Subject: character actors Sun Jul 22, 2018 3:31 pm
I love love love hearing about character actors - people you recognize but aren't the big name stars.
Raymond Cruz, a great example.
sandi
Posts : 612 Join date : 2018-05-27
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Jul 29, 2018 8:09 am
There's such a wide range of definitions for character actors. Ned Beatty springs to mind (Hodge would be proud ) He's such a great character actor and because of that -- easily recognizable, and therefore, may not be the type or character actor you are looking for.
It seems to me you want more of the actors who most people will recognize their faces and movies they've been in but probably won't know their names. So, working off of that, my first suggestion would be ...
You might know him as Renfro from The Fugutive and U.S. Marshals or Cypher from The Matrix. ("I know what you're thinking, 'cause right now I'm thinking the same thing. Actually, I've been thinking it ever since I got here: Why oh why didn't I take the BLUE pill?")
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Jul 29, 2018 9:01 am
Guido the killer pimp!
sandi
Posts : 612 Join date : 2018-05-27
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Jul 29, 2018 10:54 am
Big John wrote:
Guido the killer pimp!
That's some risky business there.
sandi
Posts : 612 Join date : 2018-05-27
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Jul 29, 2018 12:50 pm
What do you get when you put one leading man and eleven great character actors in one room?
Answer:
You get 12 Angry Men.
Wikipedia wrote:
12 Angry Men is a 1957 American courtroom drama film adapted from a teleplay of the same name by Reginald Rose.[6][7] Written and co-produced by Rose himself and directed by Sidney Lumet, this trial film tells the story of a jury made up of 12 men as they deliberate the conviction or acquittal of a defendant on the basis of reasonable doubt, forcing the jurors to question their morals and values. In the United States, a verdict in most criminal trials by jury must be unanimous. The film is notable for its almost exclusive use of one set: out of 96 minutes of run time, only three minutes take place outside of the jury room.
12 Angry Men explores many techniques of consensus-building and the difficulties encountered in the process among a group of men whose range of personalities adds intensity and conflict. It also explores the power one person has to elicit change. No names are used in the film; the jury members are identified by number until two members exchange names at the end. The defendant is referred to as "the boy" and the witnesses as "the old man" and "the lady across the street". The film forces the characters and audience to evaluate their own self-image through observing the personality, experiences, and actions of the jurors.
In 2007, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[8] The film was selected as the second-best courtroom drama ever by the American Film Institute during their AFI's 10 Top 10 list[9] and is the highest courtroom drama on Rotten Tomatoes' Top 100 Movies of All Time. Wiki link
Don't read the link until you've looked at the eleven character actors, listed in this post.
How many of the eleven character actors do you recognize?
Although he has 176 credits, I remember him best as Detective Milton Arbogast in Hitchcock's Psycho. (Appeared in four episodes of The Defenders -- a tv series starring Angry Men co-star E.G. Marshall.)
John Fiedler - imdb link Most people will recognize his face but his voice is equally recognizable. Fiedler was the voice behind Piglet in the Winnie the Pooh films.
Star Trek fans may remember him from S02E14 Wolf in the Fold. "Kirk and the Enterprise Computer become detectives after Scotty is accused of murdering women on a pleasure planet." And Fiedler turns out to be the host of the evil entity behind it all.
You should read his biography on imdb. Most people will probably remember him from his role in On the Waterfront, but his greatest acting achievement is most probably as Willy Loman in the original 1949 Broadway production of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman.
I last saw E.G. Marshall in Absolute Power with Clint Eastwood. Marshall was great as always and what a film with a great cast including Gene Hackman, Scott Glenn, Laura Linney and one of my favorites -- Ed Harris. Marshall starred in his own tv series, The Defenders which also starred Robert Reed from The Brady Bunch.
I remember Klugman best from his television series, Quincy. But he's been in many things including four episodes of the original Twilight Zone. (Appeared in 3 episodes of The Defenders -- a tv series starring E.G. Marshall.)
If you've ever watched television shows from 1950 to 1990, chances are you've seen Binns. I would probably say his role in 12 Angry Men is his most memorable though. (Appeared in four episodes of The Defenders -- a tv series starring E.G. Marshall.)
Warden is one of my favorite character actors -- I don't know why -- but I always enjoy him. I remember him as the grandfather in Problem Child.
Juror #8 Leading man -- Henry Fonda. (Fonda was also the producer. Although Fonda produced two tv series, 12 Angry Men was the only movie he ever produced.)
Joseph Sweeney - imdb link ... 12 Angry Men is the only thing I actually remember him from although he has close to 50 credits. Trivia note: Sweeney appeared as a judge in the TV series, The Defenders which starred Robert Reed (of the Brady Bunch) and Sweeney's Angry Men co-star -- E.G. Marshall.
For me, 12 Angry Men will always stand out as Begley's best performance but I've seen him in many other things and he was a really good actor. (Appeared in one episode of The Defenders.) Some people may recognize his son more though, Ed Begley Jr., who in his own right is a prolific character actor.
Another solid actor and I know I've seen him in other things but none are standing out more than 12 Angry Men. (Also appeared in The Defenders tv series.)
