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Peter Van Norden, a frequent character actor in films including “Police Academy 2,” and TV projects including “The Stand,” died Thursday in California, his son Robert confirmed on Instagram. He was 75.
Born in New York,
Van Norden graduated Colgate University and started out onstage in plays including “Measure for Measure,” “A Country Scandal” and “Romeo and Juliet.” His first screen role came in 1979’s “Squeeze Play” and he went on to appear in films including “Waitress!,” “The Accused” and “Gigli.” In “The Accused,” he played Attorney Paulsen in the intense drama about a rape trial that starred Jodie Foster and Kelly McGillis.
In “Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment,” he played the slobby police dog officer Vinnie Schtulman, one of the gang at the 16th precinct, who was partnered with Steve Guttenberg’s Officer Mahoney.
During the 1980s, Van Norden had frequent guest roles on popular TV series and TV movies including “Cheers,” “St. Elsehwere,” “T.J. Hooker,” “Malibu,” “Silver Spoons,” “Family Ties” and “Murder, She Wrote.” In 1994’s Stephen King mini-series “The Stand,”he played Ralph Brentner, a farmer who travels West with a group to escape the mayhem caused by a weaponized virus. Van Norden played Henry Kissinger in 1990s series “Dark Skies,” and appeared in two episodes of “Tales From the Crypt” as well as on episodes of “Nash Bridges” and “Family Matters.”
Van Norden later appeared in series including “9-1-1,” “Without a Trace,” “Days of Our Lives,” “ER” and “The Invisible Man.” He continued to work onstage in several different theater companies.
Van Norden is survived by his wife, Wendy, and his son, Robert.
