VHS Era Stars
Performers who have lots of rare or hard to find films still only available on VHS tape.
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Multiple Emmy- and Golden Globe-winner Martin Sheen is one of America's most celebrated, colorful, and accomplished actors. Moving flawlessly between artistic mediums, Sheen's acting range is striking.
Sheen was born Ramón Antonio Gerard Estevez in Dayton, Ohio, to Mary-Ann (Phelan), an Irish immigrant (from Borrisokane, County Tipperary), and Francisco Estevez, a Spanish-born factory worker and machinery inspector (from Parderrubias, Galicia). On the big screen, Sheen has appeared in more than 65 feature films including a star turn as Army Captain Benjamin L. Willard in Francis Ford Coppola's landmark film Apocalypse Now (1979), which brought Sheen worldwide recognition. The film also starred Marlon Brando, Dennis Hopper and Robert Duvall. Other notable credits include Wall Street (1987) (with son Charlie Sheen and Michael Douglas), Academy Award-winning film Gandhi (1982) (with Sir Ben Kingsley), Catch Me If You Can (2002) (with Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks), The American President (1995) (with Michael Douglas and Annette Bening) and a Golden Globe nominated breakthrough performance as Timmy Cleary in The Subject Was Roses (1968), a role he originated on Broadway and for which he received a Tony Award nomination as Best Featured Actor.
In 2006, the actor played ill-fated cop Oliver Queenan in Martin Scorsese's Academy Award-winning film The Departed (2006) opposite Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg and Alec Baldwin.
The same year, Sheen joined another all-star ensemble cast for the highly acclaimed feature Bobby (2006), written and directed by his son, Emilio Estevez. Bobby was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a SAG Award; and starred Anthony Hopkins, Harry Belafonte, Laurence Fishburne, Sharon Stone, William H. Macy, Elijah Wood, Demi Moore and Heather Graham.
For television audiences, Sheen is best recognized for his six-time Emmy nominated performance as President Josiah Bartlet in The West Wing (1999). Sheen won six of his eight Golden Globe nominations as well as an ALMA Award; and two individual SAG Awards; for the White House series. He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor TV Series Drama in 2001.
Of his ten Primetime Emmy nominations, Sheen won for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series on the long-running sitcom Murphy Brown (1988) (starring Candice Bergen) in 1994. In addition, he has garnered a Daytime Emmy Award for directing and another for performance.
In 2006, Sheen was again nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series; this time for the CBS hit comedy Two and a Half Men (2003), starring his son Charlie Sheen.
In addition to series television, Sheen has appeared in several important made-for-television movies and mini-series including playing President John F. Kennedy in the television mini-series Kennedy (1983) for which he received a Golden Globe nomination.- Actor
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Bryan Brown was born on 23 June 1947 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He is an actor and producer, known for Cocktail (1988), Breaker Morant (1980) and Two Hands (1999). He has been married to Rachel Ward since 16 April 1983. They have three children.- Michael Nouri was born on 9 December 1945 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. He is an actor, known for The Watcher (2022), Yellowstone (2018) and Devils (2020). He was previously married to Vicki Light and Lynn Goldsmith.
- Actor
- Producer
- Director
After an eye-catching performance in the teen coming-of-age epic The Outsiders (1983), ex-child rodeo star C. Thomas Howell was a promising young actor in the mid-1980s.
Christopher Thomas Howell was born in Los Angeles to Candice (Webb) and Chris Howell (a professional bull rider turned stuntman). He started working in the film industry at the age of seven. In 1981, he was cast as Tyler in Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982). Shortly thereafter, he nabbed the lead in Francis Ford Coppola's classic The Outsiders (1983). Earmarked as an up-and-coming actor, his career soon skyrocketed with roles in films including the comedy Grandview, U.S.A. (1984), alongside Jamie Lee Curtis, and the violent Cold War invasion drama Red Dawn (1984). His career was not helped by the controversial racial comedy Soul Man (1986), which was not well-received. However, he did meet and fall in love with his co-star from that movie, Rae Dawn Chong, whom he later married. He has notched up in excess of 90 feature film appearances. including starring roles in Side Out (1990), Gettysburg (1993), Baby Face Nelson (1996), Fatal Affair (1998), Asylum Days (2001) and Hoboken Hollow (2006).
He played unpredictable Officer Bill "Dewey" Dudek in the TNT drama series Southland (2009) and as the sadistic serial killer "The Reaper" on CBS's Criminal Minds (2005). More recent television appearances include The Glades (2010) (A&E) and Torchwood (2006) (Starz Channel). He appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) (Sony). A budding film director, he has directed a number of films, including The Big Fall (1997), Pure Danger (1996), The Land That Time Forgot (2009), and The Day the Earth Stopped (2008).
Outside his acting career, Howell was an accomplished team roper and later, as 'Tommy Howell', a singer-songwriter.- Actor
- Producer
Andrew Daniel Divoff is a Venezuela-born Russian actor and stuntman, best known for playing the evil Djinn in the first two Wishmaster films and the villains Cherry Ganz in Another 48 Hrs., Ernesto Mendoza in A Low Down Dirty Shame, Boris Bazylev in Air Force One, Ivan Sarnoff in CSI: Miami and Mikhail Bakunin in Lost.
He was born on July 2, 1955 in San Tomé, Venezuela. His father is Russian and his mother, who was born in Venezuela, is of Irish descent. He lived in Vilassar de Mar (in Spain) from 1973-77. He lives in the United States. Divoff can speak eight languages: English, Spanish, Italian, French, German, Catalan, Portuguese, and Russian. He used to speak Romanian but forgot the language when he had no one with whom to speak it. He also acted in The Hunt for Red October, Air Force One and Toy Soldiers.
