Dan Hedaya

A prolific and versatile character performer in both film and on television, actor Dan Hedaya earned his first widespread recognition as Carla's slimy and manipulative ex-husband on the famed sitcom "Cheers" (NBC, 1982-1993). Prior to that breakout role, Hedaya had already been in a number of movies like "The Seduction of Joe Tynan" (1979) and "True Confessions" (1981) before landing a leading role in the Coen Brothers' acclaimed feature debut "Blood Simple" (1984). He went on to appear in a number of films, sometimes playing stereotypical cop roles as he did in "Tightrope" (1984) and "Running Scared" (1986), but also branching out to play a demanding boss at a poorly-lit office in "Joe Versus the Volcano" (1990). Following turns in "The Addams Family" (1991) and "Searching for Bobby Fischer" (1993), Hedaya turned up as a wealthy, overprotective father in "Clueless" (1995) and a doubting detective in the acclaimed crime thriller "The Usual Suspects" (1995). He next had pivotal roles in big studio movies like "Alien Resurrection" (1997) and "The Hurricane" (1999) before returning to the small screen for episodes of shows like "Judging Amy" (CBS, 1999-2005), "ER" (NBC, 1994-2009) and "Monk" (USA Network, 2002-09). By the time he portrayed Representative Barney Frank in the acclaimed cable movie "Too Big to Fail" (HBO, 2011), Hedaya had cemented his legacy as one of Hollywood's busiest and most sought after character actors.