Celebrity Names with the Letter R: Part 2
This is a list containing celebrity first names that begin with the letter R. Check out part 1 for more. Click on a name to learn more about the celebs themselves. Enjoy!
List activity
2.1K views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
300 people
- Actor
- Soundtrack
American actor of commanding presence and powerful voice, prolific on screen since 1980 and frequently cast in authoritarian roles as judges, attorneys, police chiefs or senior military officers. Richard Edward Gant graduated from California State University - East Bay with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Visual and Performing Arts and from Samuel Merritt University in 1967 with an Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Arts and Afro-American Studies. Gant spent four years in the Air Force as a radar operator, before moving to New York to work off-Broadway as actor and director on some 35 productions. In 1978, he appeared alongside Morgan Freeman and Dorian Harewood in The Mighty Gents, a play about the decline of a once-feared Newark black youth gang. In films, he is perhaps best known as retired boxing promoter and manager George Washington Duke (the main antagonist in Rocky V (1990)), a role for which he was handpicked by Sylvester Stallone.
Gant's notable TV appearances have included the ill-fated livery stable owner Arnette Hostetler in HBO's Deadwood (2004); Captain Richard Page, commander of Special Unit 2 (2001), a secret police task force battling mythological entities in Chicago; Captain Edward "Mackie" MacDougan, an Earthforce commander sympathetic to Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) in Babylon 5 (1993); Dr. Russell Ford in the popular daytime soap General Hospital (1963); car dealership owner Owen Thoreau Sr., Andre Braugher's on-screen father in Men of a Certain Age (2009) and snarky English teacher Ray Hayward in Mr. Iglesias (2019). His numerous guest roles have included appearances in Miami Vice (1984), L.A. Law (1986), NYPD Blue (1993), Smallville (2001), Charmed (1998) and, more recently, NCIS: Los Angeles (2009).
In 2006, Gant co-founded PanAfricanist, a digital solutions company which focuses "on designing and developing cultural connectivity infrastructures." He is married to the costume designer and director Arline Burks Gant.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Dick Gautier was born on 30 October 1931 in Culver City, California, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for The Transformers (1984), G.I. Joe (1985) and Get Smart (1965). He was married to Tess Hightower, Barbara Stuart and Beverly J. Gerber. He died on 13 January 2017 in Arcadia, California, USA.- Actor
- Producer
- Music Department
Humanitarian and actor Richard Gere was born on August 31, 1949, in Philadelphia, the second of five children of Doris Anna (Tiffany), a homemaker, and Homer George Gere, an insurance salesman, both Mayflower descendants. Richard started early as a musician, playing a number of instruments in high school and writing music for high school productions. He graduated from North Syracuse Central High School in 1967, and won a gymnastics scholarship to the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, where he majored in philosophy. He left college after two years to pursue acting, landing a lead role in the London production of the rock musical "Grease" in 1973. The following year he would be in other plays, such as "Taming of the Shrew." Onscreen, he had a few roles, and gained recognition in Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977). Offscreen, he spent 1978 meeting Tibetans when he traveled to Nepal, where he spoke to many monks and lamas. Returning to the US, on Broadway he portrayed a concentration-camp prisoner in "Bent," for which he received the 1980 Theatre World Award. Back in Hollywood, he played the title role in American Gigolo (1980), establishing himself as a major star; this status was reaffirmed by An Officer and a Gentleman (1982). In the early 1980s, Richard went to Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador (amidst ongoing wars and political violence); he traveled with a doctor and visited refugee camps. It is said that Richard was romantically linked with Tuesday Weld, Priscilla Presley, Barbra Streisand and Kim Basinger. In 1990 Richard teamed up with Julia Roberts to star in the blockbuster Pretty Woman (1990); his cool reserve was the perfect complement to Julia's bubbling enthusiasm. The film captured the nation's heart, and won the People's Choice award for Best Movie. Fans clamored for years for a sequel, or at least another pairing of Julia and Richard. They got that with Runaway Bride (1999), which was a runaway success (Richard got $12 million, Julia made $17 million, the box office was $152 million, which shows what happens when you give the public what it wants!). Offscreen, Richard and Cindy Crawford got married December 12, 1991 (they were divorced in 1995). Afterwards, Richard started dating actress Carey Lowell. They had a son, Homer James Jigme Gere, on February 6, 2000. Richard was picked by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the world in 1991, and as their Sexiest Man Alive in 1999. He is an accomplished pianist and music writer. Above all, Richard is a humanitarian. He's a founding member of "Tibet House," a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of Tibetan culture. He has been an active supporter of "Survival International" for several years, a worldwide organization supporting tribal peoples, affirming their right to decide their own future and helping them protect their lives, lands and human rights (these tribes are global, including the natives of the Amazon, the Maasai of East Africa, the Wichi of Argentina, and others). In 1994 Richard went to London to open Harrods' sale, donating his £50,000 appearance fee to Survival. He has been prominent in their charity advertising campaigns.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Richard Gibson was born on 1 January 1954 in Kampala, Uganda. He is an actor, known for 'Allo 'Allo! (1982), The Go-Between (1971) and Wainwrights' Law (1980). He is married to Kate. They have two children.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Richard E. Grant is an actor and presenter. He made his film debut as Withnail in the comedy Withnail and I (1987). Grant received critical acclaim for his role as Jack Hock in Marielle Heller's drama film Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018), winning various awards including the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male. He also received Academy Award, BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Producer
Before achieving his greatest fame in the 1950s as television's "Robin Hood", handsome Richard Greene had a significant if largely unremarkable film career, turning in several skillful leading man performances in the late 1930s before becoming type-cast in routine costume adventures. Like his friendly rival, Tyrone Power, Greene's good looks aided his entry into films but ultimately proved detrimental to his development as a film actor.
A descendant of four generations of film actors, Richard Marius Joseph Greene seemed destined for a career as a movie actor. Born August 25, 1918 (Some sources list his birth-date as 1914) in the port city of Plymouth, Devonshire, England, Greene was educated at the Cardinal Vaughn School in Kensington. At an early age, he became determined to pursue the acting profession, making his stage debut in 1933 at the Old Vic as a spear carrier in a production of William Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar". By this time, the formerly gawky teenager was rapidly maturing into an exceedingly good-looking young man with an athletic build, dark wavy hair, and a pleasant speaking voice. So handsome was he that in between acting gigs, he supplanted his income as a shirt and hat model.
After a small role in a 1934 revival of "Journey's End and a bit part in the British musical film, Sing As We Go! (1934), Greene joined the Brandon Thomas Repertory Company in 1936, travelling the length and breadth of the British Isles in a variety of productions. His first major break came in 1936 when he won accolades on the London stage as the juvenile lead in Terence Rattigan's "French Without Tears", which brought him to the attention of Alexander Korda and then Darryl F. Zanuck. Fox signed the youngster in January, 1938, brought him to America, and immediately cast him in his first film: as the youngest of four brothers in John Ford's Four Men and a Prayer (1938). His excellent reviews and camera-friendly physical appearance (which inspired mountains of fan mail from adoring feminine moviegoers) convinced Zanuck to rush Greene into a series of top-notch films which showed him to advantage, and might have been the springboard to more substantive roles and super-stardom had fate and World War II not intervened.
Greene gave several notable performances as a Fox contractor. He was a banker's son-turned-horse trainer in the popular horse-breeding epic, Kentucky (1938), a murdered baronet's son in the eerie "Sherlock Holmes" mystery, The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939), a college student estranged from his alcoholic father in Here I Am a Stranger (1939), and steamboat inventor Robert Fulton in the fanciful historical drama, Little Old New York (1940). At the peak of his popularity, with a growing resume of critically acclaimed film work, and fan mail rivaling Fox's number one heartthrob, Tyrone Power, Greene abandoned his studio contract in 1940 and returned to his homeland to aid in the war effort: an admirable personal decision which would have negative professional consequences. Enlisting in the Royal Armoured Corps of the Twenty-Seventh Lancers, he distinguished himself throughout World War II, eventually becoming a captain. He was discharged in December, 1944. During the war, he was given three furloughs to appear in British propaganda features. After the conflict ended, Greene and his young bride, beautiful British actress, Patricia Medina (whom he married in 1941) remained in England for a time, where both appeared on stage and in British movies. Richard's films included the charming comedy, Don't Take It to Heart! (1944), and the disappointing biopic, Showtime (1946).
In 1946, the ambitious Greene (accompanied by his wife who'd been offered a Fox contract) returned to Hollywood hoping to take up where he'd left off. After his dreams of regaining his lost momentum did not materialize, he opted to take whatever film work he could find. After landing a solid supporting role in the wildly popular costumer, Forever Amber (1947), he found himself cast as a swashbuckling hero in a long series of films, the most memorable of which was The Black Castle (1952), in which the heroic Greene battled an evil one-eyed Bavarian count. By the 1950s, the increasingly restless actor turned away from filmmaking in favor of the stage and television. His TV credits of the period included memorable performances on several live drama series including Studio One (1948) and The United States Steel Hour (1953). In 1955, Yeoman Films of Great Britain approached the still-youthful-looking middle-aged star to play the legendary "Robin of Locksley" in a proposed series, The Adventures of Robin Hood (1955), aimed at the American market. The disillusioned, newly divorced (in 1951), financially strapped actor eagerly signed on. The result was one of the most memorable and successful series of the decade, lasting five years, consisting of 143 half-hour episodes which made Greene a major television star and a rich man.
After the series ended, the veteran actor purchased an Irish country estate and settled into a life of leisure with his new wife, Brazilian heiress, Beatriz Summers. Together, they pursued many of his hobbies including travelling, sailing, and breeding champion horses. By the 1960s and 1970s, Greene appeared less and less interested in his profession, only occasionally accepting acting work. His latter films were mostly forgettable action adventures and horrors. His second marriage ended in divorce in 1980. Two years later, he suffered serious injuries in a fall followed by a diagnosis of a brain tumor. In the autumn of 1982, he underwent brain surgery from which he never fully recovered. Richard Greene died in Norfolk, England on June 1, 1985, from cardiac arrest following a fall. He was survived by a daughter by his second marriage.
Although his movie career was ultimately a disappointment to him, he eventually came to accept, and even embrace his cinematic fate as a swashbuckling hero. "This swashbuckler stuff is a bit rough on the anatomy", he revealed in a 1950s interview, "but I find it more exhilarating than whispering mishmash into some ingénue's pink little ear". Of his most famous swashbuckling role, "Robin Hood", Greene expressed a special fondness and pride. "Kids love pageantry and costume plays. But the most important thing is: Robin can be identified with any American hero. He's the British Hopalong!".- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Richard Grieco was born to an Italian father (Richard Grieco) and an Irish mother (Carolyn O'Reilly). He is a musician and, in 1995, released a CD ('Waiting for the Sky to Fall') in Germany. In 2009, several years after being encouraged by Dennis Hopper, Grieco publicly revealed that he has been painting since 1991. He calls his work "Abstract Emotionalism".- The avuncular star character actor Richard Griffiths grew up in a council flat in less than prosperous conditions, the son of deaf and volatile parents in a dysfunctional family setting. According to an article in the Telegraph newspaper, his father Thomas was a steelworker 'who fought in pubs for prize money'. Like most children, Richard's "mother tongue" was the same as his parents. In his case, that was sign language. Like many kids in the 50s, his world did not include television. He had to explain sounds to his parents, for example music. Griffiths made a career out of language. For instance, he developed a talent for dialects which later allowed him to shine in a number of ethnic portrayals. He attended the Manchester Polytechnic School Of Drama and then began his career in radio drama and repertory theatre. He subsequently became a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company where he often excelled playing Shakespeare's comic characters.
In a 2007 interview, Griffiths said "I like playing Vernon Dursley in Harry Potter because that gives me a license to be horrible to kids. I hate the odious business of sucking up to the public." In fact, unlike those jovial characters he so often portrayed on screen, Griffiths did not tolerate fools gladly. On occasion, he would get stroppy with members of an audience, especially those failing to switch off their mobile phones during a performance (who could blame him?). He was also highly thought of as a raconteur and wit.
The ever-versatile, often bespectacled and bearded Griffiths did his best work for the small screen, excelling as the inquisitive and resourceful civil servant Henry Jay in Bird of Prey (1982) and as the lovable 'cooking policeman' Henry Crabbe in Pie in the Sky (1994), a role specially created for him. As comic relief he made many a hilarious guest appearance, in, among other popular series, The Vicar of Dibley (1994) (as the Bishop of Mulberry) and as Dr. Bayham Badger in the superb BBC adaption of Bleak House (2005). He could also play evil and sinister, none more so than Swelter in Gormenghast (2000), a character Griffiths described being at once "laughably comic" and "a monster like Idi Amin". He was also much sought-after by Hollywood producers, appearing in a dual role in The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear (1991), as the ill-fated Magistrate Philipse in Tim Burton 's Sleepy Hollow (1999) and as King George in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011).
The much-acclaimed actor won a Tony Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, the Drama Desk Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award.
Griffiths was uncommonly skinny as a child and this required radiation treatment on his pituitary gland from the age of eight. It caused his metabolism to slow to such an extent that he eventually became obese, a condition which in all likelihood contributed to his death from complications during heart surgery on 28 March 2013 at the age of 65. - Actor
- Director
Starring with Alfre Woodard in the feature film Clemency, which won the Sundance Film Festival Top Honor Grand Jury Prize in 2019. He is best known for his starring role in James Cameron's 'Dark Angel' for which he won a People's Choice Award in his early 20's, after taking a break from the entertainment industry to live on a ranch for several years in his 30's, Richard Gunn came back as a critic and fan favorite as the iconic hero Chief of Police John Sanders in the cable hit 'Granite Flats' opposite Christopher Lloyd, Parker Posey, and Carey Elwes.He also starred as Aitor Quantic in the final season of Netflix Original Hemlock Grove. Richard is originally from Scottish Highlanders Clan Gunn and graduated with honors with a theater arts degree and toured the country with a professional Shakespeare Repetory- Richard Hale was born on 16 November 1892 in Rogersville, Tennessee, USA. He was an actor, known for Julius Caesar (1953), To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) and Star Trek (1966). He was married to Fiona O'Shiel, Kathryn Hamill and Temple Duncan. He died on 18 May 1981 in Northridge, California, USA.
