Peter Roman Bonerz
Early life
Bonerz
was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to Elfrieda (née Kern) and Christopher Bonerz.
He grew up in
Milwaukee,
Wisconsin, where he attended Marquette University High School. Here, performing with the Prep Players, he gained his first theatrical experience. At Marquette University, he participated in the Marquette University Players. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1960, he decided to seek a career in theater, starting in New York City in improv with a troupe called The Premise. After compulsory service as a draftee in the United States Army, he worked with an improv troupe in San Francisco known as The Committee, whose members included
Rob Reiner, David Ogden Stiers,
Howard Hesseman and
Hamilton Camp.
Career
Bonerz's first network television appearance was in 1965 on
The Addams Family in the season-two episode "Morticia, The Writer".
[DVD commentary from The Addams Family - The Complete Series, Special Feature, "Guest Star Seance"] He had several more TV appearances in the late 1960s and also had roles in several films, including
Funnyman (1967);
What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice? (1969);
Medium Cool (1969);
Catch-22 (1970), which also included his future co-star
Bob Newhart;
Jennifer on My Mind (1971); and
Fuzz (1972). In 1971, Bonerz was part of an ensemble cast in the short-lived improvisational television show
Story Theatre, which also included
Alan Alda and
Valerie Harper. In 1972, he landed the popular supporting role of Dr. Jerry Robinson, the eccentric
orthodontist on
The Bob Newhart Show, whose most frequent
Comedic foil was
Marcia Wallace as Carol, the sharp-tongued receptionist. Bonerz would reprise this role in a cameo appearance in the final, unaired episode of Bob Newhart's third series,
Bob.
He also directed 29 episodes. The show ran for six seasons, with ratings among the top 20 in the first three seasons. Bonerz became the last surviving cast member upon the death of Bob Newhart in 2024.
His later acting roles included the TV miniseries The Bastard (1978) and as a psychiatrist in the movie Serial (1980). In 1979, Bonerz appeared on Password Plus as a game show contestant/celebrity guest star with Marcia Wallace, his costar from The Bob Newhart Show. In 1986, Bonerz co-starred with Tuesday Weld and River Phoenix in the television movie . In 1999, he played Ed. Weinberger in the movie Man on the Moon. He voiced Sal in the Aaahh!!! Real Monsters episode "Internal Affairs". In 2014, he played Doug Demarco in the "Anniversaries" episode of Parks and Recreation.
Beginning in 1974, Bonerz directed 29 episodes of The Bob Newhart Show. Between 1974 and 2011, he directed over 350 episodes of various shows, including series like Murphy Brown (93 episodes), Home Improvement (29 episodes), E/R (22 episodes), Friends (12 episodes), Joey (3 episodes), and many others such as Wings, NewsRadio, Archie Bunker's Place, and ALF. He also directed films such as Nobody's Perfekt (1981) and (1989).[ Peter Bonerz Biography (1938-) - Film Reference]
Personal life
Bonerz married Rosalind DiTrapani in 1963; together they have two sons, Eli and Eric.
Filmography
As actor
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1965: The Addams Family as Mr. Boswell
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1966: Summer Fun as "Chips"
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1967: Hey, Landlord as Proctor
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1967: Funnyman as Perry
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1968: That Girl as Larry Yorkin
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1968–1969: The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour as Various Roles
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1969: Where It's At as Unknown Role
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1969: Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice? as Mr. Bentley
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1969: Medium Cool as Gus
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1969: The Governor & J.J. as Hubbell
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1970: A Storm in Summer as Stanley
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1970: Catch-22 as MacWatt
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1970: Hawaii Five-O as Earl
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1971: U.S.A. as Unknown Role
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1971: Story Theatre as Unknown Role
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1971: McMillan and Wife as George Harvard (ep. “Death is a Seven Point Favorite”)
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1971: Jennifer of My Mind as Sergei Wasserman
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1972: Sanford and Son as Doctor
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1972–1978: The Bob Newhart Show as Dr. Jerry Robinson
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1986: Murder, She Wrote as Calhoun Fletcher (ep. “The Perfect Foil”)
As director
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1966: Summer Fun
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1974: The Mary Tyler Moore Show
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1974: Paul Sand in Friends and Lovers
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1974–1978: The Bob Newhart Show
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1975: When Things Were Rotten
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1976: Good Heavens
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1976: Father O Father (TV film)
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1976: The Tony Randall Show
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1977: Szysznyk
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1978: Apple Pie
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1979:
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1980: Love, Natalie
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1980: G.I.'s
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1981: Nobody's Perfekt
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1982: In Security
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1982: High Five (TV short)
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1983: Focus on Fishko (short)
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1983: Simeon Show
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1984: Back Together
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1984: Maggie Briggs
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1985: The Recovery Room
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1988: Sharing Richard
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1989:
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1989: Julie Brown: The Show (TV short)
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1993: The Elvira Show (TV short)
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1996–1999: Home Improvement
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2005–2006: Joey
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2005–2007: Living with Fran
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2006: Drive/II
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2011: $h*! My Dad Says
External links
