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American actor (b. 1958) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Michael Kevin Paré (born October 9, 1958) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the films Eddie and the Cruisers (1983), Streets of Fire (1984), and The Philadelphia Experiment (1984), and on the series Starhunter (2000–2004).
Michael Paré | |
|---|---|
 Paré at the Chiller Theatre Expo in 2014 | |
| Born | Michael Kevin Paré[1] October 9, 1958 New York City, U.S. |
| Education | The Culinary Institute of America |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, chef |
| Years active | 1981–present |
| Spouses | Marisa Roebuck
(m. 1986; div. 1988)Marjolein Booy
(m. 1992) |
| Children | 1 |
I've been playing heroes, and heroes are not normal people. You can't find a leading man doing a nine-to-five job on Wall Street. And that hurt because they said, "You can't play a regular person." Tom Cody was also bigger than life. And in The Philadelphia Experiment, I'm a time traveler for god's sake. So for a long time, all I played was cops, heroes and soldiers.[2]
—Paré on being typecast as a macho man.
Paré was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Joan and Francis Paré, who owned print shops.[3] He has six sisters and three brothers. Paré's father was of French-Canadian ancestry.[4] His father died from leukemia when Paré was five, leaving his mother to raise the large family of children.
Growing up, Paré was a fan of James Dean, Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, Paul Newman, and Robert Mitchum, and felt he was "a kindred spirit" to them.[5] He was working as a chef in New York City when he met talent agent Yvette Bikoff, who convinced him to try acting.[6] In the early 1980s, he studied acting under Uta Hagen.[7] He shot a series of television commercials in Japan.[7]
In August 1987, noted for his physique in his macho roles in The Greatest American Hero, Eddie and the Cruisers and Streets of Fire, Paré was chosen as the cover model for the first issue of Men's Fitness.[8] The magazine was folded into Men's Journal in 2017; in 2018, Men's Journal ranked Paré's as the No. 1 cover in the former magazine's more than 300-issue history.[8]
His first starring role was as Tony Villicana on the television series The Greatest American Hero. His best-known film roles were as Eddie Wilson in Eddie and the Cruisers (1983) and its sequel Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives! (1989),[9] as well as Streets of Fire (1984)[10] and The Philadelphia Experiment (1984).[11] Paré also appeared in the 2012 remake of The Philadelphia Experiment. He starred as a tortured soldier named Brad Cartowski in the 1993 action film Deadly Heroes, directed by Menahem Golan.[12][13] Other films included Moon 44 (1990), Village of the Damned (1995),[14] Bad Moon (1996),[15] Hope Floats (1998),[16] and The Virgin Suicides (1999).[17]
Paré is best known for his deep, raspy voice,[18][13] muscular physique,[8][18][19] rugged screen presence,[20] and classic action hero demeanour. In his 2017 interview for Men's Journal he revealed that as a young actor he wasn't sure if he wanted to make a career as “the muscular leading guy", and instead tried to follow in the footsteps of his idols — Marlon Brando and James Dean.[8]
Paré won the Best Actor award at PollyGrind Film Festival for the film Road to Hell, playing again the role of Tom Cody.[21]
On television, Paré starred with Michael Beck in the drama Houston Knights in 1987–1988[3] as well as the 2001 television series Starhunter.[22] The actor frequently appears in Uwe Boll's works.[23][24]
Paré carries a manic workload, having knocked out an average of 13.2 film plus TV movie roles per year over the 5-year-period of 2020–2024.