- Producer
- Actor
- Executive
Richard Hammond was born in 1969 in the British town of Solihull, which is near to Birmingham although it tries to pretend that it isn't. He started his career in local radio before getting a break on a cable TV car show where he was able to hone his presenting skills, safe in the knowledge that no one was watching. In 2002 he was given his big break on BBC Top Gear and has never looked back, except when pulling out into traffic. He lives almost in Wales and is known as the Hamster, though only by people he has never met.- Actor
- Producer
Richard Harmon was born on 18 August 1991 in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. He is an actor and producer, known for The 100 (2014), I Still See You (2018) and The Age of Adaline (2015).- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Richard Harrington was born on 12 March 1975 in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Hinterland (2013), The Crown (2016) and Poldark (2015).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Richard St John Harris was born on October 1, 1930 in Limerick, Ireland, to a farming family, one of nine children born to Mildred (Harty) and Ivan Harris. He attended Crescent College, a Jesuit school, and was an excellent rugby player, with a strong passion for literature. Unfortunately, a bout of tuberculosis as a teenager ended his aspirations to a rugby career, but he became fascinated with the theater and skipped a local dance one night to attend a performance of "Henry IV". He was hooked and went on to learn his craft at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), then spent several years in stage productions. He debuted on screen in Shake Hands with the Devil (1959) and quickly scored regular work in films, including The Wreck of the Mary Deare (1959), The Night Fighters (1960) and a good role as a frustrated Australian bomber pilot in The Guns of Navarone (1961).
However, his breakthrough performance was as the quintessential "angry young man" in the sensational drama This Sporting Life (1963), which scored him an Oscar nomination. He then appeared in the WW II commando tale The Heroes of Telemark (1965) and in the Sam Peckinpah-directed western Major Dundee (1965). He next showed up in Hawaii (1966) and played King Arthur in Camelot (1967), a lackluster adaptation of the famous Broadway play. Better performances followed, among them a role as a reluctant police informer in The Molly Maguires (1970) alongside Sir Sean Connery. Harris took the lead role in the violent western A Man Called Horse (1970), which became something of a cult film and spawned two sequels. As the 1970s progressed, Harris continued to appear regularly on screen; however, the quality of the scripts varied from above average to woeful.
His credits during this period included directing himself as an aging soccer player in The Hero (1970); the western The Deadly Trackers (1973); the big-budget "disaster" film Juggernaut (1974); the strangely-titled crime film 99 and 44/100% Dead! (1974); with Connery again in Robin and Marian (1976); Gulliver's Travels (1977); a part in the Jaws (1975); Orca (1977) and a nice turn as an ill-fated mercenary with Richard Burton and Roger Moore in the popular action film The Wild Geese (1978).
The 1980s kicked off with Harris appearing in the silly Bo Derek vanity production Tarzan the Ape Man (1981) and the remainder of the decade had him appearing in some very forgettable productions. However, the luck of the Irish was once again to shine on Harris's career and he scored rave reviews (and another Oscar nomination) for The Field (1990). He then locked horns with Harrison Ford as an IRA sympathizer in Patriot Games (1992) and got one of his best roles as gunfighter English Bob in the Clint Eastwood western Unforgiven (1992). Harris was firmly back in vogue and rewarded his fans with more wonderful performances in Wrestling Ernest Hemingway (1993); Cry, the Beloved Country (1995); The Great Kandinsky (1995) and This Is the Sea (1997). Further fortune came his way with a strong performance in the blockbuster Gladiator (2000) and he became known to an entirely new generation of film fans as Albus Dumbledore in the mega-successful Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002). His final screen role was as "Lucius Sulla" in Caesar (2002).
Harris died of Hodgkin's disease, also known as Hodgkin's lymphoma, in London on October 25, 2002, aged 72.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Born in Santa Monica, California, USA, Richard Hatch was studying classical piano at the age of eight, and knew he wanted to carve out a career as a performer before he reached his teens. After attending Harbor College in San Pedro, he joined a Los Angeles repertory company with which he traveled to New York City in 1967. He performed in the plays "Song of Walt Whitman", "Young Rebels" and a production called "Exercise", which Richard directed. Richard was cast as the original "Philip Brent" in the soap All My Children (1970) in 1970. He later played "Inspector Dan Robbins" on the television series The Streets of San Francisco (1972). Richard Hatch is best remembered for his portrayal of "Apollo" on the series, Battlestar Galactica (1978).- Actor
- Director
- Additional Crew
London-born character actor George Richard Haydon was noted for his put-on nasal delivery and pompous, fussy manner. Haydn had a laborious start to his show business career, selling tickets in the box office of London's Daly Theatre. This was followed by an unsuccessful stint with a comedy act in musical revue. For a change of pace, he became overseer of a Jamaican banana plantation only to see it wiped out by a hurricane.
Returning home, he appeared in the 1926 West End production of 'Betty of Mayfair' and, soon after, also began to act on radio. It was in this medium where he first found success, creating his signature character: the perpetually befuddled nasally-voiced fish expert and mother's boy Edwin Carp. Haydn later immortalized the titular character in a book, titled "The Journal of Edwin Carp". The Carp routine opened the door for Haydn to appear with Beatrice Lillie on Broadway in Noël Coward's 'Set to Music' (1939) and this, in turn, resulted in a contract with 20th Century Fox.
While his first major screen role in Charley's Aunt (1941) was relatively straight-laced, he was more often seen in comedic roles where his lugubrious face and dignified, sometimes unctuous presence could be employed to scene-stealing effect. His notable characterizations in this vein include the over-enunciating Professor Oddly in Ball of Fire (1941), Rogers (the butler) in And Then There Were None (1945) and Mr. Wilson in Cluny Brown (1946). He essayed a rare villainous role as the odious Earl of Radcliffe in the period drama Forever Amber (1947) and was back to his usual form as Mr. Appleton in Sitting Pretty (1948). In The Late George Apley (1947), he played the character of Horatio Willing "with a broad edge of wheezy burlesque" (so wrote Bosley Crowther of the New York Times, March 21, 1947).
In the late 40s, Haydn made a brief foray into directing. Of his three films for Paramount, the Bing Crosby vehicle Mr. Music (1950) enjoyed the best critical reviews. Among his later appearances on screen, that of Trapp family friend and promoter Max Detweiler in The Sound of Music (1965), is the one which most often comes to mind. Over the years, he also made an impression as a voice actor in animated cartoons, notably on Warner Brothers Looney Tunes and as the Caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland (1951). He had frequent guest roles on television and starred in one of the best-remembered episodes of Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone (1959) ("A Thing About Machines"), as the arrogant machine-hating pedant Bartlett Finchley who loses a pitched battle with his household appliances, in particular his car. Haydn also caricatured a Japanese businessman in an episode of Bewitched (1964).
In private life, Haydn was a rather reclusive individual who liked horticulture and shunned interviews.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Utilitarian character actor Richard Herd was one of those stern familiar faces you saw countless times on film and TV but couldn't quite place the name. The stage-trained actor, who shared a striking resemblance to actor Karl Malden, never found the one role that would make him a household name, but did make up for it with a number of rich and rewarding stage, film and TV assignments bolstered by his trademark authoritarian look and stance.
Born on September 26, 1932 in Boston, Massachusetts, he was the son of Katherine (Lydon) and Richard Herd, a railroad engineer and WWII vet, who died when the boy was quite young. The younger Herd suffered from bone marrow cancer which affected the growth of his legs as a child. As a result, he was educated at the Industrial School for Crippled Children during his formative years. Luckily, loving care and several operations saved his legs from deformity.
It was his mother Katherine's love of music that ignited Richard's initial desire to perform. Trained on the drums, he received early acting training on radio and in summer stock (Liberty Mutual Theatre in Boston) during his high school years and, in the late 1940s, studied Shakespeare under veteran Claude Rains at one point. Other plays such as "Our Town" and "Sing Out Sweet Land," and the children's theatre productions of "Penrod" and "Robin Hood" helped to beef up his early resume.
Richard enlisted in the Army during the Korean War but injured a knee in basic training, which led to an honorable discharge within 90 days of his enlistment. He did, however, go on to work for the Army Signal Corps in a host of training films.
Richard continued to gather experience in such classical plays as "The Miser" and "A Month in the Country". With several summer stock runs, Shakespearean bus-and-truck tours and industrial films under his belt, he finally made his New York debut in the minor role of an usher in The Dress Circle" at Carnegie Hall. He also became a member of the Player's Club.
Making a highly inauspicious film debut in the minor role of a coach in the film, Hercules in New York (1970), which was the showcase debut for the massively-muscled Arnold Schwarzenegger, Richard didn't settle in Hollywood, until the mid 1970s, after replacing actor Richard Long (who died before filming began) in the role of Watergate figure James McCord in All the President's Men (1976). Although Richard made a handful of other movies throughout the rest of the decade (I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1977), F.I.S.T. (1978), The China Syndrome (1979), The Onion Field (1979)), he appeared with much more frequency on TV, playing stern, authoritarian types on episodes of Kojak (1973), The Rockford Files (1974), The Streets of San Francisco (1972) (starring the similar-looking Karl Malden), Rafferty (1977), Eight Is Enough (1977) and Starsky and Hutch (1975), as well as in the TV movies Pueblo (1973), Captains and the Kings (1976), The Hunted Lady (1977), Dr. Scorpion (1978), Kate Bliss and the Ticker Tape Kid (1978), Terror Out of the Sky (1978), Marciano (1979) and, most notably, Ike: The War Years (1979), in which he portrayed General Omar Bradley.
Never finding the one support role that might have made him a character star, Richard nevertheless was featured impressively on all three mediums for over four decades. On stage, he appeared in a pre-Broadway tryout of "On the Waterfront" and played, to great applause, in productions of "Other People's Money" and "The Big Knife". His finest hour on stage, however, would come with his portrayal of the epic film producer in the one-man show "Cecil B. DeMille Presents", which he has toured throughout the country. On TV, Richard has guested on most of the popular TV programs of late, including Desperate Housewives (2004) and CSI: Miami (2002) and is probably best remembered for his recurring roles as "Admiral Noyce" on SeaQuest 2032 (1993), as Jason Alexander's boss "Wilhelm" in the sitcom classic, Seinfeld (1989), and as "Admiral Owen Paris" in Star Trek: Voyager (1995). A few of his lightweight cinematic crowd-pleasers include Private Benjamin (1980), Deal of the Century (1983), Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987) and Sgt. Bilko (1996). More recently, he also had a memorable bit in the Oscar-winning horror film Get Out (2017).
On occasion, Richard moved into the director/producer/writer's chair. He directed the play, "Idle Wheels", for the Road Theatre Company in North Hollywood, was a producer of the N.Y. play, "Agamemnon", and co-producer (and performer) of the play, "The Couch with the Six Insides", and, as a playwright, had a presentation of his play, "Prisoner of the Crown", produced at Dublin's Abbey Theatre.
Married briefly at the age of 19, Richard remarried and had two children (Richard Jr. and Erica) by his second wife. That marriage also ended in divorce, but his third (in 1980), to actress Patricia Herd (Patricia Crowder Ruskin), lasted. Patricia has a daughter from an earlier marriage. Making his final film appearances in the Clint Eastwood vehicle The Mule (2018) and the baseball biopic The Silent Natural (2019), Richard was diagnosed with cancer and died on May 26, 2020, at age 87.- Actor
- Writer
Richard Hillman was born on 13 December 1974 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Bring It On (2000), Detroit Rock City (1999) and Boys and Girls (2000). He died on 27 June 2009 in Los Angeles County, California, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Born in Kettering and brought up in Norfolk, Mr. Hope attended Oakham School in Rutland 1967-1971 and trained at the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain 1972-1976. He is a member of the National Youth Theatre Association and an Associate Member of Complicite. A brilliant character actor, Mr. Hope is often seen on the television screen appearing in major series but also boasts an illustrious theatre career.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Producer
Richard Horvitz began acting professionally at the age of 10. As a child, he appeared in numerous stage productions. Among the most notable, the musical "Oliver!", starring Dick Shawn and Stubby Kaye. Also as a child, Richard starred in numerous commercials and made many television guest appearances on such shows as Diff'rent Strokes (1978), Head of the Class (1986), You Can't take it with you, Rags to Riches and many more. As an adult, Richard attended UCLA before leaving to star in the TBS original TV series Safe at Home (1985). In 1987, Richard starred along with Mark Harmon and Kirstie Alley in the Carl Reiner-directed film, Summer School (1987), for Paramount Studios. Most recently, Richard co-starred in the Warner Bros. film, The Informant! (2009) as Matt Damon's attorney, "Bob Zaideman". In 2011, Richard can be seen, alongside Steve Carell, in Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011). Other notable films include Race to Space (2001), The Legend of Galgameth (1996) for the Disney Channel and also the film Storm (1999), starring Martin Sheen. Richard also continues to make guest appearances on television, including numerous appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992) and Jimmy Kimmel Live! (2003). Fans of animation will recognize many of Richard's iconic characters, including "Zim" on Nickelodeon's Invader ZIM (2001), "Billy" on Cartoon Networks' The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (2003) ("The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy"), "Dagget" on Nickelodeon's The Angry Beavers (1997) and many more. Video game titles include, "Psychonauts", "Destroy All Humans", "Kinectimals", "Metal Gear Solid 4" "Ratchet and Clank: Crack in Time" and many other games. Savvy viewers will also recognize Richard as the "Green Grapes" in the Fruit of the Loom commercials.- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Rick Howland is a Canadian, Green Card toting LA Actor, best known as Trick in five seasons of the hit SyFy series "Lost Girl". 2019 and the beginning of 2020 saw him play; Borachio in the staging of "Much Ado About Nothing", the antagonist in the feature film "Captain Tsunami's Army", opposite Chris Mulkey in "A Safe Guide to Dying", a severed head on a shelf in "Good Head", and the were-goat transforming Dr. Stan in the web-series "The Vamps Next Door", which he also wrote for.
Howland has been interrogated three times by Yannick Bisson in "Murdoch Mysteries", "Sue Thomas F.B.Eye" and "Crazy For Christmas". He is very proud to be a part of Canadian history, having played the Commissioner of the Hockey League, Harry Buttman, in the blockbuster feature film "Bon Cop Bad Cop" opposite Patrick Huard and Colm Feore. He also played the son of Canadian icon Jayne Eastwood in "Endless Grind". A turn on the improvised show "Train 48" and a recurring role as the Computer Tech, Keach, on "Billable Hours" tapped into to his comedic roots.
He began with improvisation and an excellent acting teacher, winning regional gold medals two years consecutively at the Improv Olympics. In 1990, Howland formed the comedy troupe "The Four Strombones". They performed in comedy clubs around Toronto (Yuk Yuk's Sketch Pad, Big City Improv, Lee's Palace, the Rivoli and more) for well over a decade. The troupe created an audience choice Toronto Fringe Festival show in 1994, "In Transit: 40 minutes after midnight". His first professional acting role was in the feature film "To Catch A Yeti" opposite Meat Loaf. Howland has hosted comedy shows and wrote his own stand-up routine for "Club Land" directed by Saul Rubinek, screenplay by Steven Webber
Howland co-wrote and directed the short films "Underwritten" and "#Inclusion Rider the movie", he also produced, directed and edited the You Tube web-series "Backseat with P and J".
