Mark Metcalf
{{short description|American actor}}
{{other people}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Mark Metcalf
| image = Mark Metcalf.jpg
| caption = Metcalf in 2005
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1946|03|11}}
| birth_place = Findlay, Ohio, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| alma_mater = University of Michigan
| years_active = 1971–present
| spouse = Elizabeth Wick (divorced)
| children = 1
| website =
}}
Mark Metcalf (born March 11, 1946){{cite web |url=http://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2017/03/terrence_howard_lisa_loeb_toda.html |title=Terrence Howard, Lisa Loeb: Today's celebrity birthdays list (March 11, 2017) |author= |date=March 11, 2017 |website=cleveland.com |publisher=Advance Ohio |access-date=June 1, 2018}}{{cite news |author= |title=Celebrity birthdays, March 5–11 |url=http://www.gosanangelo.com/story/entertainment/people/2017/03/02/celebrity-birthdays-march-5-11/98614398/ |work=San Angelo Standard-Times |location=San Angelo, Texas |date=March 2, 2017 |access-date=June 1, 2018}} is an American television and film actor often playing the role of an antagonistic and aggrieved authority figure.{{cite magazine |author= |date=September 18, 1995 |title=Mr. Mean Guy |url=https://variety.com/1995/scene/markets-festivals/mr-mean-guy-99130145/ |magazine=Variety |location=Los Angeles, California |publisher=Variety |access-date=June 1, 2018}}{{cite news |last=Spears |first=Steve |date=June 11, 2010 |title=Bullies we love to watch |url=http://www.tampabay.com/features/popculture/bullies-we-love-to-watch/1101531 |work=St. Petersburg Times |url-status=dead |location=Tampa Bay Florida |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100612205431/http://www.tampabay.com/features/popculture/bullies-we-love-to-watch/1101531 |archive-date=June 12, 2010 |access-date=December 29, 2017|quote=In 1978's Animal House, Mark Metcalf played one of the most despicable bullies in film history, Doug Neidermeyer.}}{{cite news |last=Walsh |first=Cory |date=November 20, 2014 |title=Veteran character actor Mark Metcalf plays Scrooge in UM production |url=http://missoulian.com/entertainment/arts-and-theatre/veteran-character-actor-mark-metcalf-plays-scrooge-in-um-production/article_0712b954-63bd-5c2d-ad9e-3a9c1a04de6b.html |work=Missoulian |location=Missoula, Montana |access-date=June 1, 2018}}{{cite web |url=http://www.hollywood.com/celebrities/mark-metcalf-58803318/ |title=Mark Metcalf |author= |website=Hollywood.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160605050726/http://www.hollywood.com/celebrities/mark-metcalf-58803318/ |archive-date=June 5, 2016 |access-date=June 1, 2018}}{{cite web |title=The Price of Performance, in 'Character' |last=Oztaskin |first=Murat |date=November 11, 2020 |work=The New Yorker |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-new-yorker-documentary/the-price-of-performance-in-character |access-date=February 1, 2021}}
He is best known for his role as sadistic ROTC officer Douglas C. Neidermeyer in the 1978 American comedy film Animal House,{{cite web |url=https://onmilwaukee.com/movies/articles/metcalftalks.html |title=Milwaukee Talks: Actor/restaurateur Mark Metcalf |last1=Olson |first1=Drew |last2=Tarnoff |first2=Andy |date=February 22, 2008 |website=OnMilwaukee |location=Milwaukee, Wisconsin |access-date=June 1, 2018}}{{cite news |last=Fredrickson |first=Erika |date=November 20, 2014 |title=What do you want to do with your life? |url=https://missoulanews.bigskypress.com/missoula/what-do-you-want-to-do-with-your-life/Content?oid=2101734 |work=Missoula Independent |location=Missoula, Montana |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150328000400/https://missoulanews.bigskypress.com/missoula/what-do-you-want-to-do-with-your-life/Content?oid=2101734 |access-date=June 1, 2018|archive-date=2015-03-28 }}{{cite news |last=Horne |first=Michael |date=April 5, 2004 |title=The Roundup: Maestro Orchestrates Divorce |url=http://urbanmilwaukee.com/2004/04/05/the-roundup-the-extraordinary-longevity-of-milwaukee-politicians/ |work=Urban Milwaukee |location=Milwaukee, Wisconsin |access-date=June 1, 2018}}{{cite news |last=Andrews |first=Tom |date=October 28, 2011 |title='Animal House' Fan Favorite Metcalf Still Crafting Film and Stage Memories |url=https://patch.com/wisconsin/foxpoint/bayside-s-mark-metcalf-still-crafting-film-and-stage-memories |work=Patch Media |access-date=December 29, 2017}} a character he later emulated in the 1984 music videos for the songs "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock" by the heavy metal band Twisted Sister.{{cite magazine |last=Titus |first=Christa |date=October 1, 2016 |title=7 Significant Moments in Twisted Sister's History |url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/rock/7526602/seven-significant-moments-in-twisted-sister-dee-snider-history |magazine=Billboard |publisher=Billboard-Hollywood Reporter Media Group |access-date=December 29, 2017}}
He is also known for playing the role of The Maestro on two episodes of the sitcom Seinfeld as well as for his recurring role as The Master on the supernatural drama series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off series Angel.{{cite magazine |last=Barrett |first=Annie |date=October 5, 2009 |title=From Maestro to Mayor: Mark Metcalf on 'Mad Men' |url=http://ew.com/article/2009/10/05/from-maestro-to-mayor-mark-metcalf-on-mad-men/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |publisher=Time |access-date=December 29, 2017}}{{cite news |last=Willow |first=Jon Anne |date=December 1, 2004 |title=Mark Metcalf is the Accidental Actor |url=http://urbanmilwaukee.com/2004/12/01/mark-metcalf-is-the-accidental-actor/ |work=Urban Milwaukee |location=Milwaukee, Wisconsin |access-date=June 1, 2018}}
Early life
Metcalf was born in Findlay, Ohio. His father was a civil engineer. Metcalf was raised in Webster Groves, a suburb of St. Louis. In 1959, he moved with his family to New Jersey where he attended Westfield High School, graduating in 1964.[http://www.digifind-it.com/westfield/DATA/yearbooks/1964.pdf#page=66 Weather Vane 1964], p. 62. Accessed August 23, 2018.
Metcalf enrolled in the engineering program at the University of Michigan. It was at university that he performed in his first stage play, which was a production of Shakespeare's Henry VI. His first professional acting job was with the Milwaukee Repertory Theater in 1971. In the early 1970s, he moved to New York City performing in both classical and modern theater, eventually moving westward to work in film.
Career
Metcalf's first major Hollywood film role was that of ROTC cadet officer Douglas Neidermeyer in the 1978 comedy Animal House. In 1984, Metcalf played characters similar to Neidermeyer in the Twisted Sister music videos for the songs "We're Not Gonna Take It", where he played an authoritarian father, and "I Wanna Rock", where he played an authoritarian high school teacher.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Metcalf landed guest roles on multiple television shows including Miami Vice, Walker, Texas Ranger and Party of Five.{{cite book |last=Sanders |first=Steven |date=2010 |title=Miami Vice. Contemporary approaches to film and television series: TV milestones |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZH3SyNsCj_EC&pg=PT85 |location=Detroit, Michigan |publisher=Wayne State University Press |page=75 |isbn=9780814335413 |access-date=June 1, 2018}} He also played recurring roles on shows such as Hill Street Blues, Teen Angel, Star Trek: Voyager, Ally McBeal and JAG.{{cite news |last=Schuyler |first=David |date=December 10, 2000 |title=Actor buys Kelley's |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/stories/2000/12/11/tidbits.html |work=Milwaukee Business Journal |location=Milwaukee, Wisconsin |access-date=June 1, 2018}} In 1993 he moved to Hollywood.
