| Birth Name: | Raymond Herbert Wise |
| Birth Date: | 20 August 1947 |
| Birth Place: | Akron, Ohio, U.S. |
| Occupation: | Actor |
| Years Active: | 1969–present |
| Spouse: | |
| Children: | 2 |
Raymond Herbert Wise (born August 20, 1947) is an American actor best known for his role as Leland Palmer in Twin Peaks (1990–1991, 2017) and its prequel film (1992). He has appeared in films such as Swamp Thing (1982), The Journey of Natty Gann (1985), RoboCop (1987), Bob Roberts (1992), Jeepers Creepers 2 (2003), Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), (2011) and God's Not Dead 2 (2016).
Wise's other television roles include Vice President Hal Gardner in 24 (2006), The Devil in Reaper (2007–2009), and Marvin in Fresh Off the Boat (2015–2020). He is also known for acting in projects produced by the comedy duo Tim & Eric, most notably his guest-starring role as Grill Vogel in Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! (2008).
Wise was born in Akron, Ohio, on August 29, 1947,[1] graduated from Garfield High School in 1965 and attended Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. He is of Romanian descent on his maternal side.[2] He grew up in a religious family; in the past he went to a Romanian Baptist church in Akron and later moved to a Methodist church.[3]
In the late 1960s and 70s, Wise played attorney Jamie Rollins in the soap opera Love of Life for seven years and nearly 950 episodes.[4] In 1987, Wise played Tom Gunther, Catherine Chandler's boyfriend, in the pilot episode of the TV series Beauty and the Beast. Wise is best known for his role as Laura Palmer's father Leland in Twin Peaks. In addition to Twin Peaks, Wise has played several roles in science fiction. He made an appearance as Liko in the episode "Who Watches the Watchers", later playing Arturis in the episode "Hope and Fear".
He appeared in the Season 7 episode "The Flame" of . He was featured in three episodes of Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! as Grill Vogel, the presenter of a fictitious instructional video series called "Business Hugs".
In 1995, Wise was reunited with Twin Peaks castmate Sherilyn Fenn in the NBC telemovie . He also starred as the Devil on the TV series Reaper. Wise has appeared on a number of political-themed television series and films. He briefly appeared on The West Wing as California governor Gabriel "Gabe" Tillman, and played Vice President Hal Gardner on 24 in 2006. In August 2006, Wise made a guest appearance in the series Bones as the primary suspect of the first episode of the second season ("The Titan on the Tracks"), and in the pilot episode of Burn Notice. In Season 8, episode 13 of (2007), Wise guest starred as the head of a company testing pesticides on little children. Wise has also guest starred in two episodes of The Closer, as lawyer Tom Blanchard. He starred in Charmed as the upper level demon Ludlow, who runs a school for the Source Of All Evil in the episode "Lost and Bound". He had a small role in one episode of the sixth season of Dawson's Creek, playing Roger Stepateck. Wise starred in the 2009 SyFy original movie Infestation. He played the lead as Avery in a psychological thriller, Iodine, in 2009. He was a guest star on Psych and in 2010, in a special episode of Psych titled "Dual Spires", he joined his fellow Twin Peaks alumni Dana Ashbrook, Robyn Lively, Lenny Von Dohlen, Sheryl Lee, Catherine E. Coulson, and Sherilyn Fenn in a spoof of Twin Peaks.
Wise appeared in several episodes of Mad Men as Ken Cosgrove's father-in-law Ed Baxter, the CEO of Corning, Inc. He appeared in "Chinese Wall" (Season 4, Episode 11), "At the Codfish Ball" (Season 5, Episode 7), "Commissions and Fees" (Season 5, Episode 12), "To Have and to Hold" (Season 6, Episode 4) and "Severance" (Season 7, Episode 8).