As a singer/songwriter he released the EP, "Hold My Hand", available on iTunes and many other streaming platforms.
He is currently studying at The BGB Studio in Burbank.- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Born May 29, 1979 in Redlands, California to Rick and Jeanine Jackson, Richard Lee Jackson began his acting career at age 12 after a visit to Universal Studios in Hollywood. After moving to Los Angeles at the age of 13 and working in various roles for TV and film, he garnered considerable recognition for his turn on the 2nd season premiere episode of Ally McBeal (1997).
Best known for his role as "Ryan Parker" on Saved by the Bell: The New Class (1993), he has also guest-starred in several network/syndicated series including; Boy Meets World (1993), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993) and Baywatch (1989).
Last year (2004) he was featured in Hope Ranch (2002) with Lorenzo Lamas and Bruce Boxleitner and stars in the recently released Universal Film Bring It on: Again (2004). His feature film debut is in the MGM film Madison (2001), which stars Jim Caviezel.
Richard Lee has done several national and local TV appearances (Leeza, Regis and Kathy Lee, AM Northwest, Good Day Oregon, etc.) and interviews in several world-wide syndicated magazines such as Movieline and Teen People. He was also featured along with his brother, fellow actor Jonathan Jackson, in People's "Sexiest Man Alive Issue".
Along with acting, Richard is the drummer in the rock band Enation (with brother Jonathan on lead vocals and guitar). They are currently (2005) touring the West Coast and releasing their first record, "Identity Theft".
He was married to Raquel Torres on January 2nd, 2005 and lives in the Northwest when he is not working in Los Angeles.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Stocky tough-guy character actor Richard Jaeckel was one of Hollywood's most prolific supporting stars. Born in Long Island, New York, on October 10, 1926, Jaeckel's family moved to Los Angeles when he was still in his teens. After graduation from Hollywood High School, Jaeckel was discovered by a casting director while working as a mailboy for 20th Century-Fox. Although he had some reluctance to act, Jaeckel accepted a key part in the war epic Guadalcanal Diary (1943) and remained in films for over 50 years, graduating from playing baby-faced teenagers (like Dick Clark, Jaeckel never seemed to age) to gunfighters and hired killers with ease. From 1944-48 he served in the US Navy, and after his discharge he co-starred in Sands of Iwo Jima (1949) with John Wayne. Jaeckel's other notable roles in films include one of a trio of GIs accused of raping a German girl in Town Without Pity (1961)--a standout performance--and The Dirty Dozen (1967) as tough MP Sgt. Clyde Bowren, who goes along on the mission to keep an eye on the prisoners he's trained, a role he reprised in a made-for-TV sequel in 1985. Jaeckel also received an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor for his funny but tragic performance in Sometimes a Great Notion (1971). Although he appeared in over 70 films, he was very active in television series such as Frontier Circus (1961), Banyon (1971), Firehouse (1974), Salvage 1 (1979), At Ease (1983), Spenser: For Hire (1985) and Supercarrier (1988). From 1991-94 he played Lt. Ben Edwards on the hit series Baywatch (1989). He passed away after a three-year battle with melanoma cancer on June 14, 1997, at the Motion Picture and Television Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. Jaeckel was 70 years old.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Richard Jenkins was born on 4 May 1947 in DeKalb, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Shape of Water (2017), The Visitor (2007) and Step Brothers (2008). He has been married to Sharon R. Friedrick since 23 August 1969. They have two children.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Born in Upminster, Essex, England in 1927, Richard Johnson attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and then performed in John Gielgud's repertory company until joining the navy in 1945 until 1948. After the war, he appeared successfully in the West End and made his film debut in the early 1950s. The debonair and handsome Johnson was a natural to portray playboy type characters, perhaps the most memorable being "Bulldog Drummond" in Deadlier Than the Male (1967) and Some Girls Do (1969). Later in his career, he turned to more serious roles, such as "Marc Antony" in Antony and Cleopatra (1974), and also tried his hand at producing in the late 1980s.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Richard Timothy Jones is a American actor. He has worked extensively in both film and television productions since the early 1990s. His television roles include Ally McBeal (1997), Judging Amy (1998-2005), CSI: Miami (2006), Girlfriends (2007), Grey's Anatomy (2010), Hawaii Five-0 (2011-2014), Narcos (2015), and Criminal Minds (2017). Since 2018, he has played Sergeant Wade Grey on the ABC police drama The Rookie. His film roles include portrayals of Lamont Carr in Disney's Full Court Miracle (2003), Laveinio "Slim" Hightower in Rick Famuyiwa's coming-of-age film The Wood (1999), Mike in Tyler Perry's dramatic films Why Did I Get Married? (2007) and Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010), and Captain Russell Hampton in the Hollywood blockbuster Godzilla (2014).- Actor
- Producer
- Script and Continuity Department
Harvard-educated stage and screen actor Richard Jordan was born into a socially prominent family on July 19, 1937 in New York City, the grandson of Learned Hand, the greatest American jurist never to have served on the U.S. Supreme Court. Newbold Morris, his stepfather, was a member of the New York City Council during Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia's administration. Young Richard was educated in private Manhattan schools and then at the exclusive Hotchkiss prep school in Lakeville, Connecticut. While at Hotchkiss, he was outstanding as the eponymous lead of the school play "Mr. Roberts", which won him a place in the Sharon, Connecticut summer stock company. Jordan went to England as an exchange student at the Sherbourne School, a college (private school) that was over 1,000 years old. After graduating from Sherbourne, Jordan entered Harvard College and took his degree in three years.
At Harvard, Jordan was a member of the Dramatic Club, both as an actor and as a director. It was while at Harvard that he decided to become a professional actor and began performing with off-campus stage companies. After graduating from Harvard, Jordan launched what was to be a prolific stage career in New York, making his Broadway debut in December 1961 in the play "Take Her, She's Mine" under the direction of the venerable George Abbott in Biltmore Theatre. The play, which starred Art Carney, Elizabeth Ashley in a Tony Award-winning turn, and Heywood Hale Broun, was a hit, playing 404 performances.
Jordan next appeared in a one-night flop, in "Bicycle Ride to Nevada", which opened and closed on September 24, 1963. He was more lucky with his next play, "Generation", a comedy starring Henry Fonda that played for 300 performances in the 1965-66 season. He last appeared on Broadway in a success d'estime, John Osborne's "A Patriot for Me", directed by Peter Glenville and starring Maximilian Schell and Tommy Lee Jones, who was making his Broadway debut. By that time, Jordan had established himself as a leading player Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway, which accounted for the majority of his over 100 New York stage appearances.
Jordan, as actor and director, was a major force in the development of New York's "Off-Off-Broadway" theater that flourished in the 1960s. He was one of the founders of the Gotham Arts Theater, which put on plays in an old funeral parlor on West 43rd Street. Fittingly, the company's first play was about necrophilia. Jordan engaged young New York artists to design the sets, the results of which were not always auspicious. Jordan said of this development, "With our weirdo plays against their far-out sets...it was total insanity!" He made a significant breakthrough, career-wise, with his appearance in the anti-war play "The Trial Of The Catonsville Nine" in both New York and California.
Jordan spent eight years with Joseph Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival. He made his debut with Papp's Shakespeare Festival in 1963, playing "Romeo" opposite the "Juliet" of Kathleen Widdoes, the fellow Papp stock company member who would become his wife, in Papp's Shakespeare in the Park series. The couple married in 1964, and their eight-year marriage produced a daughter, Nina Jordan, born in 1964, who would later co-star with her father in the movie Old Boyfriends (1979).
Although he appeared on television during the 1960s, the tall, handsome and talented Jordan did not make his motion picture debut until 1971, when he appeared in a supporting role in Michael Winner's horse opera Lawman (1971), which featured a first-rate cast, including Burt Lancaster, Robert Ryan, Lee J. Cobb and Robert Duvall. However, it was his role as the baby-faced, amoral Treasury agent in The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973) that made him a known commodity on-screen, while it was the monumental mini-series Captains and the Kings (1976) that made his reputation. His performance as the Irish immigrant "Joseph Armagh" brought him an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe award, and it also brought him his long-time companion, co-star Blair Brown, whom he lived with for many years and by whom he had a son.
An actor rather than a star, Jordan played many unsympathetic roles, including that of Nazi Albert Speer in the TV movie The Bunker (1981). He continued to appear on the stage, Off-Broadway and in stock companies touring the major cities of the U.S., while appearing in films and on TV. Jordan was the manager of the L.A. Actors Theater in Los Angeles during the 1970s, where he produced, directed and wrote his own plays. For the 1983-84 Off-Broadway season, he won an Obie Award for his performance in Czech playwright Václav Havel's "A Private View". He won the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for directing Havel's "Largo Desolato" at the Taper, Too in 1987.
In 1992, Jordan had begun filming The Fugitive (1993) when his fatal illness forced him to leave the production. Thus, Jordan's final role was that of "General Lewis Armistead" in the film Gettysburg (1993), which was a labor of love for him. He was close friends with Michael Shaara, the author of the novel "The Killer Angels", which the movie was based upon, and contributed to the screenplay. Jordan's last appearance as an actor was the death of his on-screen character, "General Armistead".
Richard Jordan died in Los Angeles, California of a brain tumor on August 30, 1993. He was 56 years old.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Richard Karn was born on February 17, 1956, in Seattle, Washington, the son of Gene and Louise Wilson. He has a sister named Sue. His birth name was Richard Karn Wilson, but he shortened it to Richard Karn because there was already a Richard Wilson registered with the Screen Actors Guild. He did his first acting in the fifth grade and was very active in drama in high school. He spent six months in England and attended the University of Washington, graduating in 1979 with a degree in drama. During his career, Richard has performed in many off-Broadway productions. His filmography includes 11 feature films and several made-for-TV movies and television series, including 8 years as Al Borland on Home Improvement with Tim Allen.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
James Richard Kelly better known as Richard Kelly, is an American film director and writer, known for writing and directing the cult classic Donnie Darko in 2001. Kelly was born James Richard Kelly in Newport News, Virginia, the son of Lane and Ennis Kelly. He grew up in Midlothian, Virginia, where he attended Midlothian High School and graduated in 1993. When he was a child, his father worked for NASA on the Mars Viking Lander program. He won a scholarship to the University of Southern California to study at the USC School of Cinema-Television where he was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He made two short films at USC, The Goodbye Place and Visceral Matter, before graduating in 1997.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Towering 7' 2" tall actor who cornered the market on playing giants, intimidating henchmen, bayou swamp monsters and steel toothed villains! Kiel worked in numerous jobs including as a night club bouncer and a cemetery plot salesman, before breaking into film & TV in several minor roles in the late 1950s / early 1960s. Noted among these was the alien "Kanamit" in the classic The Twilight Zone (1959) episode "To Serve Man", and terrorizing Arch Hall Jr. while clad in a loincloth in the prehistoric caveman meets virile teenage drama Eegah (1962).
Kiel turned up in two episodes of the classic horror TV series Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974). On one occasion playing a Native American evil spirit with the ability to transform into various animals. On his second appearance, Kiel was unrecognizable as a Spanish moss covered, Louisiana swamp monster brought to life by a patient involved in deep sleep therapy.
However, his biggest break came in 1977 when he was cast as the unstoppable, steel toothed henchman "Jaws" in the finest Roger Moore film of the Bond series The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). Such was Kiel's popularity with movie audiences, that his character was brought back for the next Bond outing Moonraker (1979). However, audiences were quite split on opinions when Kiel's "Jaws" character changes sides near the film's conclusion and assists 007, Roger Moore, in saving the Earth.
Over the next few years, Kiel appeared in relatively non-demanding comedy or fantasy type films taking advantage of his physical stature and presence. Kiel then decided to try his hand behind the camera and co-wrote and produced, plus took the lead role, in the well received family movie The Giant of Thunder Mountain (1990). Demand for Kiel's unique attributes dropped very sharply in the 1990's, leading to only a handful of roles including reprising his "Jaws" character in the Matthew Broderick film Inspector Gadget (1999). In 2002, Kiel penned his informative autobiography entitled "Making it BIG in the movies". He passed away in 2014.- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Writer
Although Richard Kiley's rich baritone and strong vocal talent was much in evidence and received due respect with his award of a Tony for "Man of La Mancha", it was little used in his television and movie appearances. Won two Tony Awards as Best Actor (Musical): in 1959 for "Redhead" and in 1966 for his signature role, "Man of La Mancha". He was also nominated in the same category in 1962 for "No Strings" and, in 1987, as as Best Actor (Play) for a revival of Arthur Miller's "All My Sons".- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Richard Kind, a Drama Desk Award winner and Tony nominee for the Broadway hit The Big Knife, is an accomplished stage, screen and television actor who continues to redefine the term character actor. Kind is starring as Sam Meyers in the Amazon Original Series Red Oaks (2014). He appeared in the 2013 Best Picture Academy Award-winning Argo (2012). Additional film credits include The Visitor (2007) and The Station Agent (2003), among many others, as well as voicing characters in A Bug's Life (1998) and Cars (2006). In television, besides his infamous roles on Spin City (1996) and Mad About You (1992), Kind starred in the acclaimed HBO series Luck (2011), has guest starred on many shows, and has had recurring roles on Luck (2011) and Gotham (2014). On stage, Kind has starred in the smash hit Broadway musical The Producers, The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, Candide, and Bounce, among others. Kind started his career in Chicago with the Practical Theatre Company, founded by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Brad Hill and Gary Kroeger.- Actor
- Director
- Soundtrack
Richard Kline was born on 29 April 1944 in New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor and director, known for Three's Company (1976), Jack and Jill (2011) and Beverly Hills Ninja (1997). He has been married to Beverley Osgoode since 2002. He was previously married to Sandy Molloy and Kathleen Doyle.- Richard Kohnke is known for When the Game Stands Tall (2014), Woodlawn (2015) and My All-American (2015).
- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Richard LaGravenese was born on 30 October 1959 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Freedom Writers (2007), Paris, I Love You (2006) and Behind the Candelabra (2013). He is married to Ann Weiss. They have one child.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Richard Lawson was born on 7 March 1947 in Loma Linda, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for For Colored Girls (2010), Poltergeist (1982) and How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998). He has been married to Tina Knowles since 12 April 2015. He was previously married to Denise Gordy.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Richard Philip Lewis was born on June 29, 1947 in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Englewood, New Jersey. He went to Dwight Morrow High School and Ohio State University, graduating in 1969 with a degree in marketing and communications. Lewis wrote ad copy in New Jersey while also writing jokes for comedians such as Morty Gunty. He finally got the nerve to perform his own jokes in 1971 at New York's Improvisation and Pips.
After appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) in 1974, he continued to tour and hone his act with help from David Brenner and Robert Klein. His film Diary of a Young Comic (1979) aired in the Saturday Night Live (1975) time-slot. His work on cable "I'm in Pain" for Showtime in 1988, The I'm Exhausted Concert (1988) earned a nomination from American Comedy Awards for Funniest Male Performer in a Television Special (for HBO); Richard Lewis: I'm Doomed (1990) (HBO) won him a second Ace Nomination for Best Stand-Up Comedy Special. His Richard Lewis: The Magical Misery Tour (1996) was filmed at New York's "Bottom Line" in December 1996. In December 1989, he performed to an SRO crowd at Carnegie Hall.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Richard Libertini was born in E. Cambridge, Massachusetts, to parents who had come to America from southern Italy. Having grown up in a household where both Italian and English were spoken, he developed an ear for foreign accents. A facility he would later use to advantage on stage and in films.
He graduated from Emerson College in Boston, and for a while earned a living as a trumpet player in the Boston area. Later, he moved to New York, where he teamed up with two former college classmates, MacIntyre Dixon and Lynda Segal, to create an off-Broadway revue called "Stewed Prunes." (This was during the coffee house revolution in the 1960s. Bob Dylan was playing around the corner.) The show was quite successful and after running a year in New York they took it on the road. While playing Chicago, he was asked to join the renowned Second City Improvisational Theatre Group, an association which continues to the present.
After a number of years doing stage work in New York (Woody Allen's Don't Drink the Water (1969) and Paul Sills' Story Theatre (1971) among many others) he eventually moved to L.A. where he began doing films. Three of his most memorable characters are the Spanish-American dictator in The In-Laws (1979) with Alan Arkin and Peter Falk, the Tibetan Mystic in All of Me (1984) with Steve Martin, and Lily Tomlin and the justice of the peace in Best Friends (1982) with Goldie Hawn and Burt Reynolds. Other films include Fletch (1985) with Chevy Chase and Popeye (1980) with Robin Williams.- Actor
- Stunts
Richard Lineback was born on 4 February 1952 in Frankfurt, Germany. He is an actor, known for Speed (1994), Natural Born Killers (1994) and The Ring (2002).- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Self-taught writer-director Richard Stuart Linklater was born in Houston, Texas, to Diane Margaret (Krieger), who taught at a university, and Charles W. Linklater III. Richard was among the first and most successful talents to emerge during the American independent film renaissance of the 1990s. Typically setting each of his movies during one 24-hour period, Linklater's work explored what he dubbed "the youth rebellion continuum," focusing in fine detail on generational rites and mores with rare compassion and understanding while definitively capturing the 20-something culture of his era through a series of nuanced, illuminating ensemble pieces which introduced any number of talented young actors into the Hollywood firmament. Born in Houston, Texas, Linklater suspended his educational career at Sam Houston State University in 1982, to work on an offshore oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. He subsequently relocated to the state's capital of Austin, where he founded a film society and began work on his debut film, 1987's It's Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books (1988). Three years later he released the sprawling Slacker (1990), an insightful, virtually plotless look at 1990s youth culture that became a favorite on the festival circuit prior to earning vast acclaim at Sundance in 1991. Upon its commercial release, the movie, made for less than $23,000, became the subject of considerable mainstream media attention, with the term "slacker" becoming a much-overused catch-all tag employed to affix a name and identity to America's disaffected youth culture.- Richard Lintern is a Film Television and Stage actor based in London.
He started life in Somerset England, studied at Durham University, then won a scholarship to The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.
Since graduating he has worked extensively across many disciplines, enjoying success at the Royal Shakespeare Company and Royal National Theatre whilst developing a varied and rewarding film and television career. He also has a highly successful voice over career, including narrating BAFTA winning documentaries and voicing animated and games-based characters.
From 2013 til 2020 he starred as Thomas Chamberlain in BBC! Primetime drama Silent Witness, enjoying his role as one of the series' central figures. He left in 2020 to concentrate on developing other projects, both screen and stage based - Actor
- Director
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Entering films straight out of high school, Richard Long's good looks served him well and got him a contract at Universal Pictures. Making his debut as Claudette Colbert's son in Tomorrow Is Forever (1946), Long played juvenile leads in many Universal productions (he was one of the sons in the "Ma and Pa Kettle" series), and gradually worked his way into leading parts in second features. His most successful efforts were in television, however, where he became best known for his roles in the western series The Big Valley (1965) and the comedy Nanny and the Professor (1970).- Actor
- Producer
Richard Hugh Lynch was born on February 12, 1940 in Brooklyn, New York City, to Irish immigrant parents. He was one of seven children. Before starting a career as an actor, he joined the United States Marine Corps in 1958. He served for four years where he made Corporal, and did a tour of the Middle East with the Sixth Fleet. He began his training with Herbert Berghof and Uta Hagen at H.B. Studios in New York's Greenwich Village, and later went on to train extensively with Lee Strasberg at Carnegie Hall. In 1970, he became a lifetime member of the Actors Studio and spent years in the New York theater community playing in dozens of on- and off-Broadway productions. The more notable plays were: "The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel", "The Lion in Winter", "The Devils", "The Lady from the Sea", "Action", "Live Like Pigs", "Richard III", "Offi on a Tangerine", "A View from the Bridge", "The Man with the Flower in His Mouth", and Shelley Winters' "One Night Stands of a Noisy Passenger".
Lynch made his film debut in the classic film Scarecrow (1973), winner of the Grand Prix Award at the Cannes Film Festival. His performance in Scarecrow launched his film career and brought him to Hollywood, where he has worked in film and television for over twenty years. His more prominent film work has been in: The Seven-Ups (1973), Open Season (1974), The Formula (1980), Invasion U.S.A. (1985), Bad Dreams (1988), Little Nikita (1988), Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment (2002), and William Peter Blatty's The Ninth Configuration (1980). His performance as the evil King Cromwell, in the successful fantasy film The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982), won him the Saturn Award for Best Actor from the Academy of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Although best known for playing villains, he was cast as the President of the United States in Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy (2007).
He also starred in numerous television series and Movies of the Week, such as Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story (1980), Sizzle (1981), Vampire (1979), Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979), Battlestar Galactica (1978), and the Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) two-part episode "Gambit". His work in a variety of independent films has won him a high profile internationally. He has also worked in China, where he played in the first joint production between the Screen Actors' Guild and the People's Republic of China, The Korean Project. In his spare time, Richard enjoys fishing, the arts, architecture, music and poetry. He is also fluent in several languages including German and Italian.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Richard Madden, born 18 June 1986, is a Scottish stage, film, and television actor best known for portraying Robb Stark in the HBO series "Game of Thrones" and Prince Kit in Disney's "Cinderella." Starring as David Budd in the BBC miniseries "Bodyguard" has also brought him more international acclaim and attention including a Golden Globe and other nominations. Despite his seemingly overnight success, Madden has been acting since he was in his teens, with only a brief break where he focused on school.
Madden was born in Elderslie, Renfrewshire, Scotland, where he was brought up with two sisters. His mother, Pat, is a classroom assistant, and his father, Richard, is in the fire brigade.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Masur has been active in the theatre with increasing frequency. His Broadway debut was in The Changing Room by David Storey (1973). More recently, Masur returned to Broadway in Michael Frayn's Democracy (2004-05), and, among his many off-Broadway and regional theatre appearances, are recent major roles in A Feminine Ending by Sarah Treem (Playwrights Horizons - 2007), and Mike Leigh's Two Thousand Years (The New Group - 2008).- Richard McCabe was born on 18 August 1960 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He is an actor, known for The Constant Gardener (2005), Eye in the Sky (2015) and Notting Hill (1999).
- Actor
- Producer
Richard Francis McGonagle is an American actor from Boston. He is known for voicing Victor Sullivan from Uncharted, General Grievous from Star Wars before he was replaced by Matthew Wood, Odin from Samurai Jack, the Precursor Leader from Jak and Daxter, Four Arms from Ben 10, Bato from Avatar: The Last Airbender and Abin Sur from Green Lantern: First Flight.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Charles Richard Moll was an American actor. He is perhaps best known for playing the role of Aristotle Nostradamus "Bull" Shannon, the bailiff on the NBC sitcom Night Court from 1984 to 1992. He has also done extensive work as a voice actor, typically using his deep voice to portray villainous characters in animation and video games, most notably the voice of Two-Face in Batman: The Animated Series and Batman: The Brave and the Bold. Moll passed away on October 26, 2023 at the age of 80.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Originally a student of playwriting at Columbia University, Richard Mulligan began his acting career in regional theater and soon after made his Broadway debut in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play "All the Way Home". In addition to his continuing Broadway career, Mulligan had successfully transferred his unique comedic talents to film and television. On the big screen, he had appeared in such films as Little Big Man (1970), The Big Bus (1976), Teachers (1984) and The Heavenly Kid (1985). He had also performed in a number of Blake Edwards' films, including S.O.B. (1981), Trail of the Pink Panther (1982), Micki + Maude (1984) and A Fine Mess (1986). Mulligan had made numerous guest-starring television appearances, but it was his role as Burt Campbell in Witt-Thomas-Harris' offbeat sitcom Soap (1977) that earned him his first Emmy Award. He also starred in the short-lived sitcom Reggie (1983). His movie-of-the-week and miniseries credits include Pueblo (1973), Poker Alice (1987), Harvey (1996) and the acclaimed Guess Who's Coming for Christmas? (1990) with Beau Bridges. He was the brother of director Robert Mulligan.- Writer
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. He was a member of the Republican Party who previously served as a representative and senator from California and was the 36th vice president from 1953 to 1961. His five years in the White House saw reduction of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, detente with the Soviet Union and China, the first manned Moon landings, and the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency and Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Nixon's second term ended early, when he became the only president to resign from office, following the Watergate scandal.- Actor
- Stunts
- Producer
A powerful screen presence, Richard Norton wins the applause of international audiences with his engaging ability to play either the hero or the heavy. Rare versatility and focused work ethic have enabled him to build an expanding library of almost 100 film and television titles. The disciplines that brought Norton success originated in his hometown of Croydon, Australia, and his early fascination with martial arts. By age 17 he was a karate black belt working security for nightclubs and serving as chief instructor to 500 karate schools nationwide. He landed a job as bodyguard to The Rolling Stones during the band's Australian tour and experienced his first brush with the demands of global celebrity. Norton trained with Mick Jagger in 4:00 a.m. workouts after concerts. His competency attracted a dazzling roster of other rock star clientèle including James Taylor, ABBA, Fleetwood Mac, David Bowie and Linda Ronstadt, who invited him to California as her bodyguard. Before Aussies invaded Hollywood in posses, Norton ventured there alone. A friendship with Chuck Norris brought him work in motion pictures. Norris cast Norton as the lethal Kyo, a masked ninja, in The Octagon (1980), and their grueling final combat endures as a classic cinematic fight scene. Director Robert Clouse chose Norton to be one of the ensemble heroes in Force: Five (1981), an international hit, and the young martial artist's career in movies took off. His reputation for stellar performances emerged largely from high-energy Hong Kong films directed by Sammo Kam-Bo Hung and starring Jackie Chan in the mid-'80s. Muscular charisma made Norton the perfect Anglo bad boy for Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars (1985) and Millionaires' Express (1986). Taking the hits of his screen adversaries in those films earned Norton more Hong Kong work and, notably, Chan's abiding respect. Richard calls Jackie "the maestro of martial arts movies." Jackie has returned the compliment by recruiting Norton as one of just two Western actors to perform in several of his Hong Kong-based productions, including the comedic cult favorite Madam City Hunter (1993) and the darker Mr. Nice Guy (1997), directed by Hung. Hung encouraged Norton to play the "Guy" nemesis, a well-heeled gangster, with eccentric edginess. Norton embraced the direction and delivered one of the best co-starring performances in all of Chan's films. The success of Norton's Hong Kong work made him an established star in action films and a frequent cover subject for global martial arts and movie magazines. His collaborations with Cynthia Rothrock catapulted them to a level of fame that inspired a British magazine to deem them the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers of martial arts movies. The recurring partners produced two Rage and Honor (1992) movies, besides co-starring in China O'Brien (1990) and Lady Dragon (1992), among other titles. They reunited for Redemption (2002) with 'Don 'The Dragon' Wilson'. Norton nurtured his leading man status in crime dramas, MIA pictures and futuristic adventures that often featured his real-life training partners in supporting roles, such as Chuck Jeffreys in Rage (1993) and Benny Urquidez in The Fighter (1989). With standout performances in The Sword of Bushido (1990) and Under the Gun (1995), Norton displayed his attraction to heroes with dimensions, even flaws, that force them into action. His style of action incorporates the humor essential to humanizing a hero. It is the dark comedy in Mind Games (2003), directed by Adrian Carr, that enables Norton to triumph in another well-textured role as a suspicious Texan, demonstrating that he takes risks as an actor who ventures beyond action genres. Norton's credits behind the camera have become as diverse as his screen roles. Apart from acting and producing, he is a sought-after stunt/fight coordinator, choreographing action in films such as Nomad: The Warrior (2005), produced by Milos Forman, and Devil's Pond (2003), with Tara Reid and Kip Pardue. Despite a busy career, he continues to achieve black belts in the martial arts, always a motivating force for Norton's accomplishments- Actor
- Writer
- Music Department
Born in Cheltenham, England, Richard Smith's family moved to Tauranga, New Zealand, in 1951 when his father, an accountant, decided to become a sheep farmer. Watching horror and science-fiction double features in nearby Hamilton, Smith added an interest in acting to his love of rock and roll. He moved back to England in 1964, tried singing, then became a movie stuntman and fringe theater actor. He changed his name to O'Brien (his beloved maternal grandmother's name) one day while on the phone to British Actors Equity, to avoid confusion with another Richard Smith. He met director Jim Sharman in 1972, when Sharman cast him in the dual roles of Apostle and Leper for the London stage production (transferred from Sharman's native Australia) of "Jesus Christ Superstar". Working again with Sharman on a production of Sam Shepard's "The Unseen Hand", O'Brien mentioned a new rock musical he'd been writing called "Rock Horror." The play went into rehearsals as "They Came from Denton High," and at Sharman's suggestion, was retitled "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" before opening in June 1973.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Richard Poe was born in Portola, California and later moved to his "hometown" of Pittsburg, California. He attended high school there, and then graduated from the University of San Francisco in 1967. After a stint in the army during the Vietnam War, he got his first theater job with the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, appearing in productions of St Joan, Hadrian VII, Rosencrantz and Guilderstern are Dead, and Oedipus Rex. He toured the country with Dame Judith Anderson, who played Hamlet at the age of 73 to Richard's Rosencrantz. Tour stops included Carnegie Hall and all of America's major cities. He played major roles at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, at Houston's Alley Theater, Syracuse Stage, Hartford Stage Company, Center Stage Baltimore, Goodman Theatre, Long Wharf Theater, Berkshire Theatre Festival, and Huntington Theater. He played Henry Higgins in Pygmalion opposite Roma Downey as Eliza Dolittle; George Antrobus in The Skin of Our teeth opposite Marcia Gay Harden as Sabina; with John Lithgow on Broadway in M. Butterfly; and with Kevin Dobson in ART at Chicago's Royal George Theater. He has appeared in twelve Broadway productions in his twenty years in New York City- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
A veteran of stage, film and television with a variety of characters to his credit, Richard Portnow was named one of the "Actors We Love" by the actors' trade newspaper Back Stage West. "Portnow knows exactly how to hook an audience with every character." This Brooklyn native has worked steadily for 30 years and has built a solid list of credits, appearing in some of the most highly regarded and successful films and television shows of the past three decades.
