Roy Scheider

Roy Richard Scheider
1932 -
American born Orange

Height 5' 9" (1.75 m) . Lean, angular faced and authoritatively spoken lead / supporting actor, Roy Scheider obviously never heard the old actor's axiom about "never appearing with kids or animals" lest they overshadow your performance. Although, it did him no harm as he achieved pop cult status by finding, fighting and blowing up a 25ft long shark (nicknamed "Bruce") in the 1970s uber-thriller Jaws (1975) and then electrocuting an even bigger great white in the vastly inferior Jaws 2 (1978).Athletic Scheider was born in November 1932 in Orange, New Jersey and was a keen sportsman from a young age competing in baseball and boxing.....that awkwardly mended, broken nose of his is a result of his foray into Golden Gloves competitions! Whilst at college, his pursuits turned from sports to theater and he studied drama at Rutgers and Franklin and Marshall. After a stint in the military, Scheider appeared with the New York Shakespeare Festival and won an "Obie Award" for his appearance in the play "Stephen D."Scheider's film career started of in the Z-grade horror flick The Curse of the Living Corpse (1964), and he then showed up in Star! (1968), Paper Lion (1968), Stiletto (1969) and Puzzle of a Downfall Child (1970). In 1971, he really came to the attention of film audiences with his role in the Jane Fonda thriller Klute (1971) and then as "Det. Buddy Russo" (scoring his first Oscar nomination) alongside fiery Gene Hackman in the crime drama The French Connection (1971). His performance as a gritty police officer, led Scheider into another tough cop role as NYC detective "Buddy Manucci" in the under appreciated The Seven-Ups (1973) featuring one of the best car chase sequences ever put on film.In the early 1970s, the Peter Benchley book "Jaws" was a phenomenal best seller, and young director Steven Spielberg was chosen by Universal to direct the film adaptation in which Scheider played police chief "Brody", and shared lead billing with Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss in the tale of Jaws (1975), a New England seaside community terrorized by a rogue great white shark. "Jaws" was a blockbuster money maker, and for many years held the record as the highest grossing film! Scheider then turned up as the shady, CIA agent brother of Dustin Hoffman in the unnerving Marathon Man (1976), in the William Friedkin directed remake of "The Wages of Fear" titled Sorcerer (1977), before again returning to seaside Amity to battle another giant shark in Jaws 2 (1978). Seeking a change of pace from tough cops and hungry sharks, he took the role of womanizing, drug popping choreographer "Joe Gideon", the lead character of the semi-autobiographical portrayal of director Bob Fosse in the sparkling All That Jazz (1979). It was another big hit for Scheider (and another Oscar nomination), with the film featuring a stunning opening sequence to the tune of the funky George Benson number "On Broadway", and breath-taking dance routines including the "Airotica" performance with the glamorous Sandahl Bergman.Returning to another law enforcement role, Scheider played a rebellious helicopter pilot in the John Badham conspiracy / action film Blue Thunder (1983), a stellar scientist in the sequel to "2001" simply titled 2010 (1984), a cheating husband who turns the tables on his blackmailers in 52 Pick-Up (1986), a cold blooded hit man in Cohen and Tate (1989) and as a CIA operative in the muddled and slow moving The Russia House (1990). Versatile Scheider was then cast as the captain of a futuristic submarine in the telemovie "SeaQuest DSV" (1993), which led onto the relatively popular TV series of the same name, that ran for three seasons.Inexplicably however, Scheider had seemingly and slowly dropped out of favor with mainstream film audiences, and whilst he continued to remain busy, predominantly in supporting roles, (generally as US presidents or military officers) most of the vehicles he appeared in were B-grade political thrillers such as The Peacekeeper (1997), Executive Target (1997), Chain of Command (2000) and Red Serpent (2002).One hopes that a really first class role will re-emerge for this immensely entertaining actor, he's much too interesting & likable to be out of the public limelight! Spouse Brenda King (1989 - present) 2 children, Cynthia Scheider (8 November 1962 - 1989) (divorced) 1 child.

Winter Sea (2006) , Dark Honeymoon (2007) , Last Chance (2006), If I Didn't Care (2006) , Dracula III: Legacy (2005) , The Punisher (2004) , Dracula II: Ascension (2003) , Citizen Verdict (2003) , "Third Watch" (2002) , King of Texas (2002) , Texas 46 (2002) , Red Serpent (2002) , Love Thy Neighbor (2002/I) , The Feds: U.S. Postal Inspectors (2002) , Time Lapse (2001) , Angels Don't Sleep Here (2001) , "Diamond Hunters" (2001) , Daybreak (2000/I) , The Doorway (2000) , Falling Through (2000) , Chain of Command (2000) , RKO 281 (1999) , "The Seventh Scroll" (1999) , Better Living (1998) , Evasive Action (1998) , Silver Wolf (1998) , The White Raven (1998) , The Rainmaker (1997) , Executive Target (1997) , The Peacekeeper (1997) , The Myth of Fingerprints (1997) , The Rage (1997) , Plato's Run (1997) , Money Plays (1997) , The Definite Maybe (1997) , "SeaQuest DSV" (1995) , Wild Justice (1994) , Romeo Is Bleeding (1993) , SeaQuest DSV (1993), "Wild Justice" (1993) , Naked Lunch (1991) , Contact: The Yanomami Indians of Brazil (1991) , The Russia House (1990) , Somebody Has to Shoot the Picture (1990) , The Fourth War (1990) , Night Game (1989) , Listen to Me (1989) , Cohen and Tate (1989) , 52 Pick-Up (1986) , The Men's Club (1986) , Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985) , "Saturday Night Live" (1985) , 2010 (1984) , Tiger Town (1983) , Jacobo Timerman: Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number (1983) , Blue Thunder (1983) , Still of the Night (1982) , All That Jazz (1979) , Last Embrace (1979) , Jaws 2 (1978) , Sorcerer (1977) , Marathon Man (1976) , Jaws (1975) , Sheila Levine Is Dead and Living in New York (1975) , The Seven-Ups (1973) , Un homme est mort (1972) , Attentat, L' (1972) , Assignment: Munich (1972) , To Be Young, Gifted, and Black (1972) , "Cannon" (1971) , The French Connection (1971) , Klute (1971) , Puzzle of a Downfall Child (1970) , Loving (1970) , Stiletto (1969) , Paper Lion (1968) , Star! (1968) , "N.Y.P.D." (1968) , "The Secret Storm" (1954) , "Coronet Blue" (1967) , "Hallmark Hall of Fame" (1966) , Lamp at Midnight (1966) , "Love of Life" (1951) , "Camera Three" (1964) , The Curse of the Living Corpse (1964) , "The Edge of Night" (1956)