In 2010, Wise guest-starred as fictitious sports agent Bobby Fox alongside a special guest appearance from real life ex-Yankees manager Joe Torre on the TV series Castle, in the Season 2 episode "Suicide Squeeze". He also guest starred on Dollhouse as Howard, a higher-up in the Dollhouse organization.[5] He stars in Kyle Rankin's post-apocalyptic horror thriller film Nuclear Family.[6] Wise was announced the lead of the Mike Mendez thriller film Ov3rk!ll.[7]
Wise appeared in Season 4 of Chuck and in the FX television show Wilfred as a popular TV personality. He was cast in the part of Robin Scherbatsky's father on How I Met Your Mother in December 2010 (after Eric Braeden declined to reprise his role in a cameo appearance), and ultimately appeared in 6 episodes of the series in total. Ray made a cameo appearance as a modeling agent in episode four of season 2 of Workaholics.
Wise made an appearance in 2012 in the TV series Rizzoli & Isles (Season 3, Episode 7, "Crazy for You") in drag as a cross-dressing judge. That same year, Ray played John Nelson, A disturbed ex-mortician obsessed with trying to help his wife Linda in the Criminal Minds Season 8 episode "God Complex".
Wise prominently appeared in the music video "Wishes" for the group Beach House. It was directed by Eric Wareheim and features Wise performing in a surreal football halftime show.
Wise appeared as Andy Rooney parody Skip Reming on Newsreaders. In January 2014, he was hired to play the character of Ian Ward on the long running soap The Young and the Restless. He returned to Y&R in September 2015. He played the mayor in the first season of Deadbeat. Since 2014, he has appeared in multiple series on ABC. He had a recurring role as Marvin in the first two seasons of Fresh Off the Boat before being promoted to series regular for seasons three through six. He also appeared in the first two seasons of Agent Carter as comic book character Hugh Jones.
In 2016, Wise appeared in the Netflix series . He portrayed Jack Smith, an old friend of Richard Gilmore, who becomes the boyfriend or companion of widow Emily Gilmore.
In 2017, he appeared as a guest in the TV series Fargo, as Paul Marrane, a kitten-handler and metaphysical punisher, in the episodes "The Law of Non-Contradiction" and "Who Rules the Land of Denial?"
He played the character of Dr. Alec Holland in the 1982 film Swamp Thing, directed by Wes Craven and based upon the comic book series of the same name. Dr. Holland is the man who becomes the titular character after his lab is destroyed and he is left for dead. The actual Swamp Thing character was played by Dick Durock.
In 1985, Wise was cast as Sol Gann, father to Natty Gann in the Disney film The Journey of Natty Gann, directed by Jeremy Paul Kagan, and then appeared as henchman Leon C. Nash in RoboCop (1987). He also had roles in Season of Fear (1989), The Rift (1990), Bob Roberts (1992), Grey Knight (1993) and Rising Sun (1993).
He then played the roles of entrepreneur/millionaire Dalton Voss in The Chase (1994), Dr. Stripler in Powder (1995), Sheriff Blaidek in Evasive Action (1998), and Bart's father Harrison in The Battle of Shaker Heights (2003). The same year he played Jack Taggart in the horror film Jeepers Creepers 2, and portrayed father and husband Frank Harrington in the horror film Dead End.
In 2005, he appeared as newscaster and commentator Don Hollenbeck in Good Night, and Good Luck, directed by George Clooney. In 2007 he appeared in The Flock as Robert Still. In 2008 he had a role in the horror remake One Missed Call. In the year 2011, Wise played the role of United States Secretary of State in . He appeared in Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie as Dr. Doone Struts, the leader of the Shrim Healing Center. He appeared in Revelation Road: The Beginning of the End as Franks. He played Major Braxton Tanner in the movie Big Ass Spider! (2013). He was in Brother's Keeper (2013) and was in Suburban Gothic (2014).
In 2014 Wise appeared in the documentary horror film Digging Up the Marrow under the direction of Adam Green.[8] In 2016, Wise starred as attorney Peter Kane in the film God's Not Dead 2, who represents the ACLU in its fight to have the protagonist, Grace Wesley (Melissa Joan Hart), convicted of proselytizing in a public school.[9]
As a voice actor, Wise played Perry White in the movie . He also plays Commissioner Gordon in the animated film adaptation of The Killing Joke.[10]
He is also known for portraying Michael Dugan, President of the United States, in the full-motion video cutscenes for the computer real-time strategy game and its expansion, Yuri's Revenge.
