James Joseph Broderick III

 James Joseph Broderick III (March 7, 1927 – November 1, 1982)

He is remembered for his role as Doug Lawrence in the television series Family, which ran from 1976 to 1980, and he played a pivotal role in the 1975 film Dog Day Afternoon. Broderick attended Manchester Central High School and then took pre-medical courses at the University of New Hampshire for two years. He joined the Navy in 1945, becoming a pharmacist mate. In 1947, Broderick returned to his studies. He auditioned for a part in the University production of George Bernard Shaw's Arms and the Man. Director J. Donald Batcheller, faculty advisor to the student drama club (Mask and Dagger), was impressed and gave him the role of Bluntschli. Although Batcheller did not often encourage the students to pursue acting as a career, he was so sure of Broderick's talent that he suggested a trip to New York to meet Batcheller's friend Arthur Kennedy. Broderick took his advice and Kennedy subsequently directed him to the Neighborhood Playhouse, where he gained the necessary experience and training for a successful acting career in both films and television.

Broderick's Broadway credits include The Time of Your Life (1969) and Johnny No-Trump (1967). He played Doug Lawrence on the television show Family from 1976 to 1980. Broderick also served as a director for the series. He received an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 1978. Other notable television appearances included the Twilight Zone episode "On Thursday We Leave for Home" and the Public Television productions of Jean Shepherd's The Phantom of the Open Hearth and The Great American Fourth of July and Other Disasters, in which he played Ralph Parker's father, "the Old Man". His notable film roles include Ray Brock, the complex father figure of a New England commune in Alice's Restaurant (1969), the subway motorman in The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974), FBI agent Sheldon in Dog Day Afternoon (1975), and Joe in The Shadow Box (1980) directed by Paul Newman.

Broderick was married to playwright and painter Patricia Broderick. The couple had one son, actor Matthew Broderick, and two daughters, Martha and Janet. Broderick died of thyroid cancer on November 1, 1982, in New Haven, Connecticut at the age of 55.