| Donnelly Rhodes | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name: | Donnelly Rhodes Henry |
| Born: | December 4, 1937 |
| Birth Hometown: | Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada |
| Died: | January 8, 2018 |
| Place of death: | Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada |
| Occupation: | Actor |
| Years active: | 1956–2017 |
Donnelly Rhodes Henry (December 4, 1937 – January 8, 2018) was a Canadian actor, known professionally as Donnelly Rhodes. He had many American television and film credits, probably best known to American audiences as the hapless escaped convict Dutch Leitner on the soap opera spoof Soap and as Phillip Chancellor II on The Young and the Restless. Rhodes was well-known to Canadian audiences as Sgt. Nick Raitt in the CBC TV series Sidestreet (1975–1978) and as Grant "Doc" Roberts in another CBC TV series, Danger Bay (1985–1990). He also starred as Doctor Cottle ("Doc") on Battlestar Galactica (2004–2009).
Life and career[]
Rhodes was born in 1937, although some sources say 1936, and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He was a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada. Between 1998 and 2005 he played the role of Detective Leo Shannon in the popular Canadian television series Da Vinci's Inquest. From 1985 to 1990, he played Dr. Grant Roberts in the series Danger Bay. He starred as ruthless corporate lawyer R.J. Williams during the 1991-92 season of the drama Street Legal.
A large portion of Rhodes' career consists of guest-starring roles in American television. He appeared twice on Laredo: in 1965, he played Bob Jamison in Rendezvous at Arillo and played a lead role in "The Trap", an episode on The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. The next year, Rhodes was cast in The Would-Be Gentleman of Laredo as Don Carlos.
In 1966, Rhodes appeared as Red Eagle in the episode "Pariah" of the series The Road West. The same year, he guest-starred on Dundee and the Culhane. He appeared in three episodes of Mission: Impossible (1966-1973 TV series), in the Season 3 episode, "The Freeze" (1968), in the Season 4 episode, "Mastermind" (1969), and in the Season 7 episode, "Ultimatum" (1972). He also played the main card player, Macon, who threatens the Sundance Kid (Robert Redford) in the opening scene of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969).
In 1973, Rhodes co-starred in an episode of the sci-fi drama The Starlost (episode 12, 'The Implant People'). He played Phillip Chancellor II in The Young and the Restless from 1974 to 1975, and from 1978 to 1981, he played escaped convict Dutch Leitner on Soap.
In 1980, Rhodes played a priest in the miniseries The Chisholms. In 1982, he played Leo, a bar patron on Cheers. In 1983 he appeared as Wilson Arthur MacLeish on Magnum P.I. on the episode "Of Sound Mind" In 1984, he had a supporting role as the beleaguered father in the short-lived TV series Double Trouble and appeared as Arland D. Williams Jr. in the television movie Flight 90: Disaster on the Potomac. In 1987, he made a guest appearance on The Golden Girls as Jake Smollens, a handsome, rough-around-the-edges caterer.
In 1988, Rhodes guest-starred on Empty Nest as Leonard, an old friend of the main character. In 1991 he played the "Prodigal Father" in an episode of Murder, She Wrote. In 1993, Rhodes played Jim Parker in "Shapes" (Season 1, episode 19) of The X-Files. For seven years (1998-2005), he played Detective Leo Shannon on Da Vinci's Inquest. He played the character Milash in an episode of Smallville in 2008. On the revived Battlestar Galactica (2004–2009), Rhodes played Chief Medical Officer Sherman Cottle who smoked cigarettes in most scenes. Most recently Rhodes played Mr. Decker, Rufus Decker's father, in the two seasons of The Romeo Section on CBC in 2015-2016.
Rhodes' film appearances were fewer, including roles in Gunfight in Abilene (1967), Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), Change of Mind (1969), The Neptune Factor (1973), Goldenrod (1976), Oh! Heavenly Dog (1980), Urban Safari (1995), and Tron: Legacy (2010).
In February 2009, the Union of British Columbia Performers honoured Rhodes with the Sam Payne Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Radio work[]
Rhodes provided the voice of the US president at the start of each episode of the CBC Radio One space opera/comedy series Canadia: 2056.
Death[]
Rhodes died of cancer at the Baillie House Hospice in Maple Ridge, British Columbia at the age of 80.