Trivia - Gregory Harrison

Let’s set the scene: it’s the early 1980s. Shoulder pads are strong, hair is bigger, and there is one man on television causing spontaneous swooning across America—women of all ages and plenty of gay men included. That man? Gregory Harrison, a.k.a. Dr. “Gonzo” Gates on “Trapper John, M.D.”—the charming, brilliant, and dangerously good-looking doctor who made house calls straight into our hearts.

And just when you thought the man couldn’t get any more iconic… he goes and plays a male stripper in the ratings-smashing TV event “For Women Only”! Suddenly, the stethoscope wasn’t the only thing making pulses race. Add to that the now-legendary poster—yes, the one—Gregory in nothing but a g-string with a bold “Z” on it (second only to Farrah Fawcett’s poster in dorm-room dominance), and you had a full-blown pop culture phenomenon. Trust me, I know. I was one of the many who absolutely needed that poster on my bedroom wall. Research purposes, obviously.

But here’s the twist in this deliciously nostalgic tale: behind that heartthrob image was an actor with serious range and remarkable staying power. None of us could have predicted that Gregory Harrison would go on to build a five-decade career packed with wildly diverse roles across television, film, and Broadway—racking up over 500 hours of television, dozens of movies-of-the-week, and more memorable characters than most actors could dream of.

And after my recent two-part chat with him on Episodes 159 & 160 of Hollywood Obsessed, I found myself reminiscing (okay, swooning a little) and reflecting on just how extraordinary his career has been. So naturally, I did what any devoted fan would do—I put together this fun, cheeky, and fascinating collection of trivia to celebrate the man, the myth, the love doctor himself.

Get ready, because we’re about to take a revealing (and very entertaining) look back at the incredible career of everyone’s favorite 1980s heartthrob—now a distinguished, silver-fox sensation—Gregory Harrison.

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Gregory’s father was a ship's captain whose boat was used in the 1966 Doris Day film “The Glass Bottom Boat,” allowing a young Harrison to observe the set.

While working as a doorman at a nightclub, he met Jason Robards, who encouraged him to become an actor. He quit his job and moved to L.A. immediately afterward.

His first big break came in 1976, when he was cast in a guest-starring role on the CBS series “MASH”. The episode was titled “The Nurses.”

After serving for two years as a medic, he received an honorable discharge in 1971 from the Army as a non-religious conscientious objector.

He took up the guitar while he was in the Army and also started composing songs.

His first leading television role came in the short-lived series adaptation of the 1976 sci-fi film “Logan’s Run” (1977–1978). Gregory starred as Logan 5 (the title character), alongside Heather Menzies as Jessica 6 and Randy Powell as Francis 7. The series ran for just 14 episodes before being canceled due to low ratings, with the final three episodes airing only in syndication.

He is best known by the public for his starring role as Chief of Surgery Dr. George Alonzo “Gonzo” Gates on “Trapper John, M.D.” (1979).

The name of Gonzo’s RV that he lives in on “Trapper John, M.D.” is called the “Titanic.”

In preparation for their roles, both Pernell Roberts and Gregory Harrison read a medical dictionary to properly pronounce medical terms.

He credits his “Trapper John, M.D.” co-star Pernell Roberts as his favorite acting mentor and best friend.

A year into Trapper John’s success, Gregory Harrison took a wet T-shirt photo of himself with the caption “For Ladies Only,” an inscription he wrote himself, and presented it to NBC Head of Programming Brandon Tartikoff as a pitch. Tartikoff asked, “What do you want to do with this?” Harrison replied, “Produce my own TV movie.” Tartikoff said, “Done.” Most people don’t realize Harrison himself came up with the idea for the TV movie about male strippers, and he co-wrote and co-executive produced it—years before Channing Tatum would do something similar with “Magic Mike.”

Struggling actor-turned-male-stripper John Phillips (Gregory Harrison) has a main love interest in “For Ladies Only” named Sandy Green, played by President Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan’s daughter Patti Davis. She later guest-starred on “Trapper John, M.D.” as Janet Taylor in the Season 5 episode “All About Everett” (1983).

Harrison’s role as stripper John Phillips in the 1981 TV movie “For Ladies Only” made him a favorite with women and gay men in the 1980s. He later spoofed that role in the 1986 miniseries Fresno, where his character appeared shirtless at every opportunity.

The three musical compositions (“On The Street,” “I’ve Got Dreams,” and “For Ladies Only”) featured in the TV movie “For Ladies Only” were composed by Harrison.

Gregory left “Trapper John, M.D.” midway through the seventh season to pursue other opportunities.

