fiction.wikisort.org - Actor

Michael Parks (born Harry Samuel Parks; April 24, 1940 – May 9, 2017) was an American singer and actor.[2] He appeared in many films and made frequent television appearances, notably starring in the 1969–1970 series Then Came Bronson, but was probably best known for his work in his later years with filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, David Lynch, and Kevin Smith.

Michael Parks
Parks in Then Came Bronson (1969)
Born	Harry Samuel Parks (1940-04-24)April 24, 1940 Corona, California, U.S.
Died	May 9, 2017(2017-05-09) (aged 77) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor, singer
Years active	1960–2017
Spouses	Louise Johnson ​ ​ (m. 1956; div. 1958)​ Joanne E. "Jan" Moriarty ​ ​ (m. 1964; died 1964)​ Carolyn Kay Carson ​ ​ (m. 1969; div. 1977)​ Frances Alston Fenci Walker ​ ​ (m. 1987; div. 1996)​ [1] Oriana Parks ​ ​ (m. 1997)​
Children	2, including James

As of 2018–2019, Kevin Smith was producing a documentary on Parks's life titled Long Lonesome Highway, The Story of Michael Parks. It stars James Parks, Kurt Russell, Haley Joel Osment, Robert Rodriguez, Leonard Maltin, Mickey Rourke, Justin Long, Wyatt Russell, Mark Frost, and more.[3][4]

Personal life

Parks was born in Corona, California.[5][6]

He drifted from job to job during his teenage years, including picking fruit, digging ditches, driving trucks, and fighting forest fires.[5]

Parks married five times. His first marriage in 1956 at age 16 to Louise Johnson lasted until 1958 and produced a daughter.[7][8] His second marriage in 1964 to actress Jan Moriarty lasted only a few months, ending with her apparent suicide from an overdose.[9] His third marriage in 1968 to Carolyn Kay Carson produced a son, James.[8] His fourth marriage to Alston Fenci, whom he married in 1987, ended in divorce in 1996.[10] In 1997 he married Oriana. The union lasted until his death.[7]

Career

This section needs additional citations for verification. (August 2017)

In 1961, Parks portrayed the nephew of the character George MacMichael on the ABC sitcom The Real McCoys. In a Wagon Train episode airing April 10, 1963, Parks was Hamish Browne, episode titled The Heather and Hamish Story. He appeared with Bette Davis as Cal Leonard in the 1963 Perry Mason episode "The Case of Constant Doyle",[11][12] and gained recognition in the role of Adam in John Huston's The Bible: In the Beginning... (1966).[13]

Parks was the star of the series Then Came Bronson from 1969 to 1970, in which he rode an iconic red Harley-Davidson 883 Sportster, as he drifted from town to town.[14][15] He sang "Wayfarin’ Stranger", a duet with pilot episode co-star Bonnie Bedelia, and later the theme song for the show, "Long Lonesome Highway",[16] which became a No. 20 Billboard Hot 100 and No. 41 Hot Country Songs hit.[17] "Long Lonesome Highway" also peaked at number 84 in Australia.[18]

Parks recorded five albums under MGM Records (the label of the studio which produced the series) that charted including Closing The Gap (1969), Long Lonesome Highway (1970), and Blue.[16]

After disputes with the producers of Bronson, Parks said he was informally blacklisted in Hollywood.[19] Parks admitted he could be "difficult on the set" and also said he objected to producers wanting to make the series more violent. After the cancellation of Bronson, Parks didn't work in a major Hollywood production for several years, but he had regular small roles in independent or Canadian features throughout the 1970s, such as Between Friends (1973), although director Donald Shebib had trouble dealing with Parks, describing him as a "terrific actor in a lot of ways, but weird" while also accusing him of anti-Semitism. [20]

He played in twelve episodes of ABC's The Colbys, a spin-off from Dynasty, first as Hoyt Parker, and then Phillip Colby during the second season (1986–1987). He appeared as Irish mob boss Tommy O'Shea in Death Wish V: The Face of Death (1994), French-Canadian drug runner Jean Renault in the ABC television series Twin Peaks, Dr. Banyard in Deceiver (1997), Texas Ranger Earl McGraw in From Dusk till Dawn (1996), and Ambrose Bierce in From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter (2000).[10]

Parks played two roles in the Kill Bill film series, reprising the role of Earl McGraw in the first film (2003) and playing pimp Esteban Vihaio in the second film (2004).[21] He again reprised the role of Earl McGraw in both segments of the film Grindhouse (2007), making his fourth appearance as the Texas Ranger.[22] His son, James Parks, played the son of Earl McGraw in Kill Bill, From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money, Death Proof, and Planet Terror. Parks played a villain in Kevin Smith's horror films Red State (2011) and Tusk (2014).[21]

Smith later announced on his podcast that Parks had recorded an album during Red State's production, after Smith and producer Jon Gordon noticed his singing talent during filming. The album, titled The Red State Sessions, was released on August 15, 2011 as a download from the film's website.

