Bradford E. Sullivan

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University of Maine

Bradford Sullivan Obituary

SULLIVAN--Bradford E., 77, died peacefully on December 31, 2008. He leaves seven nieces and nephews and many friends who adored him. A graduate of the University of Maine, he also trained at the American Theatre Wing in New York. He proudly served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. Sullivan was a character actor whose film credits include Slap Shot, The Prince of Tides, The Untouchables, Sister Act 2, and The Abyss. He had roles in several television series including NYPD, Nothing Sacred, and I'll Fly Away. He made his Broadway debut in 1977 and was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical for "Working." He also had roles in Orpheus Descending and a stage adaption of On the Waterfront. He retired in 2000 and always remained a member of the Screen Actors Guild. He lived on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. He was a dedicated mentor to school children, had a deep affection for the Chinese people, and an unwavering Christian belief which guided him through his very exceptional life. There was no pretense in his approach to life. He had a special attachment for the people he loved and appreciated them without reservation. He will always be remembered by those who loved him for the richness of his life, the care he gave to others, and the integrity of his values.

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Published by New York Times on Jan. 11, 2009.

Memories and Condolences
for Bradford Sullivan

12 Entries

Susan Grossman-Swift

November 17, 2009

To the Sullivan Family...my name is Susan Grossman Swift. My husband and I live in New York City. Brad and I were very close friends, for 35 years. The last time I spoke to him was probably around Easter of 2008. I new he wasn't feeling well, but I didn't know how serious the cancer was becoming.

Please know that I adored Brad. When I met him, I was 23 and he was 43. But, we went to the same church and became fast friends. When he was in the show, WORKING, by Studds Turkel, he would invite me to the rehearsals and then take me to his favorite cafeteria at the New York times for lunch. When my husband and I married, Brad was at our wedding. He was like a big brother to me, and, became good friends with my husband Paul and my children.

When Paul and I went to China, to adopt our youngest daughter, Crystal, Brad would call constantly, "Hello, Susie, dear...is she here yet?" He had a love for the Chinese people and gave his heart to them. He was very involved in the Chinese fellowship at Columbia University and had such a sweet heart for God and His people. I just wanted you to know how special he was and how much I loved him. I am from a Jewish background. When I became a Christian, Brad would talk to me about the Lord, and had the patience of a Saint.

And, as one of you put it, those "stinky" cigars, and his bulldog, Buster, were his trademark. May God bless you as you still think of your Uncle and friend. I am 58 years old now, and will always be grateful for the 35 years that I could call Brad Sullivan my friend and brother. My children called him Uncle Brad and still think of him that way.

God Bless you all....He is now in the arms of his Heavenly Father, and at peace.

Sincerely, with love,
Mrs. Susan Grossman Swift

Vasili Glimidakis

April 18, 2009

Dear Sullivan family,
I am sorry for your loss. God bless him and his family.

Daniel Sullivan

January 26, 2009

My uncle Brad was always an inspiration to me, and I was always proud to tell my friends about him and his work. Not just because he was an actor but because he was such a good one. He always made me laugh, and I will always remember his smiling face and his familiar voice which always seemed to have a chuckle bubbling just below the surface, waiting to be unleashed. His stories were legendary, and every converstaion with Brad was memorable. But I think the most telling thing about Uncle Brad was what he did after he retired in 2000. Did he go on vacation? Did he sit back in his Lazy Boy and watch his past accomplishments on television? No. He went to work to help others less fortunate. Not that's the sort of role model we can all learn from. Thanks Uncle Brad. We will surely miss you.

sean cummings

January 20, 2009

I got to know Brad when his family moved to Cape Cod from the Chicago area in the late 1940s. I, having grown up in Massachusetts,had a very distinct Boston accent. We would make fun of each other about how the other sounded. Two words that becme a running joke were "Dodge" & "Buick". I had not seen Brad in about 15 years (this was 10 years ago), and we immediately picked up on our funny talking routine. Brad was a good hockey player and skater and was so good in the movie "Slap Shot" with Paul Newman. I have such good memories of Brad and I am sorry that we hadn't seen each other these past few years.

Rest in peace dear friend
Sean

Ira Cohen

January 16, 2009

1/16/09
We were out of the country and only learned recently about Brad. As a neighbor he was one of the most delightful human beings to deal with. Where I especially treasured Brad was his omnivorous reading of history . After more than 40 years of being an historian I was asked more telling questions in a week than in a semester of a class. When he would start with an aw"shucks" approach to ask you a question, I knew that I'd need my thinking cap on as well as my tap dancing shoe.

Ann and I will both miss his usual "It's Ira, and Ann" greeting in the lobby. Guy, you'll be missed.

