Larry
The singer and actor best known as Sgt. Andrew Carter on Hogan's Heroes.
Larry Hovis (February 20, 1936 – September 9, 2003) was an American singer and actor best known for the 1960s television sitcom Hogan's Heroes. Born in Wapato, Washington, he moved to Houston, Texas, as a small child. As a youth, he appeared on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts and attended the University of Houston. During the mid-1950s, he sang in nightclubs with groups including the Mascots, wrote songs, and signed with Capitol Records, which released one album. His biggest song was "We Could Have Lots of Fun." He was part of the Houston-based Bill Gannon Trio and appears on their 1959 Carlton album, Sweet Singing Swing.
Quick Facts
- Born
- 20 February 1936
- Birthplace
- Wapato, Washington, U.S.
- Died
- 9 September 2003
- Place of death
- Austin, Texas, U.S.
- Occupation
- Actor, singer
- Children
- 4
- Education
- University of Houston
Lore & Background
Hovis moved to New York City in 1959 and appeared in the 1960 Broadway revue From A to Z, which showcased his singing and comedy talents. He moved to California in 1963, where he performed comedy and tried to break into television. In 1964, he was discovered by Andy Griffith's manager and was hired to appear on the TV series Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., where he played "Pvt. Larry Gotschalk." He also appeared on The Andy Griffith Show. In 1965, when another actor backed out of Hogan's Heroes, Hovis was cast as "Sgt. Andrew Carter," a POW in a German prison camp who was an expert on explosives. In the pilot episode, Carter was a lieutenant, and was only going to appear in that one episode. For the series, the character became Sgt. Carter, replacing a character played by Leonid Kinskey in the pilot. Kinskey decided after the pilot that he did not want to stay with a show that had actors pretending to be Nazis. In the series, Carter was of partial Sioux ancestry. A few sources say that Hovis was partly of Yakama Indian ancestry, but no documentation supports his membership within the Yakama Nation. Later, in an episode of the comedy Alice, Hovis played an American Indian police detective who arrests a fake American Indian conman. While Hovis was a regular on Hogan's Heroes, he also did other work, including writing the screenplay for the 1966 spy-spoof Out of Sight. He also co-wrote Mitzi Gaynor's 1968 and 1969 television specials, and appeared in and wrote comedy bits for Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.
Reader's Guide
Hovis died of esophageal cancer in Austin, Texas, on September 9, 2003. He was 67 years old. His partial filmography includes: Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (1964–1965, TV series) – Larry; The Andy Griffith Show (1965, TV series, episodes "The Case of the Punch in the Nose" and "Goober Takes a Car Apart") – Gilly Walker; Hogan's Heroes (1965–1971, TV series) – Sgt. Andrew Carter; Wild in the Sky (1972) – Capt. Breen; McMillan and Wife (1972) – Mr. O’Day S2 E4; Liar's Club (1976–1979, TV game show) – producer, regular panelist; Alice (1977, TV series, episode "The Indian Taker") – Detective Fred Scott; Hello, Larry (1981, TV series); Shadow Force (1992) – Frank Bergmann; Yorick (2002) – Archbishop; Lone Star State of Mind (2002) – Doctor (final film role).
Elsewhere in Totally Spies
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