The Biggest Movies and TV Coming in September

See which big screen releases you can watch from the comfort of your couch.

Theatrical Releases Coming to Streaming

Get a closer look at these actors from their many TV and streaming series roles.

Streaming Stars, Then and Now

Swarthy, stage-trained actor Michael Tolan was born Seymour Tuchow on November 27, 1927, in Detroit, Michigan. During and following graduation from Wayne State University, he appeared in radio serials. After studying under acting guru Stella Adler and performing in such classic theater productions as "Uncle Vanya," "Candida," "The Importance of Being Earnest," "Oedipus," "Coriolanus" and "The Grass Is Always Greener," he made his debut on Broadway in the 1955 hit George Axelrod comedy "Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?" This, in turn, led to a rise in stature with strong assignments in "A Hatful of Rain," "Romanoff and Juliet," "A Majority of One" and "The Far Country."

Tolan began on film (billed as Lawrence Tolan in the beginning) with several bit roles, often as ethnics, between the years 1951 and 1953, including The Enforcer (1951), Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison (1951), Fort Worth (1951), The Savage (1952), Hiawatha (1952) and Ich suche dich (1956), but was not given the breaks to rise to feature status and quickly left the medium.

Tolan instead focused on TV, from the mid-1950s on, as a utility player, playing a wide range of roles over a long period of time. His strong voice also proved capable of narrative projects. Following a year's stint on The Nurses (1962), his momentum started to pick up. He played Lazarus in the all-star Biblical epic The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), appeared in support of Dustin Hoffman on stage in "The Journey of the Fifth Horse" and in the film John and Mary (1969), and was a regular on The Bold Ones: The Senator (1970). Sporadic filming included his featured roles as a western gun-wielder in Hour of the Gun (1967), an inspector in The Lost Man (1969), and a series of doctors in The 300 Year Weekend (1971), All That Jazz (1979) and Talk to Me (1982).

He essayed a number of authoritative/professional roles (doctors, psychiatrists, military brass, etc.) throughout the late 1960s and 1970s on such series as "Tarzan," "The Rat Patrol," "Mannix," "Felony Squad," "Owen Marshall," "Toma," "The F.B.I.," "Medical Center," "Cannon," "Barney Jones," "McMillan & Wife," "Kojak," "Law and Order" and "Murder, She Wrote." He also played a recurring suitor of Mary Richards on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970).

Known to have a well-modulated voice, he narrated the successful miniseries The Adams Chronicles (1976). Although his acting load has tapered off into the 1980s, he can still be seen from time to time in guest parts. He ended his on-camera career playing a judge in the film Perfect Stranger (2007). Divorced twice and the father of three daughters, he was once briefly married to actress Rosemary Forsyth. He died on January 31, 2011, at the age of 85.

Co-founder of the American Place Theater and the Apple Core Theater, an inter-racial repertory company, both in New York City.

His survivors are his domestic partner, Donna Peck of Copiague, NY; three daughters, <a class="ipc-md-link ipc-md-link--entity" href="/name/nm2378382/?ref_=nmtrv_trv">Alexandra Tolan</a>; Jenny Tolan and Emily Tolan; a brother, Gerald Tuchow; and his sister-in-law Marilyn Tuchow of Bloomfield, Hills, MI.

Both of his marriages, first to <a class="ipc-md-link ipc-md-link--entity" href="/name/nm0287071/?ref_=nmtrv_trv">Rosemary Forsyth</a> and then to Carol Hume, produced daughters and ended in divorce.

Graduated with a Bachelor&#39;s Degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, MI. He earned an acting Fellowship at Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA.

After his death he was cremated. His ashes were given to his domestic partner, Donna Peck.

His father, Morris Tuchow, was a Russian Jewish immigrant. His mother, Gertrude (Gold), was born in Canada, to Russian Jewish parents.

Trivia

Michael Tolan

Contribute to this page

More from this person

More to explore

Recently viewed