Biography

Tough around the edges and with a handsome durability, Alabama-bred Wayne Rogers was born in Birmingham on April 7, 1933. He graduated from Princeton with a history degree in 1954 and joined the Navy before giving acting a thought. During his military service, however, he became associated with theater by happenstance and decided to give it a try after his discharge.

Studying with renowned acting teacher Sanford Meisner and dancer Martha Graham at the Neighborhood Playhouse, Rogers toiled for years in off-Broadway and regional plays ("Bus Stop", "No Time for Sergeants") and had a short stint on the daytime soap The Edge of Night (1956) before making a minor dent in films, including small roles in Odds Against Tomorrow (1959), The Glory Guys (1965) and Cool Hand Luke (1967). Rogers finally hit co-star status opposite Robert Bray in the short-lived TV western series Stagecoach West (1960) and co-produced and wrote the script for the cult sci-fi cheapie The Astro-Zombies (1968) in-between.

It wasn't until 1972, when the 39-year-old actor nabbed the role of "Trapper John," a Korean War surgeon, in the classic comedy series M*A*S*H (1972), that he found elusive stardom. Alongside Alan Alda's "Hawkeye Pierce", the TV show was a huge hit and the two enjoyed equal success at the beginning. Slowly, however, Wayne's character started getting the short end of the stick as the wry, sardonic, highly appealing Alda became a resounding audience favorite. Frustrated at turning second-banana to Alda, he quit the series (his character was discharged) after three seasons amid a contractual dispute. Mike Farrell replaced him in the cohort role of "B.J. Hunnicut" and the show enjoyed several more award-winning seasons

TV movies came Wayne's way throughout the late '70s and a couple more comedy series, including House Calls (1979), in which Wayne received a Golden Globe nomination, but nothing would equal the success he found during the M*A*S*H (1972) years. Sporadic filming in Once in Paris... (1978), The Hot Touch (1981), The Gig (1985) and The Killing Time (1987) also failed to raise his standard, nor did his starring work in the TV movies He's Fired, She's Hired (1984), The Lady from Yesterday (1985), One Terrific Guy (1986), American Harvest (1987), Drop-Out Mother (1988), Miracle Landing (1990).

Broaching the millennium, Rogers was lesser seen, but found some featured roles in such films as Ghosts of Mississippi (1996), Love Lies Bleeding (1999), Frozen with Fear (2001) and Three Days of Rain (2002). He would be last glimpsed in the Hollywood-themed comedy Nobody Knows Anything! (2003) in which he also served as producer. Wayne found renewed respect as a businessman and investor in later years, managing the affairs of such stars as Peter Falk and James Caan, among others. He died on New Year's Eve of 2015 of complications from pneumonia. He was 82.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Gary Brumburgh / gr-home@pacbell.net

Wayne Rogers is a well-known professional actor who was one of the stars of the television series M*A*S*H* and a Broadway producer. He is now a contributor to the Fox Business News network and has been involved in investment activities for over forty years. These include real estate development, business management of a number of motion picture personalities, and co-ventures with other prominent individuals and institutions. During this period, he has also been involved in developing and managing his own business ventures. He is presently Chairman of Wayne M. Rogers & Co, an investment strategy firm, and C.E.O. and Chairman of Stop-N-Save, LLC, which owns and operates convenience stores in the Southeast. He is Chairman of the Board of Kleinfeld, the famous wedding dress emporium in New York. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Vishay Intertechnology, a corporation traded on the NYSE. He is on the Board of Trustees for The Webb School in Bell Buckle, TN. He is a founder of the Plaza Bank of Commerce in San Jose (acquired by Comerica) and has served on its advisory board.

Rogers became one of Hollywood's most popular stars (as measured by TVQ ratings as well as media pulse-takers) by portraying immensely affable leads in such programs as " House Calls " and " M*A*S*H." When TV Guide saluted the 50th anniversary of CBS-TV with a national survey, an American audience poll selected Wayne Rogers and Alan Alda as their favorite comedy duo of all time. But Rogers has always been an inveterate risk-taker and has never shied from a good "bad guy" role. Always relying on his certainty that no man is a villain to himself, he created one of TV's most memorable villains when he portrayed a dangerously immoral child molester in the critically honored "One Terrific Guy." His portrayal made headlines when it prompted a young California girl to confront a molester whose abuse she had feared to expose. The man was convicted and sent to prison. Also powerful were his depiction of an insensitive but redeemable auto-dealer-cum-jazz musician in "The Gig," a corrupt politician in the mini-series "Bluegrass" and a wife-rapist in "The Killing Time" with Kiefer Sutherland.

Wayne Rogers is one of those rare people who are able to do a lot of things well at the same time. His highly hyphenated activities have included starring in top series, theatrical films and MOWs and producing such theatrical films as "Once In Paris" and "The Gig," the award-winning HBO films "Age-Old Friends" and "Perfect Witness" and, on Broadway, many of Neil Simon's biggest hits. His business and economic expertise has evolved into his business management of other top Hollywood talents, running banks, heading major investment firms, and appearing as an expert witness before the House Banking Committee.

His real estate ventures have included subdivisions and commercial office developments in Florida, Arizona, California and Utah. Among his other investments, Mr. Rogers was a principal owner of Delta Pacific Transportation Co., a barge company on the Mississippi River. He has served on the Board of Directors of such publicly held corporations as The Pantry Stores; P.H.C., Inc.; Electronic Data Controls, Inc.; Alameden Vineyards; Extek Micro-Systems; Wadell Equipment Company and Regent Air Corp. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees for the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He was National Chairman of Easter Seals, and was a member of the Executive Committee of both the Arthritis Foundation and the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. Mr. Rogers earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Princeton University and served in the Navy for three years.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Susan D. Valone-Gilleece/Executive Administrator - Wayne M. Rogers & Co.