Divoff has played many villains in film and on television, usually drug cartel leaders, and is best known for having played the nefarious Djinn in the first two films of the Wishmaster series. His other films include Another 48 Hrs., The Hunt for Red October, A Low Down Dirty Shame, Air Force One and Toy Soldiers. Divoff played the lead role in the Midnight Syndicate's Indie horror flick The Dead Matter. His television guest appearances include The A-Team, JAG and Highlander: The Series. He had a recurring role on Lost as Mikhail Bakunin.
He appeared in "The Cost of Living", and later in "Enter 77" and "Par Avion". He later appeared, in flashbacks, in "One of Us," and reappeared in the episodes "D.O.C.", "The Man Behind the Curtain", "Through the Looking Glass" and "The Package". Divoff's latest work was a recurring role as Ivan Sarnoff on CSI: Miami Season 7 (2008-09). He also appeared in Air Force One.
Divoff is an alumnus of Georgetown University, where he honed his skills in the study of languages, the result seeing him speak eight languages fluently. Andrew is a SAG actor and film producer with more than a hundred movies and television appearances to his credit. He has a driving passion for environmental issues, and has used his celebrity status, putting purpose ahead of profit, for several environmental causes. Andrew is a founder of Verdant Resource, Inc., a flexible purpose corporation dedicated to location, retrieval and provision of resources found throughout planet Earth, and promoting their use in a sustainable way of life employing verdant methods. He is also a partner in a private water utility, Alpine Village Water Company, LLC in Pinyon, California. Divoff was married to Russian actress Raissa Danilova in 1992 but they divorced in 1998. Divoff resides in Los Angeles.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Louis Diamond Phillips is an American actor and film director. His breakthrough came when he starred as Ritchie Valens in the biographical drama film La Bamba (1987). For Stand and Deliver (1988), Phillips was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and won an Independent Spirit Award. Phillips made his Broadway debut with the 1996 revival of The King and I, earning a Tony Award nomination for his portrayal of King Mongkut of Siam. Phillips' other notable films include Young Guns (1988), Young Guns II (1990), Courage Under Fire (1996), The Big Hit (1998), Brokedown Palace (1999), Che (2008), and The 33 (2015). In the television series Longmire, he played a main character named Henry Standing Bear. He played New York City Police Lieutenant Gil Arroyo on Prodigal Son on FOX from 2019 to 2021.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Lean, angular-faced and authoritatively spoken lead / supporting actor Roy Scheider obviously never heard the old actor's axiom about "never appearing with kids or animals" lest they overshadow your performance. Breaking that rule did him no harm, though, as he achieved pop cult status by finding, fighting and blowing up a 25-foot-long Great White shark (nicknamed "Bruce") in the mega-hit Jaws (1975) and then electrocuting an even bigger Great White in the vastly inferior Jaws 2 (1978).
Athletic Scheider was born in November 1932 in Orange, New Jersey, to Anna (Crosson) and Roy Bernhard Scheider, a mechanic. He was of German and Irish descent. A keen sportsman from a young age, he competed in baseball and boxing (his awkwardly mended broken nose is a result of his foray into Golden Gloves competitions). While at college, his pursuits turned from sports to theater and he studied drama at Rutgers and Franklin and Marshall. After a stint in the military, Scheider appeared with the New York Shakespeare Festival and won an "Obie Award" for his appearance in the play "Stephen D."
His film career commenced with the campy Z-grade horror cheesefest The Curse of the Living Corpse (1964), and he then showed up in Star! (1968), Paper Lion (1968), Stiletto (1969) and Puzzle of a Downfall Child (1970). In 1971 he really came to the attention of film audiences with his role in the Jane Fonda thriller Klute (1971) and then as Det. Buddy Russo (scoring his first Oscar nomination) alongside fiery Gene Hackman in the crime drama The French Connection (1971). His performance as a tough street cop in that film led him into another tough cop role as NYC Det. Buddy Manucci in the underappreciated The Seven-Ups (1973), which features one of the best car chase sequences ever put on film.
In the early 1970s the Peter Benchley novel "Jaws" was a phenomenal best-seller, and young director Steven Spielberg was chosen by Universal Pictures to direct the film adaptation, Jaws (1975), in which Scheider played police chief Brody and shared lead billing with Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss in the tale of a New England seaside community terrorized by a hungry Great White shark. "Jaws" was a blockbuster, and for many years held the record as the highest-grossing film of all time. Scheider then turned up as the shady CIA agent brother of Dustin Hoffman in the unnerving Marathon Man (1976) and in the misfired William Friedkin-directed remake of The Wages of Fear (1953) titled Sorcerer (1977), before again returning to Amity to battle another giant shark in Jaws 2 (1978). Seeking a change from tough cops and hungry sharks, he took the role of womanizing, drug-popping choreographer Joe Gideon, the lead character of the semi-autobiographical portrayal of director Bob Fosse in the sparkling All That Jazz (1979). It was another big hit for Scheider (and another Oscar nomination), with the film featuring a stunning opening sequence to the tune of the funky George Benson number "On Broadway", and breathtaking dance routines including the "Airotica" performance by the glamorous Sandahl Bergman.
Returning to another law enforcement role, Scheider played a rebellious helicopter pilot in the John Badham conspiracy / action film Blue Thunder (1983), a scientist in the sequel to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) simply titled 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984), a cheating husband who turns the tables on his blackmailers in 52 Pick-Up (1986), a cold-blooded hit man in Cohen and Tate (1988) and a CIA operative in the muddled and slow-moving The Russia House (1990). The versatile Scheider was then cast as the captain of a futuristic submarine in the relatively popular TV series SeaQuest 2032 (1993), which ran for three seasons.
Inexplicably, however, Scheider had seemingly, and slowly, dropped out of favor with mainstream film audiences, and while he continued to remain busy, predominantly in supporting roles (generally as US presidents or military officers), most of the vehicles he appeared in were B-grade political thrillers such as The Peacekeeper (1997), Executive Target (1997), Chain of Command (2000) and Red Serpent (2003).- Actor
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As one of Hollywood's leading men, Bruce Boxleitner has starred in a major motion picture franchise, numerous feature films, and several popular television series, produced a major network film and TV series, performed on Broadway, and authored two science fiction novels.
