David Gale(1936-1991)
- Actor
Tall, thin and distinguished character actor David Quentin Gale was
born on October 2, 1936 in Wimbledon, England. David Gale began his acting
career on the New York stage in the late 50s. He first started acting
in both movies and television in the early 70s. With his gaunt face,
lean build, and intense and imposing screen presence, David was usually
cast as extremely wicked and hateful villains. Gale achieved his
greatest enduring cult cinema popularity with his marvelously robust
and inspired portrayal of the icy, ruthless, and arrogant mad scientist
Dr. Carl Hill in Stuart Gordon's terrific horror splatter gem
Re-Animator (1985). He reprised this part in the enjoyable sequel Re-Animator 2 (1990). David's other memorable roles include demented pop
psychologist TV show host Dr. Anthony Blakely in The Brain (1988), at his
deliriously wired and wacky best as batty CEO Carter Brown in
Syngenor (1990), and evil corporate head Fulton Balcus in Guyver (1991). Gale
had recurring parts on the TV shows The Secret Storm (1954), The Edge of Night (1956), One Life to Live (1968), and Search for Tomorrow (1951). Among the TV
series he made guest appearances on episodes of are Kojak (1973), Ryan's Hope (1975), Hart to Hart (1979), The Dukes of Hazzard (1979), Tales from the Darkside (1983), L.A. Law (1986), Dallas (1978), and Knots Landing (1979). Moreover, David
also had a lengthy and impressive stage career: He not only acted in
Broadway stage productions of the classic plays "Of Mice and Men" and
"Sweet Bird of Youth," but also acted in Off-Broadway stage productions
of such plays as "Elizabeth the Queen," "Joe Egg," "The Trial,"
"Orpheus Descending," and "Anthony and Cleopatra." Gale was married and
had a son. David died of complications from open-heart surgery on
August 18, 1991, in Los Angeles, California.