In 2014, Wise starred in an original Chipotle web series titled Farmed and Dangerous; he played Buck Marshall in the satirical black comedy-type situation comedy. In 2018, Wise made a guest appearance in the second volume of Hyper RPG's horror anthology RPG, 10 Candles, explaining to the party the mysteries of the town of Kolob. He reprised that role in 2019 for the opening credits of 'Kollok 1991', another RPG series by Hyper RPG.
Wise has been married to film producer Kass McClaskey since 1978. They have two children together: a son, Gannon McClaskey Wise, born in 1985, who is an actor and writer; and a daughter, Kyna Wise, born in 1987, who is also an actress and a singer. From 1974 until 1977, Wise had been married to actress Juliet Burr.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Dare the Devil | David Keller | |
| 1982 | Swamp Thing | Dr. Alec Holland | |
| Cat People | Soap Opera Man | ||
| 1985 | The Journey of Natty Gann | Sol Gann | |
| 1987 | RoboCop | Leon Nash | |
| 1989 | Season of Fear | Fred Drummond | |
| Race for Glory | Jack Davis | ||
| 1990 | The Rift | Robbins | |
| 1992 | Leland Palmer | ||
| Bob Roberts | Chet MacGregor | ||
| 1993 | Ghost Brigade | Col. George Thalman | Direct-to-video |
| Rising Sun | Senator John Morton | ||
| 1994 | The Chase | Dalton Voss | |
| Body Shot | Dwight Frye | ||
| The Crew | Charles Pierce | ||
| 1995 | Powder | Dr. Aaron Stripler | |
| 1998 | Evasive Action | Sheriff Wes Blaidek | |
| 1999 | Pennyweight | Mr. Pennyweight | Short film |
| 2000 | Closing the Deal | Ford Williams | |
| 2001 | Almost Salinas | Jack Tynan | |
| Two Can Play That Game | Bill Parker | ||
| 2002 | Landspeed | Brian Sanger | |
| Scream at the Sound of the Beep | Brother Jake | ||
| 2003 | Dead End | Frank Harrington | |
| Jeepers Creepers 2 | Jack Taggart Sr. | ||
| The Battle of Shaker Heights | Harrison | ||
| 2005 | Sharkskin 6 | Sam | |
| The Rain Makers | Harris | ||
| Good Night, and Good Luck | Don Hollenbeck | Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | |
| Cyxork 7 | Kommander 88 | ||
| 2006 | The Substance of Things Hoped For | Dr. Lessing | |
| Peaceful Warrior | Doctor Hayden | ||
| 2007 | The Election | Peter | Short film |
| The Flock | Bobby Stiles | ||
| Hellholes | Professor Klume | Short film | |
| Perry White | Voice Direct-to-DVD | ||
| 2008 | Reservations | Mitch | |
| One Missed Call | Ted Summers | ||
| AM1200 | Harry Jones | Short film | |
| AmericanEast | Agent Stevens | ||
| 2009 | Pandemic | General Matthews | |
| Infestation | Ethan | ||
| Stuntmen | Jack Strongbow | ||
| Iodine | Avery | ||
| Love at First Hiccup | Roger | ||
| 2010 | Darnell Dawkins: Mouth Guitar Legend | Wade Dawkins | |
| 2011 | Black Velvet | Black Velvet | |
| Secretary of State | |||
| Chillerama | Dr. Weems | Segment: "Wadzilla" | |
| Rosewood Lane | Det. Danny Briggs | ||
| 2012 | Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie | Dr. Doone Struts | |
| Excision | Principal Campbell | ||
| The Aggression Scale | Bellavance | ||
| Crazy Eyes | Zach's Father | ||
| Douglas MacArthur | |||
| The Butterfly Room | Nick | ||
| Head of State Thompson | |||
| Brother White | Pastor Johnny Kingman | ||
