Scott Atkinson
Born(1966-07-23)July 23, 1966
Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedFebruary 26, 2021(2021-02-26) (aged 54)
Palm Springs, California, U.S.
Years active1990 – 2021
SpouseTegan West

Scott Atkinson (July 23, 1966 – February 26, 2021) was an American actor and screenwriter from Pennsylvania best known for his many television roles, including recurring roles on Desperate Housewives, The Jamie Foxx Show, Commander in Chief, Providence, NYPD Blue, and Lincoln Heights, along with notable guest roles on Frasier as Daphne's boyfriend Clive and Mad About You as Doug the Handyman. He was also known for several film roles and his screenwriting credits.[1][2][3][4][5]

Career

His television roles include recurring roles and multi-episode arcs on The Jamie Foxx Show (as Hawkins in Season 4), Commander in Chief (Reporter Steve in Season 1), Providence (Bill Graff in Season 3), NYPD Blue (Steve McClintock in Season 12), Lincoln Heights (Detective Briggs in Season 1), and a recurring role as a police officer in four episodes of Desperate Housewives, one per season for the first four seasons.[6]

Other notable roles include Doug the handyman in Mad About You, a love interest of Caroline Duffy's in Caroline in the City, and Paul's sponsor, Bob Hicks, in Season 1 of Dexter.[6][2] He also played Tony in the Columbo movie "Murder with Too Many Notes" (2001) and Roger Danish in Arrested Development.[3]

He had guest starring roles on many other shows, including: George & Leo, Cupid, The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer, JAG, The Pretender, Crossing Jordan, The King of Queens, and more.

He is also well known for playing Daphne's ex-fiancé, Clive, on Frasier in one of the show's most famous episodes, "The Two Mrs. Cranes", which was also the premiere episode of Season 4.[7][8][9] Atkinson's performance, most notably the accent he employed, caused some controversy and is still discussed among fans and even in an academic journal![10][11] The writer of the episode, Joe Keenan, said he had heard such criticisms "for over a decade" (at that time) and defended the performance, penning a piece on why Atkinson was the right choice for the role.[10] Keenan said: "The part of Clive had three main requirements: the actor had to be funny, he had to be handsome enough for us to believe that Roz and Daphne would instantly go to war over him, and he had to be (or at least play) English." They auditioned eight actors, half of whom were actually British. They felt none of the Brits was either funny or sexy enough to make the storyline work. "Scott, a handsome and charming American, came in and read the part under the apparent impression that the role was based on Hugh Grant," Keenan went on. They explained to him that the Clive character was working class so Atkinson took a few minutes to prepare and returned with a working class accent that they felt was a bit broad but good enough for American ears. Keenan finished by saying: "Had we cast any of our choices save Scott we'd have torpedoed the whole episode."[10] Since these comments and with the passage of time, the performance has been reappraised.[10]

In film, he played Dr. Bradley Bradley in the movie Elvira's Haunted Hills (2001) and Chester Baer in The Mostly Unfabulous Social Life of Ethan Green (2005). Other film roles include the HBO movie The Second Civil War (1997), The Unknown Cyclist (1998), Mothers of the Bride (2015), The Wrong House (2016), Path to War (2002), The Debtors (1999), and Windtalkers (2002).[6][12]

Atkinson was also a screenwriter. He and his husband, Tegan West, were writing partners. They wrote the screenplay of Duck Duck Goose,[13] and had also written a movie called "Honeymoon with Dad" to be directed by Danny DeVito, had another script optioned called "Minimum Wage" to be helmed by Mark Waters,[14][15] and planned another project about Irish senator David Norris. All these planned projects received media attention and announcements.[16][17][18][19][20]

Personal life and death

Atkinson graduated from Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1988.[21]

He was married to actor Tegan West.[22]

Scott Atkinson died in Palm Springs, California, on February 26, 2021. He was friends with Cassandra Peterson (aka Elvira), who first reported his passing, noting that "he was survived by the great love of his life Tegan West, his mother Pearl, his sister Kelly, and his dog Sergeant."[23]

Novelist, dramatist, and Frasier writer Joe Keenan also paid tribute to Atkinson, noting that in his appearance on the show "he more than held his own as a sweet, credulous guy bombarded by self-serving lies. Without his skill & charm, none of it would have worked. RIP to a dear man."[24]

References

  1. ↑ "Scott Atkinson". www.tcm.com. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  2. 1 2 "Scott Atkinson - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  3. 1 2 "Scott Atkinson". www.aveleyman.com. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
  4. ↑ "Scott Atkinson | LATW". latw.org. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
  5. ↑ "Stills – Scott Atkinson". Kinorium. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
  6. 1 2 3 "Scott Atkinson". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  7. ↑ Munoz, Nikki (2022-09-29). "Every Frasier Season Ranked". Looper. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  8. ↑ Ferguson, LaToya (2021-12-15). "The 25 Best 'Frasier' Episodes, Ranked". Variety. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  9. ↑ Fretts, Bruce (1996-09-13). "Returning shows". Entertainment Weekly. No. 344. p. 58.
  10. 1 2 3 4 ""The Two Mrs. Cranes" update: Episode writer Joe Keenan says Clive is A-OK". Robert David Sullivan. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
  11. ↑ Hewett, Richard (2018-04-11). "Say What? Putting the Accent on Bad Brits in US TV". A Special Relationship.
  12. ↑ "Scott Atkinson". BFI. Archived from the original on December 21, 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  13. ↑ Hemmert, Kylie (2018-07-12). "Get Ready to Play in the Duck Duck Goose Trailer". ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  14. ↑ Fletcher, Alex (2009-01-09). "Waters attached to 'Minimum Wage'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  15. ↑ Kit, Borys (2009-01-09). "Helmer works for 'Minimum Wage'". Hollywood Reporter -- International Edition. 408 (5): 1–38.
  16. ↑ "DeVito to direct new indie comedy". independent. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  17. ↑ Thompson, Anne (2008-03-20). "West, Atkinson earn 'Minimum Wage'". Variety. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  18. ↑ "Tegan West Archives". Geeks Under Grace. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  19. ↑ "Mark Waters Takes Minimum Wage". Empire. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  20. ↑ Battles, Jan. "Stardom beckons for Irish gay icon". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  21. ↑ "Scott Atkinson". Filmow (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  22. ↑ "Scott Atkinson (Creator)". TV Tropes. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  23. ↑ "Elvira, Mistress Of The Dark on Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  24. ↑ "Joe Keenan on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
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