Guy Anthony De Marco

Speculative Fiction Author

Guy Anthony De Marco

Speculative Fiction Author

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Who is Roger C. Carmel?

Roger C. Carmel helped me win a piece of Iron Man original art.

Being the crazed comic book collector and Star Trek fan that I was, I was the only geek at a convention with the skillz to recall who had played Harcourt Fenton Mudd on the original series. The answer was Roger C. Carmel, and it’s worth knowing the name behind the moustache.

Roger C. Carmel quick facts
Full name Roger Charles Carmel
Born September 27, 1932, Brooklyn, New York
Died November 11, 1986, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California (the date he was found; he was 54)
Height 6 ft 3 in
Known for Harry Mudd in Star Trek; Roger Buell in The Mothers-in-Law; voice work, including Cyclonus in The Transformers and Smokey Bear

Who was Roger C. Carmel?

Roger Carmel was an American character actor. He worked on Broadway from the late 1950s into the mid-1960s, then moved into television, where he played scores of guest roles. He was a prolific and sought-after character actor with comedic undertones, and he could also play the heavy.

I always liked Roger. His trademark moustache and droll humor show up in some of the best television shows from days gone by. Many people remember the characters he played, even if they don’t remember the man behind the role.

Roger was born in my old hometown of Brooklyn, New York, on September 27, 1932.

Harry Mudd in Star Trek

Roger C. Carmel played Harcourt Fenton “Harry” Mudd, the intergalactic con man, in two episodes of the original Star Trek: “Mudd’s Women” (1966) and “I, Mudd” (1967). He came back to voice Mudd in “Mudd’s Passion” on Star Trek: The Animated Series. Mudd is the role his 1986 obituaries led with.

A third live-action Mudd episode, “Deep Mudd,” was planned but never made.

The Mothers-in-Law

In 1967, Carmel starred as Roger Buell, the henpecked husband, in the first season of the NBC sitcom The Mothers-in-Law. He left after that season over a pay dispute, and Richard Deacon took over the role.

Roger C. Carmel’s TV and film roles

He played bit roles and guest-star stints on a virtual who’s who of the TV golden years. Some of the shows include (of course) Star Trek, Laverne & Shirley, Diff’rent Strokes, Three’s Company, All in the Family, Chico and the Man (as Father O’Malley), McCloud, Hawaii Five-O, Hogan’s Heroes, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, I Spy, The Munsters, The Dick Van Dyke Show, the original Batman TV show (as Colonel Gumm), The Man from U.N.C.L.E., and Route 66. On the big screen, he turned up in Gambit, Myra Breckinridge, Breezy, and Jerry Lewis’s Hardly Working.

Roger Carmel’s voice work

Toward the latter part of his life, Roger did a lot of voice work. After voicing Mudd for the animated Star Trek, he went on to The Transformers (Cyclonus, among other characters, in the series and in The Transformers: The Movie), The Smurfs, The New Adventures of Jonny Quest, Adventures of the Gummi Bears, and DuckTales. He was also the voice of Smokey Bear in fire-safety ads, and he was Senor Naugles in TV commercials for the Naugles fast-food chain. His voice had the same character-actor uniqueness as his on-screen persona.

He was still working when he was found dead in his Hollywood home on November 11, 1986. He was 54.

How tall was Roger C. Carmel?

Roger C. Carmel was 6 feet 3 inches tall. The Los Angeles Times obituary described him as “an imposing figure at 6 feet, 3 inches tall and 260 pounds.” That size served him well whenever he played the heavy.

TRIVIA: Harry Mudd’s official Star Trek stats list the character at 6 ft 1 in and 240 lbs. They were a little off on both counts.

If you like old television shows, you probably know the actor. In my opinion, it’s worth your time to connect the actor and the name.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who did Roger C. Carmel play in Star Trek?

He played Harcourt Fenton “Harry” Mudd, an intergalactic con man, in “Mudd’s Women” and “I, Mudd” on the original series, and he voiced Mudd in “Mudd’s Passion” on Star Trek: The Animated Series.

How tall was Roger C. Carmel?

He was 6 feet 3 inches tall, according to his 1986 Los Angeles Times obituary. IMDb lists the same height.

When and where was Roger C. Carmel born?

He was born Roger Charles Carmel on September 27, 1932, in Brooklyn, New York.

When did Roger C. Carmel die?

He was found dead in his Hollywood home on November 11, 1986, at age 54. The Los Angeles Times reported that he had apparently been dead for several days before he was found.

Did Roger C. Carmel do voice acting?

Yes. He voiced Cyclonus and other characters in The Transformers, Smokey Bear in fire-safety ads, Senor Naugles in Naugles commercials, and characters in Adventures of the Gummi Bears and DuckTales, among others.

Sources

Facts in this post come from Roger C. Carmel’s Wikipedia entry; his IMDb profile; StarTrek.com (“Everything You Wanted to Know About Harry Mudd,” “53 Years of Mudd’s Women,” and “Revisiting ‘I, Mudd'”); Burt A. Folkart, “Roger C. Carmel, Best Known for ‘Star Trek’ Role, Dies,” Los Angeles Times, November 14, 1986; and UPI wire reports from November 13 and 15, 1986.