Jon Lormer was an American actor, known for his guest and supporting roles in television series, such as the 1960s' , The Twilight Zone, Perry Mason, and Peyton Place.
Career
Lormer was both a director and an actor with the American Theatre Wing in New York City. His other work on stage included plays in New York City and productions that toured the United States. In 1980, Lormer portrayed Professor Boggs in the syndicated television drama The Life and Times of Eddie Roberts. Lormer made guest appearances on dozens of television series, often appearing multiple times on the same series but as different characters. He appeared in three separate roles in : as Dr. Theodore Haskins, in "The Cage" ; as Tamar in "The Return of the Archons"; and as the 'Old Man' who speaks the title line in "For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky". He also played a recurring role as the postman Silas Huff in several episodes in the 1953-54 seasons of the TV series Lassie. From 1959-63 he made 12 appearances on Perry Mason as a medical examiner/autopsy surgeon. In 1959 he appeared in Lawman as Harry Tate a newspaper editor, in "The Big Hat". That same year he again appeared as Harry Tate on Lawman in the episode titled "The Outsider." In 1960 he played Harry Gillespie in the Rawhide episode "Incident of the Last Chance". Between 1960 and 1963 he was in four episodes of The Twilight Zone. In 1960 he played The Reverend in "Execution". In 1961 he played "Man" in "Dust". In 1962 he played Strauss in "The Last Rites of Jeff Myrtlebank" and in 1963 he played the Minister in "Jess-Belle". He also appeared three times on "The Andy Griffith Show", in 1962 as Fletch Dilbeck, and as Tate Fletcher and in 1964 he played the part of Parnell Rigsby, a farmer who lost his wallet. He also played Reverend Jimson's father in "The Renegade" and Tuscarora tribesman Yellow Knife in "The Flaming Rocks" which were episodes of Daniel Boone. From 1966 to 1968 he made numerous appearances as Judge Chester on the series Peyton Place. In 1967 he played George Ramsey, a building caretaker with a mischievous kitten bent on destruction, for the TV series Lassie episode "The Eighth Life of Henry IV". That same year he appeared as Dr. Pierre Blanchard in the fourth season of the science-fiction television showVoyage to the Bottom of the Sea in the episode named "Fatal Cargo". In 1971 Lormer appeared as the doctor on The Men From Shiloh in the episode titled "The Angus Killer." In 1981 he appeared as Barker, the bumbling butler, in the Magnum, P.I. episode "Ghost Writer". He appeared in many films, often uncredited. His credited film appearances include One Man's Way, Zebra in the Kitchen, A Fine Madness, The Singing Nun, The Learning Tree, Getting Straight, The Legend of Lizzie Borden, Rooster Cogburn and The Boogens. He also appeared as Nathan Grantham in the 1982 horror-comedy film Creepshow. His last television appearance was in a May 1985 episode of Highway to Heaven.
Death
On March 19, 1986, Lormer died of cancer at Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California. He was 79 years old.
