Conrad Janis

Premature baldness compelled him to switch from leading-man assignments to character roles. A veteran of some 350 TV appearances, Janis was seen on a regular weekly basis as Otto Palindrome on the 1978 sci-fi spoof Quark, and as Mindy McConnell's dad Fred on the Robin Williams sitcom Mork and Mindy. Dropped from M & M after the 1978-79 season when the producers decided to retool the program, Janis was rehired in 1980, this time at a much heftier salary. Though justifiably proud of his acting accomplishments, Janis reportedly is prouder still of his activities as a jazz musician, fronting such prestigious musical aggregations as The Tailgaters and the Beverly Hills Unlisted Jazz Band (this latter group served as the subject of a lively PBS documentary). In addition, Janis is the owner operator of a prominent avant-garde art gallery, and is in charge of his own production company, MiraCom. In 1994, Conrad Janis made his film directorial bow with The Feminine Touch. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide