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George Dzundza (/ˈzʊndzə/ ZUUND-zə; born July 19, 1945) is a retired American actor. He is known for his varied work in film and on television, including The Deer Hunter (1978), Skokie (1981), No Way Out (1987), The Beast (1988), Impulse (1990), White Hunter Black Heart (also 1990), The Butcher's Wife (1991), Basic Instinct (1992), Crimson Tide (1995), Dangerous Minds (also 1995), and City by the Sea (2002).

Dzundza's television roles include Sergeant Max Greevey on the first season of Law & Order (1990-91), Tom Grzelack on Hack (2002-03), Harold O'Malley on Grey's Anatomy (2005-07), and the voices of Arnold Wesker/The Ventriloquist and Perry White in the DC Animated Universe. He also starred on the short-lived sitcom Open All Night (1981). Along with the ensemble cast, Dzundza won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his performance in the Robert Altman film Streamers (1983).

Early life and education

Dzundza was born in Rosenheim, Germany, to Polish parents Roman Dzundza and Maria Humenecka, who respectively originated from Kalush and Lviv in what is now Ukraine. After the Nazis forced his parents into factory labor, Dzundza spent his early years living in displaced persons camps with them.

Dzundza's family moved to Amsterdam in 1949, then moved to the US in 1956, settling in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City. He became a naturalized US citizen. He attended Xavier High School and St. Johns University, and studied under Stella Adler and Harold Clurman.

Career

Dzundza began acting in his freshman year of college at the insistence of another student. However, his professional stage debut was in a 1973 New York Shakespeare Festival production of King Lear, which was later aired as an episode of Great Performances. He starred in the Festival's 1973-74 national tour of That Championship Season. He also starred in the Broadway productions The Ritz and Legend, and in A Prayer for My Daughter at the Public Theatre. In 1979 he played the role of Cully Sawyer in the horror film, Salem's Lot.

Dzundza starred in a short-lived 1981 sitcom series Open All Night, about the owner of a "Store 364" convenience store in Inglewood, California. He portrayed American Nazi leader Frank Collin in the 1981 television film Skokie. In 1983, he starred in Robert Altman's film Streamers, based on the David Rabe play of the same name. The film's ensemble cast collectively won the Best Actor Award at the 40th Venice International Film Festival.

In 1987, Dzundza played Sam Hesselman, a disabled man in a wheelchair, in No Way Out and Commander Daskal in The Beast in 1988. Other major film roles of his include The Deer Hunter, Impulse, White Hunter Black Heart, The Butcher's Wife, Basic Instinct, Crimson Tide, Dangerous Minds and City by the Sea.

He was an original cast member of the NBC drama Law & Order, playing NYPD Sergeant Max Greevey in the first season only. Dzundza left after the first season of the show.

His other acting work includes an appearance on The Waltons (1975), and playing the Archie Bunker-like father in the short-lived Christina Applegate sitcom Jesse. He voiced supervillain the Ventriloquist in Batman: The Animated Series, and Perry White in Superman: The Animated Series.

In 2005, he played Anubis (aka "Jim") in the Stargate SG-1 episode "Threads". Dzundza portrayed George O'Malley's father Harold on Grey's Anatomy.

Personal life

Dzundza has been married to Mary Jo Vermeulen since 1982. They have three daughters and two grandchildren.

Now semi-retired, Dzundza resides in Astoria, Oregon, where he directs community and regional theatre productions.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Stage appearances

Awards and nominations

References

1. "Say How? A Pronunciation Guide to Names of Public Figures". Loc.gov. 2014-12-02. Retrieved 2015-08-26.
2. ^ "Dzundza, George 1945—". encyclopedia.com. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
3. ^ Webb, Patrick (August 7, 2023). "Everyday People: Retired actor wants audiences to question". The Astorian. Retrieved September 22, 2024.
4. Jakle, Jeanne (December 26, 1998). "Nice-guy actor won't turn fans away - or off". San Antonio Express-News / mySA.com. S.A. Life. Retrieved 2015-08-26 – via newsbank.com.
5. "New Yorkers bring culture to Catskills". ukrweekly.com. 13 September 1998. Archived from the original on January 5, 2006.
6. ^ "George Dzundza". TCM.com. Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
7. ^ "George Dzundza". stellaadler.com. Stella Adler Studio of Acting. 20 August 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
8. ^ Bengel, Erick (March 13, 2014). "Dzundza directs Coaster Theatre production". The Astorian (December 7, 2018 ed.). Cannon Beach Gazette. Retrieved May 4, 2022 – via dailyastorian.com.
9. ^ Jacobs, Jay S. (February 26, 2003). "George Dzundza". PopEntertainment.com. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
10. ^ "George Dzundza – Broadway Cast & Staff | IBDB". www.ibdb.com. Retrieved 2024-09-22.
11. "A Prayer for My Daughter". www.iobdb.com. Retrieved 2024-09-22.
12. Handler, David (March 3, 1982). "'Open All Night' is weird -- but good". The Madison Courier. Madison, Indiana. p. B7. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
13. "Film documents Skokie's resistance to Neo-Nazis". San Diego Jewish World. 2020-11-02. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
14. ^ "George Dzundza Credits". tvguide.com. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
15. Slovick, Matt. "No Way Out". washingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
16. Kehr, Dave (2 December 1988). "'The Beast' Intrigues with Its Point of View". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
17. Courrier, Kevin; Green, Susan (November 22, 1999). Law & Order: The Unofficial Companion (2nd ed.). Los Angeles, California: Renaissance Books. p. 111. ISBN 1-58063-108-8.
18. ^ "George Dzundza (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved September 12, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
19. Block, Alex Ben (March 6, 2013). "Film Investors' Lawsuit Against Rob Schneider Moves to L.A. Superior Court". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
20. Leo, Vince (August 30, 2010). "The Chosen One review (2010)". qwipster.net. Retrieved September 12, 2024.

Notes

1. Shared with Guy Boyd, David Alan Grier, Mitchell Lichtenstein, Matthew Modine, and Michael Wright.

External links

• George Dzundza at IMDb
• Dzundza on the Internet Broadway Database
• Dzundza on the Internet Off-Broadway Database

• 1945 births
• Living people
• 20th-century American male actors
• 21st-century American male actors
• American male film actors
• American male television actors
• American male stage actors
• American male voice actors
• American people of Polish descent
• American people of Ukrainian descent
• Immigrants to the United States
• Male actors from Bavaria
• Naturalized citizens of the United States
• People from Rosenheim
• St. John's University (New York City) alumni
• Volpi Cup for Best Actor winners
• Xavier High School (New York City) alumni