Walter Lane Smith III (April 29, 1936 – June 13, 2005) was an American actor. His well-known roles included newspaper editor Perry White in the ABC series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, collaborator entrepreneur Nathan Bates in the 1984 NBC television series V, Mayor Bates in the film Red Dawn, Coach Jack Reilly in The Mighty Ducks, district attorney Jim Trotter in My Cousin Vinny, U.S. Congressman Dick Dodge in The Distinguished Gentleman, Grantland Rice in The Legend of Bagger Vance, and U.S. President Richard Nixon in The Final Days, for which he received a Golden Globe award nomination.
Early life Lane Smith was born in 1936 in Memphis, Tennessee. He graduated from the Leelanau School, a boarding school in Glen Arbor, Michigan, and spent one year boarding at the Hill School in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, before studying at the Actors Studio in the late 1950s and early 1960s along with Dustin Hoffman and Al Pacino; he was recognized in their Hall of Fame. Smith served two years in the U.S. Army.
Career After graduating, Smith found steady work in New York theater before making his film debut in Maidstone in 1970. During the 1970s, he regularly made appearances in small film roles including Rooster Cogburn in 1975 and Network in 1976. In 1981, Smith appeared in the Sidney Lumet-directed film Prince of the City. He also acted on television, notably playing a United States Marine in Vietnam in the television miniseries A Rumor of War and in the 1980 Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Gideon's Trumpet starring Henry Fonda, José Ferrer and John Houseman. Smith is also credited for playing McMurphy 650 times in the 1971 Off-Broadway revival of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
Smith made a major breakthrough in 1984 with significant roles in Red Dawn, Places in the Heart and the television series V. He also played on Quincy, M.E. in season 8, episode 7, "Science for Sale" as an oncologist searching for a cure to cancer. In 1989, Smith gained recognition for his portrayal of Richard Nixon in the docudrama The Final Days. Newsweek praised the performance, writing, "[Smith] is such a good Nixon that his despair and sorrow at his predicament become simply overwhelming." Smith earned a Golden Globe nomination for his performance. He also appeared in the original Broadway stage production of David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross as James Lingk. He received a Drama Desk Award for his performance.
In 1990, Smith appeared in Air America playing a United States Senator, a role for which he was selected based on his resemblance to then-Minority Leader Bob Dole. Two years later, he played a powerful and corrupt United States Congressman opposite Eddie Murphy in The Distinguished Gentleman, followed by a role as a small-town district attorney opposite Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinny, and as Coach Jack Reilly in The Mighty Ducks. In 1993, Smith played Walter Warner in Son in Law. That same year, he was cast as Perry White in Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, which he played for four seasons until 1997. In 1994, he portrayed New York Yankees front officeman Ron in The Scout, alongside Albert Brooks and Brendan Fraser. In 1998, Smith appeared in a major role as fictional television anchorman Emmett Seaborn in the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon. His final film appearance was in The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000).
Death Smith was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, and also known as Lou Gehrig's disease) in April 2004. He died of complications from the disease at home in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, on June 13, 2005 at the age of 69. He was survived by his wife, Debbie Benedict Smith, and his son Robert Smith.
Filmography
Film + Film Year Title Role Notes 1966 Unholy Matrimony Partygoer Uncredited 1970 Maidstone 1973 Rick Penny Cops and Robbers Perpetrator 1974 Man on a Swing Virginia De Leo 1975 Rooster Cogburn Leroy Everybody Rides the Carousel 1976 Network Robert McDonough 1977 Between the Lines Roy Walsh Officer Mackle 1978 Blue Collar Clarence Hill On the Yard Captain Blake 1979 Over the Edge Sloan 1980 On the Nickel Preacher Honeysuckle Rose Brag, Cotton's Manager Resurrection Don 1981 Prince of the City "Tug" Barnes Soggy Bottom, U.S.A. Jack "Smilin' Jack" 1982 Frances Dr. Symington 1984 Purple Hearts Commander Markel Red Dawn Mayor Bates Places in the Heart Albert Denby 1986 Native Son Britton 1987 Weeds Claude Prison Warden Ethan Sharpe 1989 Race for Glory Joe Gifford Night Game Witty 1990 Air America Senator Davenport 1992 My Cousin Vinny District Attorney Jim Trotter III The Mighty Ducks Coach Jack Reilly Dick Dodge 1993 Son in Law Walter Warner 1994 Stephen Hahn Ron Wilson 1996 Majoree's Husband Uncredited Why Do Fools Fall in Love Ezra Grahme Steve Shaw 1998 Getting Personal Dr. Maddie 2000 Thunderhead Grantland Rice
