Robert Z'Dar(1950-2015)
- Actor
- Producer
Robert Z'Dar was born Robert James Zdarsky on June 3, 1950 in Chicago,
Illinois. He caught the acting bug while attending Proviso West High
School in Hillside. He received a BFA from Arizona State University.
Prior to acting Z'Dar was a singer/keyboardist/guitar player for the
Chicago-based rock band Nova Express, which performed as an opening act
for such groups as Jefferson Airplane, The Who, and The Electric Prunes.
Other early jobs included a jingle writer for the Leo Burnett and J.
Walter Thompson ad agencies, a Chicago police officer, and even a brief
stint as a Chippendales dancer.
Big, brawny and imposing, with an
enormous face, gigantic jaw, and a massive, muscular physique, the
hulking 6'2" Z'Dar projected a strong, aggressive, and intimidating
screen presence that was ideally suited for the steady succession of
mean, nasty, and extremely scary larger-than-life villains he often
portrayed throughout a career that spanned over three decades. Z'Dar acted in his film
debut in the mid-1980's. He achieved his greatest and most enduring
cult movie fame as the vengeful, relentless, and seemingly
indestructible undead New York City police officer Matt Cordell in the
immensely entertaining "Maniac Cop" pictures. Among Z'Dar's other
memorable roles were a prison guard in the enjoyably sleazy "Hellhole,"
a crazed prostitute-murdering serial killer in "The Night Stalker"
(this part directly led to Z'Dar being cast as Matt Cordell), a vicious
criminal who savagely beats up Sylvestor Stallone in "Tango and Cash,"
the Angel of Death in "Soultaker," a smooth drug dealer in the
delightfully outrageous "The Divine Enforcer," and Linnea Quigley's
abusive husband in "The Rockville Slayer."
A popular frequent guest at
horror film conventions, Z'Dar also produced several movies
and continued to act with pleasing regularity in a slew of
features up until his death from cardiac arrest at age 64 on March 30, 2015.
Illinois. He caught the acting bug while attending Proviso West High
School in Hillside. He received a BFA from Arizona State University.
Prior to acting Z'Dar was a singer/keyboardist/guitar player for the
Chicago-based rock band Nova Express, which performed as an opening act
for such groups as Jefferson Airplane, The Who, and The Electric Prunes.
Other early jobs included a jingle writer for the Leo Burnett and J.
Walter Thompson ad agencies, a Chicago police officer, and even a brief
stint as a Chippendales dancer.
Big, brawny and imposing, with an
enormous face, gigantic jaw, and a massive, muscular physique, the
hulking 6'2" Z'Dar projected a strong, aggressive, and intimidating
screen presence that was ideally suited for the steady succession of
mean, nasty, and extremely scary larger-than-life villains he often
portrayed throughout a career that spanned over three decades. Z'Dar acted in his film
debut in the mid-1980's. He achieved his greatest and most enduring
cult movie fame as the vengeful, relentless, and seemingly
indestructible undead New York City police officer Matt Cordell in the
immensely entertaining "Maniac Cop" pictures. Among Z'Dar's other
memorable roles were a prison guard in the enjoyably sleazy "Hellhole,"
a crazed prostitute-murdering serial killer in "The Night Stalker"
(this part directly led to Z'Dar being cast as Matt Cordell), a vicious
criminal who savagely beats up Sylvestor Stallone in "Tango and Cash,"
the Angel of Death in "Soultaker," a smooth drug dealer in the
delightfully outrageous "The Divine Enforcer," and Linnea Quigley's
abusive husband in "The Rockville Slayer."
A popular frequent guest at
horror film conventions, Z'Dar also produced several movies
and continued to act with pleasing regularity in a slew of
features up until his death from cardiac arrest at age 64 on March 30, 2015.