Dan Ziskie, the actor known for his roles in House of Cards and Treme, has died at the age of 80.
Ziskie died July 21 in New York of arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease, his family announced in an obituary published on Legacy.com.
“Dan was a man of remarkable talent and a keen observer of life,” they wrote. “He was as vibrant and multifaceted as the characters he portrayed on stage and screen.”
“His was a life lived with passion, a life that exemplified the beauty of pursuing one's dreams and the importance of cherishing every moment,” they continued. “Dan will be profoundly missed, yet he will forever remain in the hearts of those who knew him, like a cherished character in the timeless narrative of their lives.”
Ziskie portrayed vice-president Jim Matthews on six early episodes of Netflix’s mega-hit political thriller House of Cards.
Born August 13, 1944, in Detroit, Michigan, Ziskie studied English at the University of Michigan, where he pursued both his passion for the arts and athletics, competing on the college’s track and field team.
After graduating, he cycled through several careers, including serving as a crewman on a Great Lakes freighter. He eventually joined Second City’s famed improv troupe in Chicago. There, he honed his craft and deepened his love for performing.
In 1980, Ziskie made his Broadway debut as an understudy in Morning’s at Seven. He followed that with two other appearances in 1985’s I’m Not Rappaport and 2004’s After the Fall.
Meanwhile, his screen credits are far-reaching and range from House of Cards, ABC’s one-season drama Zero Hour, two episodes of Gossip Girl as Mr. Stahl, the 2015 miniseries Show Me a Hero, and six separate episodes of Law & Order.
Ziskie’s most extensive TV credit was in HBO’s four-season drama Treme, as C.J. Liguori, a New Orleans construction magnate and political fundraiser. He first joined the series in its second season, going on to star in 18 episodes across the rest of its three-season run.
He also appeared in single episodes of the legal drama The Practice, medical drama ER, crime show NCIS, the America Ferrera-led sitcom Ugly Betty, CBS’s The Good Wife, police procedural Blue Bloods, and political drama Madam Secretary.
He additionally starred in numerous films, including The Adventures in Babysitting (1987), Bad Company (2002), Last Holiday (2006), and Concussion (2015).
Beyond his acting career, Ziskie was also a gifted photographer. His first photobook, Cloud Chamber, published in 2017, featured New York street photography captured between 2013 and 2016.
Ziskie is survived by his brother David and his wife Cynthia, his nephews Jesse, Brett, and Austin, and their six children.
