Wayne Tippit
Encyclopedia
Wayne Tippit was an American television
and stage
character actor
. He was best known to television audiences for playing Ted Adamson on the 1970s and 1980s CBS
soap opera
, Search for Tomorrow
, for five years. He later portrayed Palmer Woodward, the father of Heather Locklear
's character, Amanda Woodward, on the hit Fox
primetime series, Melrose Place, during the 1990s.
. He initially enrolled at what is now called Texas Tech University
, where he pursued drama
and speech
. However, Tippit transferred to the University of Iowa
, where he obtained his bachelor's degree
in fine arts in 1953.
Tippit enlisted in the United States Army
following his graduation, where he produced a radio show. He moved to New York City
after leaving the Army in order to pursue stage and theater roles.
in Only in America
and Tall Story
. Additional Broadway credits included Gantry in 1970, Harold Pinter's Old Times, and The Nerd, directed by Charles Nelson Reilly, in 1987-88.
In 1959, Tippit was cast in the CBS
soap opera
, The Secret Storm
, where he portrayed the character, Jerry Ames. He remained on the soap opera for six years, while simultaneously working as an advertising
spokesman
for several consumer products. During that time he was also affiliated with the now defunct North Jersey Playhouse where Robert Ludlum was producer.
He continued to perform in stage roles in New York City during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. He found acclaim in the late ’60s in a pair of off-Broadway shows, “MacBird” and “The Boys in the Band.” In “MacBird,” Mr. Tippit took over the title role — a character seen as a caricature of President Lyndon Johnson — from Stacy Keach. In “The Boys in the Band,” he played Hank, a married-with-children schoolteacher who shows up at a birthday party with his male lover. In the early 1970s Tippit played Agent Dan Shore on "The Rockford Files." In 1978, Tippit was cast as Ted Adamson on the CBS daytime soap opera, Search for Tomorrow
. He remained in the cast of Search for Tomorrow for five years. In the mid-1980s he appeared in Lanford Wilson's autobiographical play "Lemon Sky," opposite Jeff Daniels and Jill Eikenberry.
Tippit and his family were longtime residents of Ridgewood, New Jersey
, but moved to Los Angeles in 1990 to pursue television roles after he was diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He appeared on a number of television series, mostly in guest appearances as characters on Diagnosis Murder
, L.A. Law
, Seinfeld
, Murphy Brown
, the X-Files and Matlock
.
During the 1990s, Tippit appeared on Melrose Place, playing Heather Locklear
's character's (Amanda Woodward) father, Palmer Woodward.
in Los Angeles on August 28, 2009, at the age of 76. He was survived by his wife, Carole Macho Tippit, daughters, Sarah Tippit and Kate Tippit Avron, and four grandchildren.
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and stage
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
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...
. He was best known to television audiences for playing Ted Adamson on the 1970s and 1980s CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, Search for Tomorrow
Search for Tomorrow
Search for Tomorrow is an American soap opera which premiered on September 3, 1951 on CBS. The show was moved from CBS to NBC on March 29, 1982. It continued on NBC until the final episode aired on December 26, 1986, a run of thirty-five years. At the time of its final broadcast it was the...
, for five years. He later portrayed Palmer Woodward, the father of Heather Locklear
Heather Locklear
Heather Deen Locklear is an American actress best known for her television roles as Sammy Jo Carrington on Dynasty, Officer Stacy Sheridan on T.J...
's character, Amanda Woodward, on the hit Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
primetime series, Melrose Place, during the 1990s.
Early life
Tippit was born on December 19, 1932, in Lubbock, TexasLubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
. He initially enrolled at what is now called Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University, often referred to as Texas Tech or TTU, is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and originally known as Texas Technological College, it is the leading institution of the Texas Tech University System and has the...
, where he pursued drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
and speech
Speech
Speech is the human faculty of speaking.It may also refer to:* Public speaking, the process of speaking to a group of people* Manner of articulation, how the body parts involved in making speech are manipulated...
. However, Tippit transferred to the University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
, where he obtained his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in fine arts in 1953.
Tippit enlisted in the 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...
following his graduation, where he produced a radio show. He moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
after leaving the Army in order to pursue stage and theater roles.
