Entertainment
Original ‘Star Trek’ Actor Passes Away
Peter-Henry Schroeder, who amazed a generation of new “Star Trek” fans and won accolades for his production of the Oscar-winning film “Argo,” has passed away at the age of 90.
Shroeder died on June 7 at Lake City VA Medical Center in Florida. His family was by his side.
He portrayed the Klingon Chancellor in the first episode of “Star Trek: Enterprise,” which aired from 2001 to 2005, a time of transition for a series that dates back to 1966. Although the four-season show received mixed reviews, Schroeder’s strength in his debut performance kept the “Star Trek” fandom alive well into the 21st century, paving the way for box office hits like 2009’s “Star Trek” starring Chris Pine.
Born in New York, Schroeder moved to Los Angeles in his 20s to pursue acting. He was drafted into the Korean War in 1953, where he served for two years.
He returned to study statewide under the famed actress Paula Strasberg, best known for coaching Marilyn Monroe, and earned his first role in the 1979 film “The Seduction of Joe Tynan.” In between films and series, Shroeder sang, releasing “Where’s the Girl for Me” (1960) and “Memories of Marilyn” (1964) after seeing Monroe perform for the troops in Korea.
His malleability as a series actor helped Schroeder carve out a reliable career in television. He guest-starred or regularly appeared in memorable shows such as “B.J. and the Bear,” “Cheers,” “Thirtysomething,” “White Cargo,” and 2011’s “The Protector” in addition to his time on “Star Trek: Enterprise.”
He served as a producer for “Argo,” the 2012 film about employees of the American embassy in Iran who fled during the 1979 uprising and escaped the country through an audacious CIA plan involving disguises and cover identities. The film, starring Ben Affleck, won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Schroeder remained active up until his death, though his final credit is in the 2020 dark comedy “Sammy Gate,” whose fictitious plot speculates that Sammy Davis, Jr. caused the Watergate scandal, per IMDB.
Before his death in Lake City, Shroeder joked to a group of paparazzi that he was rushing through the airport to get back to work.
“When are you going to get me out of here, I’ve got to get back to LA,” he reportedly quipped, the Sun reported.
Other highlights of Shroeder’s career include working with Meryl Streep and starring in the series “Big Shamus, Little Shamus” (1979). He played Robert Swanson in the 1985 film “Fire in the Night” and Nick Kristidis in “Hotshot” in 1986.
He is survived by his daughter Valerie Lynn Schroeder, his son Peter Henry Schroeder II with daughter-in-law Felicia Cristiani Bass, his grandson Peter Henry Schroeder III and his grandson Jarrid Michael Schroeder.