Television + Television Year Title Role Notes1975 Kojak Clyde Regan Season 2 Episode 18: "Queen of the Gypsies" Valley Forge Spad TV movie 1975–1979 The Rockford Files (1) Willett(2) CIA Agent Donnegan (1) Season 1 Episode 17: "Claire" (1975)(2) Season 5 Episode 13: "The Battle-Ax and the Exploding Cigar" (1979)1977 The Displaced Person Mr. Shortley TV movie The Court-Martial of George Armstrong Custer TV movie1978 A Death in Canaan Bob Hartman TV movie Crash Flight Engineer Romano TV movie1979 Jack Collins TV movie Disaster on the Coastliner John Carlson TV movie1980 City in Fear Brian TV movie Gideon's Trumpet Fred Turner TV movie Sergeant William Holgren MiniseriesSeason 1 Episode 1Season 1 Episode 2 The Georgia Peaches Randolph Dukane TV movie Mark, I Love You Don Payer TV movie1981 Dallas Prosecutor Season 5 Episode 2: "Gone, But Not Forgotten" Dark Night of the Scarecrow Harless Hocker TV movie Hart to Hart Roy Hamlin Season 3 Episode 20: "Hart, Line, and Sinker"1982 Prime Suspect Tom Keating TV movie Thou Shalt Not Kill Clarence Blake TV movie Lou Grant Dr. Lawrence Season 5 Episode 20: "Unthinkable"The Big Easy Lieutenant Frank Medley TV movie Quincy, M.E. Dr. Paul Flynn Season 8 Episode 7: "Science for Sale" Member of the Wedding Mr. Addams TV movie1983 Special Bulletin Morton Sanders TV movie Chiefs Hoss Spence MiniseriesSeason 1 Episode 1Season 1 Episode 2Season 1 Episode 3 1984 Something About Amelia Officer Dealy TV movie 1984–1985 V Nathan Bates 13 episodes1985 Hill Street Blues Mike Season 5 Episode 18: "El Capitan" Beverly Hills Cowgirl Blues Captain Max Rosenberg TV movie Bridge Across Time Anson Whitfield TV movie1986 Amazing Stories Dr. Caruso Season 1 Episode 18: "Dorothy and Ben" The Twilight Zone Professor Joseph Fitzgerald Season 1 Episode 20 (Segment: "Profile in Silver") Dress Gray Colonel King MiniseriesSeason 1 Episode 1Season 1 Episode 2 If Tomorrow Comes Warden Brannigan MiniseriesSeason 1 Episode 1 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Robert Warren Season 1 Episode 18: "Episode: Happy Birthday" Kay O'Brien Doctor Robert Moffitt 13 episodes 1987 A Place to Call Home Sam TV movie1988 In the Heat of the Night Sonny Mims Season 1 Episode 3: "Road Kill" Killer Instinct Dr. Butler TV movie1989 Murder, She Wrote Police Chief Underwood Season 5 Episode 11: "The Search for Peter Kerry" Richard Nixon TV movie Golden Globe Award (nominated)1990 Challenger Larry Mulloy TV movie Blind Vengeance Colonel Blanchard TV movie1991 Good Sports R.J. Rappaport 21 episodes Good & Evil Harlan Shell 5 episodes (1 uncredited) False Arrest Martin Busey TV movie 1992 Duplicates Mr. Fryman TV movie 1993–1997 Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Perry White 84 episodes 1994 Murphy Brown Danger Duke Robinson VoiceSeason 7 Episode 2: "Where Have You Gone, Joe DiMaggio?" 1995 Dweebs Colonel Whitmore Season 1 Episode 4: "The Cyrano Show" 1996 Clueless Dan Hafner Season 1 Episode 11: "Romeo & Cher" 1997 Alien Nation: The Udara Legacy Senator Silverthorne TV movie1998 Dr. Malcolm Boussard Season 4 Episode 9: "Glyphic"From the Earth to the Moon Emmett Seaborn (1) Season 1 Episode 1: "Can We Do This?"(2) Season 1 Episode 4: "1968"(3) Season 1 Episode 6: "Mare Tranquilitatis"(4) Season 1 Episode 7: "That's All There Is"(5) Season 1 Episode 8: "We Interrupt This Program"(6) Season 1 Episode 12: "Le voyage dans la lune" 1999 Walker, Texas Ranger Reverend Thornton Powers Season 7 Episode 21: "Power Angels" Inherit the Wind Reverend Jeremiah Brown TV movie 2000 King of the Hill (1) and (2) Charlie Fortner(3) Nate Hashaway Voice (1) Season 4 Episode 13: "Hanky Panky"(2) Season 4 Episode 20: "Meet the Propaniacs"(3) Season 4 Episode 22: "Flush with Power"2001 Bull Russell Dantly Season 1 Episode 18: "Amen" DAG Agent Baxter Season 1 Episode 17: "The Triangle Report" WW3 John Sullivan TV movie Judge H. Finkel Season 6 Episode 1: "The Candidate" 2002 Judging Amy Mr. Radford Season 4 Episode 10: "People of the Lie" 2003 Out of Order Frank Miniseries (all 6 episodes); final role
References
External links
Lane Smith at the Internet Off-Broadway Database