Boxleitner received his formal acting training on stage. A native mid-westerner, he is an alumnus of Chicago's prestigious Goodman Theatre. In 1972, he starred in the Broadway production of Status Quo Vadis with Ted Danson. He then relocated to Los Angeles and quickly landed a guest spot on the legendary TV series The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970) as well as numerous guest roles on series, including Hawaii Five-O (1968), Baretta (1975), Police Woman (1974), and Gunsmoke (1955).
Boxleitner's big break occurred when he was cast opposite James Arness in the pilot for the epic TV series How the West Was Won (1976). He went on to star in the CBS series Bring 'Em Back Alive (1982); mini-series East of Eden (1981); and TV movie The Last Convertible (1979).
In 1982, Boxleitner was cast as the title role in Disney's cult film Tron (1982) which garnered him science fiction fans worldwide. However, it was in Boxleitner's four-year run for CBS's Scarecrow and Mrs. King (1983), starring opposite Kate Jackson, which endeared him to fans everywhere and made him a household name. In 1994, Boxleitner joined the cast of the popular TV series Babylon 5 (1993) as John Sheridan, President of the Interstellar Alliance, a war hero-turned-diplomat at the helm of Earth Alliance Space Station in the year 2259. The show aired for five seasons.
Boxleitner most recently starred with Jeff Bridges in Tron: Legacy (2010), the popular motion picture sequel to TRON. The cast includes Garrett Hedlund and Olivia Wilde. In addition, Boxleitner reprised his role in Tron: Uprising (2012) on Disney's XD TV network, his first animated TV series. The multi-talented cast includes Elijah Wood, Mandy Moore, Lance Henriksen, and Paul Reubens. The original TRON recently celebrated its 30th anniversary.
Several motion pictures include Gods and Generals (2003) with Robert Duvall, Jeff Daniels, Stephen Lang and Mira Sorvino; The Babe (1992) with John Goodman and Kelly McGillis; Kuffs (1992) with Christian Slater; and The Baltimore Bullet (1980) with James Coburn.
Numerous TV movie credits include The Secret (1992) with Kirk Douglas; Perfect Family (1992) with Jennifer O'Neill and Joanna Cassidy; Double Jeopardy (1992) with Rachel Ward, Sally Kirkland and Sela Ward; Passion Flower (1986) with Barbara Hershey and Nicol Williamson; and Hallmark Channel movies, Love's Everlasting Courage (2011) and Falling in Love with the Girl Next Door (2006); among many others. The veteran actor has appeared in numerous recurring roles on TV series including GCB (2012) and Heroes (2006), and has guest-starred on NCIS (2003) and Chuck (2007), among others.
A skilled horseman, Boxleitner utilized his talents in numerous western TV series and films including The Gambler television movie series that aired on CBS and NBC, starring opposite Kenny Rogers; Gunsmoke: One Man's Justice (1994) with James Arness (Arness' final film); CBS' remake of Red River with Gregory Harrison, James Arness and Laura Johnson; Wyatt Earp: Return to Tombstone (1994) with Hugh O'Brian; and Louis L'Amour's Down the Long Hills (1986), based on legendary western author Louis L'Amour's novel of the same name.
Boxleitner was inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City in April 2012 honoring him for his illustrious career in western films. He is a two-time recipient of the Wrangler Award.
In 2013, Boxleitner co-starred with Andie MacDowell and Dylan Neal in Hallmark Channel's first-ever prime-time series, Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove (2013) to rave reviews and an average of 2 million viewers. The #1 rated cable program was renewed for a third season and is scheduled to premiere in the summer of 2015.
In 1999, Boxleitner authored "Frontier Earth" and in 2001, its sequel "Frontier Earth: Searcher", published by The Berkley Publishing Group. Boxleitner resides in Los Angeles with his wife, publicist Verena King, and has three sons: Sam, Lee and Michael.- Actor
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Jeff Fahey was born in Olean, New York, one of 13 children of Jane (Gallagher) and Francis Thomas Fahey, who worked in a clothing store. He is of Irish descent. His family moved to Buffalo when he was 10, where he attended Father Baker's High School. After graduation in 1972 he traveled around the world doing odd jobs. He was a crewman on a fishing boat, drove an ambulance in Germany, lived in a kibbutz in Israel and spent some time in India. He then returned to Buffalo and joined the Studio Arena Theatre. From there he went to New York City, where he studied with Myra Rastova, began doing off-Broadway theater and television soap operas. He started a production company and produced off-Broadway shows out of the Raft Theatre on Theatre Row. He first gained attention as a motion picture actor in Lawrence Kasdan's Silverado (1985), in which he played Brian Dennehy's deputy Tyree, a cold-blooded killer with a thirst for vengeance. He starred in the acclaimed live television play The Execution of Raymond Graham (1985) and the TNT mini-series "44 Days". He starred for over two years in the daytime serial One Life to Live (1968). He appeared in the Broadway revival of "Brigadoon," toured with "Oklahoma," performed in Paris in "West Side Story" and in London in "Orphans" with Albert Finney.- Actor
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Perhaps best known for his chilling performance as "Candyman", the charismatic 6' 5" actor Tony Todd has consistently turned in compelling performances since his debut in the fantasy film Sleepwalk (1986). Born in Washington, D.C., Todd spent two years on a scholarship at the University of Connecticut, which, in turn, led to a scholarship from the renowned Eugene O'Neill National Theatre Institute. It proved to be the foundation for intense stints at the Hartman Conservatory in Stamford, Connecticut and the Trinity Square Repertory Theatre Conservatory in Providence, Rhode Island. Todd appeared in dozens of classical and many experimental plays, yet still managed to find time to teach playwriting to high school students in the Hartford public school system.
