Category: Who is that guy?

Who is that guy? Oh, it’s Curtis Armstrong!

Who is that guy? Oh, oh, oh… I know, I know! It’s BOOGER! Well, not exactly. It’s actually Curtis Armstrong, beloved character actor who until recently seemed to have vanished. Actually, he didn’t disappear at all. Armstrong has been staying rather busy, both in films and on TV. Having “busted out” as Miles in ‘Risky Business’ (1983) and then winning us over as the unforgettable Booger in ‘Revenge of the Nerds’ (1984) he has firmly placed himself in a niche market of el charactero marketo.

Personally, I think Armstrong’s portrayal of Charles De Mar along side John Cusack in ‘Better Off Dead’ (1985) is equally as memorable as Booger, but when ‘Revenge of the Nerds officially became a bankable franchise in 1987, he fixed his fate as forever Booger. Oh, to diverge into the world of tubular visions, we now come to the glorious dramedy that was ‘Moonlighting’ which ran 10 episodes featuring Herbert Quentin Viola, the awkwardly lovable office temp turned sidekick to David and Maddie so immortalized by Curtis Armstrong. If only he’d stayed around a little longer.

Then came ‘Revenge of the Nerds’ a third time (1992)… and a fourth time (1994) and the 90’s ultimately proved to be somewhat slim pickens for our buddy Curtis. Hopping from obscure kid movies to several single episode sitcom appearances, it seemed as though Curtis may be down for the count. This would continue through to the new millennium, until he landed a recurring role on the TV series ‘The Chronicle’ as Pig Boy. In a sot of tongue-in-cheek comeback homage to ‘Revenge of the Nerds’, Armstrong would remind us of his presence as the Campus Cop in the very popular college comedy ‘Van Wilder’ (2002).

A few more various roles under his belt and we find him playing Mr. Ralph in ‘Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story’ (2004). Armstrong would find a renewed sense of hope in 2006 with a recurring role in ‘Boston Legal’ along with roles in ‘Southland Tales’ and ‘Smokin Aces’. Armstrong currently sweetens the animated TV pie with a recurring role as Snot on ‘American Dad!’ Look for Curtis Armstrong to appear in a new road comedy called ‘Route 30’ followed by a role in a new thriller anthology called ‘Locker 13’ which is currently in production. What more does Curtis have to offer? What role(s) would be perfect for him? What was his best work? Would you like to see more of Curtis Armstrong?

Zac Blogged This

I know I am not Johnathan Levine, but I am going to steal his wonderful intro to introducing himself to the site. Scott was kind enough to bring me on the site and you will begin seeing me making posts and writing reviews around here, between watching movies and playing Rock Band, hopefully for a long while.

I have been writing reviews regularly for almost a year now over at my own blog and have done a bit of writing here and there online before that throughout my college years. So all in all, I hope you guys enjoy my opinions and I will use the rest of this space to give a little back ground on myself.

Favorite Film of 08: Wall-e

Most anticipated film of the next year: The Watchmen

Best Film of 07: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

Favorite Film of All-Time: The Shawshank Redemption/The Empire Strikes Back

Worst Movie Ever Seen in Theaters: Land of the Dead

# of DVD/Blu-Ray’s Owned: 750+

I also like long walks on the beach, thanks and I will see you around.

Who is that guy? Oh, its Ricky Jay!

Ricky Jay is easily one of my favorite people in entertainment that few people have probably even heard of. He is a renaisance man of sorts, the sorts being that of vast amounts of knowledge in things outside the box and far from mainstream. Ricky Jay, amongst other things, is a master of slight of hand, a master thrower of playing cards, an immensely intimidating walking encyclopedia of all things odd and bizarre and, of course … a terrifically entertaining character actor.

Ricky Jay got his start in movies as an actor through David Mamet, playing a con-man named George (aka Vegas Man) in Mamet’s first film House of Games (1987). After which, Ricky Jay would become a regular in Mamet’s films, following Games with roles as Mr. Silver in Mamet’s Things Change (1988) and as Aaron in Mamet’s Homocide (1991).

Ricky would do a few TV gigs before returning to work with Mamet as George Lang in The Spanish Prisoner (1997). Would Ricky ever do any non-Mamet films? Yep. He appears as Kurt Longjohn in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Boogie Nights (1997). A relatively busy year is finished out with his portrayal of a Bond bad guy named Henry Gupta in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997).