Good friend to Blake Edwards and his wife Julie Andrews. (I don't know how I know that, but I do.) I remember him mostly from movies like 10 and S.O.B but in scrolling through his credits, I notice other shows I've seen including -- you got it -- three appearances in E.G. Marshall's, The Defenders.
Trivia note: I noticed as a looked through some of the credits, several of the actors also appearing in The Defenders. So I began tracking that.
Eight of the twelve appeared in at least one episode of E.G. Marshall's television series, The Defenders. (I don't know if it counts but Henry Fonda's son, Peter, appeared in one episode.) The reader should take time and scroll through the full cast for The Defenders -- you'll be amazed at the big names and great character actors who appeared in that series.
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Jul 29, 2018 2:57 pm
I'm terrible with names but I recognized most of the faces. Oddly, Jack was the only name I could recall.
This guy's been showing up in a lot lately:
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Jul 29, 2018 3:07 pm
Another great character actor who's more though of as a leading man in his later career:
sandi
Posts : 612 Join date : 2018-05-27
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Jul 29, 2018 3:12 pm
Big John wrote:
I'm terrible with names but I recognized most of the faces. Oddly, Jack was the only name I could recall.
This guy's been showing up in a lot lately:
I don't know his name but I recognize him from this past season of Fargo. (He had a mustache.) He played Ewan McGregor's right hand man. Really very good.
Subject: Re: character actors Tue Jul 31, 2018 12:49 pm
His Royal Dorkness wrote:
_______________________
How about Leon Robinson? I thought he shined brightest as Jefferson Keane/Tizi Ouzou on Oz, but he's had several other solid character roles.
lotta good character actors on Oz, several of whom gone on to be fairly big stars. Funny you don't see the guy who played Beecher in anything that I know of.
Pi-O-My
Posts : 118 Join date : 2018-03-22
Subject: Re: character actors Tue Jul 31, 2018 4:04 pm
Zaphod, I’m not sure if your comment was meant as a knock at acting on tv, since Lee Tergesen has done plenty of work on numerous series since his Oz days. For Sandi and Big John -- https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/19/movies/michael-stuhlbarg-call-me-by-your-name-shape-of-water.html
If you’re going to include Downey Jr., then the late great Harry Dean Stanton shouldn't be excluded by his leading role in Paris, Texas and starring in (and basically being the whole point of) Lucky. Ditto Sam Rockwell, despite his lead in Lawn Dogs and his tour-de-force in Moon – though I guess his recent Oscar win bumps him “up” to “supporting actor.”
Subject: Re: character actors Tue Jul 31, 2018 4:26 pm
Nope, not a knock at all - just that I apparently don't watch the shows Mr. Tergesen is on. I've seen most of the other actors on other shows and movies. I DO wish Dean Winters would stop with all the insurance commercials and get back on more shows.
Sam I can't say is a character actor, I think he's stepped up to fairly big star. HDS was great, but considering the roles he did, he seemed more comfortable in the character role.
I probably shoulda defined character actor better - I meant it more in non-leading/ not directly supporting roles, rather than just actors who's faces you don't recognize. Half the Sting cast is some really great character actors, IMO.
Pi-O-My
Posts : 118 Join date : 2018-03-22
Subject: Re: character actors Tue Jul 31, 2018 4:48 pm
I think part of the (planned) effectiveness of The Sting was that the audience would recognize the actors but not remember from where, they’d just feel familiar.
Maybe the term “character actor” doesn't fit with how movies are made nowadays. The term may depend on the old studio system. Some actors who would have been pegged in certain kinds smaller of roles get to be leads in indies, or play lead inside prosthetics and/or mo-cap, like Andy Serkis and Doug Jones. Most of the actors working currently that I'd consider in the "character" category are just as likely to play a supporting role. Maybe it's that now "support" can include the kind of eccentricity that used to mark "character" parts.
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Tue Jul 31, 2018 5:34 pm
Pi-O-My wrote:
If you’re going to include Downey Jr., then the late great Harry Dean Stanton shouldn't be excluded by his leading role in Paris, Texas and starring in (and basically being the whole point of) Lucky. Ditto Sam Rockwell, despite his lead in Lawn Dogs and his tour-de-force in Moon – though I guess his recent Oscar win bumps him “up” to “supporting actor.”
Agreed. All amazing character actors. Another great one who is also a leading man is Johnny Depp. From Edward Scissorhands, Gilbert Grape, and Ed Wood to Jack Sparrow, The Mad Hatter, and Tonto, the guy is ever so brilliant.
ExpletiveDeleted
Posts : 14878 Join date : 2012-04-12
Subject: Re: character actors Tue Jul 31, 2018 7:56 pm
M EMMETT WALSH, DENNIS HOPPER,JOHN MALKOVICH,PETER LORRE,ELI WALLACH,PETE POSTLETHWAITE ,CHARLES NAPIER,HAROLD GOULD,J.T.WALSH,WARD BOND
_________________ I always knew I'd get old. How fast it happened was a bit of a suprise,though.
MrBill60
Posts : 6907 Join date : 2018-03-02 Age : 63 Location : The Belt
Subject: Re: character actors Tue Jul 31, 2018 8:16 pm
I'd add Christopher Walken and George Kennedy to that list.
