This burly character player of stage, screen, and TV is best known as Officer Andy Renko on Steven Bochco's acclaimed and innovative police drama "Hill Street Blues" (NBC, 1981-87). Haid effectively embodied a short-tempered but basically sympathetic good ol' boy uneasily adjusting to being a cop in a large city. He has tended to fare well playing Southerners and working class professionals. Haid has also worked as a TV producer and director. In the former capacity, he oversaw one of Bochco's more notable failures--the musical cop show "Cop Rock" (ABC, 1990). As a director, he frequently helmed episodes of several Bochco shows including "Doogie Howser, M.D.", "L.A. Law" and "NYPD Blue". Haid segued to feature direction with "Iron Will" (1994), a rugged adventure set in the 1917 about a dog-sled marathon.
Haid enjoyed his first success in showbiz as the producer of the musical "Godspell" which was then the senior project of classmate Stephen Schwartz (who went on to write the lyrics for Disney's "Pocahontas"). He went on to co-produce the NY production which inaugurated the worldwide hit. Haid also gained extensive acting experience on stage before segueing to TV and films in the 1970s. His notable feature credits include supporting roles in "Altered States" (1980), as a cranky scientist, "Cop" (1988), as a corrupt officer, and "Nightbreed" (1990), as a monster-hating sheriff. Haid has also appeared in numerous TV-movies, guest shots, and specials.
- Also Credited As:
Charles Maurice Haid, Charlie Haid
- Born:
June 2, 1943 in Palo Alto, California
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Job Titles:
Actor, Director, Producer
Family
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Daughter: Arcadia Elizabeth Haid. mother, Penelope Windust
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Daughter: Brittany Catherine Haid. born in July 1976 mother, Penelope Windust
Education
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Carnegie Institute of Technology, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, BFA
Milestones
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1971 Co-produced original NY production of "Godspell"
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1972 NY stage debut, "Elizabeth the First"
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1974 TV-movie debut, "Things in Their Season", a CBS melodrama
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1975 Debut as a TV series regular, "Kate McShane", as the Jesuit priest brother of the lawyer protagonist
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1976 Cast as a regular on "Delvecchio", a cop show
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1977 Feature debut, "The Choirboys"
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1981 Played signature role of Officer Andy Renko, a regular on the acclaimed police drama "Hill Street Blues" (produced by Stephen Bochco)
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1984 TV debut as a producer, "Children in the Crossfire", an NBC TV-movie dealing with conflicts in Ireland (also acted)
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1986 Hosted a PBS documentary/forum entitled "A Program for Vietnam Veterans . . . And Everyone Else Who Should Care"
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1987 Feature producing debut as executive producer of "Square Dance/Home is Where the Heart Is"
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1990 Served as a producer and occasional director on the short-lived musical cop show, "Cop Rock"
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1992 TV-movie directing debut, "In the Line of Duty: Siege at Marion"
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1994 Feature directing debut, "Iron Will", a period adventure about a dog-sled marathon
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1995 Directed pilot of Bochco's "Murder One" (ABC); earned Emmy nomination
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1996 Directed pilot and episodes of "High Incident", an ABC police drama
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1997 Helmed the TNT original "Buffalo Soldiers"
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1999 Had rare acting role in a feature an ambitious bishop in "The Third Miracle"
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2000 Directed the CBS miniseries "Sally Hemings: An American Scandal"
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2001 Helmed the pilot for the CBS series "Big Apple"; also served as an co-executive producer of the series
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2003 Directed an episode of the ABC drama "Karen Sisco"
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Acted with the American Conservatory Theater, the San Diego National Shakespeare Festival, the New York Shakespeare Festival, and the American Shakespeare Festival
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Attended high school with future music luminaries Grace Slick, Jerry Garcia, and Joan Baez
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Began acting in college productions
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Directed episodes of the ABC sitcom "Doogie Howser, M.D." (produced by Bochco)
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Had first big hit as producer of the musical "Godspell" which was then a friend's senior project in college
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Raised in a suburb of San Francisco
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Served in the US Naval Submarine Corps stationed in Southeast Asia
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Was co-executive producer of the short-lived CBS series "Buddy Faro"; also directed episodes