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James Tolkan

James Tolkan

Fiery, forceful and intimidating character actor James Tolkan has carved out a nice little niche for himself in both movies and television alike as a formidable portrayer of fierce and flinty hard-boiled tough guy types. James Stewart Tolkan was born on June 20, 1931 in Calumet, Michigan. His father, Ralph M. Tolkan, was a cattle dealer. James attended the University of Iowa, Coe College and Eastern Arizona College. After serving a year-long stint in the United States Navy, Tolkan went to New York and studied acting with both Lee Strasberg and Stella Adler at the Actors Studio. Short and bald, with beady, intense eyes, a wiry, compact, muscular build, a gruff, jarring, high-decibel voice, and an aggressive, confrontational, blunt-as-a-battle-ax, rough-around-the-edges demeanor, Tolkan has been often cast as rugged, cynical no-nonsense cops, mean, domineering authority figures, and various ruthless and dangerous criminals. Tolkan first began acting in movies in the late 1960s and was highly effective in two pictures for Sidney Lumet: He was a rabidly homophobic police lieutenant in the superbly gritty Serpico (1973) and a sneaky district attorney in the equally excellent Prince of the City (1981). Best known as the obnoxiously overzealous high school principal Gerard Strickland in the Back to the Future films, Tolkan's other most memorable roles include Napolean in Woody Allen's Love and Death (1975), a ramrod army officer in WarGames (1983), mayor Robert Culp's mordant, wisecracking assistant in Turk 182 (1985), the hard-nosed Stinger in Top Gun (1986), the choleric Detective Lubric in Masters of the Universe (1987), meek mob accountant Numbers in Dick Tracy (1990), and Wesley Snipes' bullish superior in Boiling Point (1993).

Personal information

Birthday

1931-06-20

Birth Place

Calumet, Michigan, USA

Movies and TV shows :

7 Times Lucky

7 Times Lucky

2004

6.3

Movie
poster

A Nero Wolfe Mystery

2001

7.8

TV
Armed and Dangerous

Armed and Dangerous

1986

5.6

Movie
Author! Author!

Author! Author!

1982

5.9

Movie
Back in Time

Back in Time

2015

6.5

Movie
Back to the Future

Back to the Future

1985

8.3

Movie
Back to the Future Part II

Back to the Future Part II

1989

7.8

Movie
Back to the Future Part III

Back to the Future Part III

1990

7.5

Movie
Bloodfist IV: Die Trying

Bloodfist IV: Die Trying

1992

5.2

Movie
Boiling Point

Boiling Point

1993

5.0

Movie
Bone Tomahawk

Bone Tomahawk

2015

6.9

Movie
poster

Cobra

1993

6.6

TV
Dick Tracy

Dick Tracy

1990

6.1

Movie
Driving Me Crazy

Driving Me Crazy

1991

3.7

Movie
poster

Early Edition

1996

7.3

TV
Family Business

Family Business

1989

5.7

Movie
Flanagan

Flanagan

1985

0.0

Movie
Hangfire

Hangfire

1991

4.2

Movie
Hanky Panky

Hanky Panky

1982

5.3

Movie
Heavens Fall

Heavens Fall

2006

7.3

Movie
poster

Hill Street Blues

1981

7.6

TV
Iceman

Iceman

1984

6.1

Movie
poster

Leverage

2008

7.6

TV
Little Spies

Little Spies

1986

6.5

Movie
Looking Back to the Future

Looking Back to the Future

2009

8.0

Movie
Love and Death

Love and Death

1975

7.5

Movie
Made in Heaven

Made in Heaven

1987

6.7

Movie
poster

Mary

1985

5.0

TV
Masters of the Universe

Masters of the Universe

1987

5.7

Movie
poster

Miami Vice

1984

7.5

TV
Ministry of Vengeance

Ministry of Vengeance

1989

3.0

Movie
poster

Naked City

1958

5.3

TV
poster

Nowhere Man

1995

7.5

TV
Off Beat

Off Beat

1986

4.9

Movie
Opportunity Knocks

Opportunity Knocks

1990

5.7

Movie
Phil Spector

Phil Spector

2013

5.7

Movie
Prince of the City

Prince of the City

1981

7.0

Movie
Problem Child 2

Problem Child 2

1991

5.9

Movie
Question of Faith

Question of Faith

1988

0.0

Movie
poster

Remington Steele

1982

7.1

TV
Robo Warriors

Robo Warriors

1997

5.3

Movie
Second Sight

Second Sight

1989

4.4

Movie
Serpico

Serpico

1973

7.5

Movie
Sketch Artist

Sketch Artist

1992

5.5

Movie
Sketch Artist II: Hands That See

Sketch Artist II: Hands That See

1995

6.0

Movie
Split Decisions

Split Decisions

1988

5.1

Movie
Stiletto

Stiletto

1969

5.2

Movie
Sunset Beat

Sunset Beat

1990

7.0

Movie
poster

Tales from the Crypt

1989

8.0

TV
Tales from the Future

Tales from the Future

2010

7.5

Movie
The Amityville Horror

The Amityville Horror

1979

6.3

Movie
The Case of the Hillside Stranglers

The Case of the Hillside Stranglers

1989

6.3

Movie
poster

The Equalizer

1985

7.1

TV
poster

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

1990

7.9

TV
The Friends of Eddie Coyle

The Friends of Eddie Coyle

1973

7.2

Movie
poster

The Hat Squad

1992

6.8

TV
poster

The Pretender

1996

7.4

TV
The River

The River

1984

6.3

Movie
The Three Sisters

The Three Sisters

1966

0.0

Movie
The Werewolf of Washington

The Werewolf of Washington

1973

3.8

Movie
poster

The Wonder Years

1988

8.3

TV
poster

The Wonderful World of Disney

1954

7.6

TV
They Might Be Giants

They Might Be Giants

1971

6.9

Movie
Top Gun

Top Gun

1986

7.1

Movie
True Blood

True Blood

1989

5.5

Movie
Turk 182!

Turk 182!

1985

5.8

Movie
Underworld

Underworld

1996

5.2

Movie
Val

Val

2021

7.1

Movie
Viper

Viper

1988

3.5

Movie
WarGames

WarGames

1983

7.1

Movie
Weekend War

Weekend War

1988

2.0

Movie
Wings

Wings

1983

0.0

Movie
Wolfen

Wolfen

1981

5.9

Movie