[3] Following his college graduation, Harper took a job at Arena Stage, where he performed in plays by Shakespeare, Ibsen, Miller, and Wilder.

[4]He appeared on Broadway in a revival of Once in a Lifetime (directed by Tom Moore), The Inspector General, and the original cast of Arthur Miller's The American Clock.

[6] Other film credits include Wiseguy, Final Analysis, The Insider, Deconstructing Harry, and Molly.

Harper's immersion into the character included spending a month at Tulane University Law School, carrying a novel by Southern writer Walker Percy while on the set,[8] and reading short stories by Tennessee Williams.

[10] He was later married to a Dutch woman, Sascha Noorthoorn van der Kruyff, and died in Rotterdam.