# David White (actor)

David White (April 4, 1916 – November 27, 1990) was an American stage, film, and television actor best known for playing Darrin Stephens's boss Larry Tate from 1964 to 1972 on the ABC situation comedy Bewitched.

## Early life

Born on April 4, 1916, in Denver, Colorado, he later moved with his family to Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Los Angeles City College and began acting at the Pasadena Playhouse and the Cleveland Play House. He enlisted in the United States Marine Corps during World War II, and after his discharge, made his Broadway debut in 1949 in Leaf and Bough.

## Career

White appeared on numerous television series in the 1950s and 1960s, including One Step Beyond, where he played a police officer. He made two guest appearances on the CBS courtroom drama Perry Mason. In 1960, he played Henry De Garmo in "The Case of the Madcap Modiste" and in 1963, he played newspaper editor Victor Kendall in "The Case of the Witless Witness". He also appeared in Peter Gunn, Mr. Lucky, The Untouchables, The Fugitive, Mission: Impossible, My Three Sons, Father Knows Best , The Six Million Dollar Man, Bonanza, Have Gun – Will Travel, My Favorite Martian, and Dick Tracy. He appeared in two episodes of The Twilight Zone: "I Sing the Body Electric" and "A World of Difference." Also in 1963, he appeared on Alfred Hitchcock Presents as Detective Burr in "An Out for Oscar", and as Lance Hawthorn in "The Dark Pool". Though primarily known for television work, White had several memorable supporting feature -film roles, including portraying a sleazy columnist in Sweet Smell of Success (1957), The Apartment (1960), in which he played a philandering executive, and Sunrise at Campobello (also 1960) and The Lawbreakers (1961).
In 1964, White was cast as sycophantic advertising executive Larry Tate on Bewitched, a role he played for the show's entire run (1964–1972). The character is president of the McMann & Tate advertising agency, workplace of Dick York's (and later Dick Sargent's) Darrin Stephens character. Many of the show's episodes revolved around Tate's attempts to land lucrative advertising accounts. This is the role for which he would become best-known both during his life and posthumously. Larry Tate's baby boy Jonathan was named after White's son. White also directed one season-six episode of Bewitched, "Sam’s Double Mother Trouble".
Following the end of Bewitched, White was a popular character actor on numerous television series for the next decade, including The Love Boat, Remington Steele, Adam-12, The Rockford Files, Columbo: Identity Crisis, What's Happening!!, Rhoda, Quincy, M.E., The Odd Couple, Cagney & Lacey, Wonder Woman and Dallas. He played the role of J. Jonah Jameson in the pilot episode of the television series The Amazing Spider-Man. His final role came in 1986 on an episode of Dynasty. He also appeared in the movies The Happy Hooker Goes to Washington and Disney's Snowball Express, and had a prominent role in the 1985 version of Brewster's Millions starring Richard Pryor.

## Personal life

White's first marriage was to stage actress Mary Welch. On May 31, 1958, Welch died of complications from her second pregnancy. Their son, Jonathan, died on December 21, 1988, at the age of 33, in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland.
White married actress Lisa Gorsuch in 1959, with whom he had a daughter, Alexandra. They divorced and Gorsuch remarried, date unknown.

## Death

He died of a heart attack on November 27, 1990, in North Hollywood, California, aged 74.

