Dakin Matthews

Melvin Richard "Dakin" Matthews (born November 7, 1940) is an American actor, playwright, theatre director, and theatrical scholar. He is best known as Herb Kelcher in My Two Dads (1987–1989), Hanlin Charleston in Gilmore Girls (2000–2007), Joe Heffernan in The King of Queens (1998-2007), and as Reverend Sikes in Desperate Housewives (2004–2012).

Early life

Melvin Richard Matthews was born in Oakland, California. He initially aspired to become a Roman Catholic priest,

He also attended graduate school at New York University. He is an Emeritus Professor of English at California State University, East Bay in Hayward, California.

Career

He began his stage career in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area, appearing in both the Marin and California Shakespeare Festivals, eventually becoming a member of the acting ensemble of the American Conservatory Theater. In the late 1980s, settling permanently in Los Angeles, Matthews began guest-starring in television series and appearing in films. He starred in series such as Down Home, Soul Man and, most successfully, The Jeff Foxworthy Show.

In 1989 he starred in the preshow for EPCOT Center's Body Wars attraction in The Wonders Of Life Pavilion. He also has made many guest appearances on television, including Remington Steele, Dallas, Murder She Wrote, L.A. Law, The Nanny, True Blood, Just Shoot Me!, Star Trek: Voyager, The West Wing, Gilmore Girls (as Headmaster Charleston), Ally McBeal, Coach, The Practice, Who's the Boss?, Charmed, Diagnosis Murder, The King of Queens (as Doug Heffernan's father Joe), NYPD Blue, Desperate Housewives (appearing in every Season except 5 as Reverend Sykes), House M.D. (appearing in 2004 in "Damned If You Do" the 5th episode of the 1st season playing the role of Marvin/Santa Claus), The Big Bang Theory as Santa (season 6 episode 11), Blue Bloods (as of 2016 appearing in "Help Me Help You" the 16th episode of the 6th season playing the role of Judge Wilson), Two and a Half Men, and Carnivàle.

Matthews has appeared in more than 25 feature films, including Nuts, Like Father Like Son, Clean and Sober, Thirteen Days, Funny Farm, True Grit (as Colonel Stonehill), Steven Spielberg's' Lincoln, Flubber, and Zero Charisma. He played the role of Col. Cochrane in Child's Play 3, and has also appeared in a number of television films, including And the Band Played On, Baby M, and White Mile.

As a stage actor, he is known for his many Shakespearean roles, especially King Lear, Bottom, and Falstaff, and most recently for his portrayals of C. S. Lewis in South Coast Repertory's Shadowlands, as "Warwick" in Shakespeare's Henry IV at the Lincoln Center Theater, as "Undershaft" in Major Barbara and "Tarleton" in Misalliance for South Coast Repertory, as "The Fixer" in Water and Power for the Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles, as "Leonato" in Shakespeare Center L.A.'s production of Much Ado About Nothing with Helen Hunt, as "Cardinal Wolsey" in A Man For All Seasons with Frank Langella at the Roundabout, and as "Senator Carlin" in Gore Vidal's The Best Man on Broadway.

In 2010, Matthews joined the cast of the ABC soap opera General Hospital as Judge Peter Carroll, the judge in Sonny Corinthos' trial.

He is also a playwright, director, and theater scholar who has published books and articles on Shakespeare and translations of 17th-century Spanish theater. He has been a dramaturg on numerous theatrical productions, including the 2005 Broadway revival of Julius Caesar starring Denzel Washington and the 2003 revival of Henry IV, winning a Drama Desk Award Special Award for his adaptation of the latter.

Matthews was also Artistic Director of the Berkeley Shakespeare Festival, the California Actors Theatre, The Antaeus Theatre Company (which he co-founded in 1991), and the Andak Stage Company; he is an Associate Artist of the Old Globe Theatre; and a founding member of the John Houseman's The Acting Company and Sam Mendes' Bridge Project.