| Posey | Dr. Shap | Short film | |
| 2013 | Wrong Cops | Captain Andy | |
| Inventing Adam | J.B. | ||
| Big Ass Spider! | Major Braxton C. Tanner | ||
| Revelation Road: Beginning of the End | Frank | ||
| Lionhead | Jimmy | ||
| Revelation Road 2: The Sea of Glass and Fire | Frank | ||
| Out West | Phillip Alcott | ||
| Brother's Keeper | Herbert Leemaster | ||
| No God, No Master | A. Mitchell Palmer | ||
| 2014 | Away from Here | Paul | |
| Suburban Gothic | Donald | ||
| Land of Leopold | Deece Warren | ||
| Digging Up the Marrow | William Dekker | ||
| Dead Still | Wenton Davis | ||
| Guardian Angel | Attorney Kaufman | ||
| Reflections | Grandpa | Short film | |
| 2015 | Jurassic City | Warden Lewis | |
| The Lazarus Effect | Mr. Wallace | ||
| Night of the Living Deb | Frank Waverly | ||
| Taking Flight | Nono | Voice Short film | |
| The Breakup Girl | Bob Baker | ||
| The Specialist | The Specialist | Short film | |
| Unnatural | Victor Clobirch | ||
| 2016 | Halloweed | Judge Pilmington | |
| God's Not Dead 2 | Peter Kane | ||
| The Bronx Bull | Father Joseph | ||
| Batman: The Killing Joke | Commissioner Gordon | Voice | |
| Star Trek: Captain Pike | Admiral Joshua Pike | ||
| 2017 | Shattered | Forest Burnett | |
| 2019 | Tone-Deaf | Michael | |
| Chain of Death | Michael | ||
| Unholy 'Mole | The Devil | Short | |
| To Your Last Death | Cyrus DeKalb | Voice | |
| Big Fan Begins | Ticket Man | Short | |
| 2020 | Beast Mode | Trammel Steadfast | |
| 2021 | King Knight | Merlin | |
| 2023 | Poolman | Van Patterson | Post-production |
| TBA | The Blue Rose | Mr. Vallens | Post-production |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970–1976 | Love of Life | Jamie Rawlins #2 | |
| 1978 | Charlie's Angels | Evan Wilcox | Episode: "Winning Is for Losers" |
| Barnaby Jones | Malcolm Elliot | Episode: "Stages of Fear" | |
| Tartuffe | Damis | Television film | |
| 1981 | Lou Grant | Bart Franklin | Episode: "Strike" |
| Madame X | Bellman | Uncredited Television film | |
| 1982 | Dallas | Blair Sullivan | 8 episodes |
| 1982–1983 | Days of Our Lives | Hal Rummley | |
| 1983 | The Mississippi | Cole | Episode: "Joey" |
| 1984 | T. J. Hooker | Harrison Mackenzie | Episode: "Hot Property" |
| Blue Thunder | J.D. Kraft | Episode: "Payload" | |
| Emerald Point N.A.S. | Travis | 2 episodes | |
| Hart to Hart | Dick Braddon | Episode: "Larsen's Last Jump" | |
| Trapper John, M.D. | Dr. Henry Speiner | Episode: "Aunt Mildred Is Watching" | |
| Riptide | Les Carter | Episode: "Beat the Box" | |
| Remington Steele | Schwimmer | Episode: "A Pocketful of Steele" | |
| 1985 | The A-Team | Phillip Chadway | Episode: "Lease with an Option to Die" |
| 1986 | Scarecrow and Mrs. King | Frank Duran | Episode: "The Pharaoh's Engineer" |
| Airwolf | Victor Resnick | Episode: "Hawke's Run" | |
| Stingray | Dr. John Whitaker | Episode: "Ether" | |
| The Colbys | Spiro Koralis | 5 episodes | |
| Hunter | Alex Parker | Episode: "Crime of Passion" | |
| Condor | Christopher Proctor | Television film | |
| 1987 | Beauty and the Beast | Tom | Episode: "Once Upon a Time" |
| Private Eye | Senator McNeill | Episode: "Blue Movie" | |
| 1988 | Knots Landing | The Dealer | 5 episodes |
