# Peter Strauss

Peter Lawrence Strauss (born February 20, 1947) is an American television and film actor, known for his roles in several television miniseries in the 1970s and 1980s. He is an Emmy winner and five-time Golden Globe Awards nominee.

## Early life

Strauss was born in Croton-on-Hudson, New York, the son of Warren B. Strauss, a German-born wine importer. His family is Jewish. Strauss graduated from the Hackley School in 1965 and Northwestern University in 1969.

## Career

He won an Emmy Award for his role on the 1979 made-for-television movie The Jericho Mile, and he starred in a television remake of the classic 1946 film Angel on My Shoulder in 1980. In 1985, he played Abel Roznovski in the miniseries Kane & Abel based on Jeffrey Archer's book. His other noted television miniseries credits include starring roles in Rich Man, Poor Man, its sequel Rich Man, Poor Man Book II, and Masada. Strauss played Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. in the 1977 TV movie Young Joe, the Forgotten Kennedy. In 1973, he portrayed Stephen Linder, Mary Richards' suave younger boyfriend in The Mary Tyler Moore Show fourth-season episode, "Angels in the Snow."
Strauss starred in the films Soldier Blue (1970) and Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone (1983), and has appeared in several others. He portrayed Justin, the Rats of NIMH's captain of the guard, in 1982's The Secret of NIMH. Strauss starred as an abused husband in the television movie Men Don't Tell, alongside Judith Light. In 2005, he played the U.S. President in the thriller XXX: State of the Union alongside Ice Cube, Samuel L. Jackson, Scott Speedman and Willem Dafoe. He was the voice of Moses in the animated series K10C: Kids' Ten Commandments. He starred in the short-lived series Body & Soul as Dr. Isaac Braun in 2002. He provided the voice for Stoker Van Rotten in both the 1990s and 2006 versions of Biker Mice from Mars.

## Personal life

Strauss married Rachel Ticotin on December 31, 1998. Strauss runs a successful citrus production business and is on the advisory board of the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden. He sold a ranch property to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. The ranch has since been acquired by the National Park Service as the Peter Strauss Ranch.

