David Janssen (March 27, 1931 – February 13, 1980) was an American film and television actor who is best known for his starring role as Dr. Richard Kimble in the hit television series The Fugitive (1963–1967) with Barry Morse.
Janssen was born David Harold Meyer in Naponee, Nebraska. Following his parents' divorce when he was five, his mother took him to Los Angeles; she eventually married Eugene Janssen. David used his stepfather's name after he entered show business as a child. His first film part was at the age of thirteen, and by his twenty-fifth birthday, he had appeared in twenty films and served two years as an enlisted man in the U.S. Army.
He also starred in the television series Richard Diamond, Private Detective (1957-60), O'Hara, U.S. Treasury (1971–72), and Harry O (1974–76). His films include John Wayne's The Green Berets (1968), the science fiction film Marooned, and a starring role in Generation, a comedy that also featured Pete Duel, Kim Darby, and Carl Reiner. At the time of his death, Janssen had just begun filming a television movie playing the part of Father Damien, the priest who dedicated himself to the leper colony on the island of Molokai. The part was eventually reassigned to actor Ken Howard.
A smoker and a heavy drinker, plus a constant worker, Janssen died of a sudden heart attack in 1980 in Malibu, California two days into filming. He was interred in the Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery in Culver City, California.
He was married twice, first to Ellie Graham in 1958; they divorced in 1970. From 1975 to his death, he was married to Dani Crayne.
David Janssen was born (in Nebraska in 1931) to be a TV star. The Janssen family settled in Hollywood when he was a teenager and he attended Fairfax High School, where he developed an interest in acting. His film debut was a bit part in It's a Pleasure (1945), and at the age of 18 signed a contract with 20th Century-Fox. However, the studio dropped him after allegedly becoming disenchanted with his odd hairline and big prominent ears. Janssen had better luck at Universal, where he signed on in the early 1950s and became a supporting player in 32 films before appearing on TV as the star of "Richard Diamond, Private Detective" (1957). He resumed his movie career in 1961, a year after the series ended. His biggest success came from his lead in the series "Fugitive, The" (1963), playing the haunted, hunted Dr. Richard Kimble, on the run for a murder he didn't commit. After the series ended, Janssen launched himself into a grueling schedule by appearing in lead and supporting roles in movies, but he had better luck with made-for-TV-movie roles and a short-lived series, "O'Hara, U.S. Treasury" (1971). He had another hit series with the cult favorite "Harry O" (1974). Janssen continued appearing in lead roles in nearly 20 made-for-TV-movies during the 1970s as well as other TV projects. He died in 1980 from a sudden heart attack at his Malibu home at the age of 49. Unfounded speculation holds that Janssen succumbed to alcoholism, a problem that plagued him most of his adult life. There were even unfounded rumors about drug use. However, a much more reasonable explanation for David Janssen's sudden demise is that this intense, dedicated, determined actor simply worked himself to death.
