Kevin Geer, a busy actor on Broadway, Off-Broadway, in films, and on TV, died of a heart attack January 25.
Geer made numerous appearances Off-Broadway in plays as diverse as Larry Shue鈥檚 The Foreigner at the Astor Place Theatre, and Donald Margulies鈥� Found A Peanut at the Public Theater. He made his Broadway debut in the 1988 Blythe Danner A Streetcar Named Desire. He originated the role of Jonesy in the Tony-winning 1998 drama Side Man鈥攁 role he created at Classic Stage Company and later reprised in London鈥攁nd played Juror No. 2 in the hit 2004 revival of Twelve Angry Men.
The lanky actor played a wide range of roles from bankers to detectives, professors, CIA agents and Congressmen in a wide variety of TV shows and movies including The Pelican Brief, The Tavern, The Contender, The Men Who Stare at Goats with George Clooney, and American Gangster with Denzel Washington.
His long list of TV assignments date back to the 1970s with M*A*S*H, and continued with The Equalizer, MacGyver, China Beach, New York Undercover, Steeltown, Oz, and an appearance as Young Tom in the TV movie adaptation of Tennessee Williams鈥� Sweet Bird Of Youth with Elizabeth Taylor. Geer鈥檚 most recent TV appearance was in a 2016 episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
Among those who tweeted memorials were actor Donna Murphy, actor-writer Harvey Fierstein, director Michael Mayer, and Side Man playwright Warren Leight:
馃挃1 of the kindest,gentlest men I've had the privilege of knowing. Was always a better day if u spent a moment in his light. RIP
— Donna Murphy (@DMurphyOfficial)
RIP beloved friend, colleague, and side man, Kevin Geer. New York theatre will not be the same without you. I miss you everywhere already.
— Michael Mayer (@MichaelMayerDIR)
Kevin & I did a Koutoukas play in '72 & FLATBUSH TOSCA 2gether in '73. Sweetest ever. -
— Harvey Fierstein (@HarveyFierstein)
said yes to every reading he was asked to do, and committed fully to each one, even if he was reading gibberish.
— Warren Leight (@warrenleightTV)
