I wanted to write this month about a wonderful actor whom I’m sure you will remember from the popular TV series Barney Miller. His name is Max Gail and he played Detective Stan Wojciechowicz (referred to as Wojo) and co-starred with Hal Linden and Abe Vigoda. The series was quite popular and aired from 1975-1982.
I had the pleasure of meeting him this past April as we were both appearing at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Marshfield, Missouri. I also was lucky enough to sit next to Max on the plane coming home.
I can honestly say that he is truly one of the nicest people that I have ever met.
Max garnered two Emmy nominations for best supporting actor in Barney Miller and won two daytime Emmy Awards for playing the role of Mike Corbin on the popular soap opera General Hospital in 2019 and 2021.
He also directed several episodes of Barney Miller.
His resume is endless and although Max is best known for playing Detective Wojo, he also co- starred in several other TV shows such as Streets of San Francisco, Hawaii Five-O, Matlock, Quantum Leap as well as playing the role of Jackie Robinson’s manager in the film “42.”
The list goes on and to add to that, Max also runs a production company that has featured documentaries on subjects such as Agent Orange, Native Americans and nuclear issues. He donates much of his time to many causes including Native American rights, protecting the environment and simply trying to make the world a better place to live.
I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone who exudes more warmth than he did. While sitting on the plane, Max even recited several poems that he had written.
