Wayne Rogers

About Wayne Rogers

Tough around the edges and with a handsome durability, Alabama-bred
Wayne Rogers was born in Birmingham on April 7, 1933. He graduated from Princeton with a history degree in 1954
and joined the Navy before giving acting a thought. During his military
service, however, he became associated with theater by happenstance and
decided to give it a try after his discharge.Studying with renowned acting teacher
Sanford Meisner and dancer
Martha Graham at the Neighborhood
Playhouse, Rogers toiled for years in off-Broadway and regional plays ("Bus
Stop", "No Time for Sergeants") and had a short stint on the daytime
soap
The Edge of Night (1956)
before making a minor dent in films, including small roles in
Odds Against Tomorrow (1959),
The Glory Guys (1965) and
Cool Hand Luke (1967). Rogers finally hit co-star status opposite Robert Bray in
the short-lived TV western series
Stagecoach West (1960) and
co-produced and wrote the script for the cult sci-fi cheapie
The Astro-Zombies (1968)
in-between.It wasn't until 1972, when the 39-year-old actor nabbed the
role of "Trapper John," a Korean War surgeon, in the classic comedy
series M*A*S*H (1972), that he found elusive stardom. Alongside
Alan Alda's "Hawkeye Pierce", the TV show was
a huge hit and the two enjoyed equal success at the beginning. Slowly,
however, Wayne's character started getting the short end of the stick
as the wry, sardonic, highly appealing Alda became a resounding
audience favorite. Frustrated at turning second-banana to Alda, he quit
the series (his character was discharged) after three seasons amid a
contractual dispute. Mike Farrell replaced him in the cohort role of "B.J. Hunnicut" and the show enjoyed several more award-winning seasonsTV movies came Wayne's
way throughout the late '70s and a couple more comedy series, including
House Calls (1979), in which
Wayne received a Golden Globe nomination, but nothing would equal the
success he found during the
M*A*S*H (1972) years. Sporadic
filming in
Once in Paris... (1978),
The Hot Touch (1981),
The Gig (1985) and
The Killing Time (1987) also
failed to raise his standard, nor did his starring work in the TV movies He's Fired, She's Hired (1984), The Lady from Yesterday (1985), One Terrific Guy (1986), American Harvest (1987), Drop-Out Mother (1988), Miracle Landing (1990).Broaching the millennium, Rogers was lesser seen, but found some featured roles in such films as Ghosts of Mississippi (1996), Love Lies Bleeding (1999), Frozen with Fear (2001) and Three Days of Rain (2002). He would be last glimpsed in the Hollywood-themed comedy Nobody Knows Anything! (2003) in which he also served as producer. Wayne found renewed respect as a businessman and investor in later years, managing the affairs of such stars as Peter Falk and James Caan, among others. He died on New Year's Eve of 2015 of complications from pneumonia. He was 82....

Booking Information