James Robert Rebhorn (September 1, 1948 – March 21, 2014) was an American character actor who appeared in over 100 television shows, feature films and plays.

Early life

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and of German descent, Rebhorn moved toAnderson, Indiana as a child and graduated from Madison Heights High School. A devout Lutheran,[1] he attended Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, where he studied political science. Richard S. Huffman was one of his instructors and directed him in a lead role in Aristophanes' Lysistrata as well as Molière's Tricks of Scapin. While there, he was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. After graduating in 1970, Rebhorn moved to New York City, where he earned a Masters of Fine Arts in acting from Columbia University's School of the Arts and joined the metropolitan theater scene. He most recently resided in South Orange, New Jersey.

Career

Theater: Played Peter Latham in "Forty Carats" opposite Virginia Mayo at the GasLight Dinner Theatre in Salt Lake City in the 70's. Rebhorn is known both for portrayingWASPy stereotypes, lawyers, politicians, doctors, and military men, as well as portraying individuals with criminal behavior. He has delivered equally notable performances in a variety of other roles, including that of a brutal serial killer on NBC'sLaw & Order (he would later return to the show in the recurring role of defense attorney Charles Garnett), Ellard Muscatine in Lorenzo's Oil (1992), Fred Waters in Blank Check(1994), Clyde Frost, the father of famed bullrider Lane Frost, in 8 Seconds (1994), Lt. Tyler in White Squall (1996), and a shipping magnate in The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999). One of his best known performances came in the popular 1996 film Independence Day, where he played Secretary of Defense Albert Nimzicki. He acted against Al Pacino inScent of a Woman (1992), and also played an expert witness in My Cousin Vinny (1992) starring Joe Pesci, Marisa Tomei and Ralph Macchio. He appeared again with Al Pacino in Carlito's Way (1993) the following year.

On television, he played several daytime roles, including an abusive stepfather, Bradley Raines, on the soap opera Guiding Light from 1983 to 1985, and an abusive father, Henry Lange, on sister soap As The World Turns from 1988-91. An earlier daytime role was as John Brady in Texas from 1981 to 1982. In 1994 he played the role of supervillain John McFlemp in the episode "Farewell, My Little Viking" of the Nickelodeon series The Adventures of Pete & Pete.

In 1998, he played the District Attorney in the 2-part series finale of Seinfeld. He also appeared in a supporting roles in The Game,Meet the Parents and Regarding Henry opposite Harrison Ford. In 2004, he appeared in the TV mini series Reversible Errors. His role in the short-lived and controversial NBC drama The Book of Daniel cast him as the father of the title character. He also appeared as a judge in Baby Mama. In the 2009 movie The Box, Rebhorn portrayed a NASA scientist. He had recurring roles on the USA seriesWhite Collar as Special Agent Reese Hughes, and also as Claire Danes's character Carrie Mathison's father Frank Mathison onHomeland. Rebhorn recently co-starred in the Comedy Central sitcom Big Lake. He played Max Kenton's uncle in the 2011 movieReal Steel. He starred as Oren in the miniseries Coma. Rebhorn starred as Gary Pandamiglio in the 2012 Mike Birbiglia comedy Sleepwalk with Me. He co-starred opposite Kristine Sutherland in the 2013 romantic comedy, "The Perfect Wedding", as stepfather of lead actor, Eric Aragon. This independent film as of January, 2014 topped the LGBT On Demand List of Wolfe Video releases.

His stage career included seven Broadway productions, as well as numerous appearances with New York City's Roundabout Theatre Company.

Death

Rebhorn passed away at his home on March 21, 2014, after a long battle with melanoma.