James Sloyan, the actor whose face appeared in films like The Sting and Xanadu and who played Madeline Kahn’s husband on her short-lived 1980s sitcom, died July 22 at his home in Sherman Oaks. He was 85.
His family confirmed the news over the weekend. Sloyan’s career spanned more than five decades, with a mix of film, television, and voice work that made him a familiar face to audiences across genres.
Sloyan appeared in George Roy Hill’s The Sting in 1973. His role as Mottola, the numbers runner who works for the racketeer Doyle Lonnegan played a part in setting the film’s con plot in motion. The film won the Oscar for best picture that year. He also starred in Xanadu in 1980 as Simpson, the tyrannical boss of Michael Beck’s character Sonny Malone at AirFlow Records.
He played Kahn’s husband on her ABC sitcom, which aired from 1983 to 1984. The show, produced by Carsey-Werner, lasted 18 episodes. His character was a romance novelist under the pen name Crystal Love.
Born James Joseph Sloyan in Indianapolis on February 24, 1941, he was the youngest of four children. His father, James Sr., was a construction engineer. His family said that at age 4, he “discovered the delights of the Indianapolis State Fair,” where he wrangled an appearance with Western movie actor Lash LaRue and his traveling Western Show.
Sloyan spent time living abroad and in Albany, New York, before graduating from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. He served three years in the U.S. Army, then returned to New York to act and choreograph fight scenes for Joseph Papp’s New York Shakespeare Festival. Henry Winkler, who starred in The Fonz on Happy Days, noted on X that Sloyan was one of his sword fight instructors at drama school.
He made his Broadway debut in Arthur Kopit’s Indians in 1969. Off-Broadway, he starred in Irv Bauer’s A Dream Out of Time. His first film appearance was in The Traveling Executioner in 1970, starring Stacy Keach.
Sloyan moved to California in 1973. He appeared in The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight in 1971 and in multiple TV episodes, including The Doctors, The Streets of San Francisco, Kojak, and Delvecchio. He landed a recurring role on Westside Medical in 1977.
His work on Star Trek includes five appearances across The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager in the 1990s. He portrayed a Romulan admiral and the son of Worf, played by Michael Dorn. He also appeared as Dr. Mora, a Bajoran scientist, in Deep Space Nine and as the Haakonian scientist Ma’bor Jetrel in Voyager.
His television résumé extends beyond Star Trek. He appeared in telefilms such as The Disappearance of Aimee, starring Faye Dunaway and Bette Davis, and The Billionaires Boys Club. He also guest-starred on Wonder Woman, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Lou Grant, Falcon Crest, Knots Landing, Cagney & Lacey, Moonlighting, Murder, She Wrote, Quantum Leap, The X-Files and NYPD Blue.
His family described him as “always present, always curious, courageous, inventive and loyal,” adding he was also “brash, mouthy and very urban.” Survivors include his wife, actress Deirdre Lenihan, whom he married in 1973, and their children, Daniel, a musician, and Samantha Sloyan, an actress known for roles in The Life of Chuck and Grey’s Anatomy as Dr. Penelope Blake.
His brother, Patrick Sloyan, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, died in February 2019.
Sloyan’s voice work for Toyota’s luxury brand Lexus lasted 18 years, beginning in 1989. Over that time, his voice became familiar to millions of television viewers.
His passing leaves a record of a versatile actor whose career bridged genres and mediums. His family noted he was “very urban,” a detail that perhaps explains his ease in roles ranging from science fiction to musical fantasy.
According to Hollywood Reporter.