Todd's extensive credits exemplify his versatility. They include such film classics as The Rock (1996), The Crow (1994), Lean on Me (1989), Bird (1988), Night of the Living Dead (1990), Final Destination (2000), the multiple Academy Award winning Oliver Stone film Platoon (1986) and The Secret (2000), which was nominated and screened at the Cannes Film Festival. Todd's recent films include the independent film Silence (2002) and Final Destination 2 (2003). He has had prominent guest starring roles in numerous critically-acclaimed television series, including recurring on Boston Public (2000), For the People (2002) and The District (2000), as well as NYPD Blue (1993), Smallville (2001), Law & Order (1990), Crossing Jordan (2001), Homicide: Life on the Street (1993) and The X-Files (1993). Todd recurred on three incarnations of "Star Trek" and guest starred on Xena: Warrior Princess (1995) and episodes of CSI: Miami (2002) and Andromeda (2000). His television movies include starring roles in True Women (1997), Black Fox (1995), Butter (1998), Ivory Hunters (1990), Babylon 5: A Call to Arms (1999) and Control Factor (2003).
Todd's considerable theatre credits include the world premiere of award-winning playwright August Wilson's "King Hedley II", where he originated the title role in Pittsburgh, Seattle and Boston. Variety commented: "Todd's King Hedley dominates the stage. A sour-faced mix of rage and resolve, anger and vulnerability. Todd's Hedley was a memorable tour-de-force even on opening." He also received a coveted Helen Hayes nomination for his performance in Athol Fugard's "The Captain's Tiger at La Jolla, the Manhattan Theatre Club and the Kennedy Center. Other theatre credits include "Les Blancs", "Playboy of the West Indies", "Othello", "Zooman and the Sign", award-winning playwright Keith Glover's "Dark Paradise", "Aida" (on Broadway), and most recently, "Levee James" for the prestigious Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference and The New Dramatist Guild.- Actor
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An intense, versatile actor as adept at playing clean-cut FBI agents as he is psychotic motorcycle-gang leaders, who can go from portraying soulless, murderous vampires to burned-out, world-weary homicide detectives, Lance Henriksen has starred in a variety of films that have allowed him to stretch his talents just about as far as an actor could possibly hope. He played "Awful Knoffel" in the TNT original movie Evel Knievel (2004), directed by John Badham and executive produced by Mel Gibson. Henriksen portrayed "Awful Knoffel" in this project based on the life of the famed daredevil, played by George Eads. Henriksen starred for three seasons (1996-1999) on Millennium (1996), Fox-TV's critically acclaimed series created by Chris Carter (The X-Files (1993)). His performance as Frank Black, a retired FBI agent who has the ability to get inside the minds of killers, landed him three consecutive Golden Globe nominations for "Best Performance by a Lead Actor in a Drama Series" and a People's Choice Award nomination for "Favorite New TV Male Star".
Henriksen was born in New York City. His mother, Margueritte, was a waitress, dance instructor, and model. His father, James Marin Henriksen, who was from Tønsberg, Norway, was a boxer and merchant sailor. Henriksen studied at the Actors Studio and began his career off-Broadway in Eugene O'Neill's "Three Plays of the Sea." One of his first film appearances was as an FBI agent in Sidney Lumet's Dog Day Afternoon (1975), followed by parts in Lumet's Network (1976) and Prince of the City (1981). He then appeared in Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) with Richard Dreyfuss and François Truffaut, Damien: Omen II (1978) and in Philip Kaufman's The Right Stuff (1983), in which he played Mercury astronaut Capt. Wally Schirra.
James Cameron cast Henriksen in his first directorial effort, Piranha II: The Spawning (1982), then used him again in The Terminator (1984) and as the android Bishop in the sci-fi classic Aliens (1986). Sam Raimi cast Henriksen as an outrageously garbed gunfighter in his quirky western The Quick and the Dead (1995). Henriksen has also appeared in what has developed into a cult classic: Kathryn Bigelow's Near Dark (1987), in which he plays the head of a clan of murderous redneck vampires. He was nominated for a Golden Satellite Award for his portrayal of Abraham Lincoln in the TNT original film The Day Lincoln Was Shot (1998).
In addition to his abilities as an actor, Henriksen is an accomplished painter and potter. His talent as a ceramist has enabled him to create some of the most unusual ceramic artworks available on the art market today. He resides in Southern California with his wife Jane and their five-year-old daughter Sage.- Actor
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Olivier Gruner was born on August 2, 1960 in Paris. His father was a successful surgeon with his own surgery practice. One of his brothers also became a surgeon and his younger brother became an engineer. When he was 18 years old, he joined the Marine Nationale, volunteering for their Commando Marine unit, which are the Special Operation Forces of the French Navy. As part of his military training, he learned to scuba dive, sky dive and climb. Most of this time he was in Djibouti and Somalia. At this time he already trained karate. When he left the Marine Nationale in 1981, he went to the French Alps and started to train kick-boxing. He choose this place because he could ski, one of his biggest hobbies. After three years of hard training, he became for the first time French Kickboxing Champion. He defended the title two times and in 1986 he became the World Middleweight Kickboxing Champion. He had a job at the film festival in Cannes, where he put up a poster of himself. Two days later, a man came and invited him for test shoots to Los Angeles, which lead to his first film Angel Town (1990). He retired from kickboxing in 1987 to pursue a career as an actor. model and director. Some more, mainly martial arts, movies followed.- Actor
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The whole Turturro clan and their extended family seem to have gotten into the show biz act at one time or another. The youngest of three boys, including famous older brother (by five years) John Turturro, Nicholas Turturro was born on January 29, 1962, in Queens, New York, and grew up in its Rosedale section. He is the son of Italian-American parents, Katherine (Incerella), a jazz singer, and Nicholas Turturro, a construction worker and carpenter, who was born in Giovinazzo.
