James Gammon

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James Gammon (born April 20, 1940 in Newman , Illinois , † July 16, 2010 in Costa Mesa , California ) was an American actor .

Life

He grew up in Orlando, Florida , where the Gammon family resided for decades. Until his death, he had his primary residence in Ocala , Marion County (Florida) in addition to his residence in California . His father was a musician. Before becoming an actor, he worked as a cameraman for television .

He made his film debut in 1967 in a small role in the prison film The Unbending by Stuart Rosenberg opposite Paul Newman . In the following years he was mostly cast in supporting roles as a gruff character in numerous movies , TV series and TV films , especially in westerns . He became a familiar face through guest roles in western series like Smoking Colts , Bonanza and The People of Shiloh Ranch , but also in crime series like Charlie's Angels , Cannon and Petrocelli . In the family series The Waltons , he was eight episodes of "Zach Rosswell". In addition to Whoopi Goldberg , he played "Rudy" in the series Bagdad Café for over 15 episodes. His trademarks were his rugged, rough appearance and his distinctive "whiskey voice".

Most famous are his roles as "Coach Lou Brown" in the The Indians of Cleveland films with Charlie Sheen and Tom Berenger and as "Nick Bridges", father of "Nash Bridges" (played by Don Johnson ), the title character from the eponymous Television series. He has appeared in front of the camera several times with Kevin Costner , for example in 1985 in the Western Silverado and most recently in 2009 in The New Daughter . Overall, he was seen in more than 130 productions.

He also took on speaking roles in animated films , so in 1999 three ("Marv Loach", "Floyd Turbeaux" and "General Sudokoff") in the US original of The Giant from Space .

Gammon was a friend of the theater: in the 1970s he founded a small private theater in Hollywood. In the 1990s he made a name for himself as a stage actor with the Steppenwolf Theater Company in Chicago . In 2002 he performed as King Lear by William Shakespeare in the city ​​theater of his home town of Ocala .

Gammon was married to theater producer and manager Jane Kapusta, with whom he had two children. In addition to acting, he devoted himself to breeding horses for English thoroughbreds . He died of cancer after a long period of suffering .

Filmography (selection)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Gammon, James
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-American actor
DATE OF BIRTH April 20, 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH Newman , Illinois
DATE OF DEATH July 16, 2010
Place of death Costa Mesa , California