Michael Ontkean (born January 24, 1946)
Ontkean relocated to the United States to attend the University of New Hampshire on a ice hockey scholarship before pursuing a career in acting in the early 1970s. He initially came to prominence portraying Officer Willie Gillis on the crime drama series The Rookies from 1972 to 1974, followed by lead roles in the hockey sports comedy film Slap Shot (1977) and the romantic comedy Willie & Phil (1980). In 1982, he had a starring role opposite Harry Hamlin and Kate Jackson in the drama Making Love, in which he portrayed a married man who comes to terms with his homosexuality. In 1984, he starred opposite Kristy McNichol in Just the Way You Are. Ontkean continued to appear in films, such as Clara's Heart (1988) and Postcards from the Edge (1990) before being cast as Sheriff Harry S. Truman on David Lynch's Twin Peaks (1990–1991).
Early life
Ontkean was born and raised in
Vancouver, British Columbia, the son of Muriel (née Cooper), an actress, and Leonard Ontkean, a
Boxing and actor. He was a child actor in Vancouver. Before turning 12, he had appeared on three or four dozen Canadian TV and radio shows plus fifty-eight (58) episodes as a chorus and background singer on
Cross-Canada Hit Parade (a weekly TV show which ran from 1955-59, in which the top ten most popular US and Canadian songs were performed).
[ Interview with Michael Ontkean, closelyobservedframes.com. Accessed November 4, 2025.] He appeared in one episode of the television series
Hudson's Bay (1959).
His family later relocated to Toronto, where he attended Holy Rosary Catholic School and St. Michael's Choir School before attending St. Michael's College School. He grew up playing hockey and he earned a hockey scholarship to the University of New Hampshire, a Division I program playing in the ECAC Hockey. In his three years on the varsity program, Ontkean scored 63 goals and 111 points in 85 games played.
Career
Ontkean began in Hollywood with an appearance on
The Partridge Family in 1971. He later had guest roles on
Ironside and
Longstreet, but his break was in the ABC series
The Rookies (1972–1976),
[ in which he played Officer Willie Gillis for the first two seasons. He left the show and was succeeded by actor Bruce Fairbairn.][ as he performed all of his on-ice shots himself. In 1979, he appeared in the first episode of Tales of the Unexpected. Other early movie roles included Necromancy (1972) with Orson Welles; Voices (1979) with Amy Irving; Willie & Phil (1980) with Margot Kidder; The Blood of Others (1984); Kids Don't Tell (1985) with JoBeth Williams; The Right of the People (1986); The Allnighter and Maid to Order (both 1987) (the latter with Ally Sheedy); Clara's Heart (1988) with Whoopi Goldberg, and Bye Bye Blues (1989).]
Making Love
Making Love (1982) was about a married man who discovers his homosexuality. Ontkean was not the director's first choice for the film: Arthur Hiller had previously approached Tom Berenger, Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, William Hurt and Peter Strauss to play the lead, before finally approaching Ontkean. According to Hiller, the reaction of most actors was to tell him not to even consider them for the role.
Twin Peaks
Ontkean appeared as Sheriff Harry S. Truman in David Lynch and Mark Frost's Twin Peaks (1990–1991).
After Twin Peaks
Ontkean subsequently appeared in many film and television productions including In Defense of a Married Man (1990); In a Child's Name (1991) with Valerie Bertinelli; Legacy of Lies (1992); Rapture and Vendetta II: The New Mafia (both 1993); and The Stepford Husbands (both 1996); Summer of the Monkeys and A Chance of Snow (both 1998; the latter again with JoBeth Williams); Bear with Me (2000), and Mrs. Ashboro's Cat (2003).
Ontkean had a recurring role on Fox's short-lived series North Shore in 2004, and also appeared in the 2008 comedy TV show Sophie.
The Descendants and retirement
He had a small role in the 2011 film The Descendants, which was his last role to date before he decided to retire from acting.
Ontkean was approached to reprise his role as Sheriff Truman for the 2017 revival of Twin Peaks. At first, Ontkean was reportedly excited about returning to the role, and enlisted Twin Peaks authority Brad Dukes to help him find the jacket which his character once wore on the show. Dukes located a suitable replica, bought it and sent it to Ontkean. However, in 2015, Ontkean dropped out of the Twin Peaks revival, for reasons which were never made public. Dukes recalled: "We last spoke in August and he informed me he wasn't going to Washington after all. I told him I was heartbroken to hear that. Aside from being heartbroken, I am puzzled. Twin Peaks is not Twin Peaks without Michael Ontkean as Sheriff Harry S. Truman."[starred in the movie Slapshot in 1975]
Personal life
Ontkean was first married to Frances E. Knight; the union ended in divorce. He married, secondly, to Jamie Smith-Jackson, an actress/design director and owner of Jamie Jackson Design. The couple later divorced; they have two daughters, Jenna Millman and Sadie Sapphire Ontkean. Ontkean later married Susan Sennett; they live in Kauai.
Filmography
Film
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Television
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| 1956 | Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans | Cochea | Episode: "The Wild One" |
| Episode: "Pierre's Three Evils" |
| Episode: "Noel's Gonna Fly" |
| Episode: "The Soldier" |
| 2 episodes |
| Episode: "Not With My Sister, You Don't!" |
| Episode: "So, Who's Fred Hornbeck?" |
| 47 episodes |
| Episode: "The Man from the South" |
| Television film |
| Television film |
| Episode: "Square Deal" |
| 30 episodes |
| Television film |
| Miniseries |
| Television film |
| Television film |
| Television film |
| Television film |
| Miniseries |
| Episode: "John Doe" |
| Television film |
| Television film |
| 2 episodes |
| Television film |
| Television film |
| Television film |
| Television film |
| 4 episodes |
| 3 episodes (final television role to date) |
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Awards and nominations
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| 1990 | Genie Award | Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role | Bye Bye Blues | |
| 1991 | Soap Opera Digest Award | Outstanding Hero: Prime Time | Twin Peaks | |
External links
