Harold Gould and Lea Shampanier Gould, Cornell University graduates and distinguished stage, television and film actors, will star as Willy and Linda Loman in Death of a Salesman, to be presented Sept. 18-20 and 25-27 in the Proscenium Theatre of the Center for Theatre Arts (CTA) at Cornell.

"Their presence will benefit and delight student actors and Ithaca audiences alike," says CTA Artistic Director David Feldshuh, who will direct the Goulds in the Arthur Miller classic.

Harold Gould has appeared in approximately 300 television shows, 20 films and over 100 stage plays. The veteran actor earned master's ('48) and doctoral degrees ('53) in theater at Cornell, where he subsequently taught speech and drama. In 1960 he decided to take a leave of absence from teaching to launch an acting career; this "leave" now has spanned almost four decades of performing success.

Gould's career achievements include numerous honors. He won an Obie Award for his work in The Increased Difficulty of Concentration by Vaclav Havel; was Emmy-nominated for the television movie Mrs. Delafield Wants To Marry, which co-starred Katharine Hepburn. His Broadway credits include Neil Simon's Fools, Jules Feiffer's Grown Ups, Tom Stoppard's Artist Descending a Staircase, and Richard Baer'sMixed Emotions.

Perhaps his best known role was that of Rhoda's father on the TV sitcom Rhoda, which starred Valerie Harper in the title role. Gould also appeared on TV's The Golden Girls as Miles, the boyfriend to Betty White's Rose. This fall, he will be seen on episodes of Touched By an Angel and The Outer Limits.

Lea Shampanier Gould met her future husband while studying at Cornell, where she earned a bachelor's degree in speech and drama ('48) and a master's degree in dramatic production ('53). Under the stage name of Lea Vernon, she has performed in television, theater and film. Her credits include screen roles in Cannonball and Dream Chaser, television stints on Love Boat and The Feather and Father Gang and dozens of stage roles, including starring in Equus and Ah, Wilderness at the Hangar Theatre in Ithaca.

Death of a Salesman will provide a special opportunity for the Goulds to return to their alma mater and showcase their talents for Cornell and Ithaca audiences.

"Salesman has resonances of King Lear - the tragedy of the older man being discarded," said Feldshuh. "And because Harold Gould recently played Lear at the Utah Shakespeare Festival, he is an excellent match for the role."

Death of a Salesman opens the Center for Theatre Arts' 1997/98 season, which also features Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart, George Bernard Shaw's You Never Can Tell, Eugene Ionesco's The Bald Soprano and The Lesson, Tom Stoppard's Arcadia and Shakespeare'sRomeo and Juliet.

For information about season subscriptions or single ticket sales, call the CTA Box Office at 607-254-2787.