Career
Shortly after arriving in New York City in the late 1950s, Tippit appeared in small parts on BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in Only in America
Only in America
Only in America is a children's television programme that originally aired in 2005 on the CBBC Channel. It is presented by Fearne Cotton and Reggie Yates....
and Tall Story
Tall Story
Tall Story is a 1960 American sports comedy film directed by Joshua Logan and starring Anthony Perkins and Jane Fonda. Future star Robert Redford made his big-screen debut as a basketball player....
. Additional Broadway credits included Gantry in 1970, Harold Pinter's Old Times, and The Nerd, directed by Charles Nelson Reilly, in 1987-88.
In 1959, Tippit was cast in the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, The Secret Storm
The Secret Storm
The Secret Storm is a soap opera which ran on CBS from February 1, 1954 to February 8, 1974. The series was created by Roy Winsor, who also created the long-running soap operas Search for Tomorrow and Love of Life...
, where he portrayed the character, Jerry Ames. He remained on the soap opera for six years, while simultaneously working as an advertising
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
spokesman
Spokesman
A spokesperson or spokesman or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others.In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have received formal training in journalism, communications, public relations and...
for several consumer products. During that time he was also affiliated with the now defunct North Jersey Playhouse where Robert Ludlum was producer.
He continued to perform in stage roles in New York City during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. He found acclaim in the late ’60s in a pair of off-Broadway shows, “MacBird” and “The Boys in the Band.” In “MacBird,” Mr. Tippit took over the title role — a character seen as a caricature of President Lyndon Johnson — from Stacy Keach. In “The Boys in the Band,” he played Hank, a married-with-children schoolteacher who shows up at a birthday party with his male lover. In the early 1970s Tippit played Agent Dan Shore on "The Rockford Files." In 1978, Tippit was cast as Ted Adamson on the CBS daytime soap opera, Search for Tomorrow
Search for Tomorrow
Search for Tomorrow is an American soap opera which premiered on September 3, 1951 on CBS. The show was moved from CBS to NBC on March 29, 1982. It continued on NBC until the final episode aired on December 26, 1986, a run of thirty-five years. At the time of its final broadcast it was the...
. He remained in the cast of Search for Tomorrow for five years. In the mid-1980s he appeared in Lanford Wilson's autobiographical play "Lemon Sky," opposite Jeff Daniels and Jill Eikenberry.
Tippit and his family were longtime residents of Ridgewood, New Jersey
Ridgewood, New Jersey
Ridgewood is a village in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the village population was 24,958. Ridgewood is an affluent suburban bedroom community of New York City, located approximately northwest of Midtown Manhattan.The Village of Ridgewood was...
, but moved to Los Angeles in 1990 to pursue television roles after he was diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He appeared on a number of television series, mostly in guest appearances as characters on Diagnosis Murder
Diagnosis Murder
Diagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman...
, L.A. Law
L.A. Law
L.A. Law is a US television legal drama that ran on NBC from September 15, 1986 to May 19, 1994. L.A. Law reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights,...
, Seinfeld
Seinfeld
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
, Murphy Brown
Murphy Brown
Murphy Brown is an American situation comedy which aired on CBS from November 14, 1988, to May 18, 1998, for a total of 247 episodes. The program starred Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, a famous investigative journalist and news anchor for FYI, a fictional CBS television...
, the X-Files and Matlock
Matlock (TV series)
Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of attorney Ben Matlock. The show originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC, where it replaced The A-Team, then from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC.The show's format was similar...
.
During the 1990s, Tippit appeared on Melrose Place, playing Heather Locklear
Heather Locklear
Heather Deen Locklear is an American actress best known for her television roles as Sammy Jo Carrington on Dynasty, Officer Stacy Sheridan on T.J...
's character's (Amanda Woodward) father, Palmer Woodward.
Death
Tippit received a single lung transplant in 2000 as treatment for severe emphysema. He died of respiratory failure after a long illness with multiple complications at Cedars-Sinai Medical CenterCedars-Sinai Medical Center
Originally established as Kaspare Cohn Hospital in 1902, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a non-profit, tertiary 958-bed hospital and multi-specialty academic health science centre located in Los Angeles, California, US. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over...
in Los Angeles on August 28, 2009, at the age of 76. He was survived by his wife, Carole Macho Tippit, daughters, Sarah Tippit and Kate Tippit Avron, and four grandchildren.