One of Metcalf's more memorable television characters was his role in an episode during the seventh season of Seinfeld titled "The Maestro". In the episode he played a self-absorbed conductor who was dating character Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and who insisted on being referred to as "Maestro". Metcalf reprised the role in an episode later that same season titled "The Doll".{{cite web |url=http://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/mark-metcalf/credits/164666/ |title=Mark Metcalf - Credits |author= |website=TV Guide |publisher=CBS Interactive |access-date=June 1, 2018}}
From 1997 to 2002, Metcalf played the vampire known as The Master on several episodes of the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off series Angel.
In 2000, Metcalf left Los Angeles and moved to Bayside, Wisconsin with his then wife, Elizabeth "Libby" Wick and their son, Julius.{{cite magazine |author= |date=August 2016 |title=Business Spotlight: Libby Montana Bar & Grill |url=http://www.village.thiensville.wi.us/DocumentCenter/View/276 |magazine=Mequon-Thiensville Today |location=Mequon and Thiensville, Wisconsin |publisher=The City of Mequon, the Village of Thiensville and the Mequon-Thiensville School District |access-date=June 1, 2018 }} Metcalf had moved to Wisconsin to start a restaurant with his wife and with no intent on continuing with acting, due to raising a child with special needs. However, Metcalf was approached by the director of First Stage Children's Theater in Milwaukee to act in one of their plays and Metcalf went on to act in several of their productions.
In conjunction with the Milwaukee Film Festival, Metcalf produced a short film each year based on a screenplay written by a high school student enrolled in the Student Screenwriting Competition, a program developed by Metcalf to teach the craft of screenwriting to young people. Metcalf also contributed articles about film as a correspondent for the online magazine OnMilwaukee.
In 2009, Metcalf played the role of Mayor Johnson on an episode of the third season of Mad Men titled "Souvenir".
After moving to Missoula, Montana in 2013, Metcalf once again became involved in local theatre, playing the role of Scrooge in a production of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol presented by the University of Montana School of Theatre and Dance.
In 2019, Metcalf played the role of Sheriff Roy in Tate Bunker's film The Field alongside Barry Bostwick and Veronica Cartwright.{{cite news |last=Luhrssen |first=David |date=October 16, 2019 |title=Director Tate Bunker Talks About 'The Field' |url=https://shepherdexpress.com/film/i-hate-hollywood/director-tate-bunker-talks-about-the-field/ |work=Shepherd Express |location=Milwaukee, Wisconsin |access-date=August 22, 2020}} Metcalf was the subject of Vera Brunner-Sung's documentary short Character that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2020.{{cite web |url=https://artsandsciences.osu.edu/news/brunner-sungs-film-character-premieres-sundance |title=Brunner-Sung's film "Character" premieres at Sundance |author= |date=January 23, 2020 |website=College of Arts and Sciences |publisher=Ohio State University |access-date=August 22, 2020}} Metcalf met Brunner-Sung through a mutual friend after moving to Columbus, Ohio.
Personal life
Metcalf has one son with Elizabeth "Libby" Wick. The couple moved from Los Angeles, California to Bayside, Wisconsin in 2000. https://onmilwaukee.com/articles/metcalftalks They owned and operated a restaurant in nearby Mequon, Wisconsin called Libby Montana. Metcalf filed for divorce in 2003 and since 2006 Wick has been the sole owner of the restaurant. However, in late 2024, the restaurant closed permanently.
In 2013, Metcalf moved to Missoula, Montana, to be closer to Julius, who was a student at the University of Montana.