“Razorback” (1984) was Harrison’s first major motion picture, according to the film’s original release trailer.

During the filming of the horror film “Razorback” (1984), Gregory did most of his own stunts and took a beating as a result. The worst was when he fell off a windmill, dislocated his shoulder, and finished the film on painkillers.

For the film “North Shore” (1987), Matt Adler, Gregory Harrison, and John Philbin actually did their own surfing, while professional surfers were used as stunt doubles for the more difficult maneuvers.

During the Lifetime movie “Lies of the Heart: The Story of Laurie Kellogg” (1994), Gregory has three bare-chest scenes.

Gregory Harrison is the father of Jennie Garth’s ex-husband’s (Peter Facinelli’s) fiancée, Lily Anne Harrison, who starred in the Lifetime movie “Lies of the Heart: The Story of Laurie Kellogg” (1994).

Lorimar Television cast Harrison in its CBS sitcom “The Family Man,” from producers Thomas L. Miller and Robert L. Boyett. The series, which premiered that fall, featured Harrison as a single firefighter father raising his four children with the help of his father-in-law, played by Al Molinaro. Despite several attempts by CBS to help it build an audience, “The Family Man” was canceled after one season.

The ninth and final season of the primetime soap “Falcon Crest” is the only season in which Jane Wyman does not appear in nearly every episode due to ongoing health problems. The show shifted direction by adding two new cast members—Gregory Harrison (who was under contract with CBS and Lorimar at the time, after his sitcom had been canceled the previous season) and Wendy Phillips—who replaced Susan Sullivan. Against her doctors’ orders, Jane Wyman appeared in the show’s final three episodes.

He has been married to former “CHiPs” actress and model Randi Oakes since December 1980; they met at the “Battle of the Network Stars.”

He is a passionate surfer who claims to have ridden waves on almost every continent.

He is one of the original members of the Surfrider Foundation, founded in 1984 to protect coastlines.

He enjoys collecting vintage racing and muscle cars, including a ’68 Bullitt replica.

Gregory and Olivia Newton-John co-starred in the TV movie “A Christmas Romance “(1994); they later reunited in the feature film “It’s My Party” (1996).

In actor Eric Roberts’ 2024 memoir Runaway Train, he wrote: “The most romantic role I ever played onscreen was as a gay man playing opposite Gregory Harrison in “It’s My Party,” a particularly good, if somewhat forgotten, movie that remains one of my favorites.” The film is based on the true story of a man in the final stages of AIDS who planned a farewell party for friends and family.

In 1980, Gregory formed Catalina Production Group with Franklin R. Levy. Over the next eleven years, they produced numerous stage projects and nearly two dozen television movies. Catalina Productions became an important force in the Los Angeles theater scene from 1981 to 1992, with approximately 60 plays presented and over 150 local theater awards earned.

He was awarded the 1981 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for Distinguished Performance in a Leading Role for the play “The Hasty Heart” at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles.

Gregory won a Dramalogue Award for the staged production of “Picnic” (1986). In 1990, he received the L.A. Ovation Award for Outstanding Contribution to L.A. Theater.

He played the role of slick lawyer Billy Flynn in the New York production of “Chicago” on and off between 2003 and 2006.

Harrison appeared as Benjamin Stone in the 2001 Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim’s “Follies” and starred in the 1997 original Broadway production of Kander & Ebb’s musical “Steel Pier.”

He portrayed Gregory Chase on “General Hospital” from 2020–2024, earning a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor.

He made his first appearance as Gregory Chase on “General Hospital” in 2020, succeeding James Read (who last appeared in 2018) in the role.

Harrison has recurred on Hallmark Channel’s “Chesapeake Shores” and in the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries series “Signed, Sealed, Delivered.” He has also starred in the Hallmark Channel original movies “Cloudy with a Chance of Love,” “Undercover Bridesmaid,” and “The Nine Lives of Christmas,” as well as the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries original “After All These Years.”

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Some facts in this post were sourced from IMDb and Wikipedia.

From TV heartthrob to respected actor, producer, musician, and environmental advocate, Gregory Harrison has built a career as multifaceted as it is fascinating—and somehow, he just keeps getting cooler with age.

If you’d like to hear more about Gregory’s remarkable life and career, do yourself a favor and tune in to my in-depth, nostalgia-packed conversation with him. Our two-part Hollywood Obsessed chat (Episodes 159 & 160) is a heartfelt, no-filter journey filled with humor, insight, and unforgettable behind-the-scenes Hollywood stories—straight from the man himself.

Listen Now

Episode 159 – HERE

Episode 160 – HERE