Warren Berlinger is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 character actor

Character actor

A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...

, with both Broadway runs and over a thousand television appearances to his credit.

Personal life

Berlinger was born in Brooklyn, New York of Jewish heritage, the son of Frieda (née Shapkin) and Elias Berlinger, a building contractor. His family owned Berlinger's Glass Store on Avenue D. He and his late wife, actress Betty Lou Keim

Betty Lou Keim

Betty Lou Keim was an actress with movie and television credits from 1949 to 1960.-Early life and career:...

 (1938–2010) had four children. He is the nephew of Milton Berle

Milton Berle

Milton Berlinger , better known as Milton Berle, was an American comedian and actor. As the manic host of NBC's Texaco Star Theater , in 1948 he was the first major star of U.S. television and as such became known as Uncle Miltie and Mr...

.

Career

Berlinger performed in the original 1946 Broadway production of Annie Get Your Gun

Annie Get Your Gun (musical)

Annie Get Your Gun is a musical with lyrics and music written by Irving Berlin and a book by Herbert Fields and his sister Dorothy Fields. The story is a fictionalized version of the life of Annie Oakley , who was a sharpshooter from Ohio, and her husband, Frank Butler.The 1946 Broadway production...

, with Ethel Merman

Ethel Merman

Ethel Merman was an American actress and singer. Known primarily for her powerful voice and roles in musical theatre, she has been called "the undisputed First Lady of the musical comedy stage." Among the many standards introduced by Merman in Broadway musicals are "I Got Rhythm", "Everything's...

 and Ray Middleton

Ray Middleton

Raymond Earl Middleton, Jr. , known and billed as Ray Middleton, was an American character actor.Born in Chicago, Illinois, Middleton was the first actor to play Superman in public, which he did on July 3, 1940, during the 1939 New York World's Fair's "Superman Day"...

. He guest-starred on the original Howdy Doody

Howdy Doody

Howdy Doody is an American children's television program that was created and produced by E. Roger Muir and telecast on NBC in the United States from 1947 until 1960. It was a pioneer in children's television programming and set the pattern for many similar shows...

 television show, with roles following on Kraft Television Theatre

Kraft Television Theatre

Kraft Television Theatre is an American drama/anthology television series that began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. In January 1948, it moved to 9pm on Wednesdays, continuing in that timeslot until 1958. Initially produced by the J...

 and other programs. He also guest-starred on John Cassavetes

John Cassavetes

John Nicholas Cassavetes was an American actor, screenwriter and filmmaker. He acted in many Hollywood films, notably Rosemary's Baby and The Dirty Dozen...

's detective

Detective

A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...

 series, NBC

NBC

The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

's Johnny Staccato

Johnny Staccato

Johnny Staccato is an American private detective series which ran for 27 episodes on NBC from September 10, 1959 through March 24, 1960.-Synopsis:...

.

Berlinger appeared in both the Broadway stage and Hollywood movie productions of Blue Denim

Blue Denim

Blue Denim was a successful Broadway play by writer James Leo Herlihy, the author of the novels All Fall Down and Midnight Cowboy . It starred Carol Lynley, Warren Berlinger and newcomer Burt Brinckerhoff in the lead male role...

 (winning a Theatre World Award

Theatre World Award

The Theatre World Award, first awarded for the 1945-46 season, is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway.-History:...

 for the stage version), and also Happy Time

Happy Time

Happy Time is a 1975 studio album by Roy Eldridge. -Track listing:# "Sweethearts on Parade" – 4:20# "Willow Weep for Me" – 7:01# "Makin' Whoopee" – 4:42...

, Anniversary Waltz (later adapted as the movie Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary (film)

Happy Anniversary is a 1959 comedy film starring David Niven and Mitzi Gaynor.Directed by David Miller, the movie's cast also included Carl Reiner and a young Patty Duke. Duke's next film, The Miracle Worker, would earn her an Academy Award.-Plot:...