His entire family hails from Brooklyn. His folks, Al and Flo, are gone, but he has a brother (Jay), a sister (Gayle), two nephews (John and Sam) and three nieces (Samara, Ilana and Maia). He graduated with a BA degree as a speech and theater major from Brooklyn College. He did not shine while in college, and was discouraged from continuing as an actor with the critique that he was "hopeless and without any ability or talent" (he continues to wonder if the faculty was right). He has been a bartender, an antique dealer, a boxer, an international drug trafficker, a fifth-grade teacher in the NYC public school system, a competitive body builder, a truck driver, a bouncer, a bagel maker, a short-order cook, a marathon runner, a designer, a competitive gymnast, a background extra, a disco dancer at the famed "Arthur" discotheque, and a confused and aimless layabout. Richard is 6'0", weighs in at a trim 180 lb. and continues to box. He has excellent defensive skills and his ability to stop punches with his face has made him a local favorite.
Portnow assayed the role of attorney Hal "Mel" Melvoin on the Emmy-winning HBO series The Sopranos (1999), the lawyer for Uncle Junior, whom he singlehandedly kept out of prison and managed to get placed under house arrest instead. His rates for defending Corrado Soprano (Uncle Juniors's full name) are astronomical, but as Uncle June has said, "Mel, you're worth every penny". He has held this role since the show's inception in 1999.
Richard began his professional career at the famed Cafe La Mama in New York City, appearing in plays by Tom Eyen, Leonard Melfi, Jeff Weiss, Megan Terry, Tom O'Horgan and Lanford Wilson. He won "The Best Newcomer of the Year" award from Show Business Magazine as a result of his early work off-off-Broadway. He continued his stage career with starring roles on Broadway in "The House of Blue Leaves" and "A Month of Sundays". He was in the original cast of "Moonchildren" at the prestigious Royal Court Theatre in London. He has also worked extensively at some of the most highly regarded regional theaters in the country, including The Long Wharf Theater, The Berkshire Theatre Festival for the brilliant director Josephine Abady, The Philadelphia Drama Guild, The Lowell Regional Theater and the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Neil Simon's "Oscar and Felix" at The Geffen Playhouse marked Richard's Los Angeles stage debut. His has also appeared in Woody Allen's "Writer's Block", which was directed by Allen at The Atlantic Theater Company in New York.
Richard has been fortunate and privileged to work with some of the best directors in film today. Among those who have had a profound influence on him are Barry Levinson, Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, David Fincher, Woody Allen, Sydney Pollack, James Foley, Jim Jarmusch, Heywood Gould, Cameron Crowe and Sidney Lumet. He has also appeared as a regular on the critically acclaimed series EZ Streets (1996) and on the police drama Ryan Caulfield: Year One (1999). He has had guest-starring appearances on ""Elementary" (2016), "The Good Wife"(2015), "Grimm"(2015), "Parks and Recreation" (2014), "Suits (2014), "Castle" (2014), "CSI New York" (2012), "Hawaii Five-0" (2012), "Nip/Tuck." (2009), "Cold Case" (2008), "Boston Legal" (2006), Seinfeld (1989), Mad About You (1992), Going to California (2001), Spin City (1996), NYPD Blue (1993), The Shield (2002), Dave's World (1993), Civil Wars (1991), Homefront (1991), Double Rush (1995), JAG (1995), Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993), The Nanny (1993), Middle Ages (1992), The Commish (1991) Wiseguy (1987) and Walker, Texas Ranger (1993).
Richard has also starred in numerous movies of the week and mini series, most notably Neil Simon's Laughter on the 23rd Floor (2001), Double Bang (2001), Bella Mafia (1997), A Deadly Silence (1989), Original Sin (1997), Peter Gunn (1989) and Indictment: The McMartin Trial (1995).
Richard shares his home with an unpredictable Chow/Shiba Inu named "Sweetie" and a feisty English Cocker Spaniel named "Jackpot" Richard is an avid collector of Americana from the 1940s and 1950s, with special focus on the original oil paintings created for the "pulp magazine" covers of the 1930s and 1940s.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Highly influential, and always controversial, African-American actor/comedian who was equally well known for his colorful language during his live comedy shows, as for his fast paced life, multiple marriages and battles with drug addiction. He has been acknowledged by many modern comic artist's as a key influence on their careers, and Pryor's observational humor on African-American life in the USA during the 1970s was razor sharp brilliance.
He was born Richard Franklin Lennox Pryor III on December 1, 1940, in Peoria, Illinois, the son of Gertrude L. (Thomas) and LeRoy "Buck Carter" Pryor. His mother, a prostitute, abandoned him when he was ten years of age, after which he was raised in his grandmother's brothel. Unfortunately, Pryor was molested at the age of six by a teenage neighbor, and later by a neighborhood preacher. To escape this troubled life, the young Pryor was an avid movie fan and a regular visitor to local movie theaters in Peoria. After numerous jobs, including truck driver and meat packer, the young Pryor did a stint in the US Army between 1958 & 1960 in which he performed in amateur theater shows. After he left the services in 1960, Pryor started singing in small clubs, but inadvertently found that humor was his real forte.
Pryor spent time in both New York & Las Vegas, honing his comic craft. However, his unconventional approach to humor sometimes made bookings difficult to come by and this eventually saw Pryor heading to Los Angeles. He first broke into films with minor roles in The Busy Body (1967) and Wild in the Streets (1968). However, his performance as a drug addicted piano player in Lady Sings the Blues (1972), really got the attention of fans and film critics alike.
He made his first appearance with Gene Wilder in the very popular action/comedy Silver Streak (1976), played three different characters in Which Way Is Up? (1977) and portrayed real-life stock-car driver "Wendell Scott" in Greased Lightning (1977). Proving he was more than just a comedian, Pryor wowed audiences as a disenchanted auto worker who is seduced into betraying his friends and easy money in the Paul Schrader working class drama Blue Collar (1978), also starring Yaphet Kotto and Harvey Keitel. Always a strong advocate of African-American talent, Pryor next took a key role in The Wiz (1978), starring an all African-American cast, including Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, retelling the story of The Wizard of Oz (1939). His next four screen roles were primarily cameos in California Suite (1978); The Muppet Movie (1979); Wholly Moses! (1980) and In God We Trust (or Gimme That Prime Time Religion) (1980). However, Pryor teamed up with Gene Wilder once more for the prison comedy Stir Crazy (1980), which did strong box office business.
His next few films were a mixed bag of material, often inhibiting Pryor's talent, with equally mixed returns at the box office. Pryor then scored second billing to Christopher Reeve in the big budget Superman III (1983), and starred alongside fellow funny man John Candy in Brewster's Millions (1985) before revealing his inner self in the autobiographical Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling (1986). Again, Pryor was somewhat hampered by poor material in his following film ventures. However, he did turn up again in See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989) with Gene Wilder, but the final product was not as sharp as their previous pairings. Pryor then partnered on-screen with two other very popular African-American comic's. The legendary Redd Foxx and 1980s comic newcomer Eddie Murphy starred with Pryor in the gangster film Harlem Nights (1989) which was also directed by Eddie Murphy. Having contracted multiple sclerosis in 1986, Pryor's remaining film appearances were primarily cameos apart from his fourth and final outing with Gene Wilder in the lukewarm Another You (1991), and his final appearance in a film production was a small role in the David Lynch road flick Lost Highway (1997).
Fans of this outrageous comic genius are encouraged to see his live specials Richard Pryor: Live and Smokin' (1971); the dynamic Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979); Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip (1982) and Richard Pryor... Here and Now (1983). In addition, The Richard Pryor Show (1977) is a must-have for any Richard Pryor fans' DVD collection.
Unknown to many, Pryor was a long time advocate against animal cruelty, and he campaigned against fast food chains and circus shows to address issues of animal welfare. He was married a total of seven times, and fathered eight children.
After long battles with ill health, Richard Pryor passed away on December 10th, 2005.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Richard Rankin was born in Rutherglen, Glasgow, Scotland, UK on 4 January 1983, his birth name actually being Richard Harris. It was changed to Rankin, his mother's maiden name, to avoid any confusion with the famous Irish actor. Initially wanting to be an IT professional, he was inspired by a trip to Los Angeles at the age of 21 to train as an actor the following year.
Richard first attracted attention in the Scottish comedy series "Burnistoun," which was shown regionally, and toured worldwide in the Olivier Award-winning play "Black Watch" for the National Theatre of Scotland. It was his iconic role as Capt. Thomas Gillan in "The Crimson Field" that led to other strong performances on national television such as "Silent Witness," the third season of "The Syndicate," "From Darkness," and "Thirteen" for the BBC. In 2016, Richard made his debut as the pivotal character of Roger Wakefield in the epic STARZ/Sony production "Outlander," a role that showcased his tremendous emotional power as an actor for an international audience.- Actor
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Richard Ridings was born on 19 September 1958 in Henley-on-Thames, England, UK. He is an actor and composer, known for Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), The Pianist (2002) and Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). He has been married to Catherine Jensen since 1984. They have two children.- Actor
- Producer
Richard Riehle was born in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, to Mary Margaret (Walsh), a nurse, and Herbert John Riehle, an assistant postmaster. He is of German and Irish descent. Richard attended the University of Notre Dame, where he became heavily involved with the University Theatre. Appearing in such productions as "Luther", "Antigone", "Rhinoceros", "Romeo and Juliet", and "How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying", he also took on the task of stage manager on many of these productions, and it was not unusual to find him helping to build the sets or manage the costumes during this period. Graduating with a B.A. (cum laude) in 1970, Richard traveled to Salzburg and Innsbruck to study German, a language in which he is fluent. Progressing to Academy of Dramatic Art in Rochester, Michigan, Richard has had extensive experience as a stage actor, as well as teaching acting, and made his Broadway debut in 1986 with "Execution of Justice". One of his major triumphs in the theatre has been alongside Kevin Spacey in the acclaimed 1999 revival of O'Neill's "The Iceman Cometh", in which he played the drunken, corrupt ex-cop Pat McGloin. Brief appearances in Rooster Cogburn, The Duchess and Dirtwater Fox, Joy Ride, and Twice in a Lifetime, as well as in such TV fare as Escape From Hell (1977), Joe Kennedy: The Forgotten Kennedy (1977), and the NBC series "Hot Pursuit" (1984) have disguised an expanding repertory theatre portfolio. Richard has also contributed to such diverse undertakings as Bay Area Radio's Eugene O'Neill Project (playing Smithers to Joe Morton's Brutis Jones in "The Emperor Jones") and the Adams-Jefferson Project of Carleton College, participating in a series of recordings of the correspondence between the two US Presidents. To this day, Richard has maintained his involvement in theatre workshops and encouraging the dramatic arts under the auspices of the Mark Taper Forum and A.S.K. However, since his scene-stealing cameo as the Quartermaster in 1989's Glory, with his trademark bushy mustache and heavyset frame, Richard has acquitted himself as one of the best, and busiest, character players on TV and in the movies.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Distinctive American actor, screenwriter, and producer of Lebanese ancestry, born Richard Joseph Romanos to Dr. Raymond Daniel Romanos and his wife Eileen Dorothy ((née Maloof). His younger brother, Robert, is also an actor. Richard attended Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio, graduating with a degree in philosophy in 1964. He initially set out to pursue a career in law. After studying for a year at the University of Connecticut Law School, he dropped out, moved to New York and enrolled in drama classes with Lee Strasberg at the renowned Actor's Studio. He made his screen debut in 1968 and quickly established himself as a versatile character player in high profile TV shows, commencing with Mission: Impossible (1966). Often cast as Latinos or Italians, he was reputedly considered for the role of Michael Corleone in The Godfather (1972). In fact, he did play a gangster named Michael (Longo) in Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets (1973).
In episodic television, Richard came to be equally adept at portraying good guys (Detective Sam Carlucci in Kojak (1973)) and black Hats (Johnny Noah in Hawaii Five-O (1968)). He had recurring roles in the short-lived, underrated detective series Tenspeed and Brown Shoe (1980) as the aptly named Crazy Tommy Tedesco, and, conversely, as tough police captains in Foul Play (1981). He was also a regular in the cast of Strike Force (1981) as the wry ladies' man Charlie Gunzer. In The Sopranos (1999), Richard played the ex-husband of psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi (Lorraine Bracco) who strongly disapproved of her treating Mafia don Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini).
Richard's first wife was the actress Tina Romanus (aka Bohlman, aka Bowman). Their marriage produced a son but ended in divorce in 1980. In 1985, he married the Oscar-nominated costume designer Anthea Sylbert. Together, they wrote the TV comedy Giving Up the Ghost (1998) and the Christmas fantasy If You Believe (1999), the latter receiving a nomination for a Best Original Screenplay Award from the Writers Guild of America in 1999. In 2004, the couple sold their home in Los Angeles and resettled on the Greek island of Skiathos. Henceforth, Richard concentrated on writing novels on Greek historical themes, an interest he had developed during his college years. He published 'Chrysalis' in 2011 and 'Matoula's Echo' in 2014, as well as a memoir, 'Act III', in 2012. A 2013 book, 'Sketches of Skiathos', was a homage to his new home and its inhabitants.
A member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Writers Guild of America, and a fellow of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, Richard Romanus died on December 26 2023 on Skiathos at the age of 80.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Richard Roundtree shot to fame as the ultra-hip, flamboyantly-dressed -- not to mention charismatic-- private eye John Shaft. The film Shaft (1971) spawned a genre, two sequels and a series. It made Roundtree a household name, and, for a while, one of the hottest box-office stars in Hollywood. As New York Times reviewer Vincent Canby put it: "Shaft is the sort of man who can drink five fingers of scotch without gagging or his eyes watering. He moves through Whitey's world with perfect ease and aplomb, but never loses his independence, or his awareness of where his life is really at." Rather aptly, Roundtree has been described as blaxploitation's James Bond.
