David Ogden Stiers Biography
Born: October 31, 1942
Date of Birth: October 31, 1942
Hailing from Illinois, Stiers worked primarily on stage during his early career, starting in San Francisco at the Actors' Workshop, which led to John Houseman's Acting Company in New York. After compiling a number of stage credits including The Begger's Opera, Measure for Measure and The Hostage, Stiers started performing on Broadway and in regional theatre.
In the early '70s, Stiers moved on to screen. After a couple of small appearances in features, he landed the role that made him famous -- the pompous, outspoken wartime surgeon, Major Charles Emerson Winchester III in the long-running comedy series M*A*S*H. Besides taking on a few odd roles in telefilms and features, he remained with M*A*S*H until it went off the air in 1983. Falling into the shadows after the series ended, Stiers found a regular stint playing D.A. Michael Reston in the multiple mystery Perry Mason telefilms, which took him to the end of the '80s.
By 1991, he had found a new form of entertainment to make his mark -- animation. Lending his voice to Cogsworth in the popular Disney film, Beauty and the Beast, gave him another taste of stardom. He stuck with Disney to voice a number of other characters in the feature films Pocahontas (1995), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) and Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001).
During the '90s, he co-starred in such films as Doc Hollywood (1991), Iron Will (1994), Steal Big, Steal Little (1995), Bad Company (1995) and Jungle 2 Jungle (1997). A favorite of director Woody Allen, Stiers has co-starred in five of his films, including Another Woman (1988), Shadows and Fog (1992), Mighty Aphrodite (1995), Everyone Says I Love You (1996), and The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001). His other notable roles include the voice of Nicky Flippers in the animated film Hoodwinked and the voice of Dr. Jumba Jookiba in the Lilo & Stitch films and television series. He also appeared in recurring roles on several other television programs including the documentary The American Experience (1995-2007), The Dead Zone (2002-2007), and Stargate: Atlantis (2006-2007).
When not on set, Stiers is also a noted conductor of classical music, guest conducting for the Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Chicago symphony orchestras.