## Filmography

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1957 | Sweet Smell of Success | Otis Elwell | Uncredited |
| 1958 | The Goddess | Burt Harris | Uncredited |
| 1960 | The Apartment | Mr. Eichelberger | |
| 1960 | Sunrise at Campobello | Mr. Lassiter | |
| 1961 | The Great Impostor | Dr. Hammond | |
| 1961 | Madison Avenue | Stevenson Brock | |
| 1965 | The Lollipop Cover | Richard | |
| 1970 | The Red, White, and Black | 10th Cavalry Trooper #16 | |
| 1972 | Snowball Express | Mr. Fowler | |
| 1977 | The Happy Hooker Goes to Washington | Senator Rawlings | |
| 1985 | Fast Forward | Mr. Sabol | |
| 1985 | This Wife for Hire | Larry Dunston | |
| 1985 | Brewster's Millions | George Granville | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1956 | The Phil Silver's Show | Major C.W. Friend | Season 1 Episode 21: "The Rest Cure" |
| 1957 | Men of Annapolis | Captain Bronte Sr. | Season 1 Episode 7: "The Bronte Brothers" |
| 1959 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Barberosa | Season 5 Episode 7: "Dry Run" |
| 1959 | One Step Beyond | Lieutenant Barry | Season 2 Episode 1: "Delusion" |
| 1959 | Have Gun — Will Travel | General Crommer | Season 3 Episode 8: "Unforgiven" |
| 1959 | Have Gun — Will Travel | Bud Webster | Season 3 Episode 10: "The Golden Toad" |
| 1960 | The Twilight Zone | Brinkley | Season 1 Episode 23: "A World of Difference" |
| 1960 | Perry Mason | Henry De Garmo | Season 3 Episode 22: "The Case of the Madcap Modiste" |
| 1960 | Bonanza | Alexander Pendleton / Shanghai Pete | Season 1 Episode 28: "San Francisco" |
| 1961 | Have Gun — Will Travel | Cus Mincus | Season 4 Episode 27: "Everyman" |
| 1962 | The Twilight Zone | Mr. Rogers | Season 3 Episode 35: "I Sing the Body Electric" |
| 1962 | Have Gun — Will Travel | Marshal Tom Carey | Season 6 Episode 11: "Marshal of Sweetwater" |
| 1963 | Perry Mason | Victor Kendall | Season 6 Episode 28: "The Case of the Witless Witness" |
| 1963 | Mr. Novak | Ralph Morrison | Season 1 Episode 7: "Hello, Miss Phipps" |
| 1963 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Detective Lieutenant Burr | Season 1 Episode 26: "An Out for Oscar" |
| 1963 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Lance Hawthorn | Season 1 Episode 29: "The Dark Pool" |
| 1964 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Jack Fowler | Season 2 Episode 15: "Night Caller" (January 31, 1964) |
| 1964–1972 | Bewitched | Larry Tate | Recurring in seasons 1–5, starring in seasons 6–8 (191 episodes) |
| 1973 | Banacek | W. Crawford Morgan | Season 1 Episode 8: "The Two Million Clams of Cap'n Jack" |
| 1973 | Adam-12 | J.T. McGrath | Season 5 Episode 21: "A Fool and His Money" |
| 1973 | The Odd Couple | Phil Russell | Season 4 Episode 9: "Felix Directs" |
| 1975 | Rhoda | Ted Cummings | Season 2 Episode 12: "Friends and Mothers" |
| 1975 | Columbo | Phil Corrigan | Season 5 Episode 3: "Identity Crisis" |
| 1976 | The Rockford Files | Martin Eastman | Season 2 Episode 21: "Foul on the First Play" |
| 1976 | What's Happening!! | Mr. Reynolds | Season 1 Episode 6: "The Burger Queen" |
| 1977 | Mary Tyler Moore Show | Mr. Cobb | Season 7 Episode 18: "Hail the Conquering Gordy" |
| 1977 | The Amazing Spider-Man | J. Jonah Jameson | Season 1 Episode 1: "Spider-Man" (pilot episode) |
| 1978 | C.P.O. Sharkey | Admiral Holland | Season 2 Episode 19: "Captain's Right Hand Man" |
| 1978 | The Love Boat | Greg Beatty | Season 1 Episode 13: "Too Hot to Handle/Family Reunion/Cinderella Story" |
| 1979 | Wonder Woman | The General | Season 3 Episode 15: "The Starships Are Coming" |
| 1981 | The Incredible Hulk | Archer Hewitt | Season 5 Episode 3: "Veteran" |
| 1981 | Quincy, M.E. | Dr. Fulton | Season 6 Episode 17: "Sugar and Spice" |
| 1982 | Quincy, M.E. | Drew Castle | Season 7 Episode 20: "Expert in Murder" |
| 1985 | Remington Steele | J.W. Kendall | Season 3 Episode 22: "Steele of Approval" |
| 1985 | Cagney & Lacey | Mitchell Farnsworth | Season 4 Episode 19: "Two Grand" |
| 1985–1986 | Dallas | Marv | Season 8 Episode 30: "Swan Song" (1985) Season 10 Episode 2: "Return to Camelot: Part 2" (1986) |
| 1986 | The A-Team | Rudy / Charles Winston | Season 4 Episode 20: "Mission of Peace" |
| 1986 | Riptide | Professor Shellbeck | Season 3 Episode 17: "The Play's the Thing" |
| 1986 | Dynasty | Dr. Gavin | Season 7 Episode 5: "The Arraignment" |
| 1989 | Mergers & Acquisitions | Chairman of the Board | (short) |