final credits - john vernon
While Vernon may be best remembered as Dean Wormer in 1978's "Animal House" (he put Delta House on double secret probation), it was as coroner Steve Wojeck on the groundbreaking 1960s Canadian TV series "Wojeck" that he first made his name. He became known for playing villains, sinister officials and unsympathetic authority figures in over 200 TV and film roles, in such films as "The Outlaw Josey Wales," "Dirty Harry," "Point Blank," "Airplane II" and "Topaz," one of the last movies made by Alfred Hitchcock. Vernon returned to voice work, primarily for video games, in the last 10 years. Vernon underwent heart surgery on January 16 and complications arose. Vernon died February 1, 2005 at age 72.
Born Adolphus Raymondus Vernon Agopsowicz in Zehner, Saskatchewan, Vernon was the son of a corner grocery store owner. He caught the acting bug in high school and studied at the Banff School of Fine Arts and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, where his classmates included Peter O'Toole and Albert Finney. Vernon made his film debut in 1956 as the uncredited voice of Big Brother in Michael Anderson's film "1984."
Vernon's breakthrough role was as Wojeck in the 1960s Canadian Broadcasting Corporation drama inspired by the exploits of Toronto coroner Dr. Morton Shulman, investigating deaths caused by slack safety regulations, castigating government incompetence, and dealing with such issues as abortion and lesbianism.
The show was a forerunner of NBC's "Quincy M.E.", CBC's "Da Vinci's Inquest" and CBS' "CSI." The series was one of the CBC's first filmed series at a time when they hadn't even drawn up contracts to cover such things as actors' residuals. Reaction to the show was so strong that it reached the attention of some Hollywood producers, who brought Vernon to L.A.
Director John Landis said that he originally wanted "Dragnet" star Jack Webb to play Dean Wormer in "Animal House," but after meeting with the 27-year-old long-haired and bearded director, the conservative Webb "was absolutely horrified at the suggestion."
Vernon, citing his work in "Animal House," once said, "I can't tell you how many times I've been asked to record people's answering-machine messages saying, 'Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son.' "