He has married three times. His first wife (1980–1984) was film producer Lisa Katselas; his second wife, Marisa Roebuck (1986–1988); his present wife (since 1992) is Marjolein Booy, a former fashion model, with whom he has one child. Paré stated that he lives "a good, clean life", and trains frequently.[8] He lives in California.[8]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Crazy Times | Harry | TV movie |
| 1983 | Eddie and the Cruisers | Eddie Wilson | |
| Undercover | Max | ||
| 1984 | Streets of Fire | Tom Cody | |
| The Philadelphia Experiment | David Herdeg | ||
| 1985 | Space Rage | Grange | |
| 1986 | Instant Justice | Scott Youngblood | |
| 1987 | The Women's Club | Patrick | |
| 1988 | World Gone Wild | George Landon | |
| 1989 | Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives! | Eddie Wilson/Joe West | |
| 1990 | The Dark Sun | Ruggero Brickman | |
| Moon 44 | Felix Stone | ||
| The Closer | Larry Freed | ||
| Dragonfight | Moorpark | ||
| 1991 | Concrete War | Jeff | |
| Killing Streets | Chris Brandt/Craig Brandt | ||
| 1992 | Into the Sun | Captain Paul Watkins | |
| Sunset Heat | Eric Wright | ||
| Blink of an Eye | Sam Browning | ||
| Empire City | Joey Andre | TV movie | |
| 1993 | Point of Impact | Jack Davis | |
| Deadly Heroes | Brad Cartowski | ||
| 1994 | Warriors | Colin | |
| 1995 | The Dangerous | Random | |
| Lunarcop | Joe Brody | ||
| Village of the Damned | Frank McGowan | ||
| Triplecross | Teddy "T.C." Cooper | TV movie | |
| Raging Angels | Colin | ||
| 1996 | Coyote Run | Pershing | |
| The Colony | Alec Harken | TV movie | |
| Carver's Gate | Carver | TV movie | |
| Bad Moon | Ted Harrison | ||
| 1997 | 2103: The Deadly Wake | Tarkis | |
| Falling Fire | Daryl Boden | ||
| Strip Search | Robby Durrell | ||
| Merchant of Death | Jim Randell | ||
| 1998 | Hope Floats | Bill Pruitt | |
| Back to Even | Boyle | ||
| October 22 | Gary | ||
| Men of Means | Rico "Bullet" Burke | ||
| 1999 | The Virgin Suicides | Adult Trip Fontaine | |
| Space Fury | Konrad | Video | |
| 2000 | Peril | Vincent | Video |
| Sanctimony | Jim Renart | ||
| 2001 | A Month of Sundays | Tomas McCabe | |
| Blackwoods | Sheriff Harding | ||
| 2002 | Heart of America | Will Prat | |
| 2003 | Fate | Detective Cody Martin | |
| Red Serpent | Steve Nichols | ||
| 2004 | Gargoyle: Wings of Darkness | Ty "Griff" Griffin | Video |
| 2005 | Crash Landing | Captain Williams | |
| Komodo vs. Cobra | Mike A. Stoddard | TV movie | |
| BloodRayne | Iancu | ||
| 2006 | Saurian | Jace Randall | TV movie |
| 2007 | Seed | Detective Matt Bishop | |
| Polycarp | Detective Barry Harper | ||
| Postal | Panhandler | ||
| BloodRayne II: Deliverance | Pat Garrett | Video | |
| Furnace | Detective Michael Turner | ||
| 2008 | Ninja Cheerleaders | Victor Lazzaro | |
| Tunnel Rats | Sergeant Vic Hollowborn | ||
| 100 Feet | Mike Watson | ||
| Alone in the Dark II | Willson | Video | |
| Far Cry | Paul Summers | ||
| Dark World | Harry | ||
| Road to Hell | Tom Cody | ||
| 2009 | The Perfect Sleep | Officer Pavlovich | |
| Direct Contact | Clive Connelly | ||
| Rampage | Sheriff Melvoy | ||
| 2010 | Tales of an Ancient Empire | Oda | |