Death and reaction

Parks died on May 9, 2017 in his Los Angeles home at the age of 77.[23] He requested a full body burial at sea, which his wife attended alone following a public funeral held at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery.

Upon hearing the news, director Kevin Smith posted on his Instagram account "Michael was, and will likely forever remain, the best actor I've ever known. I wrote both Red State and Tusk for Parks, I loved his acting so much." He also included, "He was, hands-down, the most incredible thespian I ever had the pleasure to watch perform. And Parks brought out the absolute best in me every time he got near my set."[24][25] In a Twitter post, director Robert Rodriguez referred to Michael Parks as "a true legend".[26]

Documentary

Kevin Smith is producing a documentary on the life and times of Michael Parks, directed by Michael's former assistant, Josh Roush.[27] Long Lonesome Highway covers his beginnings as an itinerant farmer where he hopped boxcars at age 12, through being blacklisted in Hollywood, to his career resurgence at the hands of filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino.[28]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1965	Wild Seed	Fargo
	Bus Riley's Back in Town	Bus Riley
1966	The Bible: In the Beginning...	Adam
	The Idol	Marco
1967	The Happening	'Sureshot'
	Stranger on the Run	Vincent McKay
1973	Between Friends	Tony
1976	The Last Hard Men	Sheriff Noel Nye
	The Savage Bees	Dr. Jeff DuRand
1977	Murder at the World Series	Larry Marshall
	Escape from Bogen County	Jack Kern
	Sidewinder 1	J.W. Wyatt
	The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover	Robert F. Kennedy
1978	Love and the Midnight Auto Supply	'Duke'
	Rainbow	Roger Edens
1979	The Evictors	Ben Watkins
	Breakthrough	Sergeant Anderson
1980	North Sea Hijack	Harold Shulman
1981	Hard Country	Royce
1982	Savannah Smiles	Lieutenant Savage
1986	The Return of Josey Wales	Josey Wales	Also director[29]
	Spiker	Coach Doames
1988	Arizona Heat	Larry Kapinski
	Nightmare Beach	'Doc' Willet
1989	Caged Fury	Mr. Collins	Also associate producer
	Prime Suspect	Bill Nevins
1991	The Hitman	Detective Ronny 'Del' Delany
1992	Storyville	Detective Michael Trevllian
	Over the Line	Pearlmutter
1994	Death Wish V: The Face of Death	Tommy O'Shea
	Stranger by Night	Detective Larson	Direct-to-video
1995	Sorceress	Stan	Direct-to-video
1996	From Dusk till Dawn	Texas Ranger Earl McGraw
1997	Niagara, Niagara	Walter
	Deceiver	Dr. Banyard
	Julian Po	Vern
1998	Wicked	Detective Boland
1999	From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter	Ambrose Bierce	Direct-to-video
2000	Bullfighter	Cordobes
2001	Big Bad Love	Mr. Aaron
2002	13 Moons	Bartender
2003	Kill Bill: Volume 1	Texas Ranger Earl McGraw
	The Librarians	William Clark
2004	Kill Bill: Volume 2	Esteban Vihaio
2005	Miracle at Sage Creek	Justice Stanley
2006	The Listening	James Wagley
2007	Grindhouse	Texas Ranger Earl McGraw	Segments: Planet Terror / Death Proof
	El Muerto	Sheriff Stone
	The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford	Henry Craig
2008	Noble Things	Pete Collins
	Maidenhead	Dad
	Three Priests	Jacob
2010	Smokin' Aces 2: Assassins' Ball	Fritz Tremor	Direct-to-DVD
	Street Poet	Benny
2011	Red State	Pastor Abin Cooper
2012	Argo	Jack Kirby
	Django Unchained	LeQuint Dickey Mining Company Employee
2013	We Are What We Are	'Doc' Barrow
2014	Tusk	Howard Howe
2016	Blood Father	Tom 'Preacher' Parker
	Greater	Leo
2017	The Queen of Hollywood Blvd	Chet Fuller	Posthumous release
TBA	The Gnashing	Harrison	Post-production Posthumous release />Final film role

