Jack Gilpin

With his expressive square jaw and long face, character actor Jack Gilpin has brought strong support to many films and television shows. From his start on the stage, Gilpin moved to small roles in film and television in the early 1980s, first making his mark as the gay neighbor on several episodes of the family sitcom "Kate & Allie." He appeared in such films as the comedy "The Dream Team," in which Michael Keaton takes patients at a sanitarium on an unsanctioned field trip; "Quick Change," as a hostage to Bill Murray's clown bank-robber; and "Quiz Show," the Robert Redford-directed story of the scandal surrounding a 1950s rigged game show.

Amid many one-off appearances on TV series, Gilpin landed recurring roles on "New York Undercover" as a school headmaster, and on "Law & Order" as a defense attorney. Other film parts have included a supporting bit in the card-counting blackjack drama "21," and, more visibly, as the father of Jesse Eisenberg's character in the coming-of-age tale "Adventureland."