James Olson, Actor Who Appeared in Dozens of '70s TV Hits, Dead at 91

James R. Olson, who starred in dozens of hit 1970s television series, died last month. He was 91. Olson, who retired from acting in 1990, also starred in the Paul Newman-directed Rachel, Rachel with Joanne Woodward, and the 1971 classic thriller The Andromeda Strain.

Olson died on April 17 at his home in Malibu, according to his obituary published in the Malibu Times on April 28. He is survived by two nieces, a nephew, and three grandnephews. He is also survived by his friends from Northwestern, Inga and Lowell Harris.

The actor was born on Oct. 8, 1930, in Evanston, Illinois to Leroy and Florence Olson. He worked as a child actor in Chicago before attending Northwestern University and serving in the U.S. Army. After his service, he moved to New York City to study with Lee Strasberg. He made his Broadway debut in the 1955 play The Young and the Beautiful, co-written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. He also starred in productions of Tennessee Williams' The Mutilated, The Three Sisters, and The Chinese Prime Minister.

Although he loved starring on the stage, he made several film and television appearances. In 1968, he starred in Newman's critically acclaimed directing debut Rachel, Rachel, which starred Woodward as a schoolteacher. Olson's other important film credits include The Andromeda Strain, The Three Sisters, and The Strange One. He also had a small role in Milos Forman's 1981 classic Ragtime.

Olson was also a ubiquitous presence on television during the 1960s and 1970s. He made appearances in The Defenders, The Virginian, McCloud, Medical Center, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, The F.B.I., Mannix, Kung Fu, Cannon, Maude, Wonder Woman, Battlestar Galactica, McMillan and Wife, Little House on the Prairie, and Barnaby Jones. He starred in five episodes of Hawaii Five-0 between 1972 and 1979, playing different characters in each episode. Olson also starred in several TV movies, including The Spell, The Missiles of October, and The Court-Martial of Goerge Armstrong Custer. He made his final onscreen appearance in a 1990 episode of Murder, She Wrote before his retirement.