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1960	Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater	Juanito	Episode: "Ransom"
1961	Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater	Younger Prisoner	Episode: "The Scar"
	The Law and Mr. Jones	Mike Enslow	Episode: "One by One"
	The Asphalt Jungle	Ty	Episode: "The Sniper"
	Straightaway	Donald Stafford	Episode: "Pledge a Nightmare"
	The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor	Johnny Blaine / Eddy Washburn / Jimmy	Episodes: "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt", "Personal Enemy", "The Frightened Ones"
1962	Gunsmoke	Park	Episode: "The Boys"
	Target: The Corruptors!	'Rocky' Kustak	Episode: "Nobody Gets Hurt"
	Stoney Burke	'Tack' Reynolds	Episode: "The Mob Riders"
	The Real McCoys	Tom	Episode: "George's Nephew"
	Bus Stop	Unknown	Episode: "The Opposite Virtues"
	Sam Benedict	Larry Wilcox	Episode: "Too Many Strangers"
	The Gallant Men	Billy Ray Medford	Episode: "A Place to Die"
1963	The Alfred Hitchcock Hour	Skip Baxter	Episode: "The Cadaver"
1963	The Alfred Hitchcock Hour	Dr. Daniel Dana	Episode: "Diagnosis: Danger"
	The Greatest Show on Earth	Cristos	Episode: "The Hanging Man"
	Perry Mason	Cal Leonard	Episode: "The Case of Constant Doyle"
	Arrest and Trial	Gregory Wade	Episode: "We May Be Better Strangers"
	77 Sunset Strip	Eddie Marco	Episode: "Crash Out!"
1963–1964	Channing	Dante Donati	2 episodes
	Wagon Train	Hamish Browne / Michael Malone	Episodes: "The Heather and Hamish Story", "The Michael Malone Story"
1964	Route 66	'Tank'	Episode: "Cries of Persons Close to One"
1965	Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre	Lieutenant Colonel Burt Engle	Episode: "A Time for Killing"
1969–1970	Then Came Bronson	Jim Bronson	Lead role, 26 episodes; a feature-length pilot was released theatrically in some European countries[30]
1970	The Johnny Cash Show	Himself, Singing
1973	Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law	Ollie Gregson	Episode: "Sometimes Tough Is Good"
	Medical Center	Dr. Chris Wells	Episode: "Fatal Memory"
1974	Ironside	Professor Riley MacDane	Episode: "A Death in Academe"
1976	Ellery Queen	Terry Purvis	Episode: "The Adventure of the Wary Witness"
1978	Hunters Of The Reef	Jim Spanner	Television film
1981	Dial M for Murder	Max	Television film
1986, 1988	The Equalizer	Logan / Jonathan Grey	2 episodes
1987	The Colbys	Phillip Colby	12 episodes
1989	Murder, She Wrote	Ben Aaron	Episode: "Prediction: Murder"
	War of the Worlds	'Cash' McCullough	Episode: "My Soul to Keep"
	Billy the Kid	Rynerson	Television film
1990	The China Lake Murders	Officer Jack Donnelly	Television film
1990–1991	Twin Peaks	Jean Renault	5 episodes
1991	Shades of L.A.	Reverend James Scarborough	2 episodes
1993	SeaQuest 2032	George Le Chein	Episode: "To Be or Not To Be"
1993	The Untouchables	Dean 'Dion' O'Banion	Pilot episode, billed as guest star[31]
1996	Hart to Hart	Evan Powell	Episode: "Secrets of the Hart"
1996-1999	Walker, Texas Ranger	Major Caleb Hooks	2 episodes

Discography

This section does not cite any sources. (August 2017)

ALBUMS:

• 1969 – Closing The Gap (MGM)
• 1970 – Long Lonesome Highway (MGM)
• 1970 – Blue (MGM)
• 1970 – Lost & Found (Verve)
• 1971 – Best Of Michael Parks (MGM)
• 1981 – You Don't Know Me (First American)
• 1998 – Coolin' Soup (Listen)
• 2011 – The Red State Sessions (SModcast)

SINGLES:

• 1969 - Tie Me To Your Apron Strings Again / Won't You Ride in My Little Red Wagon (MGM K14092) #117 Billboard's Bubbling Under chart
• 1970 - Long Lonesome Highway / Mountain High (MGM K14104) #20 Billboard's Hot 100 chart
• 1970 - Sally (Was A Gentle Woman) / Spend A Little, Save A Little (Give A Little Away) (MGM K14154)
• 1970 - Big "T" Water / Won't You Ride in My Little Red Wagon (MGM K14363)
• 1970 - I Was Born In Kentucky / Turn Around Little Mama (Verve VK10653)

References

External links

• Michael Parks at IMDb
• Michael Parks at the Internet Broadway Database
• Michael Parks at the TCM Movie Database
• Michael Parks sings Long Lonesome Highway

На других языках

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[de] Michael Parks

Michael Parks (* 24. April 1940 in Corona, Kalifornien als Harry Samuel Parks; † 9. Mai 2017 in Los Angeles, Kalifornien[1]) war ein US-amerikanischer Schauspieler, Sänger und Filmregisseur.

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- [en] Michael Parks

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[es] Michael Parks

Michael Parks (Corona, 24 de abril de 1940 – Los Ángeles, 9 de mayo de 2017) fue un actor, director de cine[1] y cantante estadounidense.[2] Apareció en casi una cincuentena de películas y también tuvo apariciones en la televisión, pero probablemente sea más conocido por sus últimos trabajos con Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodríguez y Kevin Smith.

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[ru] Паркс, Майкл (актёр)

Майкл Паркс (англ. Michael Parks, имя при рождении Гарри Сэмюел Паркс (англ. Harry Samuel Parks); 24 апреля 1940[3], Корона, Калифорния, США — 9 мая 2017, Лос-Анджелес, Калифорния, США[4]) — американский актёр и певец, исполнитель роли шерифа Эрла Макгроу в фильмах Квентина Тарантино и Роберта Родригеса.

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