| Cool Dog | Dean Warner | Video | |
| Amphibious | Jack Bowman | ||
| 2011 | The Lincoln Lawyer | Detective Kurlen | |
| Bloodrayne: The Third Reich | Capt. Ekart Brand | ||
| Blubberella | Commandant | ||
| 2012 | Gone | Lieutenant Ray Bozeman | |
| Maximum Conviction | Chris Blake | ||
| The Philadelphia Experiment | Hagan | TV movie | |
| The Come Up | Ron Zimmermann | Short | |
| 2013 | How Sweet It Is | Mike Cicero | |
| Real Gangsters | Frank 'Frankie' D'Cecco | ||
| Assault on Wall Street | Frank | ||
| Suddenly | Conklin | ||
| Jet Set | Ryan | ||
| 2014 | The Last Outlaw | Sheriff Atherton | Video |
| Snapshot | President | ||
| Wings of the Dragon | Jackson Lee | ||
| The Big Fat Stone | Detective Farinelli | ||
| 2015 | 24 Hours | Captain Mike Ryan | |
| A Perfect Vacation | Xander | ||
| No Deposit | Mickey Ryan | ||
| Checkmate | Captain Raymond Mitchell Howard | ||
| The Cask of Amontillado | Fortunato | Short | |
| The Vatican Tapes | Detective Harris | ||
| Operator | Howard | ||
| The Shelter | Thomas Jacob | ||
| Sicilian Vampire | Sammy | ||
| The Good, the Bad and the Dead | Sheriff Olson | ||
| Bone Tomahawk | Mr. Wallington | ||
| 2016 | Decommissioned | Detective Tom Weston | |
| Swap | Captain Doug Rice | ||
| Abattoir | Richard Renshaw | ||
| Traded | Clay Travis | ||
| The Infiltrator | Barry Seal | ||
| Nessie & Me | Dad | ||
| The Red Maple Leaf | Ambassador Patrick Adams Jr. | ||
| 2017 | Povratak | Michael Shreder | |
| A Doggone Hollywood | Sheriff Evans | ||
| American Violence | Martin Bigg | ||
| Global Meltdown | Amos Cade | TV movie | |
| The Neighborhood | Johnny 3 | ||
| Gangster Land | O'Connor | ||
| The Wrong Man | Gary Moore | TV movie | |
| Jason's Letter | Brad Macaulay | ||
| 2018 | Battle Drone | Karl Kess | |
| Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich | Detective Brown | ||
| The Debt Collector | Mad Alex | ||
| Astro | Allen Smith | ||
| The Wrong Friend | Lt. Forni | TV movie | |
| Talk to the Animals | Ted | Short | |
| Reborn | Detective Marc Fox | ||
| City of Lies | Detective Varney | ||
| A Christmas in Royal Fashion | Dan Carson | TV movie | |
| 2019 | The Last Big Save | Derek | |
| Making a Deal with the Devil | Pierre | ||
| Hollow Point | Damian Wakefield | ||
| Mayday | Adam Anderson | ||
| Once Upon a Time in Deadwood | Swearengen | ||
| Manipulated | Roger 'Duke' Brown | ||
| Big Kill | Col. Granger | ||
| 2020 | Emerald Run | Matteo Trino | |
| The Insurrection | Sergeant Major | ||
| Invincible | Trevor Morgan | ||
| Captors | Charles Dusker | ||
| Middleton Christmas | Johnny | ||
| 2021 | The Wrong Fiancé | Police Chief Sawyer | TV movie |
| Triassic Hunt | Jordan Freedman | ||
| The Resonator: Miskatonic U | Professor Wallace | ||
| The Penthouse | Charles | [25] | |
| Mummy Dearest | Dr. Jason | ||
| Painkiller | Dr. Alan Rhodes | ||
| Deceived by My Mother-In-Law | Ross | TV movie | |
| Mommy's Deadly Con Artist | Ross | TV movie | |
| Raunch and Roll | Carl Weinstein | ||
| Mind Games | Colonel Reeder | ||
| Righteous Blood | Jericho | ||
| Bed Bug | The Killer | Short | |
| The Wild Man: Skunk Ape | Captain Stryker | ||
