Harry Dean Stanton

PHOTO GALLERY
Date of Birth : Jul 14th 1926

Prolific character actor with a drooping, weather-beaten appearance and superb acting talent that have been his ticket to appearing in over 100 films, and 50 TV episodes. Born in West Irvine, Kentucky, Stanton served in WW II, then returned to the University of Kentucky to appear in a production of “Pygmalion”, before heading out to California and honing his craft at the prestigious Pasadena Playhouse. Stanton then toured around the US with a male choir, worked in children’s theater, and then headed back to California. His first role onscreen was in the tepid Tomahawk Trail (1957), but he was quickly noticed and appeared regularly in minor roles as cowboys and soldiers through the late 1950s and early 1960s. His star continued to rise and he received better roles in which he could showcase his laid-back style, such as in Cool Hand Luke (1967), Kelly’s Heroes (1970), Dillinger (1973), The Godfather: Part II (1974), and in Alien (1979). It was around this time that Stanton came to the attention of director Wim Wenders, who cast him in his finest role yet as Travis in the moving Paris, Texas (1984). Next indie director Alex Cox gave Stanton a role that really brought him to the forefront, in the quirky cult film Repo Man (1984).