Donnelly Rhodes
About
Biography
Biography
With a long and storied resume to match his unmistakable talent as an actor, Donnelly Rhodes was born in Winnipeg, Canada in 1937. The son of playwright Anne Henry, Rhodes had plenty of exposure to the arts as a child, but he nonetheless explored a number of career paths before turning to acting-even training as a warden for the National Park Service. Once he did settle on a career as a performer, Rhodes studied at the then-new institution, National Theatre School of Canada. After graduating, he landed a contract with Universal. After a few uncredited background roles, Rhodes made his credited debut in 1960, with guest appearances on no less than five TV series: "Man with a Camera" (ABC, 1958-1960), "Maverick" (ABC, 1957-1962), "Cheyenne" (ABC, 1953-1965), "Bonanza" (NBC, 1959-1973), and "Two Faces West" (Syndicated, 1960-1961). Guest starring roles would prove to be Rhodes' strongest talent, and he would make well over 100 such appearances over the course of his over 50 year career, appearing on everything from "The Virginian" (NBC, 1962-1971) to "The Facts of Life" (NBC, 1979-1988). Rhodes would also land a number of more prestigious and prominent roles over the years. He made an appearance in the hit film "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969) in 1969, and later co-starred in the sitcom "Soap" (ABC 1977-82) as softhearted criminal Dutch, and on the adventure series "Danger Bay" (CBC, 1984-1990). Rhodes' star would rise even further when he began starring as Detective Leo Shannon on the popular series "Da Vinci's Inquest" (CBS, 1998-2006), as well as when he later joined the cast of the acclaimed reboot of "Battlestar Galactica" (Syfy, 2004-2009) in 2004. Rhodes' final appearance was on an episode of the fantasy series "Legends of Tomorrow" (CW, 2016-). He died in 2018 at the age of 80.
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Cast (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
1956
Made his screen-acting debut in an uncredited role on "Reprisal!"
1960
Guest starred on "Man with a Camera" (ABC, 1958-1960), "Maverick" (ABC, 1957-1962), "Cheyenne" (ABC, 1953-1965), "Bonanza" (NBC, 1959-1973), and "Two Faces West" (Syndicated, 1960-1961).
1964
Appeared on multiple episodes of "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour"
1965
Was cast as Jeremiah Stewart on an episode of "Wagon Train"
1966
Played Ben Colby on an episode of "The Virginian"
1968
Appeared as several different characters on "Mission: Impossible"
1969
Had a small role in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid"
1978
Landed the recurring role of Dutch Leitner on quirky sitcom "Soap"
1982
Had the recurring role of Judge Paul Grogan on "Hill Street Blues"
1984
Played Art Foster on "Double Trouble"
1985
Landed his first starring role, as Dr. Grant Roberts, on Canadian adventure series "Danger Bay"
1998
Began starring as Detective Leo Shannon on the popular series "Da Vinci's Inquest."
2004
Had breakout role as the surly, chain-smoking Doc Cottle on the Sci-Fi Channel's re-imagining of "Battlestar Galactica"
