Jack Cassidy

Description

Jack Cassidy (March 5, 1927 &ndash; December 12, 1976) was an American actor, who achieved success in theater, cinema and television. <p>His frequent professional persona was that of an urbane, super-confident egotist with a dramatic flair, much in the manner of Broadway actor Frank Fay. Cassidy perfected this character to such an extent that he was cast as the legendary John Barrymore in the feature film W. C. Fields and Me. Cassidy turned down the role of Ted Baxter in The Mary Tyler Moore Show, appearing instead as a guest star in a very memorable episode as Ted's highly competitive and equally egocentric brother, Hal. <p>Cassidy was born John Joseph Edward Cassidy in Richmond Hill, New York to William Cassidy, who was of Irish descent, and Charlotte Koehler, who was of German descent. He achieved his greatest success as a musical performer on Broadway, appearing in Wish You Were Here, Shangri-La, Maggie Flynn, Fade Out - Fade In, It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman, and She...