Stacy Keach
Walter Stacy Keach Jr. (born June 2, 1941) is an American actor, active in theatre, film and television since the 1960s. Keach first distinguished himself in Off-Broadway productions and remained a prominent figure in American theatre across his career, particularly as a noted Shakespearean.[1][2][3] He is the recipient of several theatrical accolades, four Drama Desk Awards, two Helen Hayes Awards and two Obie Awards for Distinguished Performance by an Actor. He was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his performance in Arthur Kopit's 1969 production of Indians.[3]
Stacy Keach
United States
Poland (since 2015)
Actor
1964–present
-
Kathryn Baker(m. 1964, divorced)
-
Marilyn Aiken(m. 1975; div. 1979)
-
Jill Donahue(m. 1981; div. 1986)
2
- Stacy Keach Sr. (father)
- Mary Peckham (mother)
James Keach (brother)
In film, he garnered critical acclaim for his portrayal of a washed-up boxer in the John Huston film Fat City (1972) and appeared as Sergeant Stedenko in Cheech & Chong's films Up in Smoke (1978) and Nice Dreams (1981).[4] His other notable film credits include Brewster McCloud (1970), Doc (1971), The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972), Luther (1973), Slave of the Cannibal God (1979), The Ninth Configuration (1980), The Long Riders (1980), Escape from L.A. (1996), American History X (1998), The Bourne Legacy (2012) and Nebraska (2013).
Keach is known to television audiences for his portrayal of private detective Mike Hammer on the television series Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer (1984–1987), for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe, as Ken Titus on the sitcom Titus (2000–2002) and as the narrator of the crime documentary series American Greed (2007–present). He also had recurring roles on series such as Prison Break (2005–2007), Two and a Half Men (2010) and Blue Bloods (2016–). He won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Primetime Emmy Award for playing Ernest Hemingway on the television miniseries Hemingway (1988).
He is an inductee of the Theatre Hall of Fame and was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2019. He is the son of theatre director Stacy Keach Sr., and the older brother of actor James Keach.
Early life and education[edit]
Keach was born in Savannah, Georgia, to Mary Cain (née Peckham), an actress, and Stacy Keach Sr., a theatre director, drama teacher, and actor with dozens of television and theatrical film credits billed as "Stacy Keach."[5] The younger Keach was born with a cleft lip and a partial cleft of the hard palate, and he underwent numerous operations as a child. Throughout his adult life he has usually worn a mustache to hide the scars. He is now the honorary chairman of the Cleft Palate Foundation and advocates for insurance coverage for surgeries.[6]
He graduated from Van Nuys High School in June 1959, where he was class president,[7] then earned two BA degrees at the University of California, Berkeley (1963): one in English, the other in Dramatic Art. He earned a Master of Fine Arts at the Yale School of Drama in 1966 and was a Fulbright Scholar at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.[8]
While studying in London, Keach met Laurence Olivier, his acting hero.[9]
Honors[edit]
In 2015, Keach was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.[34] In 2019, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.[35]