Metcalf is a longtime advocate for Alzheimer’s research and awareness raising. https://urbanmilwaukee.com/2011/03/09/fat-tuesday-with-mam-and-the-alzheimers-association-of-wi/ https://urbanmilwaukee.com/2010/05/25/moving-pictures-i-remember-better-when-i-paint/
Filmography
= Film =
| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ !Year !Title !Role !Notes |
| 1977
|Pratt | |
| 1978
|Doug Neidermeyer | |
| 1979
|Ox | |
| 1980
|Dooley | |
| 1983
|Mike | |
| 1984
|Andrews | |
| 1985
|Joe Barnes | |
| 1986
|Aguilla Beckersted | |
| 1988
|Mr. Skeel | |
| 1989
|The Oasis |Eric | |
| 1991
|Milhous | |
| 1995
|Dean Kirby | |
| 1995
|Rage |Lt. Gov. Dalquist | |
| 1996
|Colonel Neidermeyer | |
| 1997
|Michael Lawrence | |
| 1997
|Director Marsh | |
| 1999
|Mr. Rope | |
| 2000
|The Million Dollar Kid |Officer Bob | |
| 2002
|Britney, Baby, One More Time |Barfly | |
| 2002
|John Kloss | |
| 2002
|Marshall Harris | |
| 2006
|The Legend Trip |Charles Knotting | |
| 2007
|The Sleeper |Richmond | |
| 2009
|Copper Gore | |
| 2011
|Mr. Gerkey | |
| 2011
|We Will Rock You |Major Emile Hickory | |
| 2012
|Chris Safford | |
| 2012
|Little Red |Lou | |
| 2012
|The Smart Ones |Professor Faron | |
| 2013
|The Umpire | |
| 2014
|Speedy McSpitty | |
| 2017
|Manlife |Voice |
| 2018
|Second Publisher | |
| 2019
|The Field |Sheriff Roy | |
= Television =
| class="wikitable sortable"
!Year !Title !Role !Notes |
| 1975
|Jess Walker |Episode: "I Gave at the Office" |
| 1978
|Buddy |Episode: "Careers" |
| 1979
|Ted Parker |2 episodes |
| 1981
|The Racer |Episode: "La Strada" |
| 1981
|Officer Harris |4 episodes |
| 1982
|David |Episode: "Diana, Substitute Mother" |
| 1983
|For Love and Honor |Major Camden |Episode: "Rite of Passage" |
| 1983
|Chuck |Episode: "Confrontations" |
| 1986
|Stick |3 episodes |
| 1988
|Agent Brody |Episode: "Baseballs of Death" |
| 1989
|Mr. Kirkpatrick |Episode: "The Divided Child" |
| 1991
|Greg Morrison |Episode: "As God Is My Co-Defendant" |
| 1991
|The Creature |Episode: "The Second Greatest Story Ever Told" |
| 1991
|Guilty Until Proven Innocent |Ron D'Angelo |Television film |
| 1991
|2 episodes |
| 1992
|Dead Ahead: The Exxon Valdez Disaster |Dennis Kelso |Television film |
| 1993
|Russell |Episode: "The Champ" |
| 1994
|Scott Finn |Episode: "The Last Campaign" |
| 1994
|Norval Hayes |Episode: "Deadly Vision" |
| 1994
|Sheriff Sullivan |Episode: "Love Minus Zero" |
| 1994
|Nick Morrow |Episode: "The Southbound Bus" |
| 1995
|Det. Bob Wilkens | rowspan="2" |2 episodes |
| 1995, 1996 |
| 1996
|Mr. Reeves |Episode: "Unfair Advantage" |
| 1997–1998
|Roderick Nitzke |7 episodes |
| 1997, 1998
|Attorney Walden |2 episodes |
| 1997–2002
|8 episodes |
| 1998
|Hirogen Medic |2 episodes |
| 1999
|JAG |Captain Pike |3 episodes |
| 2000
|The Master |Episode: "Darla" |
| 2001
|Carl McVale |Television film |
| 2006
|Abusive Father |Episode #2.6 |
| 2009
|Mayor Johnson |Episode: "Souvenir" |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|0582420}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Metcalf, Mark}}
Category:Male actors from Ohio
Category:Male actors from Milwaukee
Category:American male film actors
Category:American male television actors
Category:People from Bayside, Wisconsin
Category:People from Findlay, Ohio
Category:University of Michigan College of Engineering alumni
Category:Westfield High School (New Jersey) alumni
Category:People from Westfield, New Jersey