Fame and success did not come at once. The son of Kathryn (a nurse and/or maid), and John Roundtree (employed variously as a garbage collector and caterer), Richard was born in New Rochelle, New York. During high school, he excelled at football and duly won an athletic scholarship at Southern Illinois University. However, he dropped out in 1963 and worked a succession of different jobs, including as janitor and salesman. He became a fashion model after being signed by Eunice Johnson of Ebony Magazine, later posing as an advertising model for a brand of hair grease and for Salem cigarettes. Deciding to give acting a go, Roundtree returned to New York to take drama lessons. In 1967, he joined the acclaimed Negro Ensemble Company, working alongside people like Robert Hooks, Rosalind Cash and Moses Gunn. He was soon cast in several off-Broadway productions and had a first headlining role as boxing legend Jack Johnson in The Great White Hope.
In 1971, Roundtree, then a virtual unknown in show biz, ignited the screen as the macho sleuth Shaft. Slickly directed by Gordon Parks and filmed on location in Harlem, Greenwich Village and Times Square, the picture was a tangible box-office hit, which satisfied both black and white audiences alike and likely saved a struggling MGM from impending bankruptcy. Shaft can also be said to have spawned the blaxploitation action genre of the 70s. Roundtree went on to star in two less successful sequels (Shaft's Big Score! (1972) and Shaft in Africa (1973)) and a series. He reprised his character for a 2000 motion picture which starred Samuel L. Jackson as John Shaft's nephew.
Down the line, Roundtree portrayed a few other robust characters: a Union army deserter teaming up with a crippled Indian to escape a sadistic bounty hunter in Charley-One-Eye (1973), a professional jewel thief in Diamonds (1975) (alternatively titled 'Diamond Shaft'-- a curious coincidence), a treasure hunter in Day of the Assassin (1979) and a Zimbabwean guerrilla in Game for Vultures (1979). By the mid-80s, however, the actor found himself increasingly relegated to the supporting cast as conventional establishment figures, often police or army officers.Television afforded him several good roles, notably in the Emmy Award-winning miniseries Roots (1977) and as former slave-turned gunslinger Isaiah "Ice" McAdams in Outlaws (1986). He subsequently had recurring roles in the cast of the soap Generations (1989) (as a doctor), the drama Being Mary Jane (2013) (as the titular talk show host's dad) and (as a grandfather) in the sitcom Family Reunion (2019).
Roundtree's accolades have included an MTV Lifetime Achievement Award for Shaft in 1994, a Peabody Award in 2002 and a Black Theater Alliance Award Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010.
Though diagnosed with male breast cancer in 1993 and having undergone both chemotherapy and a double mastectomy, Roundtree bravely soldiered on in his chosen profession and continued to act on screen right up to his death from pancreatic cancer on October 24 2023, at the age of 81.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Richard Roxburgh is an Australian actor, writer and producer who is known for portraying Dracula in the 2004 cult classic monster movie Van Helsing starring Hugh Jackman, Hugh Stamp in Mission: Impossible 2 and for his collaborations with Baz Luhrmann, particularly Moulin Rouge. He is married to his Van Helsing co-star Silvia Colloca since 2004 and has three children with her.- Richard Robert Ruccolo was born on March 2, 1972, in Marlton, New Jersey. He first discovered his love of acting after he earned the role of Will Parker in his high school's production of "Oklahoma!" After school, he left for Los Angeles, California, where he slept on a friend's sofa until he could find work as an actor. He won small roles on Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990) and The X-Files (1993), and later starred in Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place (1998) as Pete Dunville. He now lives outside of Los Angeles and continues to win roles in movies such as All Over the Guy (2001), The One (2003), and Anacardium (2001).
- An artist of international range and reputation, Richard Sammel is fluent, and has acted in, English, German, French, Italian and Spanish. He has starred in some forty films and sixty television films, shot on locations ranging from Sweden to Italy, Portugal to Slovakia, England to the Balkans, but also Canada, South Africa, and the United States, for such directors as Quentin Tarantino, Luc Besson, Martin Campbell, Bertrand Tavernier, Claude Lelouche, Jean-Paul Rappeneau, Roberto Begnini, Dario Argento, McG and Michel Hazanavicius. He has acted, danced and directed for the stage in theaters all over Europe, Russia and Canada.
The prolific actor has recently completed "A Day Like a Week", a supernatural thriller in which Sammel stars opposite Armand Assante for director Kader Ayd. Sammel returns for the seventh season of "The French Village", an enormously popular French TV series in which he has had a leading role since its beginning. Sammel also stars as 'Thomas Eichhorst' in the hit FX series "The Strain", for director Guillermo Del Toro and Carlton Cuse.
Sammel made his professional acting debut in 1981 on stage in Hildesheim, Germany. From 1983, he worked in France, as a musician, dancer and actor where his breakthrough came in 1987, with an acclaimed performance in Catch, by the Company Nelson Dumont. Beginning in 1989, he worked in Rome with theater director Giorgio Barberio Corsetti, and met Susan Strasberg, who assisted him in securing his film debut, the lead role in Il Piacere Delle Carni, for director Barbara Barni. In 1993, Sammel moved to Paris and landed the lead role in the musical film version of the Brecht-Eisler opera The Lindberghs Flight. An indelible performance in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds in 2009 brought Sammel international recognition. In 2012, he won "Best Actor" at the Syracuse International Film Festival for his performance in Ruggero Dipaola's Apartment in Athens.
His other film credits include Les Miserable du XX Siècle for director Claude Lelouche; Life is Beautiful for director Roberto Begnini; the original Taxi written by Luc Besson; Casino Royale for director Martin Campbell; Beauty and the Beast opposite Vincent Cassel and Léa Seydoux for director Christophe Gans; and most recently McG's Three Days to Kill opposite Kevin Costner.
Richard Sammel was born in Heidelberg, Germany. He studied music, especially the violin, and then went on to follow his true passion, which was acting. He studied both music and acting in Hildesheim, Germany; acting and directing in Aix en Provence; and acting with both Susan Strasberg and Francesca de Sapio in Rome. He is drawn to roles that require physical play, rhythm and timing, a reflection of his dance training; and those that require a deep emotional inner life, a reflection of his intense training in method acting. He lives in Paris and Berlin. - Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Richard Sanders was born on 23 August 1940 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for WKRP in Cincinnati (1978), Men of Honor (2000) and Day of the Tentacle (1993). He is married to Marilynn Marko-Sanders.- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Richard was born in Bethesda, Maryland, the middle of three sons of Edward, a real estate lawyer, and Charlotte, a cable TV and publishing executive. His parents divorced when he was 12. He dropped out of high school and switched to night school because he could finish sooner with less work. He studied at the City College of New York (CCNY) in 1973. "In college when I tripped and fell over the drama program at the City College of New York, and went and got into the Professional Acting Training Program by fluke, and Earle Gister, who was, uh, had just come from Carnegie-Melon, and was on his way to the Yale School of Drama stopped for a little pit stop at the City College of New York for three years to run the Davis Center for Performing Arts. I was very lucky that he was there." After not bothering to show up for finals though, he headed to Colorado where he cut firewood and lived a hippie life. He returned to New York in 1975 and started studying acting at CCNY and eventually was accepted into their theater program. He initially disliked acting and studied to be a director. He directed several off-Broadway plays, including "Antigone" with a then just-graduated Angela Bassett in 1983. He also met present wife, Sheila Kelley, during auditions for this play. The two married in 1996. In the mid-1980s, Richard says he conquered his fears and decided to take a stab at acting. He got several TV roles, but he was seen by Steven Spielberg in an episode of the TV drama High Incident (1996). Spielberg then cast him in The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) and his career has been on an upward climb ever since that has led to his co-starring role in The West Wing (1999).- Music Department
- Composer
- Writer
Richard Morton Sherman was born in the spring of 1928 in New York City to Rosa and Al Sherman. Together with his older brother, Robert B. Sherman, the Sherman brothers would follow in their songwriting father's footsteps to form one of the most prolific, lauded and long lasting songwriting partnerships of all time.
Richard was an enthusiastic and energetic child and youth, still bearing that trademark trait well into his seventies. Following seven years of frequent cross-country moves, the Shermans finally settled down in Beverly Hills, California in 1937. Throughout Richard's years at Beverly Hills High School and Bard College in upstate New York, he became fascinated with music and studied several instruments including the flute, piccolo and piano. At Bard, Richard majored in music and wrote numerous sonatas and "art songs" during his time there but it was Richard's ambition to write the "Great American Symphony" which eventually led him to write songs.
Within two years of graduating, Richard and his brother Robert began writing songs together on a challenge from their father. In 1957, Richard married Elizabeth Gluck with whom he had three children. In 1958, the Sherman brothers enjoyed their first hit with their song, "Tall Paul", sung by Mouseketeer Annette Funicello. The success of this song yielded the attention of Walt Disney, who eventually hired the Sherman brothers on as staff songwriters for Walt Disney Studios.
While at Disney, the Sherman brothers wrote what is perhaps their most well-loved song: "It's a Small World (After All)" for the New York World's Fair in 1964. Since then, "Small World" has become the most translated and performed song on earth.
In 1965, the Sherman brothers won 2 Academy Awards for Mary Poppins (1964), which includes the songs "Feed The Birds", "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" and the Oscar winner, "Chim Chim Cher-ee". Since Mary Poppins (1964)' motion picture premiere, the Sherman brothers have subsequently earned nine Academy Award nominations, two Grammy Awards, four Grammy Award nominations, and an incredible 23 gold and platinum albums.
Robert and Richard worked directly for Walt Disney until his death in 1966. Since leaving the company, the brother songwriting team has worked freelance on scores of motion pictures, television shows, theme park exhibits and stage musicals. Their first non-Disney assignment came with Albert R. Broccoli's motion picture production Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), which garnered the brothers their third Academy Award nomination.
In 1973, the Sherman brothers made history by becoming the only Americans, ever, to win First Prize at the Moscow Film Festival for Tom Sawyer (1973). They also authored the screenplay for "Tom Sawyer".
In 1976, The Slipper and the Rose: The Story of Cinderella (1976), was picked to be the Royal Command Performance of the year, and the event was attended by Her Royal Highness, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. A modern musical adaptation of the classic Cinderella story, "Slipper" also features both songscore and screenplay by the Sherman brothers. That same year, the Sherman brothers received their star on the Hollywood "Walk of Fame" directly across from Grauman's Chinese Theater. Their numerous other Disney and Non-Disney top box office film credits include The Jungle Book (1967), The Aristocats (1970), The Parent Trap (1961), Charlotte's Web (1973), The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977), Snoopy Come Home (1972), Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), and Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989).
Outside the motion picture realm, their Tony-nominated smash hit, "Over Here!" (1974) was the biggest grossing original Broadway musical of that year. The Sherman brothers have also written numerous top selling songs including "You're Sixteen", which holds the distinction of reaching Billboard's #1 spot twice; first with Johnny Burnette in 1960 and, then, with Ringo Starr, fourteen years later. Other top-ten hits include "Pineapple Princess", "Let's Get Together", and more.
In 2000, the Sherman brothers wrote the song score for Disney's blockbuster film The Tigger Movie (2000). This film marked the brother's first major motion picture for the Disney company in over 28 years.
In 2002, "Chitty" hit the London stage and received rave revues. "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Stage Musical" is currently the most successful stage show ever produced at the London Palladium. In 2005, a second company will premiere on Broadway (New York City). The Sherman brothers wrote an additional six songs specifically for the new stage productions.
In 2003, four Sherman brothers' musicals ranked in the "Top 10 Favorite Children's Films of All Time" in a (British) nationwide poll reported by the BBC. The Jungle Book (1967) ranked at #7, Mary Poppins (1964) ranked at #8, The Aristocats (1970) ranked at #9 and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) topped the list at #1.
Richard Sherman resides in Beverly Hills, California with his wife, Elizabeth.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
In 2024, Richard will be seen starring and producing in the New Zealand feature "Mysterious Ways" about a homosexual vicar at war with the Anglican hierarchy, which will be seen globally at festivals. Most recently seen in Joel Coen's "The Tragedy of Macbeth" (2021) alongside Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand, as well as "Jack Ryan: Season 3" (2022) for Amazon and will be seen at festivals worldwide in the short film "The Night Passenger".
Globally, he is also starring in the original TV series Mary Kills People, now airing the third and final season. For his role as the very complex surgeon Des Bennett, Short was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award (for Best Lead Actor in a Drama series) in 2018.
His most recent stage appearance was as 'Richard Burton' in the hugely acclaimed World Premiere of "CLEO", a play directed by Bob Balaban and written by Pulitzer Prize winner Lawrence Wright, set during the filming of the 1963 movie Cleopatra.
In 2016, Short co-starred in HBO's Vinyl opposite Olivia Wilde. In 2015, he co-starred in Agent Carter, where he played Marvel's first ever gay comic book character, Pinky Pinkerton. Short's diverse range of television credits include appearances in Code Black, Time After Time, Training Day, American Horror Story, Blue Bloods, White Collar, Fringe, Bored to Death, Vera and Covert Affairs among others but it was in 2013 he really came to the attention of audiences worldwide as the villainous "Harlan Moore" in ABC's '666 Park Avenue'.
In film, Short recently took the title of role of King Arthur in "Arthur & Merlin", screening on Amazon, as well as the UK horror feature film 'The Dare' and can now be seen on Amazon in the indie film 'Crazy Famous', as well as in the short-film Abe, directed by Steve Brett. He also starred in the indie films 'Cockroaches' and 'Not Welcome' still awaiting release. He made his debut in the Sundance hit 'Delirious' for director Tom DiCillo. Additional credits include The Exhibitionists alongside Laverne Cox, A New York Love Story, The Guitar (Amy Redford), Public Enemies (Michael Mann), Choose (Rob Legato), The Butterflies of Bill Baker and Café.
In theater, Short co-starred on Broadway in Jez Butterworth's Jerusalem alongside Mark Rylance. Prior to that, he created the role of Eric Saunders in Roberto Aguirre Sacasa's King of Shadows. Additional highlights include An Evening with Simon Gray at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Centre, a hugely acclaimed performance in Mary Rose for the Vineyard Theatre and as John Eastman in the National Theatre of London transfer of The Night Season, directed by Lonny Price. He made his theater debut in 1996 in the UK production of Grease.