Ricky has a tendency to get cast as con-men and slick-talkers, but occasionally he’ll be fit into something a little different like his role as Victor Weems in Mystery Men (1999). Returning ti work with Paul Thomas Anderson, Ricky would double up on Magnolia (1999) to play Burt Ramsey and serve as the narrator. He, of course, joins forces again with Mamet as Jack in State and Main (2000). Other notable performances:

Dawson’s Auctioneer in Heartbreakers (2001)
Don “Pinky” Pincus in Mamet’s Heist (2001)
Eddie Sawyer in the HBO series Deadwood
Milton in The Prestige (2006)
Marty Brown in Mamet’s Redbelt (2008)

Who is that guy? Oh, its Ted Raimi!

Fortunately (as far as we know, anyway) Ted Raimi doesn’t suffer from the “my big brother is more successful than me, so I hate him” complex. No … instead, Ted has made quite a career for himself riding on Sam Raimi’s success. Not in a mooching sort of way, but the two brothers work together … a lot! Thank goodness, because he’s one of the most fun character actors around.

Ted Raimi’s career began in his brother’s films (imagine that?). Ted gave an Earth-shattering performance as the Fake Shemp undead monster in The Evil Dead (1981). After that, he stunned us with his portrayal of a waiter in Crimewave (1985). He returned to the cabin in the woods as the Possessed Henrietta in Evil Dead II (1987). Can you guess … these were all Sam Raimi films. [I REALLY hope this wasn’t breaking news to too many of our readers.]

Backtracking a bit, Ted appeared as Chain Man in long-time friend of the Raimi’s Josh Becker’s Stryker’s War (1985), also known as Thou Shall Not Kill … Except. This film, unfortunately, is also affectionately known as “that movie is incredibly freakin’ hard to find, damnit!!!” Jumping forward again [reminds me of those antiques called the VCR], Ted landed a part as Pac Man in Wes Craven’s Schocker (1989). Hey, whaddya’ know … Ted returns to working with his bro as Rick in Darkman (1990). If you’re starting to see a trend towards a tight-knit group of cool geeks making movies, you’re right on … Ted next starred as Hank Stone in Josh Becker’s Lunatics: A Love Story (1991).

You may be asking … “did he do anything big?” Fine, he appears as a CIA Technician in Patriot Games (1992), followed by the role of Billy in Candyman (1992) and as three different characters in Sam Raimi’s Army of Darkness (1992). Nineteen hundred and ninety-two was a busy year for Mr. Raimi, in deed. In 1993, Ted would appear in Maniac Cop 3, Born Yesterday and Hard Target, before again assisting Jack Ryan as a Satellite Analyst in Clear and Present Danger (1994).

Ted gets to play with the big boys as Hoffman in the Spider-Man trilogy. He plays Alex in The Grudge (2004). When another long-time friend known as Bruce Campbell decided to direct his first film, The Man with the Screaming Brain (2005), Ted was in it as Pavel. When Bruce decided to direct his second film, Ted once again came through as Wing in My Name is Bruce (2007). Ted also played Peter Savorino in the Adam Sandler drama Reign Over Me (2007).

Other notable appearances include: Stuart Saves His Family (1995), Wishmaster (1997), For Love of the Game (1999)

Who is that guy? Oh, its Graham Greene!

Hollywood’s history of not encouraging minority actors has gotten better over the decades, but we still find a shortage of Native American actors. Most of the time, we see them more often in independent films … not that that’s anything to be ashamed of. Graham Greene is probably the most recognizable of the Native American actors working today. Greene was born in 1952 on the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario, Canada. Greene has been working in films and television since the early 1980’s. Greene’s most widely seen role was as Kicking Bird in Kevin Costner’s Dancing With Wolves (1990). In 2007, Greene appeared in three indie films, including All Hat, Breakfast With Scot and Just Buried, in which he played Henry, a handyman for a funeral home going bankrupt. Greene has roles in three more films currently in production.