| L.A. Law | Walter Platt | 2 episodes | |
| Phil Maresca | Television film | ||
| 1989 | Moonlighting | Murderer | Episode: "Eine Kleine Nacht Murder" |
| Liko | Episode: "Who Watches the Watchers" | ||
| Jake and the Fatman | Harry McGinn | Episode: "Dancing in the Dark" | |
| 1990–1991 | Twin Peaks | Leland Palmer | 18 episodes |
| 1992 | Swamp Thing | Guthrie | Episode: "Never Alone" |
| 1993 | The Secrets of Lake Success | Henry Fleming | 3 episodes |
| 1993–1994 | Second Chances | Judge Jim Stinson | 6 episodes |
| 1994 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Garrett Carlson | Episode: "Stolen Lullaby" |
| The Larry Sanders Show | Lloyd Simon | Episode: "You're Having My Baby" | |
| 1995 | Mike Todd | Television film | |
| Dream On | Maddox March | Episode: "Significant Author" | |
| Courthouse | Congressman Laderman | Episode: "One Flew Over the Courthouse" | |
| 1996–1997 | Savannah | Edward Burton | 34 episodes |
| 1998 | The Wonderful World of Disney | Randolph Pratt | Episode: "The Garbage Picking Field Goal Kicking Philadelphia Phenomenon" |
| Arturis | Episode: "Hope and Fear" | ||
| 1997–1998 | Sleepwalkers | McCaig | 2 episodes |
| 1998 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | Daniel Hunter | 2 episodes |
| Vengeance Unlimited | Jack Schiller | Episode: "Cruel and Unusual" | |
| Sports Night | Evans | Episode: "Mary Pat Shelby" | |
| 1999 | John Parkinson | Episode: "The Flame" | |
| 2000 | Profiler | James Perrone | Episode: "Quid Pro Quo" |
| Popular | Barton | Episode: "What Makes Sammy Run" | |
| 2000–2001 | Resurrection Blvd. | Jack Mornay | 12 episodes |
| 2001 | V.I.P. | Judge Kreiger | Episode: "Bodyguards" |
| Leon C. Nash (archive footage, uncredited) | Episode: "Resurrection" | ||
| Judging Amy | Atty. Rhodes | Episode: "The Last Word" | |
| Dead Last | Robert Cahill | Episode: "Jane's Exit" | |
| 2002 | Charmed | Ludlow | Episode: "Lost and Bound" |
| She Spies | Ambassador Blaine | Episode: "Daddy's Girl" | |
| Presidio Med | Episode: "Milagros" | ||
| 2003 | Dawson's Creek | Roger Stepavich | Episode: "All the Right Moves" |
| 2004 | JAG | Congressman Marvin Bolton | Episode: "Retrial" |
| 2005 | The West Wing | Governor Tillman D-CA | Episode: "La Palabra" |
| 2006 | 24 | Vice President Hal Gardner | 6 episodes |
| Ernest Chase | Episode: "Rashomama" | ||
| The Closer | Tom Blanchard | Episodes: "Out of Focus," "The Other Woman" | |
| Bones | Rick Turco | Episode: "The Titan on the Tracks" | |
| 2007 | Roger Hanley | Episode: "Loophole" | |
| Shark | Lloyd Holcomb | Episode: "Starlet Fever" | |
| Six Degrees | Henry Crane | Episode: "Sedgewick's" | |
| Burn Notice | Mr. Pyne | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 2007–2009 | Reaper | The Devil | 31 episodes |
| 2008 | Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! | Grill Vogel | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | Numb3rs | Mitch Langford | Episode: "Guilt Trip" |
| Drop Dead Diva | Frank Dodd | Episode: "What If?" | |
| Dollhouse | Howard Lipman | Episode: "The Left Hand (Dollhouse) | Episode: "The Left Hand" |
| 2009–2010 2014 | Psych | Father Peter Westley / Judge Horace Leland | 3 episodes |
