Ian Abercrombie was an English actor and comedian long based in the United States, best known for playing the eccentric Justin Pitt during the sixth season of Seinfeld. He also played Alfred Pennyworth on Birds of Prey, Rupert Cavanaugh in Desperate Housewives, Professor Crumbs in Wizards of Waverly Place, and Palpatine in .
Early life
Abercrombie was born on 11 September 1934 in Grays, Essex, England. He began his theatrical career during the Blitz in World War II. After his footwork years during which he earned Bronze, Silver and Gold medals in stage dancing, he performed in London, Scotland, Ireland, and the Netherlands. He moved to the United States at age 17. He made his American stage debut in 1955 in a production of Stalag 17 with Jason Robards and Jules Munshin. Many plays in summer stock, regional, and off-Broadway followed in a variety of theatrical offerings, from revues to Shakespeare. In 1957, he was drafted into the United States Army and stationed in West Germany as part of Special Services, where he directed the continental premiere of Separate Tables. In the United States, he went to California for a backers' audition, which went nowhere, but he began a long film and television career. He received awards for his work inSweet Prince with Keir Dullea; Teeth 'N'smiles; A Doll's House with Linda Purl; and The Arcata Promise, opposite Anthony Hopkins. He received acclaim for the one-man showJean Cocteau—A Mirror Image.
Career
Abercrombie was known to cult film audiences as Wiseman in the comedy horror film Army of Darkness. He guest-starred on many television series such as Seinfeld, The Nanny, Wizards of Waverly Place, Airwolf, Babylon 5, Barnaby Jones and NewsRadio. On radio, he was heard in several productions of the Hollywood Theater of the Ear. Abercrombie voiced Ambrose in Oscar-nominated Rango. He also portrayed Ganthet on , completing his work on the latest episode of the Cartoon Network show just before his death.
''Star Wars: The Clone Wars''
Abercrombie voiced Chancellor Palpatine/Darth Sidious in the 2008 film , the, and two spin-off video games. Supervising directorDave Filoni said that Abercrombie was very excited that Darth Sidious finally was going to be seen in person and not as a hologram anymore. During Celebration VI, Filoni mentioned that before his death, Abercrombie recorded for most of season five as the character, but did not finish, so actor Tim Curry was brought in to voice Palpatine. Abercrombie also voiced the character in the Clovis story arc of the Lost Missions, since it was originally a part of the season four, and later the season five, line-up. This was his final released work, shown in 2014.