Vietnam Vet in Pow Wow Highway (1989)
Walter Crow Horse in Thunderheart (1992)
Calhoun in Benefit of the Doubt (1993)
Joseph in Maverick (1994)		 ……. Joe Lambert in Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995)
Arlen Bitterbuck in The Green Mile (1999)
Mogie Yellow Lodge in Skins (2002)
Calvin in Transamerica (2005)

Who is that guy? Oh, its Michael Berryman!

Michael Berryman got his start in the 70’s. Most people who’ve recognized him from this era probably remember him from the Wes Craven’s sophomore horror film The Hills Have Eyes (1977), whereas he portrayed Pluto, one of the creepy savages living in the hills. However, Berryman’s first role in a major movie was as Ellis in Milos Forman’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975).

As his career began to develop, Berryman found himself perfectly suited to nestle himself firmly into a niche’ market, due to his appearance combined with his acting talent. In case you’ve wondered why he tends to have the same general look going for him, Michael Berryman suffers from Hypohidrotic Ectodermal Dysplasia, a rare condition leaving him with no sweat glands, hair, fingernails or teeth. Berryman’s next big movies would come in a cluster of three in 1985 when he played the Mutant Biker in Weird Science and then as a different mutant character in My Science Project, followed by a return as Pluto in The Hills Have Eyes Part II. Berryman received his share of trekkie immortality when he played a Starfleet officer in Star Trek IY: The Voyage Home (1986). Jumping forward a bit, it is a bit sad to find out that Berryman actually had a role in The Crow (1994) as skull cowboy, but his scenes were ultimately cut. More recently, Berryman regained notoriety with his role as Clevon in Rob Zombie’s The Devil’s Rejects (2005). Berryman currently has appearances coming in six new films currently in production.

Other Notable Appearances by Michael Berryman:

Dirtmaster in The Barbarians (1987)
The Mummy in Saturday the 14th (1988)
Lisker in The Guyver (1991)
Maniac Leader in Double Dragon (1994)
Angel in Mojave Moon (1996)

Who is that guy? Oh, its Eric Christian Olsen!

or you can refer to him as his Perry Hilton moniker. If you haven’t seen the Perry Hilton, Eva Longoria sex tape then you are really missing out. The Perry Hilton moniker is an obvious male version of Paris Hilton, and has become a cult success on funny or die. Definitely worth your time, most of them have other big celebs in them as well. Jeremy Piven is in my favorite one.

Eric Christian Olsen hasn’t been on the scene for that long(since 1997), but has already done some great small roles. By far my favorites would have to be Kenny in ‘The Last Kiss’ who is sex addicted best friend that eventually agrees to go on the long journey that Izzy wants to set off on. The other role would be Gunter from ‘Beerfest’, one member of the German Drinking team. One of his earliest roles I remember him from was Austin in ‘Not Another Teen Movie’ which, as I recall he was great in as well. If you want to see more of his filmography go check out his wikipedia page.

I think that he has yet to hit his peak potential, but is well on his way.

Who is that guy? Oh, its Donnie Wahlberg!

donniewahlberg1.jpg

I was again walking around blockbuster and came across something called “The Kill Point” which stars Donnie Wahlberg and John Leguizamo. Little did I know that it was actually a miniseries made for TV and contained multiple 1 hour episodes. I started watching it and it was actually really good! I have really come to respect Mr. Wahlberg as an actor as opposed to his New Kids on the Block alter ego, or as the big bro to Mark Wahlberg, aka Marky Mark.

The thing about his acting career is that he has become typecast as a tough ass cop. So I am going to breakdown all of the movies he has been a cop in:

Saw II, Saw III, Saw IV, Dead Silence, Kings of South Beach, The Kill Point (TV Mini-Series), Annapolis (High Ranking Officer), Band of Brothers (High Ranking Officer), Boomtown (TV Show), NY-70 (TV Show), Path to 9/11 (TV, CIA Officer), Real Men Cry (In production), Righteous Kill (In Production).

20 Movies/TV Shows/and Voice overs to his IMDB credit since 2001 (when I estimate that he started to get this typecast), and at least 13 of them have been as a Detective, Cop, or Military officer.

I think you see my point … but I really enjoy the things he has been in, and been doing so that’s all that matters right?

Who is that guy? Oh, its Peter Dinklage!

