Robbie Rist

Robbie Rist
Performer1980
{{{credit}}}
Portrays:	Doctor Zee
Date of Birth:	April 4, 1964
Date of Death:	Missing required parameter 1=month! ,
Age:	61
Nationality:	USA
Related Media
		@ BW Media
[{{{site}}} Official Site]
IMDb profile

Robert Anthony Rist (born April 4, 1964) is an American actor, voice actor, and musician who portrayed Doctor Zee in the three-part pilot episode of Galactica 1980, "Galactica Discovers Earth," before the role was recast to actor James Patrick Stuart beginning with "The Super Scouts, Part I." The change in actors was never explained by on-screen dialogue.

Early Life and Career

Rist was born on April 4, 1964, in La Mirada, California, to German immigrant parents. He began studying music at age three. He began his acting career at a young age, making his first television appearance in 1972 on Love, American Style. In 1973, he appeared in an after-school special with Jodie Foster. Rist has cited Lon Chaney Jr. in The Wolf Man as his first major acting influence, stating that the character's melancholy deeply resonated with him from an early age. He has also expressed admiration for character actors including Roddy McDowall, John Saxon, and Kenneth Mars.

The Brady Bunch and Cousin Oliver Syndrome

In 1974, Rist joined the cast of The Brady Bunch as Cousin Oliver for the final six episodes of the series. With the regular children all growing older, his inclusion was intended to reintroduce a cute, younger child to the series. However, the idea backfired as most viewers disliked the Oliver character, and the plan became moot when ABC opted not to renew the series even before his debut. This gave rise to the television term "Cousin Oliver Syndrome," referring to the addition of a new young character in an attempt to revitalize a declining series.

The Cousin Oliver character has become a pop culture reference point, with satirical publication The Onion using the character on its cover twice for political satire—once in 1998 with the headline "Cousin Oliver To Join Last Year Of Clinton White House," and again in 2006 with "Cousin Oliver to Join Bush White House to Help Sagging Ratings."

Rist has reflected on his time on The Brady Bunch positively, crediting his parents' work ethic for helping him avoid becoming jaded despite the negative reception of the character. In a later interview, he stated that he always viewed acting jobs as "just another gig" in a positive sense, maintaining appreciation for every opportunity to work. During the production, Rist was influenced musically by co-star Susan Olsen, who introduced him to eclectic music including Dr. Demento tapes, which sparked his lifelong fascination with offbeat music.

Years later, Rist experienced a period of depression in his late twenties, grappling with the realization that his most recognizable work had occurred when he was nine years old. A pivotal moment came when a fan approached him and explained how watching Rist's episodes of The Brady Bunch had helped him through a difficult childhood, which helped Rist come to terms with his role in the show's legacy.

Other Childhood Roles

Following The Brady Bunch, Rist appeared in numerous television series throughout the 1970s. He played Glendon Farrell in Lucas Tanner starring David Hartman, "Little John" in the Saturday morning series Big John, Little John, and Martin in the short-lived Sanford and Son spin-off Grady.

During 1975-1977, Rist played David Baxter, the adopted son of Ted Baxter (played by Ted Knight) on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. He also appeared in three episodes of The Bionic Woman.

Rist appeared in a Glen A. Larson production when he guest-starred in an episode of Knight Rider.

Galactica 1980

Rist portrayed Doctor Zee in the three-part pilot episode "Galactica Discovers Earth." Expressing that being cast in Galactica 1980 was a dream come true for the young actor, Rist was already a devoted science fiction fan who read authors Ray Bradbury and Robert Heinlein, as well as Starlog magazine itself. He had been a regular viewer of the original Battlestar Galactica series, and recalled watching it and thinking it would be great to be on the show.

Developing Doctor Zee

Rist worked closely with producer Glen A. Larson and director Sidney Hayers to develop Doctor Zee's distinctive characterization. He contributed several physical mannerisms to the character, including crossing his legs whenever sitting and pressing his fingers together in a pyramid formation when thinking. The actor noted that developing these physical aspects required work, stating it was difficult but that no job is impossible.

The production design emphasized Zee's otherworldly nature through distinctive costuming and lighting. Rist wore an all-white outfit with white shoes and specially-made ocean-blue contact lenses designed to make him look not quite human. The character was also lit with a surrealistic glow or aura to enhance his cerebral, advanced nature, which Rist described as sitting on an atomic high chair.

Rist described Doctor Zee as having a mind a thousand years ahead of his time and being above emotion, explaining that the character's advanced intellect made emotional displays unnecessary when focused on matters such as the lives of 2,000 people. He emphasized that Doctor Zee served as the fleet genius who tells everyone what to do and even knows what people are going to say before they say it.

Character Interpretation

Rist saw parallels between Doctor Zee and Star Trek's Mr. Spock, particularly in their shared lack of emotional expression, though he noted concern about whether such a character would work for a 15-year-old as opposed to an adult like Leonard Nimoy's portrayal. He viewed Doctor Zee as a dual character who could appeal to both parents and to children who could fantasize about being able to order adults around.

Rist's intellectual superiority in the role extended to the character's inventions, which he described as things that make ships disappear.

