Ryan Cutrona

American character actor Ryan Cutrona is best known for playing gruff authority figures and military men in both dramatic and comedic roles. The son of a general, he was a native of West Point and spent much of his early life in a military setting. His first military parts came on the TV dramas "Hunter" and "DEA" in 1990. He was Captain Margolis in the "Top Gun" parody "Hot Shots!" and played a detective in the Sharon Stone thriller "Sliver." He had larger supporting roles in the 1996 action film "The Glimmer Man" and the 1999 thriller "Deterrence," while continuing to make frequent guest appearances in all genres of TV shows. He showed up in sitcoms like "Becker" and in crime dramas like "Brooklyn South." He had one of his most notable recurring roles on the political drama "The West Wing" as the CIA director from 2000 until 2005 and in 2007 began two other significant TV roles. He was Admiral John Smith on the thriller "24" and played Betty's ailing father on the '60s-era hit "Mad Men."