Robert Prosky

Robert Prosky
Robert Prosky and Joseph McKenna in Fishelson's adaptation of The Golem at Manhattan Ensemble Theatre, 2002
Born	Robert Józef Porzuczek (1930-12-13)December 13, 1930 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	December 8, 2008(2008-12-08) (aged 77) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Resting place	Rock Creek Cemetery Washington, D.C., U.S.
Other name	Robert Józef Prosky
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1971–2008
Spouse	Ida Hove ​ (m. 1960)​
Children	3, including John Prosky

Robert Prosky (born Robert Joseph Porzuczek; December 13, 1930 – December 8, 2008) was an American actor. He became a well-known supporting actor in the 1980s with his roles in Thief (1981), Christine (1983), The Natural (1984), and Broadcast News (1987).

Prosky's other notable movies include Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990), Hoffa (1992), Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Last Action Hero (1993), Rudy (1993), Miracle on 34th Street (1994), Dead Man Walking (1995), and Mad City (1997). His most notable television role was of Sgt. Stan Jablonski on the TV police drama Hill Street Blues.

Early life

Prosky, a Polish American, was born in the Manayunk neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Helen (Kuhn) and Joseph Porzuczek. His father was a grocer and butcher. He was raised in a working-class neighborhood and studied at the American Theatre Wing, later graduating from Temple University. He performed at Old Academy Players, a small theater in the East Falls section of Philadelphia, adjacent to Manayunk. He also served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War, but got a hardship discharge to help with the family store when his father died unexpectedly.

Career

Prosky appeared in Thief (1981), Hanky Panky (1982), The Natural (1984), Outrageous Fortune (1987), Broadcast News (1987), The Great Outdoors (1988), Things Change (1988), Loose Cannons (1990), Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990), Green Card (1990), Far and Away (1992), Hoffa (1992), Last Action Hero (1993), Rudy (1993), Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Miracle on 34th Street (1994), and Mad City (1997), Dead Man Walking (1995) and The Chamber (1996), with actor Raymond J. Barry. He also plays Will Darnell, the man who owned the auto repair shop where Arnie Cunningham (Keith Gordon) rebuilds the possessed car "Christine" in the 1983 film based on Stephen King's novel.

In addition to appearing in films, Prosky appeared in many television series. He became known for his role as Sgt. Stan Jablonski on Hill Street Blues. He also portrayed Jake "the Snake" Connolly on a two-part 1991 episode of Coach. He was considered for the role of Martin Crane in Frasier and later made a guest appearance in the series as a reclusive writer who befriended the character. He was offered the role of Coach Ernie Pantusso on Cheers, but turned it down; he later portrayed Rebecca Howe's father on the same show. His role in Veronica's Closet was likely a nod to this, as in both shows he played the father of a character portrayed by Kirstie Alley. He was also a regular on the TV series Danny.

In addition to his film and television career, he appeared in numerous theater plays at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., most notably as Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman. Prosky often performed at Arena Stage with over 100 stage credits to his name at that theatre alone. He played Shelly Levene in the 1984 Chicago and Broadway production of David Mamet's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Glengarry Glen Ross. He was also a board member of the Cape May Stage in Cape May, New Jersey.

Prosky received or was nominated for two Tony awards, two Helen Hayes awards, an Emmy, the Drama Desk award, and the American Express Tribute To An American Actor. He continued to perform on stage and present lectures on his long career at universities, film festivals, for theater benefits, business groups and on cruises.

Personal life

In 1960, he married Ida Hove with whom he had three sons, Stefan, John and Andrew Prosky, the latter two being actors as well.

Death

Prosky died on December 8, 2008, just 5 days before his 78th birthday, while living in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, D.C. His son John said that the cause was complications of heart surgery at the Washington Hospital Center. The New York Times described him: "a craggy-faced, heavyset character actor who, after 23 years in regional theater, became a familiar face on Broadway, in movies and on television, notably as a gruff desk sergeant in the later years of Hill Street Blues."

Playbill described him: "He was best suited to playing salt-of-the-earth characters, sometimes with a mischievous or slightly sinister edge."

