- published: 18 Jan 2012
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Ken Kercheval (born July 15, 1935, Wolcottville, Indiana) is an American actor, best known for his role as Cliff Barnes on the television series Dallas.
Kercheval trained under Sanford Meisner at The Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City. Kercheval made his Broadway debut in the 1962 play Something About a Soldier. He appeared off-Broadway in the 1963 Kurt Weill revue From Berlin to Broadway, and can be heard on the cast recording. Additional theatre credits include The Apple Tree, Cabaret (replacing Bert Convy as Cliff), and Here's Where I Belong. In 1966, he appeared as the title character in the original Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof, co-starring with Herschel Bernardi, Maria Karnilova, Julia Migenes, Leonard Frey, and Pia Zadora.
He got his start on television in 1966, playing the part of Dr. Nick Hunter on Search for Tomorrow. His film credits include The Seven-Ups with Roy Scheider and Tony LoBianco plus F.I.S.T. with Sylvester Stallone.
Kercheval and Larry Hagman were the only Dallas cast members to stay with the series throughout its entire run, although Kercheval's character was only a recurring character during the first two seasons. He became a regular cast member in the 1979-1980 season. Kercheval reprised the role of Cliff Barnes in the 1996 Dallas reunion, J. R. Returns, and he appeared in the 2004 CBS reunion special. He will reprise the role again in episodes 3, 4, and 10 of the forthcoming new Dallas (2012) series.