## Filmography
### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1970 | The Young Lawyers | Stuart | Episode: "The Two Dollar Thing" |
| 1971–1975 | Medical Center | Lloyd Halloran, Tom Desmond | 2 episodes |
| 1972–1975 | The Streets of San Francisco | Bobby Jepsen, Lou Kovic, Martin Novac | 3 episodes |
| 1972 | Young Dr. Kildare | Reverend Teller | Episode: "By This Sign" |
| 1973 | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Stephen | Episode: "Angels in the Snow" |
| 1973 | The Man Without a Country | Arthur Danforth | Television film |
| 1974 | Barnaby Jones | Clay Wakefield | Episode: "The Last Contract" |
| 1974 | Cannon | Dave Nordorff, Reverend Will | 2 episodes |
| 1974 | Judgement: The Court Martial of the Tiger of Malaya – General Yamashita | Lawyer | Television film |
| 1974 | Hawaii Five-O | Tom Morgan | Episode: "Death with Father" |
| 1975 | Attack on Terror: The FBI vs. the Ku Klux Klan | Ben Jacobs | Television film |
| 1976–1977 | Rich Man, Poor Man Book II | Rudy Jordache | 26 episodes Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film |
| 1976 | Rich Man, Poor Man | Rudy Jordache | Miniseries; 13 episodes Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie |
| 1977 | Young Joe, the Forgotten Kennedy | Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. | Television film |
| 1979 | The Jericho Mile | Larry 'Rain' Murphy | Television film Won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie |
| 1980 | Angel on My Shoulder | Eddie Kagel | Television film |
| 1981 | Masada | Eleazar Ben Yair | Miniseries; 4 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie |
| 1981 | A Whale for the Killing | Charles Landon | Television film |
| 1983 | Heart of Steel | Emory | Television film Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film |
| 1985 | Kane & Abel | Abel Rosnovski | Miniseries Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film |
| 1985 | Tender Is the Night | Dick Diver | Miniseries |
| 1986 | Penalty Phase | Judge Kenneth Hoffman | Television film |
| 1986 | Under Siege | John Garry | Television film |
| 1987 | Proud Men | Charley MacLeod, Jr. | Television film |
| 1989 | Peter Gunn | Peter Gunn | Television film |
| 1989 | Brotherhood of the Rose | Saul Grisman | Miniseries |
| 1990 | 83 Hours 'Til Dawn | Wayne Stracton | Television film |
| 1991 | Flight of Black Angel | Col. Matt Ryan, Callsign Ringleader | Television film |
| 1992 | Trial: The Price of Passion | Warren Blackburn | Television film |
| 1992 | Fugitive Among Us | Max Cole | Television film |
| 1993 | Men Don't Tell | Ed MacAffrey | Television film Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film |
| 1994 | Reunion | Sam Yates | Television film |
| 1994 | Batman: The Animated Series | Steven Carlyle (voice) | Episode: "House and Garden" |
| 1994 | The Yearling | Ezra 'Penny' Baxter | Television film |
| 1994 | Thicker Than Blood: The Larry McLinden Story | Larry McLinden | Television film |
| 1995 | Texas Justice | T. Cullen Davis | Television film |
| 1995 | Santo Bugito | Greenbeard McMelville (voice) | Episode: "My Name Is Revenge" |
| 1996–1997 | Moloney | Nicholas Moloney | 26 episodes |
| 1996 | The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest | Lab Guard (voice) | Episode: "Nemesis" |
| 1996 | The Incredible Hulk | Walter Langkowski (voice) | Episode: "Man to Man, Beast to Beast" |
| 1996 | Aaahh!!! Real Monsters | Dr. Evil, Sumo (voice) | Episode: "You Only Scare Twice" |
| 1996 | Adventures from the Book of Virtues | Dionysius (voice) | Episode: "Friendship" |
| 1996 | Duckman | Narrator (voice) | Episode: "Pig Amok" |
| 1996 | In the Lake of the Woods | John Waylan | Television film |
| 1996 | Biker Mice from Mars | Stoker (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 1998 | My Father's Shadow: The Sam Sheppard Story | Sam Sheppard | Television film |
| 1999 | Joan of Arc | La Hire | Miniseries |
| 1999 | Seasons of Love | Thomas Linthorne | Miniseries |
| 2000 | A Father's Choice | Charlie 'Mac' McClain | Television film |
| 2001 | Strange Frequency | Ben Stanton | Episode: "Don't Stop Believing" |
| 2001 | Murder on the Orient Express | Mr. Samuel Ratchett | Television film |
| 2002 | Body & Soul | Dr. Isaac Braun | 14 episodes |
| 2003 | 111 Gramercy Park | Turk Karnegian | Television film |
| 2004 | Law & Order | Dr. Paul Cedars | Episode: "Coming Down Hard" |
| 2005 | Killer Instinct | Robert Hale | Episode: "Who's Your Daddy" |
| 2006 | Biker Mice from Mars | Stoker, Night Shift, High Commander (voice) | 5 episodes |
| 2006 | The Way | Hutch | Television film |
| 2007 | Dirty Sexy Money | Dutch George | Episode: "The Watch" |
| 2008–2010 | Tracey Ullman's State of the Union | Narrator | 13 episodes |
| 2010 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Kevin Burton | Episode: "Locum" |
| 2010 | Royal Pains | Graham Barnes | Episode: "Comfort's Overrated" |
| 2010 | Jack's Family Adventure | Wild Bill Cohen | Television film |
| 2014 | Sugar Daddies | Grant Zager | Television film |
| 2020 | Grey's Anatomy | Daniel Schwartz | Episode: "The Last Supper" |

### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1969 | Hail, Hero! | Frank Dixon | |
| 1970 | Soldier Blue | Honus Gent | |
| 1971 | Sergeant Klems | Otto Flems | |
| 1972 | The Trial of the Catonsville Nine | Thomas Lewis | |
| 1976 | The Last Tycoon | Wylie | |
| 1982 | The Secret of NIMH | Justin (voice) | |
| 1983 | Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone | Wolff | |
| 1995 | Nick of Time | Brendan Grant | |
| 1996 | Keys to Tulsa | Chip Carlson | |
| 2003 | Kids' Ten Commandments: Toying with the Truth | Moses (voice) | Video short |
| 2003 | Kids' Ten Commandments: The Rest Is Yet to Come | Moses (voice) | Video short |
| 2003 | Kids' Ten Commandments: The Not So Golden Calf | Moses (voice) | Video short |
| 2003 | Kids' Ten Commandments: Stolen Jewels, Stolen Hearts | Moses (voice) | Video short |
| 2003 | Kids' Ten Commandments: A Life and Seth Situation | Moses (voice) | Video short |
| 2005 | XXX: State of the Union | President James Sanford | |
| 2007 | License to Wed | Mr. Jones | |
| 2016 | Drawing Home | Russell Robb Sr. | |
| 2018 | Operation Finale | Lotar Hermann | |