Bernie Kopell Biography
Born: June 21, 1933
Universally recognized as Ship's Doctor Adam Bricker on the blockbuster prime-time sitcom The_Love_Boat (1977-1986) -- a part he held for the entire nine-season run of the series -- actor Bernie Kopell entered the doors of show business via a most unlikely route. Born in Brooklyn, Kopell attended Erasmus High and then New York University (with a dramatic art major). After a stint at sea aboard the naval vessel USS Iowa, Kopell signed on to drive a taxicab in Southern California -- and achieved his big break on the day that Oregon_Trail (1959) film producer Dick_Einfeld hitched a ride in the back of his cab. In a span of minutes, Kopell reportedly managed to convince Einfeld that he was not really a cab driver but an actor in serious need of work. The effort paid off, and Kopell snagged his first part -- a two-line part in Oregon as an aide to president James_K._Polk.
In the early '60s, Kopell joined the Actors' Ring Theatre in Los Angeles, where he developed a knack for characterizations and voices; this led, in turn, to character-type roles on a myriad of television programs including The_Dick_Van_Dyke_Show, The_Steve_Allen_Show, and My_Favorite_Martian (which often, though not always, cast the wiry Kopell as a Hispanic). By the early '70s, Kopell had landed steady assignments on Get_Smart, Bewitched, That_Girl, and other series. The_Love_Boat, however, embodied his breakthrough. He followed it up with an emcee assignment on The Travel Channel (hosting its Railway_Adventures_Across_Europe) and a surge in theatrical work, with portrayals in regional productions of such plays as +Rumors, +A History of Shadows, and +Death of a Salesman. Nathan Southern, Rovi
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