BY ADAM THOMLISON

Q: Who played the original sailor in the Old Spice commercials?

A: If by “original” you mean the 1972 spot, which is now considered an advertising industry classic, the man was John Bennett Perry, Broadway star and, more notably today, father of future “Friends” star Matthew Perry.

The classic Old Spice ad featured Perry (senior) as a sailor coming into port on a ship that was supposed to suggest the old-timey sailboat that has been the Old Spice logo seemingly forever. He disembarks and starts doling out bottles of Old Spice to various, very disparate men in need — first a hippy type in what looks like San Francisco, then a farmer/cowboy type out in the country. The message is that Old Spice is for any man who wants to smell like a man.

Perry appeared as the sailor in more ads after this one, but it is still considered the best. It was listed as one of the “classic ads” by Ad Age magazine. It’s still what Perry is best remembered for, despite a long stage, film and TV career.

Well, it was until his son became so famous — now that’s what he’s best remembered for. To be fair, he doesn’t seem to mind. He even leaned into it a little, playing Matthew’s father on screen twice — once in a 2004 episode of “Scrubs” they both guested on, and once in the 1997 big-screen comedy “Fools Rush In,” in which Matthew starred.

Q: I feel like I recognized the guy who played Derek, the boyfriend Janet invented for herself in “The Good Place,” but I can’t remember why. Can you help?

A: The somewhat manic and uncomfortably forward Derek was pure Jason Mantzoukas — indeed, that’s fast becoming his trademark.

Unfortunately, for fans at least, another of his trademarks is short arcs — he appeared in just two episodes of “The Good Place” this season.

Mantzoukas brought his aggressively friendly shtick to “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” for a little longer, playing former undercover cop Adrian Pimento in eight episodes across two seasons of the hit Fox sitcom.

He also pops up now and again in the critically acclaimed Amazon series “Transparent” and the IFC talk show parody “Comedy Bang Bang.”

He’s probably still best known as Rafi in “The League,” which was more than an arc, but still not a starring gig — he appeared in 30 of the FX show’s 84 episodes.

This is just his TV work, though. He’s also done significant supporting roles in a number of big-screen comedies, including “The Dictator” (2012) and “Dirty Grandpa” (2016). Most recently, he had a significant role (third-billed, after stars Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler) in the summer comedy “The House” (2017).

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