An avid writer, Short has published books, articles and screenplays across the worlds of sports and travel. He divides his time between Los Angeles, Santa Fe and London with his wife and has just set up a production company with the aim of producing challenging and artistic film projects by using some of the incredible, diverse talent with which he's shared a career.- Director
- Producer
- Writer
Richard Shepard is an Emmy and DGA award winning writer/director. His features include "The Perfection" "Dom Hemingway" and "The Matador". He directed 12 episodes of the Golden Globe winning HBO series "Girls", along with pilots for "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist", "Acapulco", Criminal Minds" and "Ugly Betty" for which he won the 2007 Emmy. He also directed the documentary, "I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale".- Actor
- Producer
- Director
American actor Richard Speight, Jr. was born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee. He later graduated cum laude from the University of Southern California. In addition to acting in TV and film, Speight also directs. Those credits include commercials for major brands like Pepsi & Buffalo Wild Wings, numerous episodes of the hit CW series "Supernatural," "Lucifer" for Netflix, and all 10 episodes of "Kings of Con" for Lionsgate, a comedy series he co-created and starred in with fellow "Supernatural" alumnus Rob Benedict.
He received a Hugo Award nomination for his directing debut on "Supernatural" (episode 1108 - "Just My Imagination"). His fifth "Supernatural" directing effort (ep 1320 - "Unfinished Business") also features Speight himself acting in two different roles. In one scene, those two characters fight each other, which means that in a rare television moment, it was Speight vs. Speight directed by Speight.- Writer
- Director
- Actor
Richard Stanley is the award-winning South African-born filmmaker, who made a name of himself with his first feature film, the sci-fi movie Hardware (1990). A low budget movie about a mad-dog android loose in an apartment was released in 1990. Critics slammed it as a Terminator rip-off, yet the film became a financial success. The 1.5 million dollar budget was paid back quite handsomely and continuation was imminent.
In 1992, Stanley followed Hardware with Dust Devil (1992), a story based on the myth of a Namibian serial killer. A fallout with the distributors led to the re-cutting of the US version, while the bankruptcy of the British-based production company Palace Pictures temporarily shut the post-production down in Europe and the film remained mauled or unfinished, depending how you look at it. Finally Stanley himself managed to finance a new, restored print from the original negative, which has later gained a cult following similar to Hardware.
His third feature was to be The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996), an adaptation of the famed H.G. Wells novel. Unfortunately it ended up a victim of creative disputes, leading to him being sacked a few days after production began. The finished film, released in 1996, carries little to no resemblance to the version he was originally set to make, using only about two words of his original script.
This, however, hasn't beaten the visionary filmmaker down and horror movie fans are now waiting for him to come back... with a one mean vengeance.- Director
- Writer
- Producer
Richard Tanne was born in Livingston, New Jersey, USA. He is a director and writer, known for Southside with You (2016) and Chemical Hearts (2020).- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Richard Earl Thomas is an American actor. He is best known for his leading role as budding author John-Boy Walton in the CBS drama series The Waltons for which he won an Emmy Award from two nominations and received two Golden Globe Award nominations. He also starred in the 1990 television mini-series adaptation of Stephen King's epic horror novel It and played Special Agent Frank Gaad on FX's spy thriller series The Americans.- Actor
- Producer
British leading man who achieved some success in American films, as well. Born in Ireland as the son of a British officer, Todd grew up in Devon and (for a brief time) in India and attended Shrewsbury Public School. His interest in theatre led him to small roles in stock in England and Scotland and three tiny film roles, following which he helped found the Dundee Repertory Theatre in 1939. He served with distinction as a paratrooper in the Second World War and returned to considerably more prominent theatre roles, culminating in the role of "Lachie" in John Patrick's "The Hasty Heart", in which he played in London and then followed Richard Basehart in the Broadway production. He made his first major film appearance in 1948, and the next year was again cast as "Lachie", this time in the film version of The Hasty Heart (1949). His performance, a truly star-making and moving piece of work, earned him an Oscar nomination as Best Actor. He followed it with a role in Alfred Hitchcock's Stage Fright (1950), but although he continued to play leading roles, often in quite good films, he never again achieved the prominence and acclaim he had had with The Hasty Heart (1949). He was quite effective in such roles as "Robin Hood" and "Rob Roy", and very touching as "Peter Marshall" in A Man Called Peter (1955). In The Longest Day (1962), he portrayed his own superior officer at the Pegasus Bridge fight, with another actor portraying Todd himself in a recreation of his own experiences. Ultimately, Todd's starring roles dwindled, but he continued as a stalwart character actor, primarily in British films.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Richard Tyson was born in Mobile, Alabama but eventually pursued his love of acting and moved to Hollywood, California. Landing one of his first roles on the hit TV show, 'Moonlighting' (with Bruce Willis and Cybil Shepherd), Richard's career took off from there and hasn't shown any sign of slowing down since. Best known for his roles as Buddy Revell in 'Three O'Clock High', Cullen Crisp in 'Kindergarten Cop' (opposite Arnold Schwartzenegger) and Perry in 'Two Moon Junction', Richard has time and time again proven his versatility as an actor in not only the different characters he plays, but also in his ability to go from feature film star to television actor to theater performer (he regularly takes to the stage to perform Shakespeare).
Richard was the star of his own television series called Hardball which ran for a year in 1989. He has also appeared on various other TV shows throughout his career including his most recent appearance on CSI:New York.
With a long list of film credits including 'Black Hawk Down', 'There's Something About Mary', 'Kingpin', 'Genghis Khan' and many others, Richard has shared the screen with a wide array of actors including Charleton Heston, Orlando Bloom, Ben Stiller and John Travolta. In addition to his extensive film and television career, Richard holds a Masters Degree in Fine Arts from Cornell University and once taught acting there. Richard's most recent films include 'Naked Run', 'Richard III', 'Plane Dead', 'The Visitation' and the horror film, 'Big Bad Wolf' in which Richard plays a stepfather accused by his stepson of being a vicious werewolf. 'Big Bad Wolf' is set for release this year.
In the fall of 2006 Richard returned home to Alabama for the premiere of the film, 'When I Find The Ocean' - the first film he has been in to be shot in his home state - and soon after visited Russia where he accepted the Peacemaker Award. Richard is currently shooting the film 'Jake's Corner' and will be returning to Russia later this year to begin filming for another movie. He is also looking to direct and produce his own films and continues to seek interesting and challenging roles to play.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Richard Widmark established himself as an icon of American cinema with his debut in the 1947 film noir Kiss of Death (1947), in which he won a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award nomination as the killer Tommy Udo. Kiss of Death (1947) and other noir thrillers established Widmark as part of a new generation of American movie actors who became stars in the post-World War II era. With fellow post-War stars Kirk Douglas and Robert Mitchum, Widmark brought a new kind of character to the screen in his character leads and supporting parts: a hard-boiled type who does not actively court the sympathy of the audience. Widmark was not afraid to play deeply troubled, deeply conflicted, or just downright deeply corrupt characters.
After his debut, Widmark would work steadily until he retired at the age of 76 in 1990, primarily as a character lead. His stardom would peak around the time he played the U.S. prosecutor in Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) as the 1950s segued into the 1960s, but he would continue to act for another 30 years.
Richard Weedt Widmark was born in Sunrise Township, Minnesota, to Ethel Mae (Barr) and Carl Henry Widmark. His father was of Swedish descent and his mother of English and Scottish ancestry. He has said that he loved the movies from his boyhood, claiming, "I've been a movie bug since I was 4. My grandmother used to take me". The teenaged Widmark continued to go to the movies and was thrilled by Dracula (1931) and Frankenstein (1931). "I thought Boris Karloff was great", Widmark said. Although he loved the movies and excelled at public speaking while attending high school, Widmark attended Lake Forest College with the idea of becoming a lawyer. However, he won the lead role in a college production of, fittingly enough, the play "Counsellor-at-Law", and the acting bug bit deep. After taking his bachelor of arts degree in 1936, he stayed on at Lake Forest as the Assistant Director of Speech and Drama. However, he soon quit the job and moved to New York to become an actor, and by 1938 he was appearing on radio in "Aunt Jenny's Real Life Stories". He made his Broadway debut in 1943 in the play "Kiss and Tell" and continued to appear on stage in roles that were light-years away from the tough cookies he would play in his early movies.
After World War II, he was signed by 20th Century-Fox to a seven-year contract. After seeing his screen test for the role of Tommy Udo, 20th Century-Fox boss Darryl F. Zanuck insisted that the slight, blonde Widmark - no one's idea of a heavy, particularly after his stage work - be cast as the psychopath in Kiss of Death (1947), which had been prepared as a Victor Mature vehicle. Even though the role was small, Widmark stole the picture. The publicity department at 20th Century-Fox recommended that exhibitors market the film by concentrating on thumping the tub for their new antihero. "Sell Richard Widmark" advised the studio's publicity manual that an alert 20th Century-Fox sent to theater owners. The manual told local exhibitors to engage a job printer to have "wanted" posters featuring Widmark's face printed and pasted up. He won a Golden Globe and an Oscar nod for the part, which led to an early bout with typecasting at the studio. Widmark played psychotics in The Street with No Name (1948) and Road House (1948) and held his own against new Fox superstar Gregory Peck in the William A. Wellman western Yellow Sky (1948), playing the villain, of course. When his pressuring the studio to let him play other parts paid off, his appearance as a sailor in Down to the Sea in Ships (1949) made headlines: Life magazine's March 28, 1949, issue featured a three-page spread of the movie headlined "Widmark the Movie Villain Goes Straight". He was popular, having captured the public imagination, and before the decade was out, his hand- and footprints were immortalized in concrete in the court outside Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.
The great director Elia Kazan cast Widmark in his thriller Panic in the Streets (1950), not as the heavy (that role went to Jack Palance) but as the physician who tracks down Palance, who has the plague, in tandem with detective Paul Douglas. Widmark was establishing himself as a real presence in the genre that later would be hailed as film noir. Having proved he could handle other roles, Widmark didn't shy away from playing heavies in quality pictures. The soon-to-be-blacklisted director Jules Dassin cast him in one of his greatest roles, as the penny-ante hustler Harry Fabian in Night and the City (1950). Set in London, Widmark's Fabian manages to survive in the jungle of the English demimonde, but is doomed. Widmark was masterful in conveying the desperation of the criminal seeking to control his own fate but who is damned, and this performance also became an icon of film noir. In that same year, he appeared in Oscar-winning writer-director Joseph L. Mankiewicz's No Way Out (1950) as a bigot who instigates a race riot.
As the 1950s progressed, Widmark played in westerns, military vehicles, and his old stand-by genre, the thriller. He appeared with Marilyn Monroe (this time cast as the psycho) in Don't Bother to Knock (1952) and made Pickup on South Street (1953) that same year for director Samuel Fuller. His seven-year contract at Fox was expiring, and Zanuck, who would not renew the deal, cast him in the western Broken Lance (1954) in a decidedly supporting role, billed beneath not only Spencer Tracy but even Robert Wagner and Jean Peters. The film was well respected, and it won an Oscar nomination for best screenplay for the front of Hollywood 10 blacklistee Albert Maltz. Widmark left Fox for the life of a freelance, forming his own company, Heath Productions. He appeared in more westerns, adventures and social dramas and pushed himself as an actor by taking the thankless role of the Dauphin in Otto Preminger's adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan (1957), a notorious flop that didn't bring anyone any honors, neither Preminger, his leading lady Jean Seberg, nor Widmark. In 1960, he was appearing in another notorious production, John Wayne's ode to suicidal patriotism, The Alamo (1960), with the personally liberal Widmark playing Jim Bowie in support of the very conservative Wayne's Davy Crockett. Along with character actor Chill Wills, Widmark arguably was the best thing in the movie.
In 1961, Widmark acquitted himself quite well as the prosecutor in producer-director Stanley Kramer's Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), appearing with the Oscar-nominated Spencer Tracy and the Oscar-winning Maximilian Schell, as well as with superstar Burt Lancaster and acting genius Montgomery Clift and the legendary Judy Garland (the latter two winning Oscar nods for their small roles). Despite being showcased with all this thespian firepower, Widmark's character proved to be the axis on which the drama turned. A little later, Widmark appeared in two westerns directed by the great John Ford, with co-star James Stewart in Two Rode Together (1961) and as the top star in Ford's apologia for Indian genocide, Cheyenne Autumn (1964). On Two Rode Together (1961), Ford feuded with Jimmy Stewart over his hat. Stewart insisted on wearing the same hat he had for a decade of highly successful westerns that had made him one of the top box office stars of the 1950s. Both he and Widmark were hard-of-hearing (as well as balding and in need of help from the makeup department's wigmakers), so Ford would sit far away from them while directing scenes and then give them directions in a barely audible voice. When neither one of the stars could hear their director, Ford theatrically announced to his crew that after over 40 years in the business, he was reduced to directing two deaf toupees. It was testimony to the stature of both Stewart and Widmark as stars that this was as far as Ford's baiting went, as the great director could be extraordinarily cruel.
Widmark continued to co-star in A-pictures through the 1960s. He capped off the decade with one of his finest performances, as the amoral police detective in Don Siegel's gritty cop melodrama Madigan (1968). With Madigan, one can see Widmark's characters as a progression in the evolution of what would become the late 1960s nihilistic antihero, such as those embodied by Clint Eastwood in Siegel's later Dirty Harry (1971). In the 1970s, he continued to make his mark in movies and, beginning in 1971, in television. In movies, he appeared primarily in supporting roles, albeit in highly billed fashion, in such films as Sidney Lumet's Murder on the Orient Express (1974), Robert Aldrich's Twilight's Last Gleaming (1977), and Stanley Kramer's The Domino Principle (1977). He even came back as a heavy, playing the villainous doctor in Coma (1978).
In 1971, in search of better roles, he turned to television, starring as the President of the U.S. in the TV miniseries Vanished (1971). His performance in the role brought Widmark an Emmy nomination. He resurrected the character of Madigan for NBC in six 90-minute episodes that appeared as part of the rotation of "NBC Wednesday Mystery Movie" for the fall 1972 season. Widmark was married for 55 years to playwright Jean Hazlewood, from 1942 until her death in 1997 (they had one child, Anne, who was born in 1945). He lived quietly and avoided the press, saying in 1971, "I think a performer should do his work and then shut up". Los Angeles Times critic Kevin Thomas thought that Widmark should have won an Oscar nomination for his turn in When the Legends Die (1972) playing a former rodeo star tutoring Frederic Forrest's character.
It is surprising to think that Kiss of Death (1947) represented his sole Oscar nomination, but with the rise of respect for film noir around the time his career began tapering off in the '70s, he began to be reevaluated as an actor. Unlike Bogart, who did not live to see his reputation flourish after his death, Widmark became a cult figure well before he retired.- Actor
- Director
- Additional Crew
Richard Wilson OBE (born Iain Carmichael Wilson) is a Scottish actor, theatre director and broadcaster. He played Victor Meldrew in the BBC sitcom One Foot in the Grave (1990). A later role was as Gaius, the court physician of Camelot, in the BBC drama Merlin (2008).