After attending various Catholic schools, he graduated and majored in theater at Adelphi University for two years, but left to marry Jami Biunno and help raise their child, Erica. The couple later divorced. While working as a doorman at the St. Moritz Hotel in New York City, Nick managed to find a job as both an extra and voice-over artist in Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing (1989) after brother John introduced Nick to Spike. Spike took an immediate interest in the rough-edged Nick and wrote a featured role for him in his next film Mo' Better Blues (1990) in which John and Nick played repugnant Jewish brothers and co-owners of a club. Both the brothers went on to appear together again in Lee's Jungle Fever (1991) and Nick also appeared in Lee's Malcolm X (1992).
Nick branched out on his own after this and earned parts in the movies Federal Hill (1994) and Excess Baggage (1997), and garnered serious TV attention as rookie detective "James Martinez" on NYPD Blue (1993) earning a couple of Emmy nominations in the process. His character was originally created as a foil to David Caruso star character, but he lost momentum after Caruso's early departure from the show. Still, he managed to hang around for seven seasons.
Very dark in tone and complexion, the compact-framed Nick certainly has had a wealth of experience in mob drama, playing a young Al Capone in one guest appearance, and assorted mobster types in other TV-movies. Plenty of guest-starring roles have also come his way with episodes of Law & Order (1990), L.A. Law (1986) and The Twilight Zone (1985) and a recurring role on Third Watch (1999). He has lightened up on a rare occasion in such comedies as The Drew Carey Show (1995) and in a couple of failed pilots.
Into the millennium, Nicholas continues to work steadily including the comedies The Shipment (2001) and The Biz (2002); played the title role of Angelo Buono in the crime drama The Hillside Strangler (2004) and then turned around to play a good guy officer in First Sunday (2008); appeared in the sports comedy remake of The Longest Yard (2005) starring Adam Sandler; starred as the title TV producer nobody recalls in Remembering Phil (2008); co-starred in the gangster movie Street Boss (2009); as well as the low level comedy The Deported (2009); supported comic actor Kevin James in both Zookeeper (2011) and Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 (2015); appeared as part of the kidnapped ensemble in the crime comedy The Wretched (2020); had parts in a couple of biographical dramas including A Chance in the World (2017) and the Oscar-winning BlacKkKlansman (2018); as well as the action thrillers Las Vegas Vietnam: The Movie (2019) and Shooting Heroin (2020).
On stage, Nick has appeared in "Wild Goose", "The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui" (with John) "Lusting After Popino's Wife" and "Siddown: Conversations With the Mob". Nick's never strayed too far from the family fold. He's appeared in a number of John's projects over the years that have also occasionally featured cousin Aida Turturro (from The Sopranos (1999) fame). His mother has also appeared in a few films, as has John's wife and sons. Nick remarried a number of years ago.- Actress
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Maria Ford is an established USA film actress as well as accomplished dancer. She is an international dance star of belly dance, Latin dance, jazz dance and burlesque dance performance. She is also a working model standing at 5'9" tall, weighing 120 lbs. A prolific actress that has starred in many films.... she is best known for having a cult following of dedicated fans of her many erotic thriller, vampire and martial arts genre films. A long list of her films can be found on the IMDB. She is a black belt in martial arts and a combat weapons expert. She is based out of Los Angeles, CA, USA.- Actor
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Joe Estevez' first time on the stage was as a 6-year-old playing the "Evil Innkeeper" in a Christmas Nativity play, and as an actor he has never looked back. Born the last of 10 children to an Irish-immigrant mother and a Spanish-immigrant father, Joe was raised in Dayton Ohio to be a factory worker but he had other plans, and 230-some films later, Joe feels that his decision was the right one.
For most actors the road is never easy, but through perseverance, faith, and talent, Joe has become an accomplished actor, and in Hollywood today he is one of the busiest actors for one reason: He is one of the best at what he does. Joe can be seen weekly on the TV series "Hollywood Joe" and as the host of the critically-acclaimed Faith Film Festival in NYC. If you want to read about Joe, pick up a copy of his book, "Wiping Off the Sheen."- Actor
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The son of writer/producer/actor Dwight Hauser, who worked on (amongst many other projects) the classic "Whistler" radio series, and Geraldine Hauser (the daughter of author Tom Thieness), he raised a child as a single father, having arrived in Hollywood "with thirty dollars and a box of pampers" - and actually earned his career accomplishments with hard work and dedication. He is the father of actor Cole Hauser.
Wings Hauser married his young music and filmmaking partner, actress/filmmaker Cali Lili on June 12, 2012. Having often been compared to Richard Widmark for some of his "mean" roles, he has played a variety of equally remarkable roles in films and on TV. After a high-school career centered in sports (his name "Wings" is taken from the wing-back position he played in football), he chose to lean toward the arts - acting and music (including an album of his original music for RCA) - instead of pursuing professional sports. Having descended from an artistic and talented family, this choice was a heartfelt one.- Actor
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Actor Sam J. Jones was born in Chicago, Illinois but grew up in Sacramento, California. He was educated at Mira Loma High School in Sacramento and went on to serve as a United States Marine. Jones made his screen debut in Blake Edwards' comedy film 10 (1979). In 1980, he was cast in the iconic role of Flash Gordon in the cult classic of the same name, Flash Gordon (1980). A solid acting career in mostly television roles followed. Jones came back to moviegoers attention, making a cameo as a version of himself in the comedy film Ted (2012) and Ted 2.- Actor
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Tim Thomerson rates highly as one of the best, most prolific, versatile and dependable character actors to ever grace both the big and small screens alike with pleasing regularity since the mid 70s. Although often cast as laconic rough 'n' tumble macho guys, Thomerson has proved on many occasions that he can essay comic roles and more substantial dramatic parts with equal skill and conviction. He was born on April 8th, 1946 in Coronado, California and was raised in Hawaii and San Diego. He did a stint in the National Guard prior to getting a job as a prop man and set builder at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. Character actor Anthony Zerbe advised Thomerson to get lessons from legendary acting teacher Stella Adler in New York; and he duly studied with Adler for four years.
