Full Name Harold Miller Occupation Actor, comedian | Name Hal Miller Role TV actor | |
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Harold "Hal" Miller is an American actor and comedian, of African descent. He was one of the early actors to play Gordon Robinson in Sesame Street.
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Early life
Miller was born on August 25, 1935 and lived most of his early life in Harlem. He was raised a Catholic with early education in parochial school and a final degree in chemistry, assisting in research with chemist Dr. Casimir Funk, early discoverer of vitamins who helped coin the word "vitamin" in Paris in 1911. Before pursuing a career as an actor, Miller worked with Funk and was published with him in Federation Proceedings Vol. 22 No. 2 (Abstracts) in the 1960's at the Funk Foundation for Medical Research sponsored by Pfizer in New York.
Miller in the year 2000 was the driving force to get His Actor's Equity Union to amend the BIAS "Break in Service Rule"leveling the playing field for thousands of union actors who were now able to receive their Earned Pensions miller was also a close friend and Associate of Flo Kennedy the first Black Woman to graduate from Columbia Law School and work with Her on many legal casesdealing with probate for mostly black clients with great success.
Career
Miller received his Actors' Equity Association card in 1966 while working with Joseph Papp in Henry V and his Screen Actors Guild card in 1971 after being hired by Columbia Pictures. He appeared in the Lizzie Borden film Born in Flames and also in A Man Called Adam, as well as a Quinn Martin production in San Francisco. In 1968 he was invited to perform experimental, integrated theater for one season at Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. From 1972 until 1974, Miller played Gordon on Sesame Street. Miller made the decision to leave Sesame Street for mainstream acting. He followed this direction making two major appearances on Law & Order. Presently, Miller is performing extensively throughout Europe, China and Mumbai, India.
Acting
Miller began acting when he was 18 years old with the Stanley Woolf players on the Borscht circuit in Liberty, New York, performing Take a Giant Step and serving as company manager. He followed this by appearing in plays in his native Harlem. Miller went on to perform as Lord Ross at the American Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Connecticut, then as Fabian in Twelfth Night at the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. He moved to Hollywood to co-star in Joe Forrester and Quinn Martin, as well as LA Underground Quest for Columbia Pictures. He returned to New York City to star as Purge in NBC Sunday special Purge's Place with Jim Patterson, and then as the lead David in Stone in the River. Roxie Roker played his wife; also appearing in this production were Hugh Hurd and James MacMillan. For NBC director Martin Hoade Miller next appeared in a production of Jean Genet's The Blacks before traveling to China for filmwork and subsequently to India to work in Bollywood with director Nileish Malhotha. In 2012 Miller made films in France, Switzerland and Germany.
Personal life
He is married to interior designer Lynne Miller. Their son, Harold Miller Jr., appeared on Sesame Street with his dad during the 1970s. while Miller was at Lincoln Center performing Shakespeare he was invited to come live at Westbeth Artist Housing in Greenwich Village he accepted and presently resides there. In addition to acting, Miller is also a painter (represented by Saatchi), a singer, a lyricist, and a published poet.