Wilson was born in Greenock, Scotland. He studied science in Greenock, and did National Service with the Royal Army Medical Corps, serving in Singapore. He worked in a laboratory at Stobhill Hospital in Glasgow as a research scientist before switching to acting when he was 27. He trained at RADA and then appeared in repertory theatres in Edinburgh (Traverse Theatre), Glasgow and Manchester (Stables Theatre).
He initially turned down the role of Victor Meldrew and it was almost offered to Les Dawson before Wilson changed his mind.
Wilson was awarded the OBE for services to drama as a director and actor in 1994. In April 1996, he was elected Rector of the University of Glasgow for a term of three years.
Wilson's biography, One Foot on the Stage: The Biography of Richard Wilson, was written by James Roose-Evans.
Wilson has worked for the gay rights campaign group Stonewall, and is one of the patrons of Scottish Youth Theatre. He is also a long-time supporter of the charity Sense, and in 2007 hosted their annual award ceremony. He is also one of the honorary patrons of the London children's charity Scene & Heard.
The narration of "The Man Who Called Himself Jesus", from Strawbs' eponymous first album, was performed by Wilson.
He is a major supporter of the Labour Party, and he recorded the party's manifesto for the 2010 General Election.
In March 2011, Wilson presented an edition of the Channel 4 current affairs programme Dispatches (1987) entitled Train Journeys from Hell (2011), with transport journalist Christian Wolmar highlighting the failings of the British rail network.
Wilson was a supporter of his local football club, Greenock Morton, but he has come to lend greater support to English club Manchester United. He is a patron of the Manchester United Supporters Trust. Wilson has been a campaigner for gay rights for many years, and he came out as gay in a Daily Mail interview in March 2013. He is good friends with his One Foot in the Grave (1990) co-star Angus Deayton, and is godfather to Deayton's son.
It was reported on 12 August 2016 that Wilson had suffered a heart attack. He had been due to reprise the role of Victor Meldrew in a one-man show at the 2016 Edinburgh Fringe Festival.- Richard Winsor is a British actor from Nottinghamshire but trained and lives in London. Most recently Richard has been starring as doctor 'Cal Knight' in the hit prime time medical drama Casualty on the BBC. His performances as Cal have earned him critical acclaim and cemented him as one of the most popular characters in the shows recent history. He also starred as 'Tomas' in the hit British film Streetdance 3D which opened #1 in the UK and many other countries. Also a popular theatre actor, Richard has appeared in many theater productions also to critical acclaim. Not satisfied as a teenager with just acting and sport, Richard embarked on a career as a dancer along side his acting and is highly trained in many forms of dance. This later led him to meet his mentor Sir Matthew Bourne. Their working relationship flourished and Richard went on to be Bourne's principle performer for ten years. Most recently, Richard played 'Dorian' in the sell out Edinburgh festival and London runs of Matthew Bourne's Dorian Gray. He previously played 'Edward' in Bourne's wildly successful Edward Scissorhands which played to packed houses in London, LA, New York , Japan and Moscow . From the heat off of these great roles, Richard was voted the "sexiest dancer in the world" by Elle magazine. Richard also performed the iconic role of 'The Swan' in Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake on Broadway and London stages, later reprising the role for the hit feature film 'Swan Lake 3D' which was a massive art house success on movie screens around the world and Sky Arts channels in the UK.
- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Born May 29, 1979 in Redlands, California to Rick and Jeanine Jackson, Richard Lee Jackson began his acting career at age 12 after a visit to Universal Studios in Hollywood. After moving to Los Angeles at the age of 13 and working in various roles for TV and film, he garnered considerable recognition for his turn on the 2nd season premiere episode of Ally McBeal (1997).
Best known for his role as "Ryan Parker" on Saved by the Bell: The New Class (1993), he has also guest-starred in several network/syndicated series including; Boy Meets World (1993), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993) and Baywatch (1989).
Last year (2004) he was featured in Hope Ranch (2002) with Lorenzo Lamas and Bruce Boxleitner and stars in the recently released Universal Film Bring It on: Again (2004). His feature film debut is in the MGM film Madison (2001), which stars Jim Caviezel.
Richard Lee has done several national and local TV appearances (Leeza, Regis and Kathy Lee, AM Northwest, Good Day Oregon, etc.) and interviews in several world-wide syndicated magazines such as Movieline and Teen People. He was also featured along with his brother, fellow actor Jonathan Jackson, in People's "Sexiest Man Alive Issue".
Along with acting, Richard is the drummer in the rock band Enation (with brother Jonathan on lead vocals and guitar). They are currently (2005) touring the West Coast and releasing their first record, "Identity Theft".
He was married to Raquel Torres on January 2nd, 2005 and lives in the Northwest when he is not working in Los Angeles.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Richenda Carey (born in Bitton, South Gloucestershire, England) is an English theatre, television and film actress, who is mostly known for her roles in Monarch of the Glen, Jeeves and Wooster, Crush and later, Separate Lies and Criminal Justice. She appeared in an episode of the sitcom Chalk as well with Victoria Wood in an episode of dinnerladies (1998).
She was the third wife of British actor Nigel Stock before he died in 1986.
From July 2009 she appeared in Calendar Girls (2003) at the Noël Coward Theatre.
In 2015 she appeared in the film Colonia Dignidad alongside Emma Watson and Daniel Brühl.- Actor
- Writer
Richmond Arquette was born on 21 August 1963 in New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Zodiac (2007), The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) and Broken Blood (2013).- Actor
- Soundtrack
Rick Aviles was born on 14 October 1952 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Waterworld (1995), Ghost (1990) and The Cannonball Run (1981). He died on 17 March 1995 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Make-Up Department
- Special Effects
- Actor
Rick Baker was born on 8 December 1950 in Binghamton, New York, USA. He is an actor, known for Planet of the Apes (2001), Men in Black (1997) and The Wolfman (2010). He has been married to Silvia Abascal since 8 November 1987. They have two children. He was previously married to Elaine Alexander.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Richard James Cosnett was born on April 6, 1983. Early life, grew up in Zimbabwe, moved to Australia and studied BFA Acting at QUT. He now lives in the USA. His work began in the theatre and has spread into film and television and producing. His great grandfather was the head of the Royal School of Music. He has 2 sisters and is a cousin of Hugh Grant.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Rick Donald is an Australian actor, who is best known for his roles in many TV shows, these include roles in 800 Words (2015), A Place to Call Home (2013), House Husbands (2012), The Doctor Blake Mysteries (2013), Donald would also join the Australian Award winning drama series Wentworth (2013) in its 7th season as corrupt officer Sean Brody.
Donald would also receive a Logie nomination for Most Outstanding Support Actor.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Once an overweight comic from Canada, Rick Ducommun slimmed down in the late 1980s and went on to tackle solid co-starring roles in feature films and TV, as well as headline several HBO and other pay-cable specials.
Ducommun grew up on a farm, the son of an entrepreneur father with whom he did not get along. Running away from home at age 14, he hitchhiked around the northern U.S., often living in communes, until returning to Canada at age 17, this time to Vancouver.
On a dare, Ducommun tried to do stand-up comedy at a Vancouver club. He was not only asked back, but bitten by the show business bug. He began playing clubs in Canada, hosted his own children's show, "ZigZag," and was put on TV by Alan Thicke, who was then hosting a talk show out of Vancouver.
When Thicke made his deal to do Thicke of the Night (1983), a late-night talk show from L.A., he brought Ducommun down to be announcer and a performer. When the show flopped, Ducommun began performing at L.A. clubs and acting in sitcoms. He was one of the zany cops on The Last Precinct (1986) -- a short-lived NBC show, and Mahler on Max Headroom (1987). Ducommun also played small parts in films, beginning with No Small Affair (1984) but found himself limited by a frame carrying 426 lb. He slimmed down more than 200 lb., and won the role of Art Weingartner, the dumb lug nosy neighbor to Tom Hanks in The 'Burbs (1989).
Despite good reaction to his work, the film was not a success, and Ducommun found himself mixing live performances in with his occasional film work, including an appearance in Blank Check (1994).
HBO did a special with Ducommun in 1989 called Rick Ducommun: Piece of Mind (1989), which was well received, as was the follow-up, "Hit and Run" in 1992. Ducommun frequently hosted pay and cable programs featuring stand-up comedy and was an regular performer on the Comedy Channel, later renamed, Comedy Central.- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Rick Famuyiwa was born on 18 June 1973 in the USA. He is a producer and director, known for Dope (2015), The Mandalorian (2019) and The Chi (2018). He has been married to Gienita Mosley since 1999.- Actor
- Producer
Born in Toronto, Rick Fox moved to the Bahamas when he was very young. His father is Afro-Bahamian, and his mother, who is Canadian, is of Italian and Scottish descent. Rick went to Warsaw Indiana high school as an exchange student and played basketball there. A complaint was filed about his eligibility and it was ruled one of his earlier years in the Bahamas was equivalent to a year of high school. As a result, he was banned from playing his senior year. To keep himself sharp and in playing shape, he still practiced with the team every day. Majored in radio, television, and motion picture sciences and played college basketball at UNC, where he left as the all-time school steals leader and games played leader. Upon graduating, he was selected 24th overall in the NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics. After several seasons with the Celtics, he signed with the Los Angeles Lakers partly due to its proximity to Hollywood and his interest in acting. While with the Lakers, he helped them win an NBA Championship as a versatile role-player.- Actor
- Producer
Rick Genest was born on 7 August 1985 in Montréal, Québec, Canada. He was an actor and producer, known for 47 Ronin (2013), In Faustian Fashion (2013) and Carny (2009). He died on 1 August 2018 in Montréal, Québec, Canada.- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Rick Gomez was born in Bayonne, New Jersey on June 1st. He is the first-born son and was born on his father's birthday. In 1987 the family moved to South Plainfield, New Jersey where Rick went to school. He graduated from South Plainfield High School and promptly moved to New York City to pursue his acting career.- Rick Gonzalez was born on June 30th 1979 in New York City and raised in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn. He attended the "Fame" High School of performing arts where he studied Acting. Graduating in 1997 to pursue a career, Rick briefly worked in New York and later moved to Los Angeles to continue work. After two years of being in LA, Rick landed a role in the Disney film The Rookie (2002) opposite Dennis Quaid. Rick is now currently working on other projects set to be due out in the near future.
- Producer
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Rick Harrison was born on 22 March 1965 in Lexington, North Carolina, USA. He is a producer and actor, known for Pawn Stars (2009), Blood Sweat and Heels (2014) and Resurrection. He has been married to Deanna Burditt since 21 July 2013. He was previously married to Tracy Ann Hill and Kim.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Rick Hoffman was born on 12 June 1970 in New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor, known for Suits (2011), Billions (2016) and Thanksgiving (2023).- Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
Rick James was born on 1 February 1948 in Buffalo, New York, USA. He was an actor and composer, known for Colors (1988), The Happytime Murders (2018) and Blue Streak (1999). He was married to Tanya Hijazi. He died on 6 August 2004 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Rick Malambri (born November 7, 1982) is an American actor and model.
Malambri was born in Florida, to Jeannie Deckert and Tim Malambri. He began his career as a model.Having moved to New York, Malambri was a featured model in clothing as well as a dancer. His acting career began with small roles in television episodes in 2007, and he moved to movies in 2010. Despite his nascent career, Rick has been selective of project roles taken on, noting that he strives to pick roles that will not pigeonhole him.
For the roll-out of Step Up 3D, Malambri has been featured in magazines such as Da Man (August/September 2010), and is now associated with K-Swiss sneakers.
Malambri married actress Lisa Mae in 2010. - Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Rick began his career as a radio DJ while he was still at high school which led to him writing, producing and being on air in his own show. He joined the Canadian TV series, SCTV (1976), winning an Emmy for writing and portraying the character, Bob McKenzie, which became the basis for the film, Strange Brew (1983), which he co-wrote, co-directed and made his film acting debut. The character he played in Ghostbusters (1984) was based on a similar character he played on SCTV (1976).- Actor
- Writer
- Art Department
Raised in New Jersey and New York, Overton comes from a musical family. His father, Hal Overton, was Thelonious Monk's big band arranger as well as a music teacher at the Juilliard Institute. His mother, Nancy Overton aka Anne Swain Overton, sang in personal appearances as a member of The Chordettes, the girl group most famous for their singles "Lollipop" and "Mr. Sandman". Rick has dabbled in the music industry himself as he plays the harmonica occasionally with local blues bands. Rick began his stand-up career while in high school as one half of the comedy team "Overton & Sullivan" but eventually went solo as he broke in at the New York Improvisation in the early 1970s.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Composer
Rick was born in New York and grew up on Long Island. After attending Boston College, he returned to the city to study acting and improv. He was soon cast as Tony in the off-broadway hit " Tony N' Tina's Wedding". Film and television roles followed as well as a move to LA. After a few years on the west coast he returned to Broadway in The Neil Simon comedy "Proposals". Behind the camera, he has lent his voice to hundreds of commercials and video games and has composed music for numerous film projects. He co-created and stars in "Channeling The King", a touring one-man show featuring the music of Elvis Presley.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Rick was born in a suburb of Detroit in June of 1966. The family lived there until August 1968, when they moved to England (his dad accepted a transfer with one of the "Big 3" Auto manufacturers). They lived there until 1974, then returned to Michigan. They lived in Michigan until another transfer took the family to Australia in August of 1977. 5 years later the family moved back to the States, this time to California, where Rick finished high school--that's where Rick began his acting career...in high school plays. Rick is married to a woman whom he met "in the business." She is a screenwriter. They have two children.- Rick Ravanello started his acting career back in 1996. He earned numerous television and film roles which eventually led to an audition that landed in the hands of Steven Spielberg of Dreamworks SKG.
Spielberg quickly had Ravanello flown to Los Angeles where he met with Tom Hanks and Tony To. They discussed an upcoming project titled "Band of Brothers". Ravanello did not film the mini-series but Spielberg offered him a deal to star in an upcoming Dreamworks television project.
After his arrival in L.A., he earned a role in Hart's War (2002), in which he worked alongside Bruce Willis in Prague, Czech Republic. "The Cave" put him back onscreen with fellow "Hart's War" actor and friend Cole Hauser a couple of years later. Ravanello proved himself to be a very versatile performer with a range from character roles to the leading man.
The eldest son of Richard and Katherine Ravanello, the actor has three younger brothers, Chris, Lawrence, and the late Michael. (Michael sustained a brain injury back in 1994, which has left him hospitalized until his death.)
Ravanello supports many charitable groups including those that support The United States Military to those supporting cancer patients and their families. He loves to play golf and is an avid martial arts practitioner, with Muay Thai being a particular favorite. - Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
Rick Rossovich, considered one of the nicest people to work with, is also a devoted family man. He and his wife Eva have two kids, Roy and Isabel. For three months each year, the family lives at their home in Sweden, where Eva is from, so that the kids can have both sides of their parents' upbringing. Rick lives in Ojai, California.