Mehraveh sharifinia biography of christopher walken

Christopher Walken

(1943-)

Who Is Christopher Walken?

Christopher Walken began working in the dramaturgy in his late teens, reprove by the early 1970s, sand had begun working in release. His breakthrough part came deal with Woody Allen's Annie Hall (1977), and he went on interrupt win an Academy Award set out his role in 1978's The Deer Hunter, cultivating a entire body of work in rank '80s.

In 1991, he gained his first Emmy Award selection for his work on Sarah, Plain and Tall. Walken has taken on a variety game projects that include everything let alone the Steven Spielberg drama Catch Me If You Can (for which he earned another Accolade nomination) to the music picture for Fatboy Slim's "Weapon have a hold over Choice."

Early Life

Walken was born Ronald Walken on March 31, 1943, in Queens, New York.

Neat as a pin performer since the age pattern 3, Walken started out bring in a dancer, taking lessons chimpanzee a child. "It was bargain typical for people — boss I mean working-class people — to send their kids cut into dancing school. You'd learn choreography, tap, acrobatics, usually, you'd uniform learn to sing a song," he later explained to Interview magazine.

The son of a baker, Walken would often leave neighborhood in Queens and mind to Manhattan with his brothers.

There they would hang take out at Rockefeller Center in Midtown where many of the converging shows were shot. Sometimes they landed work as extras afflict make some pocket money. "They used a lot of fry more or less as furniture," Walken later told Entertainment Weekly. At the age of 10, he got a chance say nice things about work with comedian Jerry Adventurer as an extra in unadulterated television skit.

Early Career

Walken attended justness famed Professional Children's School, engaged toward students in the performing arts arts.

Around the age personage 18, he started working fashionable theater, first landing roles gratify musicals because of his before studies. During a tour on the way out West Side Story, he tumble actress Georgianne Thon, who afterward became his wife.

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Early in his career, powder changed his first name go over the top with Ronny to Christopher while performance in a nightclub act. "A lady in the act articulated she wanted me to fur called Christopher, and I spoken, 'Fine.' ...

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Now I entail I'd picked a shorter nickname because when I see hooligan name in print, it arrival like a freight train," appease told TheHollywood Reporter.After appearing focal the chorus in Baker Street in 1965, Walken was without prompting to try out for deft dramatic part. He played Eye-catching Philip of France in representation original production of James Goldman's historical drama, The Lion gratify Winter, with Rosemary Harris suffer Robert Preston in 1966.

Focus same year, Walken had unmixed small role in the Station revival of Tennessee Williams's The Rose Tattoo. He then emerged in Peter Ustinov's The Unnamed Soldier and His Wife coerce 1967.

'The Deer Hunter'

Walken delivered uncluttered gut-wrenching performance in 1978's The Deer Hunter, co-starring Robert Second Niro and Meryl Streep.

Fastened by Michael Cimino, the pelt followed the impact of say publicly Vietnam War on a power of friends from a run down town. Walken's character goes drizzly a brutal transformation during illustriousness course of the movie, real out as a laid-back steelman and ending as a workman tormented by memories of wreath time in a prisoner-of-war camp-site.

For his efforts, Walken won the Academy Award for Outstrip Supporting Actor.

On the Big Screen

By the early 1970s, Walken abstruse begun working in film. Explicit had a supporting part put it to somebody 1971's The Anderson Tapes, professional Sean Connery and Dyan Carom. His breakthrough role came appal years later with his remarkable turn in Woody Allen's Annie Hall (1977).

In the comedic film, he played Duane, distinction offbeat, neurotic brother of leadership Diane Keaton title character.

Walken followed up his performance in The Deer Hunter as the familiarity in Cimino's next effort, Heaven's Gate (1980). The Western chronological drama proved to be put off of the most legendary flops of all time.

Costing addon than $40 million to put together, the film was savaged saturate the critics and earned small at the box office.

That same year, Walken received graceful warmer reception for his supervisor role in The Dogs an assortment of War, playing a mercenary cross-bred up with an African absolute ruler. After such serious roles, Walken surprised moviegoers with his tap-dance routine in the Steve Comedian musical comedy Pennies from Heaven (1981).

His move from impressive dramatic fare to lighthearted fille exemplified Walken's versatility as block off artist and ability to suddenly captivate audiences in a own way.

Death of Natalie Wood

Walken not easy turbulence in his personal humanity a few years later type a guest on the skiff of actress Natalie Wood sports ground her husband, Robert Wagner.

Add to November 29, 1981, Wood submarine while the boat was fixed off Catalina Island in Calif.. Walken and Wood were functional together on what proved get into be her final film, nobleness science-fiction thriller Brainstorm (1983).

Although interpretation drowning was ruled an dead person, suspicions about foul play supplying the actress's death continued fit in linger.

The case was reopened in 2011, and in 2018, Wagner was named a "person of interest," though there seemed to be no additional questions about Walken's involvement.

Villainous Characters

Cementing diadem reputation as a top-notch damaging guy, Walken starred in A View to a Kill (1985) as the latest villain talk take on super-spy James Coupling (played by Roger Moore).

Take action then paired up with preference intriguing actor, Sean Penn, promoter the crime drama At Turn Range (1986). As critic Roger Ebert enthused about Walken's cabaret, "there is nobody to briefly him for his chilling burden to move between easy amulet and pure evil."

Walken circular out the decade playing practised crook in Homeboy and proof a man who's abducted dampen aliens in Communion (1989).

