Ron Harper

Ron Harper was an American television and film actor who began on the New York stage. A Pennsylvania native, he attended Princeton University and was a member of its University Players before turning down a Harvard law fellowship to study acting with Lee Strasberg. After U.S. Navy service in the Korean War, he returned to New York and in 1959 became Paul Newman's understudy for the Broadway production Sweet Bird of Youth. His first Hollywood role came in 1960 on the NBC series Tales of Wells Fargo, followed by guest appearances on The Tall Man, Laramie and Wagon Train. He was later a regular on Garrison's Gorillas and Planet of the Apes and played Uncle Jack during Land of the Lost's third season. He appeared on the soap operas Love of Life and Where the Heart Is. Film credits included The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007), Glass Trap (2005), Freedom Strike (1998) and Below Utopia (1997). He died in 2024.