Kevin Hagen


Kevin Hagen was an American actor best known for his role as Dr. Hiram Baker on NBC's Little House on the Prairie.

Background

Hagen was born in Chicago, Illinois, to professional ballroom dancers, Haakon Olaf Hagen and Marvel Lucile Wadsworth. When Haakon Hagen deserted his family, young Hagen was reared by his mother, grandmother, and aunts. As a 15-year-old, he relocated to Portland, Oregon, where one of his aunts had taken a teaching job. Hagen attended Portland's Jefferson High School. His family returned to Chicago, and he attended Oregon State University in Corvallis and the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California, from which he received a degree in international relations. Hagen spent a year in law school at the University of California, Los Angeles, and was employed by the U.S. State Department in West Germany then spent two years in the United States Navy. Hagen taught ballroom dancing for the Arthur Murray. At age 27 Hagen was spotted in a production of Eugene O'Neill's Desire Under the Elms and given a guest-starring role on the classic 1950s police series Dragnet, starring Jack Webb.

Acting roles

Hagen‘s first regular role on a series was in 1958 playing John Colton, the city administrator of New Orleans in the CBS Western Yancy Derringer.
On April 29, 1962, Hagen was cast in the episode "Cort" of Lawman.
Hagen guest-starred on Gunsmoke, The Big Valley, Bonanza, Laramie, Have Gun - Will Travel, Mannix, The Time Tunnel, and Perry Mason. He appeared as Inspector Dobbs Kobick in nine episodes of Land of the Giants from 1968-70.
Other appearances included Bat Masterson, Riverboat, Wagon Train, Outlaws, Straightaway, GE True, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Twilight Zone, Daniel Boone, Blue Light, , Rawhide, 77 Sunset Strip, M*A*S*H, The Rifleman, Lancer, The Virginian, The Guns of Will Sonnett, The Cowboys, Lost in Space, The Silent Force, Sara, Quincy, M.E., Simon and Simon, and Knots Landing.
Hagen played a Confederate who kills James Stewart's son and daughter-in-law in the 1965 film Shenandoah. His most famous role was Doc Baker on Little House on the Prairie.

Personal life

In 1992, Hagen moved to Grants Pass in southwestern Oregon where he performed in concerts, dinner theaters, and on stage in Medford, Ashland, and Grants Pass, including the one-man show A Playful Dose of Prairie Wisdom.
Hagen was married to actress Susanne Cramer until her death in 1969.
In 2004, Hagen was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. He died on July 9, 2005 at his home in Grants Pass. Hagen was survived by his wife, Jan, whom he met in 1993, and his son, Kristopher.

Filmography