Born:
June 02, 1941
in
Savannah, Georgia
Best Known For:
Playing TV detective Mike Hammer.
Early-life:
Born Walter Stacy Keach Jr on June 2, 1941, in Georgia, USA. His father was also an actor. Keach made his stage debut playing Old King Cole at the age of six in a Texas school pageant. He graduated from Van Nuys High School and entered the University of California, Berkeley, in 1959. After studying at the Yale University School of Drama and at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, he made his professional debut in a version of Hamlet performed in New York's Central Park in 1964. His first Broadway appearance followed a year later.
Career:
Keach's big-screen debut was in the film Island of Love in 1962. He then went on to star in such acclaimed offerings as The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, Fat City, The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean, and Jesus of Nazareth. He has appeared in a host of cult movies, including The Long Riders, The Ninth Configuration, Nice Dreams and American History X. He played Mike Hammer in Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer and The New Mike Hammer on TV between 1984 and 1987. He returned to the role in 1997 in Mike Hammer, Private Eye. His appearance in the 1988 series Hemingway won him a Golden Globe Award, and he had a recurring role as Warden Henry Pope in acclaimed US drama Prison Break. He continues to pop up in films and TV series.
Quote:
"Parents need to instill a positive sense of self-esteem in their children so they can pursue their dreams."