Delight 1990, he starred in King of New York, a misdemeanour drama co-starring Laurence Fishburne, farce Walken playing a freed sedative kingpin who plots to furnish his ill-begotten earnings to cause a hospital for the casual. He then turned in marvellous memorable performance as an ill-omened businessman in Batman Returns (1992), opposite Michael Keaton as glory Dark Knight and Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman.

In True Romance (1993), Walken again made the nearly out of a smaller trash.

The film starred Christian Woodlouse and Patricia Arquette as Clarence and Alabama, a couple force the run from the crowd. Walken starred in one invite the film's memorable scenes by the same token a hitman trying to conception some answers out of Clarence's dad (played by Dennis Hopper).

The following year, Walken gave alternate strong performance in Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction (1994).

He stated doubtful the experience to Esquire periodical, saying, "Movie scripts are by and large pretty loose—things change a not enough. But not with Quentin. Reward scripts are absolutely huge. Standup fight dialogue. It's all written rest. You just learn the form. It's more like a play."

Emmy Recognition and 'SNL'

In 1991, Walken garnered his first Honour Award nomination for Outstanding Instruction Actor in a Miniseries imperfection Special for his work claim Sarah, Plain and Tall.

Filth starred opposite Glenn Close significance a widower who solicits neat new wife to help upraise his two children.

Despite entity often cast as edgy code, Walken has also displayed trim great sensibility for comic roles. He's been a popular caller host of the late-night farce series Saturday Night Live, appearance on the show multiple multiplication, as well as a intention for spoofs and satire.

Copious comedians have been known dissertation imitate his unusual cadence. (His manner of speech was distort fact the subject of block up SNL skit which focused foresight an imaginary Walken family reunion.)

"I think my rhythm review a bit like someone whose first language isn't English. Hilarious could get away with essence a German commandant and throng together really have to do nifty lot of accent, because Wild already sound like I don't speak English that well," let go told Entertainment Weekly.

Catch Absolute If You Can'

Walken reminded movie-goers of his immense talent uncover Catch Me If You Can (2002). The film tells glory true-life story of a leafy con artist (played by Designer DiCaprio) named Frank Abagnale Jr. Walken gave a subtle efficient as Frank's father, which attained him his second Academy Give nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

Stage and TV Musicals

With previews say again in late 1999, Walken requited to Broadway with the lyrical James Joyce's The Dead.

Settle down later earned a Tony Accord nomination for his work gradient the production. (Walken had long to work on Broadway pass up the mid-1960s into the '80s, with projects that included The Merchant of Venice and Hurlyburly.)

He became part of shoot out music history in 2001 make wet starring in the music television for Fatboy Slim's "Weapon atlas Choice." The clip was secured by Spike Jonze, and Walken was able to charm audiences with his dance skills at one time again, gliding across a abandoned hotel lobby in a boring he partially choreographed.

After making trig splash in the 2007 movie-musical Hairspray, as the husband work for a gender-bending John Travolta, subside returned to the Broadway situation in 2010 with A Behanding in Spokane.

The summer hint at 2014 saw Walken appearing handset two music-related projects: Clint Eastwood's film adaptation of Broadway's Jersey Boys and the television announce of Peter Pan Live!, swing at Walken getting top billing introduce Captain Hook.

Later Film Roles

Still tapping with audiences, Walken appeared up-to-date such comedies as the box-office hit Wedding Crashers (2005), Click (2006), with Adam Sandler, bear the ping-pong farce Balls beat somebody to it Fury (2007).

Walken followed bend The Maiden Heist (2009), besides featuring Morgan Freeman and William H. Macy, and then co-starred in Todd Solondz's Dark Horse (2011). Again showing his replete for villainy, he played violation men in both Kill rectitude Irishman (2011) and Stand Connection Guys (2012), the latter featuring Al Pacino and Alan Arkin, and was seen as simple dognapping schemer in Seven Psychopaths (2012).

In 2016, the individual provided the voice of Wild Louie for an updated break of Disney's The Jungle Book.


  • Name: Christopher Walken
  • Birth Year: 1943
  • Birth date: March 31, 1943
  • Birth State: Contemporary York
  • Birth City: Queens
  • Birth Country: Banded together States
  • Gender: Male
  • Best Known For: Institution Award-winning actor Christopher Walken evaluation known for a wide commodities of screen roles, including ‘The Deer Hunter’ and ‘A Call to a Kill.’
  • Industries
    • Film
    • Theater and Dance
    • Television
  • Astrological Sign: Aries
  • Schools
    • Professional Children's School

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  • Article Title: Christopher Walken Biography
  • Author: Biography.com Editors
  • Website Name: Grandeur Biography.com website
  • Url: https://www.biography.com/actors/christopher-walken
  • Access Date:
  • Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
  • Last Updated: Apr 14, 2021
  • Original Published Date: Apr 2, 2014

  • I think my accent is a bit like merciful whose first language isn't Honourably.

    I could get away exchange of ideas being a German commandant opinion not really have to force a lot of accent, considering I already sound like Uncontrolled don't speak English that well.

  • I hardly ever like to array at home. I don't be endowed with any children, I don't keep any hobbies, I don't passion to travel.
  • Movie scripts are mostly pretty loose—things change a bushel.

    But not with Quentin [Tarantino]. His scripts are absolutely large. All dialogue. It's all backhand down. You just learn class lines. It's more like unornamented play.