| 2010 | Castle | Bobby Fox | Episode: "Suicide Squeeze" |
| Suitemates | Hans Ahnnansoahnn | 2 episodes | |
| The Good Guys | Buddy | Episode: "Common Enemies" | |
| 2010–2015 | Mad Men | Ed Baxter | 5 episodes |
| 2011 | Hawaii Five-0 | Morris Brown | Episode: "Powa Maka Moana" |
| Mr. Sunshine | Macaulay | Episode: "Heather's Sister" | |
| Chuck | Riley | 3 episodes | |
| Wilfred | Colt St. Cloud | Episode: "Identity" | |
| Workaholics | Kyle Walsh | Episode: "Model Kombat" | |
| Easy to Assemble | Hendrik | 3 episodes | |
| 90210 | Dean Thomas | Episode: "It's the Great Masquerade, Naomi Clark" | |
| 2011–2014 | How I Met Your Mother | Robin Scherbatsky Sr. | 6 episodes |
| 2012 | Battleground | D-Day / Tak's Father | 2 episodes |
| NCIS | Wayne Tobett | Episode: "Secrets" | |
| Holliston | Landlord | Episode: "Camera Rental: Part 1" | |
| The Mentalist | Dennis Victor | Episode: "Red Rover, Red Rover" | |
| Rizzoli & Isles | Judge Eugene Allen | Episode: "Crazy for You" | |
| Criminal Minds | John Nelson | Episode: "God Complex" | |
| 2013 | Body of Proof | Michael Davis | Episode: "Mob Mentality" |
| Perception | Martin Sullivan | Episode: "Toxic" | |
| Twisted Tales | Mongo the Magnificent | Episode: "Mongo's Magik Mirror" | |
| High School USA! | Seymour Barren / Cassandra's Dad | Voices 3 episodes | |
| 2013–2014 | Kroll Show | Network Executive / Wendy's Father | 3 episodes |
| 2013–2015 | Newsreaders | Skip Reming | 19 episodes |
| 2014 | Farmed and Dangerous | Buck Marshall | 4 episodes |
| Deadbeat | Mayor Meyer | Episode: "Sixty Feet Under" | |
| Hit the Floor | Episode: "Winner Takes All" | ||
| 2014–2016 | The Young and the Restless | Ian Ward | 56 episodes |
| 2015–2016 | Agent Carter | Hugh Jones | 4 episodes |
| 2015–2020 | Fresh Off the Boat | Marvin | 73 episodes |
| 2016 | Relationship Status | Grace's Dad | Episode: "The Catch" |
| All the Way | Senator Everett Dirksen | Television film | |
| Comedy Bang! Bang! | Psychologist / Dr. Frankenstein | 2 episodes | |
| Adam Ruins Everything | Netflix Executive | Episode: "Adam Ruins Hollywood" | |
| Jack Smith | 3 episodes | ||
| Hitting The Breaks | Theodore 'Teddy' Montclair | 2 episodes | |
| 2017 | Fargo | Paul Marrane | 2 episodes |
| Idiotsitter | Himself | Episode: "Rush, Rush" | |
| Twin Peaks | Leland Palmer | 2 episodes | |
| Tim and Eric's Bedtime Stories | The Duke | Episode: "The Duke" | |
| 2017–2018 | Neo Yokio | Old Man | Voice 2 episodes |
| 2019 | Hot Streets | Plunch Runch | Voice Episode: "The Moon Masters" |
| Chilling Adventures of Sabrina | Enoch | Episode: "Chapter Sixteen: Blackwood" | |
| 2021 | All Rise | Richard Walker | Episode: "Georgia" |
| Launchpad | Headmaster Gustafson | Episode: "Dinner Is Served" | |
| Physical | Sheila's Father | Episode: "Let's Not and Say We Did" | |
| Home Economics | Frank | Episode: "49ers Foam Finger, $7" | |
| Father Peter Westley | Television film |
| Year | Title | Role | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | President Michael Dugan | ||
| 2001 | President Michael Dugan |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 10 Candles | Kolob Council Member | Episode: "The Town: Finale" | |
| 2019 | Kollok 1991 | Video narrator | Intro sequence |