James Luisi

Biography

A native New Yorker, James Luisi attended St. Francis College in Brooklyn Heights on a basketball scholarship. He served in the Army during the Korean War. He then played one season (1953-54) with the Baltimore Bullets in the National Basketball Association. His acting career began on the stage with early parts coming in the Broadway musicals "Sweet Charity" and "Zorba". His early movies were minor, though his "beefcake" appeal was evident in 1973's I Escaped from Devil's Island (1973) in which he rarely wore a shirt. Most of his later work was on TV. In 1976 he shared a "best actor" daytime Emmy for playing George Washington in a daytime drama special titled First Ladies Diaries: Martha Washington (1975). Also in 1976 he started his four-season role as Jim Rockford's (James Garner) nemesis Lt. Chapman in The Rockford Files (1974). In 1983 he played the cop in charge of some street-gang-members-turned-undercover-agents in the short-lived series The Renegades (1983), which provided a boost for Patrick Swayze, who played one of the gang members. Along with guest spots on numerous TV shows, Luisi also appeared in the soap operas Days of Our Lives (1965) and Another World (1964). In the 1990s he returned to acting in and directing stage work in the Los Angeles area. Stricken with cancer he passed away on 7 June 2002 and is survived by his wife of 41 years, the former Georgia Phillips.

Most Known For

The A-Team

as Jimmy Durkee

Magnum, P.I.

as John Walter Costa

Knight Rider

as D.G. Grebs

The Rockford Files

as Lt. Doug Chapman

The Rockford Files

as Burt Stryker

Adam-12

as Antonio Minetti

Ironside

as Mike Purcell

Knots Landing

as Lieutenant Gilbert Garcia

Quincy, M.E.

The Rifleman

L.A. Law

as Paul Viola

Starsky & Hutch

Hart to Hart

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

as Hood

Cannon

Kojak

as Det. Geno Alessi

Kojak

as Capt. Henry 'Hank' Rosseau

T. J. Hooker

as George Laszlo

T. J. Hooker

as Vincent Hazzard

The F.B.I.

as Sam Kehoe