.com/holiday-date/cast/bruce-boxleitner|access-date=September 22, 2022|archive-date=September 23, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923034404/https://www.hallmarkchannel.com/holiday-date/cast/bruce-boxleitner|url-status=live}}

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Category:1950 births

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Category:21st-century American male writers