Rick Jason (born Richard Jacobson; May 21, 1923 – October 16, 2000) was an American actor. He is most remembered for starring in the ABC television drama Combat! (1962–1967).
Early life and education Jason was born Richard Jacobson in Brooklyn, New York to a Jewish family. As a child, he was a good student who proved to be popular with his classmates and teachers. He graduated from Rhodes Preparatory School in Manhattan.
Military service Rick Jason served from 1943 to 1945 in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, he visited American troops serving in Vietnam on several USO tours.Jason (2000), "Pat Calls It Quits and I Go To Nam"
Acting career
Later, MGM was searching for an actor to replace Fernando Lamas in the 1953 movie Sombrero and gave the role to Jason, who was earlier released from Columbia Pictures. This led to Jason being cast in The Saracen Blade (1954) and This Is My Love (1954).Jason (2000) "The Saracen Blade at Columbia Pictures"
Although not top-billed, Jason occupied most of the screen time as the amorous driver in John Steinbeck's The Wayward Bus, which included several "torrid scenes" that pushed the bounds of the waning Production Code.
In 1956, Jason played the lead in The Fountain of Youth, a half-hour unsold television pilot written and directed by Orson Welles which won the Peabody Award in 1958. The pilot aired as an episode of the anthology series Colgate Theatre on September 16, 1958.
Soon after, Jason received offers for television series. He guest-starred on ABC's anthology series, The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse. In 1954, he played Joaquin Murietta, the notorious Mexican bandit of the California Gold Rush, in an episode of Jim Davis's syndicated western series Stories of the Century, the story of a railroad detective investigating crime in the American West. He appeared on the NBC interview program Here's Hollywood, in the Rawhide episodes "Incident of the Coyote Weed" and "Incident of the Valley in Shadow", and co-starred in 1969 in The Monk.
In 1960, he starred as insurance investigator Robin Scott in The Case of the Dangerous Robin, a syndicated American television series that lasted only one season. It was not renewed due to Jason's health issues, including back problems. In 1962, he began starring in the television series Combat! as Platoon Leader 2nd Lt. Gil Hanley, probably his most memorable role. In this series he shared the starring role in an alternating episode rotation, with Vic Morrow as Sgt. Chip Saunders, though in many episodes they both appeared. The show was a hit that lasted for 152 episodes in five seasons.
After Combat!, Rick returned to stage acting. He made films in Japan and Israel, as well as films such as Color Me Dead (1969), The Day of the Wolves (1971), The Witch Who Came from the Sea (1976), Love and the Midnight Auto Supply (1977), Partners (1982) and Illegally Yours (1988). He also played Cornelius Vanderbilt in the 1989 miniseries Around the World in 80 Days. In 1973, he was a frequent character on The Young and the Restless.Los Angeles Times He was also a favorite voice for TV commercial narration in the 1960s.
Retirement After retiring from screen appearances, Jason kept busy by doing voice-overs for commercials and wrote his autobiography, Scrapbooks of My Mind. In 2000, he attended a Combat! reunion in Las Vegas with fellow cast members.Variety (2000)
Personal life In his personal life, Jason enjoyed playing guitar, painting, sculpting, collecting wines, flying, hunting, photography, and breeding tropical fish.
In 2000, Jason published his autobiography Scrapbooks of My Mind: A Hollywood Autobiography. The book describes Jason growing up in New York during the Great Depression and shares behind-the-scenes stories of his film and tv career.Scrapbooks of My Mind (July 29, 2000) The book was pulled from publication after his death in October 2000. A version of the book exists online.
Death Jason died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound one week after the Combat! reunion, on October 16, 2000, in Moorpark, California, where he lived. He left no note. Authorities said the actor was "despondent" over "unspecified personal matters."
His body was cremated and interred at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California in the Cathedral Mausoleum.
Legacy Concerning Combat!, pop culture scholar Gene Santoro has written:
Producer Steve Rubin wrote a tribute to Jason published in the Los Angeles Times on October 20, 2000:
Rubin concluded:
Filmography Year Title Role Notes1953 Sombrero Ruben 1954 The Saracen Blade Enzio Siniscola 1954 This Is My Love Glenn Harris 1956 The Lieutenant Wore Skirts Captain Barney Sloan 1957 The Wayward Bus Johnny Chicoy 1958 Rx Murder Jethro Jones 1958 Sierra Baron Miguel Delmonte 1958 Colgate Theatre Alan Brody Season 1 Episode 5: "The Fountain of Youth"1959 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Arthur Season 4 Episode 25: "The Kind Waitress"1959 Rawhide Manso Season 2 Episode 9: "Incident of the Valley in Shadow"1968 Teppô denraiki or The Saga of Tanegashima Captain Pinto 1969 Color Me Dead Bradley Taylor 1970 Ha-Pritza Hagdola Beno Also known as Eagles Strike at Dawn1971 The Day of the Wolves No. 4 1971 The Virginian (TV series) Tom Fuller Season 9 Episode 24: "Jump-Up"1974 A Time for Love 1976 The Witch Who Came from the Sea Billy Batt 1977 Love and the Midnight Auto Supply Councilman Ted Fredricks 1977 Proof of the Man Lionel Adams 1978Wonder WomanUncle Lawson KosloSeason 2 Episode 19: "Seance of Terror"1982 Partners Douglas 1983 Shôsetsu Yoshida gakko General Douglas MacArthur 1988 Illegally Yours Freddie Boneflecker
Notes
References Jason, Rick. Scrapbooks of My Mind : A Hollywood Autobiography; Strange New Worlds; 1st edition 29 July 2000;
Obituary in Variety; 9 November 2000
External links
The Fountain of Youth on YouTube The Life and Sad Ending of Rick Jason (December 18, 2020) Access Date: March 9, 2022 A Salute to Rick Jason (as platoon leader 2nd Lt. Gil Hanley) 2018 Access Date: March 9, 2022