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1978	The Brink's Job	Cop in Police Lineup	Uncredited
1981	Thief	Leo
1982	Hanky Panky	Hiram Calder
	Monsignor	Bishop Walkman
1983	The Lords of Discipline	LTC Thomas "The Bear" Berrineau
	Christine	Will Darnell
	The Keep	Father Fonescu
1984	The Natural	The Judge (team owner)
1985	Into Thin Air	Jim Conway
1987	Outrageous Fortune	Stanislav Korzenowski
	Big Shots	Keegan
	Broadcast News	Ernie Merriman
1988	The Great Outdoors	Wally
	Things Change	Joseph 'Don Giuseppe' Vincent
1989	The Heist	Dancer
1990	Loose Cannons	Von Metz
	Gremlins 2: The New Batch	Grandpa Fred
	Funny About Love	Emil Thomas "E.T." Bergman
	Green Card	Brontë's Lawyer
1991	Age Isn't Everything	Grandpa Irving
1992	Far and Away	Daniel Christie
	Hoffa	Billy Flynn
1993	Last Action Hero	Nick
	Rudy	Father John Cavanaugh
	Mrs. Doubtfire	Jonathan Lundy
1994	Miracle on 34th Street	Judge Henry Harper
1995	The Scarlet Letter	Horace Stonehall
	Dead Man Walking	Hilton Barber
1996	The Chamber	E. Garner Goodman
1997	Mad City	Lou Potts
1998	The Lake	Herb
1999	Dudley Do-Right	Inspector Fenwick
2002	Eye See You	McKenzie
	Death to Smoochy	Network Chairman	Uncredited
2005	Suits on the Loose	Bishop Hollister
2009	The Skeptic	Father Wymond	Final film role; Released posthumously

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1984–1987	Hill Street Blues	Sgt. Stan Jablonski	Main cast
1987	Murder She Wrote	Bishop Patrick Shea
1988	The Murder of Mary Phagan	Tom Watson
1989	From the Dead of Night	Dr Walter Hovde
1990	A Green Journey	Bishop Baker
1991	Brooklyn Bridge	Mr. Joseph Cardini, the neighborhood grocer.
	Coach	Jake "The Snake" Connolly	Episodes: "The Pineapple Bowl: Parts 1 & 2"
1992	Cheers	Navy Captain Franklin Howe
1993	Roseanne	Colonel Russ
1996	Frasier	T.H. Houghton
1997–1998	Veronica's Closet	Pat Chase
1998	The Lake	Herb	Television movie
	LateLine	Boone LeGarde	Episode: "Pilot"
1999	Swing Vote	Chief Justice of the United States	Television movie
2000	Touched by an Angel	Dr. Robert Harrigan	Episode: "The Grudge"
2001	Danny	Lenny	Main cast
2003	K Street	Tommy's Dad	3 episodes
2007	ER	Wayne Rutley	Episode: "Family Business"; Final television role

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Location/Notes
1971	Moonchildren (American premiere)	Mr. Willis	Arena Stage, Washington, D.C./later moved to Broadway in 1972
1975	The Dybbuk	Rabbi Az ielke	Arena Stage, Washington, D.C./with Dianne Wiest
1983	A View from the Bridge	Alfieri	New York City
1984	Glengarry Glen Ross	Shelly Levene	John Golden Theatre, New York City/Tony Award Nomination/ Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble
1988	A Walk in the Woods	Andrei Botvinnik	Booth Theatre, New York City/Tony Award Nomination
1996	Camping with Henry and Tom	Thomas Edison	Lucille Lortel Theatre, New York City
2002	An American Daughter	Alan Hughes	Arena Stage, Washington, D.C.
2004	Democracy	Herbert Wehner	Brooks Atkinson Theatre, New York City
2006	Awake and Sing!	Jacob	Arena Stage, Washington, D.C.
2008	The Price	Solomon	Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia; Theater J, Washington, D.C. (joint production)

External links

• Robert Prosky Papers at GMU
• Robert Prosky at IMDb
• Robert Prosky at the TCM Movie Database (archived)
• Robert Prosky at Find a Grave
• AP Obituary in The Philadelphia Inquirer