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Erich Anderson

American actor (1957-2024)

Image credit is listed at the end of this article.

Edward Erich Anderson (October 24, 1956, June 1, 2024) was an American actor and novelist. He starred in film and on television, and was widely known for his role in the 1984 horror film Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter as Rob Dier. He also starred in the 1988 film Bat*21 and in the 2002 drama film Unfaithful.

01Background

Edward Erich Anderson was born on October 24, 1956, to an American family in Sagamihara, Japan. He grew up in a military family, and moved frequently throughout his childhood. He attended Hilltop High School in Chula Vista, California, and went on to study biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He initially aspired to attend medical school, but eventually decided to pursue acting.

02Career

Among Anderson's early roles was a role on Bay City Blues in 1983. During this time, he was cast in Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter.

Anderson appeared on over 300 television episodes through his career. Noted television appearances included the series Second Chances as Bruce Christianson, thirtysomething as Billy Sidel, and Felicity as Felicity's father. He also guest starred on Melrose Place as Courtney Thorne-Smith's psychiatrist. Anderson acted on episodes of Murder, She Wrote, CSI, CSI: Miami, Star Trek: The Next Generation in the Season 5 episode "Conundrum" as Commander Kieran MacDuff, and Boomtown as D.A. Ben Fisher. He also appeared in Season 3 Episode 19 of US drama House. He also had a role as Evan, the lead character in The Outer Limits Season 2 Episode 16 "The Deprogrammers" which co-starred Brent Spiner.

Anderson also published three novels between 2012 and 2022.

03Personal life and death

Anderson was married to actress Saxon Trainor. He died from esophageal cancer at his home in Los Angeles, on June 1, 2024, at the age of 67.

04Select filmography

Film and television roles
Year Title Role Notes
1984Friday the 13th: The Final ChapterRob DierFilm
Missing in ActionMasucciFilm
1986Welcome to 18RoscoeFilm
1987-1991ThirtysomethingBilly Sidel7 episodes
1988Patty Hearst1st MaleFilm
Bat*21Major Jake ScottFilm
1992Star Trek: The Next GenerationCommander Kieran MacDuffEpisode: "Conundrum"
1994MatlockTom McGuireEpisode: "The Dating Game"
The Glass ShieldDistrict Attorney Ira KernFilm
1995The Final CutTalbergFilm
1996InfinityGilFilm
1997NightwatchNewscasterFilm
1998FelicityDr. Edward Porter9 episodes
Without LimitsCollin PounderUncredited
Where's Marlowe?Detective SimmonsFilm
1999Thick as ThievesTenescoFilm
2000Auggie RosePaulFilm
2002UnfaithfulBob GaylordFilm
2006SpecialNewscasterFilm
2007 House (TV series) Deran Episode: "Act Your Age"
2009His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13thHimselfDocumentary film
2013Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13thHimselfDocumentary film
2016Officer DowneThe BartenderFilm
2017The NeighborBrianFilm
2018Cold BrookMeisengerFilm
Watch videos about Erich AndersonExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article Erich Anderson, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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