<Tr> <Th> </Th> <Td> Richard Bancroft December 7, 1950 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Awards </Th> <Td> Bronze Star Medal Joint Service Commendation Medal Army Commendation Medal (2) Purple Heart National Defense Service Medal Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal Vietnam Service Medal United Nations Korea Medal Vietnam Campaign Medal NCO Professional Development Ribbon Republic of Vietnam Medal of Honor Overseas Service Ribbon </Td> </Tr> <P> Lieutenant Templeton Arthur Peck, played by Dirk Benedict, is a fictional character and one of the four protagonists of the 1980s action - adventure television series The A-Team A recognized war hero, he is often referred to as (The) Faceman (or simply Face - Phoenix in Spanish speaking countries). Although creators Stephen J. Cannell and Frank Lupo had Benedict in mind for the role, studio executives initially insisted that the role be handled differently; Tim Dunigan played the role in the pilot episode, but after it was completed, he was thought by the same executives to look too young to be a believable Vietnam veteran, and he was, at 6'5" (198 cm) much taller than the rest of the cast, particularly the show's 5'10" (178 cm) muscleman Mr. T. He was replaced by Benedict for the rest of the show's run . Bradley Cooper portrayed the character in the 2010 film, while Benedict appeared in a post-credits cameo . </P> <P> Originally serving as an infantry Soldier (thus earning a Combat Infantryman's Badge) "Face" commissioned as an Intelligence Officer assigned to support a Special Operations Force Team where he met his soon to be fugitive counterparts . Suave, smooth - talking, and hugely successful with women, Peck serves as the team's con man and scrounger, able to get his hands on just about anything they need, using various disguises - albeit less than Hannibal - and assuming a wide variety of personas and backstories as his scams require . Effectively second - in - command behind Hannibal (although Murdock outranks him), he is the one who arranges for supplies, equipment, and sensitive information using numerous scams and hustles; several episodes also suggest that he is also responsible for arranging the team's weaponry, especially when overseas, often via highly illegal means (see season three's "Skins" for one such reference). When Hannibal is elsewhere or captured during several episodes, Face is often seen to be at the helm of the team, planning their course of action (see season two's "Bad Time on the Border", season four's "Wheel of Fortune" and season five's "Point of No Return" for examples). He is also the team member who usually organizes the fees for their services, due to his aptitude with numbers, as demonstrated in a number of episodes, and at times is shown to have the ability to count large amounts of money or value expensive items within a matter of seconds . </P>

Who played templeton peck in the a team