), and Come Blow Your Horn

Come Blow Your Horn

Come Blow Your Horn was Neil Simon's first play, which premiered in the United States in 1961 and had a London production in 1962 at the Prince of Wales Theatre.-Act Summaries:Time: The Present...

 in 1961. He also performed in the 1963 London stage production of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock, and Willie Gilbert, based on Shepherd Mead's 1952 book of the same name....

 at the Shaftesbury Theatre

Shaftesbury Theatre

The Shaftesbury Theatre is a West End Theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, in the London Borough of Camden.-History:The theatre was designed for the brothers Walter and Frederick Melville by Bertie Crewe and opened on 26 December 1911 with a production of The Three Musketeers, as the New...

, His career as a character actor began in 1956 with the film "Teenager Rebel". Then in the movies Billie

Billie (film)

Billie is a 1965 musical film directed by Don Weis. Based on the 1952 play Time Out For Ginger by Ronald Alexander, the film stars Patty Duke in the title role.-Plot:...

 (1965), Teenage Rebel

Teenage Rebel

Teenage Rebel is a 1956 drama film directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Ginger Rogers. It was nominated for two Academy Awards; for Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction Teenage Rebel is a 1956 drama film directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Ginger Rogers. It was nominated for two...

, Thunder Alley

Thunder Alley (film)

Thunder Alley is a 1967 film directed by Richard Rush and starring Annette Funicello and Fabian.-Plot:A race car driver retires after a blackout causes the death of another driver on the motorway. After the accident, he then begins working at a "Thrill Circus" as a stunt driver. There he meets the...

 and Because They're Young

Because They're Young

Because They're Young is a 1960 film from Columbia Pictures, starring Dick Clark as Neil Hendry, an American high school teacher who tries to make a difference in the lives of his students. The film co-starred Tuesday Weld, Warren Berlinger, Roberta Shore, Doug McClure, and Victoria Shaw. It was...

.

In 1965, Berlinger was the star of Kilroy

Kilroy

- People :* Alix Kilroy , one of the first two women to have entered the administrative grade of the British Civil Service by examination* Bucko Kilroy , American football player and executive with the New England Patriots...

, a segment of Walt Disney

Walt Disney

Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...

's Wonderful World of Color. Later appearances included episodes of Charlie's Angels

Charlie's Angels

Charlie's Angels is a television series about three women who work for a private investigation agency, and is one of the first shows to showcase women in roles traditionally reserved for men...

, Happy Days

Happy Days

Happy Days is an American television sitcom that originally aired from January 15, 1974, to September 24, 1984, on ABC. Created by Garry Marshall, the series presents an idealized vision of life in mid-1950s to mid-1960s America....

 (including a hilarious episode as "tough-as-nails" United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

 recruiter, Sergeant Bechler), Love, American Style

Love, American Style

Love, American Style is an hour-long TV anthology produced by Paramount Television and originally aired between September 1969 and January 1974...

, Operation Petticoat

Operation Petticoat

Operation Petticoat is a 1959 comedy film directed by Blake Edwards, and starring Cary Grant and Tony Curtis. It was the basis for a television series in 1977 starring John Astin in Grant's role...

, Friends

Friends

Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...

, Columbo and Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...

, and the movies Wanted: The Sundance Woman, The Cannonball Run, The Shaggy D.A.

The Shaggy D.A.

The Shaggy D.A. is a 1976 film sequel to 1959's The Shaggy Dog by Walt Disney Productions. It was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Don Tait, based on the original film and inspired by the long out-of-print Felix Salten novel, The Hound of Florence.It starred Dean Jones as the adult...

, That Thing You Do!

That Thing You Do!

That Thing You Do! is a 1996 comedy-drama musical film written and directed by Tom Hanks. Set in the summer of 1964, the movie tells the story of the quick rise and fall of a one-hit wonder rock band...

, and
The Girl Most Likely to...

The Girl Most Likely to...

The Girl Most Likely to... is a black comedy with slight psychological thriller elements written by Joan Rivers and starring Stockard Channing and Edward Asner. The film was released on November 6, 1973 as a made-for-television movie broadcast on the ABC Movie of the Week...

.

Berlinger played Phillip Short in Spinout - MGM 1966.

2006 marked Berlinger's 60th anniversary in show business. He has been both honorary Mayor and honorary Sheriff of Chatsworth, California.

External links