Matthews appeared in the 2009 world tour of The Bridge Project as "Pishchick" in The Cherry Orchard and "Antigonus" in The Winter's Tale. In the 2011 summer season of The Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park, he performed as "the Provost" in Measure for Measure and "Lafew" in All's Well That Ends Well. and as "Sir Humphrey" in the American premiere of Yes Prime Minister at the Kirk Douglas Theatre. He was nominated for an Ovation Award for Book and Lyrics of an original musical entitled Liberty Inn, which he co-wrote with B. T. Ryback.

In 2011, his verse translation of The Capulets & The Montagues played at the Andak Stage Company and the International Siglo de Oro Festival, winning the L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Adaptation. Matthews appeared twice as Santa Claus in The Big Bang Theory season 6 episode, "The Santa Simulation" and season 8 episode "The Clean Room Infiltration".

He was the dramaturg for the Lincoln Center production of Macbeth (2013), directed by Jack O'Brien and starring Ethan Hawke. He appeared as "Richard Russell" in Robert Schenkkan's award-winning L.B.J. play All The Way, starring Bryan Cranston, at A.R.T. in Cambridge in September 2013.

He appeared as "Mickey Goldmill" in the Broadway musical Rocky the Musical in 2014, then in 2015, he went on to play Winston Churchill opposite Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II in Peter Morgan's The Audience on Broadway. Matthews portrayed Judge Byers in the 2015 film Bridge of Spies.

He originated the role "Joe" in the musical Waitress that opened on Broadway in April 2016. He returned to the role for the 2021 restaging on Broadway. From 2018 to 2020 and for a limited engagement in January 2022, he played Judge Taylor in To Kill a Mockingbird. In 2023, he played the dual role of Merlyn/Pellinore in the fourth Broadway revival of Camelot. From February to April 2026, he played Matthew Harrison Brady in Inherit the Wind at Arena Stage.

Filmography

Theater As an actor + Year Title Role Notes 1993 Shadowlands C.S. Lewis South Coast Repertory 1998 Freedomland Noah Underfinger Playwrights Horizons, Off-Broadway 2003 Major Barbara Andrew Undershaft South Coast Repertory 2003 Henry IV Chief Justice Warwick/Owen Glendower Vivian Beaumont Theater, Broadway 2008 A Man For All Seasons Cardinal Wolsey American Airlines Theatre, Broadway 2009 The Winter's Tale Antigonus Harvey Theatre, Off-Broadway 2010 Misalliance John Tarleton South Coast Repertory 2010 Much Ado About Nothing Leonato Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles2010King LearKing LearAntaeus Theatre Company 2011 Where's Charley? Stephen Spettigue New York City Center, Off-Broadway 2011 Measure for Measure Provost Shakespeare in the Park, Off-Broadway 2011 All's Well That Ends Well Lafew Shakespeare in the Park, Off-Broadway 2012 The Best Man Senator Clyde Carlin Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, Broadway 2013 All The Way Richard Russell/Emanuel Celler American Repertory Theater 2013 Yes, Prime Minister Sir Humphrey Appleby Kirk Douglas Theatre 2014 Rocky Mickey Winter Garden Theatre, Broadway 2015 The Audience Winston Churchill Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, Broadway 2016 Waitress Joe Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Broadway 2018 The Iceman Cometh Piet Wetjoen Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, Broadway 2018 To Kill A Mockingbird Judge Taylor Shubert Theatre, Broadway 2021 Waitress Joe Ethel Barrymore Theatre, Broadway 2023 Camelot Merlyn/Pellinore Vivian Beaumont Theater, Broadway 2025 Henry IV King Henry IV Theatre for a New Audience, Off-Broadway 2026 Inherit the Wind Matthew Harrison Brady Arena Stage 2026 An American Daughter Performer La Femme Theatre

As a dramaturg + Year Title Notes 2003 Henry IV Vivian Beaumont Theater, Broadway 2005 Julius Caesar Belasco Theatre, Broadway 2013 Macbeth Vivian Beaumont Theater, Broadway