He began his show business career as a stand-up comedian; he performed at the clubs The Bitter End, Bud Friedman's Improvisation and Catch A Rising Star in New York and at the Comedy Store and the Improv in Los Angeles. He eventually even had a guest spot on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson. His film debut was with a funny small role in the hilarious "Car Wash." He achieved his greatest enduring cult popularity with his delightfully deadpan portrayal of rugged police detective Jack Deth in the terrific "Trancers" and its strictly so-so sequels. Other memorable parts include eccentric police detective Jerry Moriarty in the fine "Fade to Black," weary factory worker Ray in "Take This Job and Shove It," a highway patrolman in Clint Eastwood's poignant and underrated "Honkytonk Man," burnt-out Vietnam vet helicopter pilot Charts in the exciting "Uncommon Valor," grimy mercenary Rhodes in the cheesy "Metalstorm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn," the crazed John Reynolds in "Volunteers," demented cult leader Lester in "Cherry 2000," the tough-as-nails the Sarge in the enjoyably quirky "Zone Troopers;" lovely and touching as the gentle Loy in the outstanding "Near Dark," diminutive, but fearless alien lawman Brick Bardo in the funky "Dollman," and a scruffy motorcyclist in Terry Gilliam's unjustly maligned "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas." Tim has appeared in a large number of films for low-budget independent director Albert Pyon and acted alongside real-life best buddy Brion James in numerous pictures (the two first met while both serving in the National Guard Reserves). On television Thomerson played the half-man, half-woman Gene-Jean on the uproarious, but sadly short-lived sci-fi parody program "Quark." Thomerson also had recurring roles on the TV shows "Sirens" and "Land's End" and has made guest appearances on countless TV shows.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Blonde, athletic and muscular actor, Frank Zagarino was born in Los Angeles on December 19, 1959 and grew up in Miami where he attended Miami Dade College; Zagarino starred as hero and villain in many low-cost action and science fiction films; appeared in movies such as Project Shadowchaser (1992) and its three sequels, and Operation Delta Force (1997). Zagarino continued to work until 2014; the actor was married to the actress Elizabeth Giordano with whom he had two children; he is owns a film and movie equipment rental company in New York; in his spare time he practices surf and gym.- Actor
- Producer
- Stunts
Gary Edward Daniels (born 9 May 1963) is an English actor, a martial arts artist, a martial arts action film star, a producer, and a fight coordinator. . Daniels who was also interested in films, starred in two motion pictures in 1988 made in the Philippines. These were Teddy Page's action martial arts film Final Reprisal (1988), and the jungle adventure, The Secret of King Mahi's Island (1988). Daniels returned to the US, and continued competing. From 1991 to 1994, Daniels was seen acting in several action and martial arts films, within those he had a supporting role in Albert Pyun's Knights (1993), and played an adversary who had showdowns with Jackie Chan in City Hunter (1993) and Don Wilson in Ring of Fire (1991), and Bloodfist IV: Die Trying (1992). On his own, Daniels was the star of the action films Capital Punishment (1991), American Streetfighter (1992), Firepower (1993), Full Impact (1993), and Deadly Target (1994).
In 1995, Daniels played the lead role of Kenshiro in Tony Randel's American live-action version of Japanese manga Fist of the North Star. The film had a notable cast that included Costas Mandylor, Isako Washio Malcolm McDowell, etc. From its release on, the film was widely seen on television and on home video. From that point up until 2001, Daniels, now an established action film actor, acted in many films mixed between action, martial arts, and science fiction. Some of these efforts included Albert Pyun's Heatseeker, Joseph Merhi's Rage, Art Camacho's Recoil, Jeff Burr's Spoiler, Master P's No Tomorrow, Isaac Florentine's Cold Harvest, Joseph Zito's Delta Force One: The Lost Patrol, Bloodmoon, White Tiger, Hawk's Vengeance, Riot, Epicenter, Fatal Blade, City of Fear, Black Friday, Queen's Messenger, and Witness to a Kill.
From 2004 on, Daniels took on more supporting roles, this includes the role of Ed Parker in the Bruce Lee biographical mini-series The Legend of Bruce Lee, with contemporary martial artists Mark Dacascos, Ray Park, Ernest Miller, and Michael Jai White. He is also known for his supporting role as Bryan Fury in the 2009 live-action film Tekken, and its 2014 prequel, based upon the popular fighting game series. Daniels acted alongside Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Steve Austin, and Randy Couture in the Sylvester Stallone film The Expendables as Lawrence "The Brit" Sparks, an ally of the villain. Daniels appeared in La Linea, an action-crime film with an ensemble cast that includes Ray Liotta, Andy García, Armand Assante, etc. Next was Across the Line: The Exodus of Charlie Wright alongside Aidan Quinn, Andy García for the second time, Mario Van Peebles, etc. Other efforts among many include David DeCocteau's The Wrong Child with Vivica A. Fox, the Wesley Snipes action vehicle Game of Death, Steve Austin's action vehicle Hunt to Kill, Stu Bennett's thriller I am Vengeance, etc. Some of the lead roles Daniels took are the martial arts fighting films Forced to Fight with Peter Weller, and Rumble. He was also the lead actor in the thriller Misfire, where he plays seasoned DEA agent, who descends into the underworld of Tijuana, and the jaded former hitman in Skin Traffik going against a gangster played by Mickey Rourke, with an ensemble cast including Daryl Hannah, Eric Roberts, Michael Madsen, Jeff Fahey, Dominique Swain, and Alan Ford.- Actor
- Producer
Jeff Speakman was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, where he became a All-American springboard diver in high school. He broke records in his school's district and conference all without ever having a coach. Determined to go to college, he worked for six years and graduated with honors from Missouri State College, earning a bachelor's degree in psychology with a minor in biology. Jeff currently holds a 6th-degree black belt in Japanese Goju-Ryu and a 6th-degree black belt in American Kenpo Karate. He is also found and director of American Kenpo Karate Systems (AAKS), an international kenpo karate organization with more than 50 schools. In 1993, Jeff was inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame as "Instructor of the Year." Jeff has only been studying acting for the past ten years.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Drago was well known for his villainous parts (leading or supporting), and his rugged yet scary looks and evil smile. He was born William Eugene Burrows in Hugoton, Kansas. He became interested in acting and took his mother's maiden name "Drago" as a stage name. At first he worked as a stuntman in Kansas, then attended the University of Kansas. After graduating he worked as a radio host before joining an acting crew that led him to New York. He began his acting career at the end of 1970s.