Working with the Cast

Rist expressed enthusiasm for working with the cast of Galactica 1980, emphasizing the ensemble nature of the production by stating that the show's success could not be attributed to any one person, but rather "We're a unit." He noted the show's strategic demographic appeal, with Lorne Greene appealing to the older crowd, Kent McCord, Barry Van Dyke, and Robyn Douglass targeting the 18-28 age range, while he himself was positioned for younger audiences.

Rist was particularly effusive in his praise of Lorne Greene, describing him as being like a computer and a non-stop flow of information about everything. He recounted that Greene was a mathematics wiz and they had fun trying to outsmart each other every day, though Greene would stump him every time. Rist called meeting Lorne Greene "a gigantic thrill" and noted that Greene taught people techniques for smiling.

Of his other co-stars, Rist praised Barry Van Dyke as "a crack-up" who was "hilarious," noting "I have a ball with those guys." He commented that Robyn Douglass would "bring in a lot of people—male-wise," acknowledging her appeal to male viewers.

Personal Interests During Production

At the time of the interview, conducted during or shortly after the filming of the pilot, Rist discussed his interests beyond acting. He was multi-talented, playing guitar, bass, drums, and keyboards. He expressed interests in writing science fiction scripts, mentioning he was working on a script titled Invasion of the Gendelliacs with 300 special effects. Rist also expressed aspirations to become a director, makeup artist, stunt performer, paleontologist, and marine biologist.

Voice Acting Career

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Rist transitioned into voice acting as an adult, achieving significant recognition as the voice of Michelangelo in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film series. He voiced the character in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991), and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993). He later reprised the role of Michelangelo in a fan-made movie about Casey Jones in 2011, and voiced the reincarnation of Mondo Gecko in the 2012 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series.

Kidd Video

From 1984 to 1986, Rist starred in the Saturday morning cartoon Kidd Video, playing the character Whiz in both live-action music videos and animated sequences. Rist later described the experience as incorporating everything he had worked on up to that point, including acting, singing, and pretending to be a rock star.

Other Voice Work

Rist's extensive voice acting career includes numerous notable roles. He voiced Star, a Siberian Husky, in the 1995 Universal Studios animated film Balto, which to date is his first and only role in a full-length animated theatrical film.

He voiced Stuffy, Doc's overly proud stuffed dragon, in Disney Junior's animated series Doc McStuffins. Other voice roles include Choji Akimichi in Naruto, Maroda in Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy X-2, and characters in Batman: The Animated Series. An episode of Batman: The Animated Series titled "Baby Doll" contained a character called Cousin Spunky that was intended to boost sagging ratings of the fictional Baby Doll sitcom, a clear reference to Cousin Oliver, though Rist lent his voice to the episode but did not play Cousin Spunky.

In 2009, he voiced Griffin in Terminator Salvation, and in 2014, he appeared as the voice of an alien in the James Rolfe film Angry Video Game Nerd: The Movie.

Music Career

Rist is also a musician and producer who sings and plays guitar, bass guitar, and drums. He also plays piano and mandolin. He has worked with many Los Angeles rock bands, including Wonderboy, The Andersons, Cockeyed Ghost, Nice Guy Eddie, Steve Barton and the Oblivion Click, and KingsizeMaybe. He began writing his own music around age 13 and started playing in clubs around age 16.

Rist's musical style has been described as gravitating toward melodic, hook-driven music influenced by the AM radio of the 1960s and 1970s. As a teenager, he attended concerts by The Beach Boys, Barry Manilow, KISS, Cheap Trick, and The Knack, with The Knack's performance at The Troubadour being particularly influential on his desire to pursue music.

He has produced albums for numerous bands, including Suzy & Los Quattro, Backline, Ginger Britt and the Mighty, Jeff Caudill, Steve Barton and the Oblivion Click, Nice Guy Eddie, KingsizeMaybe, and The Mockers. He produced the album Automatic Toaster for The Rubinoos and played drums on that album.

Collaborations

Rist collaborated with singer-songwriter Paul Pope on an album titled Here, which they recorded together after meeting through drummer Jack White. Rist and Pope played together for three to four years and operated a recording studio together.

Rist also played in the band Your Favorite Trainwreck with Jeff Caudill and Michael "Popeye" Vogelsang. The band released a self-titled album in 2012. Rist has also performed with the band The Wrong Dots.

Sharknado Franchise

In 2013, Rist portrayed Robbie the Bus Driver in the cult horror film Sharknado. When director Anthony C. Ferrante was approached to direct the film after seeing its poster at the American Film Market, Rist insisted that Ferrante take the job and demanded a part in it if he did. Sharknado marked his first red carpet premiere.

Rist and Ferrante provided music for the Sharknado film, initially writing about six songs for the first film. For the sequel Sharknado 2: The Second One, Rist and Ferrante provided music as the band Quint, and performed the franchise's theme song "(The Ballad of) Sharknado", which had originally appeared in the first film. Quint was named after the character in Jaws and served as their band's name for future work on the franchise, including the song "Crash" in Sharknado 3.

Personal Life

Rist has been married to Ali Riseling since 2019. He was ranked number 76 on VH1's 100 Greatest Kid Stars in 2005.

References