Peter Dinklage You may be asking yourself … who is that little guy? Hey, have some respect. An actor’s height has absolutely no bearing on the caliber of his ability. In fact, you’re looking at quite possibly one of my favorite character actors. Dinklage got his start in movies as Tito in Tom DiCillo’s Living in Oblivion (1995). Dinklage appeared as Leflore, joining a cast of up-and-comers including Sam Rockwell, Steve Zahn, Paul Giamatti and Mark Ruffalo in Safe Men (1998). He plays Frank in Michel Gondry’s Human Nature (2001) and follows that as a clown named Binky, opposite another clown played by Steve Buscemi, in Alexandre Rockwell’s 13 Moons (2002).

Dinklage plays Finbar McBride, a man who loses his only friend and moves to a small town to live in solitude, in Thomas McCarthy’s The Station Agent (2003). [This is a personal favorite of mine and I highly recommend seeing it.] He would also appear as Maurice that same year in Tiptoes, a movie that features Gary Oldman as a man with dwarfism. Dinklage is great as the short-tempered Miles Finch who kicks Will Ferrell’s butt in Elf (2003).
In 2006, Dinklage would appear as Ben Klandis in Syndey Lumet’s Find Me Guilty and as Lemon in Mark Palansky’s Penelope. In 2007, Dinklage plays Peter in the Frank Oz dramedy Death at a Funeral, also landing the role of Dr. Barsinister in Underdog (2007). Dinklage appears in an uncredited but important role in Martin McDonagh’s In Bruges (2008). Peter Dinklage will next appear as Trumpkin in the upcoming fantasy The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, due out in May of 2008. Following this, Dainklage is reported to be playing a private eye named Mongo in a fantasy called An Affair of Sorcerers, which is currently in pre-production.

Who is that gal? Oh, its Parker Posey!

Parker Posey Parker Posey is not only a great comedic character actress, but she is also a die-hard supporter of independent cinema. Posey was nicknamed the “Queen of Indies” by Time magazine for appearing in over 30 films since 1994, most of which were low-budget independent films. As with many actors who do not begin their careers on stage, Posey began hers in television. She appeared as Stephanie in Coneheads (1993) and as Darla Marks in Dazed and Confused (1993). Posey had a small role as a female squatter in Hal Hartley’s Amateur (1994), but would return to work with Hartley twice more as Faye Grim in Henry Fool (1997) and Faye Grim (2006). Posey played the high-fashion fun-loving  New Yorker Mary in Party Girl (1995). Posey appears as Mary Boone in Basqiuat (1996). Posey would find a long-lasting working relationship with writer-director Christopher Guest as Libby Mae Brown in Waiting for Guffman (1996), which led to her appearing in Guest’s next three mockumentaries; as Meg Swan in Best in Show (2000), as Sissy Knox in A Mighty Wind (2003), and as Callie Webb in For Your Consideration (2006). Posey’s more recent, higher-profile movies include her roles as Danica Talos in Blade: Trinity (2004) and as Kitty Kowalski in Superman Returns (2006).
These are only a VERY small number of roles Parker Posey has taken on, but if you are keen to her style, here are a handful of other notable films in which she has appeared:
Athena in Sleep With Me (1994)
Emily in Hal Hartley’s short  Flirt (1993)
as well as Hartley’s feature remake, Flirt (1995)
Miami in Kicking and Screaming (1995)
Debbie in Drunks (1995)
Brandi in The Doom Generation (1995)
Jo Malone in The Daytrippers (1996)
Erica in SubUrbia (1996)
Jackie-O Pascal in The House of Yes (1997)
Margaret Burre in Clockwatchers (1997)
Patricia Eden in You’ve Got Mail (1998)
Margaret Nathan in The Misadventures of Margaret (1998)		 … Jennifer Jolie in Scream 3 (2000)
Fiona in Josie and the Pussycats (2001)
Judy Adams in The Anniversary Party (2001)
Greta in Personal Velocity (2002)
Judy Webb in The Sweetest Thing (2002)
Nick in The Event (2003)
Serena in Laws of Attraction (2004)
Rhonda in Adam & Steve (2005)
Priscilla in The Oh in Ohio (2006)
Nora Wilder in Broken English (2007)
Helen Wells in The Eye (2008)