After appearing in multiple TV series as a guest actor, he appeared in such low-budget films as: Windwalker (1980), Vamp (1986), Hunter's Blood (1986), Freeway (1988), Dark Before Dawn (1988), Gwang tin lung fo wooi (1989), True Blood (1989), Martial Law II: Undercover (1991), Lady Dragon 2 (1993) and Cyborg 2: Glass Shadow (1993). He also appeared in Walker, Texas Ranger (1993). Other well-known appearances were in: Mad Dog Time (1996), Tremors 4: The Legend Begins (2004) and The Hills Have Eyes (2006) (the remake), as the leader of mutant nomads. He did an extensive work on TV, most notably on Charmed (1998). He also produced an instructional acting video with his wife, Silvana Gallardo.- Actor
- Producer
Ben Cross was born Harry Bernard Cross on December 16, 1947, in London, England. He was the son of Catherine (O'Donovan), a cleaning woman, from Keelraheen, Dunmanway, Ireland, and Harry Cross, an English doorman and nurse. He began acting at a very young age and participated in grammar school plays -- most notably playing "Jesus" in a school pageant at age twelve.
Ben left home and school at age 15 and worked various jobs, including work as a window washer, waiter and carpenter. He was master carpenter for the Welsh National Opera and property master at the Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham, England. Driven by his desire to be an actor, Ben accepted and overcame the enormous challenges and obstacles that came with the profession. In 1970, at age 22, he was accepted into London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) -- the alma mater of legendary actors such as Sir John Gielgud, Glenda Jackson and Sir Anthony Hopkins.
Upon graduation from RADA, Ben performed in several stage plays at Duke's Playhouse where he was seen in "Macbeth", "The Importance of Being Earnest", and Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman". He then joined the Prospect Theatre Company and played roles in "Pericles", "Twelfth Night" and "Royal Hunt of the Sun". Ben also joined the cast in the immensely popular musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" and played leading roles in Peter Shaffer's "Equus", "Mind Your Head" and the musical "Irma La Douce" -- all at Leicester's Haymarket Theatre.
In 1976, Ben's debut screen appearance came when he went on location to Deventer, Holland, to play Trooper Binns in Joseph E. Levine's World War II epic A Bridge Too Far (1977), which starred a very famous international cast -- namely Dirk Bogarde, Sir Sean Connery, Sir Michael Caine and James Caan. In 1977, Ben became a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and performed in the premier of "Privates on Parade" as Kevin Cartwright and played Rover in a revival of a Restoration play titled "Wild Oats".
Ben's path to international stardom began in 1978 with his extraordinary performance in the musical "Chicago" in which he played Billy Flynn, the slick lawyer of murderess Roxie Hart. During his performance in this musical, he was recognized and recommended for a leading role in the multiple Oscar-winning Chariots of Fire (1981). The major success of Chariots of Fire (1981) opened the doors to the international film market. Ben followed up Chariots of Fire (1981) with strong and successful performances, most notably in the Masterpiece Theatre miniseries The Citadel (1983), in which he played a Scottish physician, Dr. Andrew Manson, struggling with the politics of the British medical system during the 1920s, and his performance as Ash Pelham-Martyn, a British cavalry officer torn between two cultures in the Home Box Office miniseries The Far Pavilions (1984). During the 1984 Summer Olympic Games, Ben appeared in a commercial for American Express with Jackson Scholz, a sprinter for the 1924 American Olympic team whose character was featured in the film Chariots of Fire (1981). In 1986, he subsequently replaced James Garner as the featured actor endorsing the Polaroid Spectra camera. Ben was also featured in GQ Magazine as one of the annual "Manstyle" winners in January 1985, followed by a featured photo shoot in March 1985.
Having stuck by his desire to choose quality roles over monetary potential, Ben enjoyed long-term success in the film industry, for over 40 years. He played several outstanding roles including his portrayal of Solomon, one of the most fascinatingly complex characters of the Bible, in the Trimark Pictures production Solomon (1997). Other outstanding roles included his Barnabus in the MGM remake of the miniseries Dark Shadows (1991); Sir Harold Pearson in the Italian production Honey Sweet Love... (1994); Ikey Solomon in the Australian production The Potato Factory (2000); and his role as Rudolf Hess in the BBC production Nuremberg: Nazis on Trial (2006).
Ben was a director, writer and musician, as well. Among many of his original works is the musical "Rage" about Ruth Ellis, which was performed in various regional towns in the London area. He also starred in it and played the role of the hangman. Ben's first single as a lyricist was released by Polydor Records in the late 1970s and was titled "Mickey Moonshine". Other works include "The Best We've Ever Had" and "Nearly Midnight", both written by Ben and directed by his son, Theo Cross. In addition, the original soundtrack for "Nearly Midnight" was written, produced and performed by his daughter, Lauren Cross. These works were performed in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 2002 and 2003, respectively. "Square One", directed by Ben, was performed at the Etcetera Theatre in London in 2004.