Subject: Re: character actors Fri Aug 03, 2018 2:35 pm
ExpletiveDeleted wrote:
Robert Tessier was a villain or biker in most of his films he was a good guy in THE DEEP though.
His first film was also the first Billy Jack film The Born Losers
Del you are either old like moi or a real movie fan
ExpletiveDeleted
Posts : 14878 Join date : 2012-04-12
Subject: Re: character actors Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:47 pm
sandi wrote:
ExpletiveDeleted wrote:
how bout this guy
Wasn't he also the German (in Raiders of the Lost Ark) who was fighting Jones and wound up getting cut up by the propeller blades? I'm not sure.
No he wasn't in Raiders
_________________ I always knew I'd get old. How fast it happened was a bit of a suprise,though.
ExpletiveDeleted
Posts : 14878 Join date : 2012-04-12
Subject: Re: character actors Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:48 pm
Zaphod wrote:
ExpletiveDeleted wrote:
Robert Tessier was a villain or biker in most of his films he was a good guy in THE DEEP though.
His first film was also the first Billy Jack film The Born Losers
Del you are either old like moi or a real movie fan
you're not old
_________________ I always knew I'd get old. How fast it happened was a bit of a suprise,though.
MrBill60
Posts : 6907 Join date : 2018-03-02 Age : 63 Location : The Belt
Subject: Re: character actors Fri Aug 03, 2018 6:38 pm
Michael Biehn - shows up in a lot of Cameron films, but he does a variety of characters.
His Royal Dorkness
Posts : 5648 Join date : 2018-03-04 Age : 50 Location : Upstate NY
Subject: Re: character actors Fri Aug 03, 2018 7:34 pm
sandi wrote:
ExpletiveDeleted wrote:
how bout this guy
Wasn't he also the German (in Raiders of the Lost Ark) who was fighting Jones and wound up getting cut up by the propeller blades? I'm not sure.
I thought he looks a lot like Mike from Breaking Bad. Not that it's the same guy, but they could be cousins at least.
MrBill60 wrote:
Michael Biehn - shows up in a lot of Cameron films, but he does a variety of characters.
Biehn gets a lot of lead work, though. I enjoy his work a lot, some of his more recent stuff has been good too btw. I don't really think of him as a character actor, jmo though.
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Fri Aug 03, 2018 9:34 pm
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Fri Aug 03, 2018 9:55 pm
This guy seems like he's in everything.
sandi
Posts : 612 Join date : 2018-05-27
Subject: Re: character actors Sat Aug 04, 2018 12:23 pm
I recognize both of those faces, BJ -- but I don't know their names.
Subject: Re: character actors Sat Aug 04, 2018 6:42 pm
hmmm....gonna need a clue for her, not recoging the face
sandi
Posts : 612 Join date : 2018-05-27
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Aug 05, 2018 1:52 am
Big John wrote:
This young lady, who you surely recognize, used to be in every movie under the sun and yet it is a challenge to name one.
You only need one -- Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Aug 05, 2018 2:07 am
That is correct, Sandi! It was arguably her biggest rile. The only film I could remember her from is Slap Shot.
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Aug 05, 2018 2:23 am
MrBill60
Posts : 6907 Join date : 2018-03-02 Age : 63 Location : The Belt
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Aug 05, 2018 8:14 pm
sandi wrote:
Big John wrote:
This young lady, who you surely recognize, used to be in every movie under the sun and yet it is a challenge to name one.
You only need one -- Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
Melinda Dillon. The only other film I've seen her in is "Absence of Malice".
His Royal Dorkness
Posts : 5648 Join date : 2018-03-04 Age : 50 Location : Upstate NY
Subject: Re: character actors Sun Aug 05, 2018 11:29 pm
Big John wrote:
His Royal Dorkness wrote:
sandi wrote:
ExpletiveDeleted wrote:
how bout this guy
Wasn't he also the German (in Raiders of the Lost Ark) who was fighting Jones and wound up getting cut up by the propeller blades? I'm not sure.
I thought he looks a lot like Mike from Breaking Bad. Not that it's the same guy, but they could be cousins at least.
Dang, that IS Mike the Fixer from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. I don't remember the actor's name.
I think the guy with the gun is from that Keaton/Nicholson/Basinger/Burton Batman movie. The character is one of Nicholson's lackeys, if i'm right. No idea what his name is or anything else he's played in.
MrBill60
Posts : 6907 Join date : 2018-03-02 Age : 63 Location : The Belt
Subject: Re: character actors Mon Aug 06, 2018 12:43 pm
That's Jonathan Banks, and speaking of him, S4 of Better Call Saul premieres tonight.
Big John
Posts : 1857 Join date : 2018-03-02
Subject: Re: character actors Mon Aug 06, 2018 1:06 pm
MrBill60 wrote:
That's Jonathan Banks, and speaking of him, S4 of Better Call Saul premieres tonight.
) He's such a great character actor and because of that -- easily recognizable, and therefore, may not be the type or character actor you are looking for. 
