David Sheiner Passes On

David Sheiner, who had a recurring role on the short-lived sitcom Diana, guest starred on shows from The Man From U.N.C.L.E. to Murder, She Wrote, and appeared in such movies as The Odd Couple (1968) and Blue Thunder (1983), died on June 5, 2026, at the age of 98.

David Sheiner was born on January 13, 1928, in the Bronx. He graduated from DeWitt High School and then served in U.S. Army Air Forces. After his service, he took acting lessons for eight years on a scholarship from Lee Strasberg.

Early in his career he toured with a production of The Country Girl by Clifford Odets. He made his television debut in an episode of Studio One. During the Fifties, he guest starred on the shows Tom Corbett, Space Cadet; The Big Story; The Best of Broadway; The Phil Silvers Show; and Perry Mason. He made his movie debut in an uncredited role in The Mugger (1958). He appeared on Broadway in Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?.

In the Sixties, David Sheiner guest-starred on the shows The Defenders; The Detectives; Sam Benedict; The Twilight Zone; The Eleventh Hour; The Rogues; Dr. Kildare; Kraft Suspense Theatre; Mr. Novak; A Man Called Shenandoah; Burke's Law; Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea; Blue Light; The F.B.I.; The Man From U.N.C.L.E.; I Spy; The Fugitive; Combat!; Mission: Impossible; The Invaders; Iron Horse; Ironside; Dundee and the Culhane; The Big Valley; Judd for the Defense; Hawaii Five-O; Then Came Bronson; The Name of the Game; The Virginian; and The Young Lawyers. He appeared in the movies The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), A Man Called Gannon (1968), The Odd Couple (1968), Winning (1969), Halls of Anger (1970), and They Call Me Mr. Tibbs! (1970).

In the Seventies, David Sheiner had a recurring role as the title character's boss on the short-lived sitcom Diana, starring Diana Rigg. He guest starred on the shows Mission: Impossible; The Bold Ones: Senator; Gunsmoke; Mannix; Sarge; Bonanza; The Delphi Bureau; Cannon; Hawkins; Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law; Columbo; Planet of the Apes; S.W.A.T.; Bronk; Kate McShane; Medical Center; Switch; Lanigan's Rabbi; Baretta; Rich Man, Poor Man Book II; Police Story; Westside Medical; Lucan; The Six Million Dollar Man; The Amazing Spider-Man; How the West Was Won; The Wonderful World of Disney; and Vega$. He appeared in the movies The Stone Killer (1973), The Gong Show Movie (1980), and Battle Creek Brawl (1983).

In the Eighties, David Sheiner appeared in the movie Blue Thunder (1983). He guest starred on the shows Charlie's Angels; Quincy, M.E.; Manimal; Automan; Trapper John, M.D.; Fantasy Island; Matt Houston; The Fall Guy; and Murder, She Wrote. He retired from acting in 1988.

David Sheiner is one of those actors whose name they might not recognize, but whose face they certainly would. He appeared in several hours of television over the years, including several movies. What is more, he could play a wide variety of roles. His versatility can be demonstrated by his two guest appearances on Combat!. In the first episode, "The Steeple," he played a U.S. Army paratrooper captain trapped in a steeple with German soldiers on the ground below him. In "Gadjo," he played a major in the German S.S. He played a prime minister in an episode of The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Oscar's accountant Roy in The Odd Couple, a preacher turned outlaw on Gunsmoke, and a somewhat skeptical police captain in The Stone Killer. David Sheiner was nothing if not versatile, and he always gave good performances.