Quick Facts
Biography
Richard Gilliland (born January 23, 1950) is an American television and movie actor.
Early and personal life
Gilliland was born in Fort Worth, Texas. He has been married to actress Jean Smart since 1987. They met while working on the set of Designing Women (he played J. D. Shackelford, the boyfriend of Annie Potts' character, Mary Jo Shively). They have a son, Connor Douglas (born 1989) and a daughter, Bonnie Kathleen (adopted May 2009).
Gilliland played Captain Stan Cotter on 24 during season 5, while his wife Smart played First Lady Martha Logan in the same season.
Career
He first appeared onscreen in the 1970s. Notable appearances include Thirtysomething, Party of Five, Little Women, and a recurring role on Designing Women (where he met his wife Jean Smart, who starred as Charlene in that series). He played Ellis Kapp on The Unit and Captain Stan Cotter on 24. He also had a recurring role as serial killer Jeffrey Speidel in the NBC series Matlock.
Select TV and filmography
- Bug (1975)
- Stay Hungry (1976)
- McMillan and Wife (1976) (TV series)
- The White Buffalo (1977)
- Operation Petticoat (1977 TV series)
- Little Women (1978) (television film)
- The Waltons (1981) (TV series)
- Airplane II: The Sequel (1982)
- The Night the Bridge Fell Down (1983) (TV movie)
- Just Our Luck (1983) (TV series)
- The Love Boat (1985)
- Designing Women (1987) (TV series)
- Happy Hour (1987)
- Hunter (1987) (TV series)
- Heartland (CBS, 1989)
- Thirtysomething (1989–90)
- Murder, She Wrote (1991, 93) (TV series)
- Matlock (1991, 93, 95) (TV series)
- Winnetka Road (1994) (TV series)
- Touched by an Angel (1996) (TV series)
- Dark Skies (1996–97) (TV series)
- Early Edition (1997) (TV series)
- Star Kid (1997)
- Brooklyn South (1998) (TV series)
- The Practice (1998) (TV series)
- Party of Five (1998, 97) (TV series)
- Judging Amy (2000) (TV series)
- Becker (2001) (TV series)
- Vampire Clan (2002)
- Joan of Arcadia (2003) (TV series)
- Crossing Jordan (2004) (TV series)
- 24 (2006) (TV series)
- The Unit (2007) (TV series)
- Dexter (2009) (TV series)
- Desperate Housewives (2010) (TV series)