| South of Heaven | Joey | ||
| Christmas Collision | Jaggar Huntley | ||
| 2022 | Beyond the Resonator | Professor Wallace | |
| Curse of the Re-Animator | Professor Wallace | ||
| Lockdown | Roger Kinkaid | ||
| Top Gunner: Danger Zone | Air Marshall Tony Wilkes | ||
| Shooting Star | Sheriff Wiley | ||
| As Long As I'm Famous | Older Sid | ||
| Dawn | Officer Barry | ||
| Pig Killer | Detective Oppal | ||
| The Red Tide Massacre | Sheriff Tom Fuller | ||
| They Crawl Beneath | Bill Moritz | ||
| Nix | Idres | ||
| Attack on Titan | Citizen Prime Ortiz | ||
| Renegades | Donovan | ||
| Headless Horseman | Devil | ||
| Bridge of the Doomed | Colonel Charon | ||
| Space Wars: Quest for the Deepstar | Kip | ||
| 2025 Armageddon | Thomas Ramsey | ||
| 3.3 Miles | Ray | ||
| Twisted Vines | Branson Wright | ||
| Alabama Rose | Ethan | ||
| 2023 | End of Loyalty | Pops | |
| If I Can't Have You | Mr. Sklar | TV movie | |
| Kings of L.A. | Artie | ||
| The Beast Comes at Midnight | Night | ||
| Wrongful Death | Dr. David Moore | ||
| The Puppetman | Detective Al | ||
| Alien Apocalypse | Director Storm | ||
| In the Shadows | Sam Hammonds | ||
| Family Ornaments | Grandpa Pat | ||
| The Stairwell | Hollister | Short | |
| A Christmas Intern | William | TV movie | |
| America Is Sinking | General Robert Glenn | ||
| Very Frightening Tales | - | ||
| 2024 | Scars | Tom | |
| The Wrong Life Coach | Detective Clover | TV movie | |
| Wanted Man | Tinelli | ||
| Planetquake | General West | ||
| Tall, Dark, and Dangerous | Bill | TV movie | |
| Camp Pleasant Lake | Rick Rutherford | ||
| Sentinel | President | ||
| War of the Worlds: Extinction | General Andres Alfaro | ||
| Kill Craft | Thomas Delon | ||
| Bedtime Stories: Tales of Love and Hate | Fortunato | ||
| Steady | Rudy | Short | |
| Shark Island | Charlie | Video | |
| Alien: Rubicon | President McCoy | ||
| In Tenebras: Into the Darkness | Captain Shaw | ||
| 9 Windows | Agent Larry Thurgood | ||
| The Vampire and the Vigilante | Gabriel | ||
| Angel with a Gun | Archer |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981-83 | The Greatest American Hero | Tony Villicana | Main Cast: Season 1-2, Guest: Season 3 |
| 1987-88 | Houston Knights | Sergeant Joey La Fiamma | Main Cast |
| 2000-03 | Starhunter | Dante Montana | Main Cast: Season 1, Recurring Cast: Season 2 |
| 2004 | Cold Case | Randy Price | Episode: "Greed" |
| 2006 | South Beach | Charlie Evans | Recurring Cast |
| 2007 | Whatever Happened To? | Himself | Episode: "Rebels" |
| 2011 | Memphis Beat | Dave Hargrove | Episode: "Things We Carry" |
| House | Warden Delaire | Episode: "Twenty Vicodin" | |
| 2012 | Leverage | FBI Special Agent Dennis Powell | Episode: "The Radio Job" |
| 2017 | Starhunter Transformation | Dante Montana | Main Cast |
| 2017-18 | Starhunter ReduX | Dante Montana | Main Cast |
| 2019 | Seven Days | O'Donnell | Episode: "Episode #1.1" |
| 2021-22 | Keeping Up with the Joneses | Sheldon | Main Cast |
| Year | Artist | Song | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Eddie and the Cruisers | "On the Dark Side" | Eddie Wilson |
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