Ben resided all over the world, including London, Los Angeles, New York, Southern Spain, Vienna and Sofia. He was familiar with the Spanish, Italian and German languages and enrolled in a course studying Bulgarian. When he was not filming, he wrote music, screenplays and articles for English language publications. Ben Cross died at age 72 of cancer on August 18, 2020 in Vienna, Austria.- Actor
- Producer
- Stunts
Scott Glenn was born January 26, 1939, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Hope Elizabeth and Theodore Glenn, a salesman. As he grew up in Appalachia, his health was poor; he was bedridden for a year and doctors predicted he would limp for the rest of his life. During long periods of illness, Glenn was reading a lot and "dreaming of becoming Lord Byron". He challenged his illness by intense training programs and eventually got rid of his limp.
After graduating high school, Glenn entered William and Mary College where he majored in English. He spent three years in the Marines and then tried to combine his passion for storytelling with his passion for adventures by working for five months as a criminal reporter at the Kenosha Evening News. Glenn planned to become an author but found out he had "problems with dialogues", so he decided to overcome it by studying acting. In 1966, he headed to New York where he joined George Morrison acting class. He helped in directing student plays to pay for his studies and appeared onstage in La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club productions. Soon after arriving in New York, Glenn became a fan of martial arts. In 1968, he joined The Actors Studio and began working in professional theater and TV. In 1970, James Bridges offered him his first movie work in The Baby Maker (1970).
Glenn left for L.A., where he spent seven of the "most miserable years of [his] life". He couldn't find interesting film roles and, doing brief TV stints, he felt "like a person who had to paint the Sistine Chapel with a house-painter's brush". On a brighter side, he worked episodically with Jonathan Demme (Angels Hard as They Come (1971), Fighting Mad (1976)), Robert Altman (Nashville (1975)) and Francis Ford Coppola (Apocalypse Now (1979)). In 1978, Glenn got tired of Hollywood and moved his family to Ketchum, Idaho, where he worked as a barman, huntsman and mountain ranger for two years (occasionally acting in Seattle stage productions). James Bridges once more changed the course of Glenn's life in 1980 when he offered him the role of John Travolta's rival in Urban Cowboy (1980) and made him a star. Glenn's acting abilities and physical presence helped him to excel both in action (Silverado (1985), The Challenge (1982)) and drama (The Right Stuff (1983), Countdown to Looking Glass (1984), The River (1984)) as he alternately played good guys and bad guys.
In the beginning of the '90s, his career was at its peak - he appeared in such indisputable masterpieces as The Silence of the Lambs (1991), and The Hunt for Red October (1990). Established as one of Hollywood's most solid and respected character actors he has appeared in a wide variety of films, such as the black Freudian farce Reckless (1995), the tragicomedy Edie & Pen (1996) and Ken Loach's socio-political declaration Carla's Song (1996), alternating mainstream (Courage Under Fire (1996), Absolute Power (1997)) with independent projects (Lesser Prophets (1997) and Larga distancia (1997)), written by his daughter Dakota Glenn), and TV (Naked City: A Killer Christmas (1998)). Continuing into the 21st century, Glenn has also appeared in Training Day (2001), W. (2008) (as Donald Rumsfeld), Secretariat (2010), Sucker Punch (2011), The Paperboy (2012), and two of the Bourne films: The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) and The Bourne Legacy (2012).- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Robert Miano was born in New York City and raised in the South East Bronx around when Joe DiMaggio and Yogi Berra played for the New York Yankees. In school, Robert joined the Glee Club and realized that he had a gift for singing. At the age of 15, he started his showbiz career when a talent agent heard him singing with a Du-op Group on a Bronx street corner. This lead to a recording of "Kingdom Of Love" by the Preludes on the Cub Label, a new subsidiary of MGM Records. Today "Kingdom Of Love" is a collector's item and is still being played on the "Oldies but Goodies" Radio Station in New York. Through the years, Robert continued to make records and ultimately became a Columbia Recording Artist.
Robert loved singing for people by making personal appearances on TV, in nightclubs, hotels and concerts. On an open casting call, Robert auditioned for the lead rock singer in the play "Satyricon". He landed the role. The musical was presented at the Stratford Shakespearean festival in Ontario Canada and was a huge success. When Robert returned home to New York, he had a calling to travel around the world. With $200 and a round trip ticket, he took his guitar and duffel bag and flew off to Europe. He spent the next 2 1/2 years traveling around the world as a troupe adore. He earned his living by singing and playing his guitar on the streets, in restaurants and bars, wherever he found an audience. After Europe, he traveled to the Middle East, Africa, South America and then back home to New York where Robert decided to pursue another life-long dream of acting.
After studying with Lee Strasberg and Warren Robertson, Robert landed a lead role in the Broadway show "Fame", a play about the life of Marilyn Monroe. After 5 weeks of rehearsal, the play opened at the "Golden Theater" and sadly closed the following day.
Robert started his film career in New York, when director Michael Winner cast him as one of the muggers in the original Death Wish (1974) with Charles Bronson. Shortly after that, Howard Koch met Robert at the Plaza Hotel singing in the Green Tulip room. He offered Robert a role in the movie Badge 373 (1973) with Robert Duvall. After that, Robert had another calling and decided to move to Los Angeles, where he has lived for the past 30 years. In that period of time, Robert has appeared in over 100 feature films in starring or co-starring roles with actors like Al Pacino and Johnny Depp in Donnie Brasco (1997) where Robert played "Sonny Red". He co-starred with Jeremy Irons in Dungeons & Dragons (2000), a cameo with Kim Basinger in Jumpshot (2004) directed by Mark Rydell, with Morgan Freeman in Edison (2005), with Christopher Walken and Benicio Del Toro in The Funeral (1996) directed by Abel Ferrara, just to name a few.
Robert has also guest-starred on numerous TV shows like Frasier (1993), Caroline in the City (1995), The Shield (2002), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993), as a regular on General Hospital (1963), a recurring role on The Young and the Restless (1973), and many more.
When Robert is not working in front of the camera on a film or TV show, he dedicates his time coaching actors. Sharing his expertise in what he has learned over the years. He currently studies at the Actors Studio where he is a lifetime member. There is no finish line. It's about the journey and not the destination. One can always improve, says Robert.