Dirk Benedict

Dirk Benedict (born Dirk Niewoehner; March 1, 1945) is an American film, television and stage actor, philosopher and author. He is best known for playing the characters Lieutenant Starbuck in the original Battlestar Galactica film and television series and Lieutenant Templeton "Faceman" Peck in The A-Team television series. He is the author of Confessions of a Kamikaze Cowboy and And Then We Went Fishing. Benedict was born Dirk Niewoehner in Helena, Montana, the son of Priscilla Mella (née Metzger), an accountant, and George Edward Niewoehner, a lawyer. He grew up in White Sulphur Springs, Montana. He graduated from Whitman College in 1967. Benedict allegedly chose his stage name from a serving of Eggs Benedict he had prior to his acting career. He is of German extraction.[citation needed] Benedict's film debut was in the 1972 film Georgia, Georgia. When the New York run for Butterflies Are Free ended, he received an offer to repeat his performance in Hawaii, opposite Barbara Rush. While there, he appeared as a guest lead on Hawaii Five-O. The producers of a horror film called Sssssss (1973) saw Benedict's performance in Hawaii Five-O and promptly cast him as the lead in that movie. He next played the psychotic wife-beating husband of Twiggy in her American film debut, W (1974). Benedict starred in the television series Chopper One, which aired for one season in 1974. He made two appearances in Charlie's Angels. He also appeared on the Donny & Marie variety show.