Laurie Sullivan Holmes

January 16, 2009

I will miss my Uncle Brad a lot, and I will fondly remember how much he loved to eat, laugh at life, smoke his stinky cigars, spend time memorizing lines for a play he was in, telling stories from his journeys and people he met along the way, and his deep love for his friends and family. I will miss that face most of all with all the looks he gave and his distintive voice I could hear from the other room when something he was in came on the t.v. I'm sorry I was not there to wish you a fond farewell, I will miss you Uncle Brad I love you so much.

Elia Roldan

January 16, 2009

I found out yesterday, 1/15/08, that Brad had passed. We met four years ago at the dining hall of my college. We shared so many wonderful years sharing meals and telling stories. We even shared the same birthday!

I still can't put into words the impact you've had on my life.

Brad, my diploma is for you... And I promise to get a bulldog named Martha!!

Eddie Vega

January 13, 2009

Brad Sullivan was one of the most real and down to earth people I have ever met. He had none of New York's neurosis nor Hollywood's sense of entitlement. Onscreen, he had a gritty persona which could exude volumes with economy of effort. I first met him in the buffet-style cafeteria at Columbia’s Morningside campus, where he was a regular, and invited him for a sit-down interview over at the J-school, where I was a student. The interview took place in the Knight-Bagehot room, and we were joined by sportswriter Teri Berg. As the interview progressed, Terry mentioned that she had found a number of sites on the Internet with information about his acting career. He was surprised to hear that since he had never looked himself up. Terry set him up at a computer and as he found the sites--mostly with materials from his movie and television work--he reminisced about the roles he played, including his famous scene with Sean Connery in The Untouchables. Sullivan played a criminal who would not provide information to the arresting federal agents. So Connery's character picks up a dead man, pretends he's still alive and won’t talk, and shoots him in the head. Sullivan's character then tells the feds everything they want to know. “The dead guy was actually a dummy who waited around for days to get shot,” he said smiling. The part he most enjoyed, however, and would be playing still if the show had not been canceled in its first year, was the role of Father Leo, a Catholic priest, in the television series Nothing Sacred. He played a man of deep faith, a role he was born to.

Janet Sullivan

January 13, 2009

Brad was my uncle. We enjoyed Brad tremendously. He was funny and kind, and always thankful for my parents cooking! I never knew anyone else who enjoyed food as much as Brad. When he came over for dinner, we would cook twice as much as usual (family of SIX), in order to make sure there was enough. He would entertain us little ones with displays of pull ups or one-armed push ups. Brad was a very unassuming actor- not self promoting, not even in the family. You had to ask him what he was working on, frequently, or you would only find out by spotting him on tv or in a movie! It was always strange to see him that way- we would just see Brad, but he would play these characters that were nothing like him (particularly the ones with potty mouths - Brad didn't like those much), but it was always quintessentially Brad at the same time. I remember my grandmother told me that she had to see "The Sting" multiple times, but cried every time Brad's character got shot ! My favorite performance was the time I got to see him in "Working" when it traveled to Chicago, I was in college there - it was a wonderful time. We will miss Brad - we know there are many out there who were his friends and neighbors that we don't know, and welcome their reminiscences and comments.

JERRY HOGAN

January 13, 2009

I was Brad's agent for many many years. He was a fine actor and a special person. In 30 years, he never caused me any problems and I shall always miss the way he happily greeted me and called my name. I am sure he will rest in peace.

Nicholas Archer

January 12, 2009

My sympathies to Brad's family. I worked with Brad on the Fantasticks film and he was a model of professionalism and a credit to the acting community.
Again, my condolences.

Frank Lovece

January 12, 2009

Brad was a friend and neighbor in the building in which we lived, on W. 96th St. in Manhattan. He was a wonderful actor who never gave a bad performance, and a warm, gregarious, open-hearted human being. I once interviewed James Cameron for a syndicated newspaper column I had, when Brad had appeared as a submarine XO in "The Abyss," and as Cameron and I discussed our mutual acquaintance, Cameron did an affectionate impression of Brad's distinctive, growly way of talking.

Aside from that, his roles included the killer who stalked Redford & Newman in "The Sting." And he told me he ad-libbed, at the director's request, an exit line for a scene in his episode of "Miami Vice," which was one of my favorite moments on that show: Playing an ultra-right-wing civic leader in largely Hispanic Miami, he growled, "Now let's go get an AMERICAN breakfast..." Brad was so unlike that character, yet was so completely convincing, you'd have thought they'd gotten some right-wing radio host playing the role as stunt-casting.

A tough and wiry ex-Marine, he was gentle as they come, and even did Christian missionary work, essentially, helping Asian refugees assimilate in the U.S. and go to school. He was a good man and a great actor, and we'll miss him. Break a leg in heaven, Brad.

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