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Ed Harris biography

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Quick Facts

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Best Known For

Actor Ed Harris played John Glenn in The Right Stuff, fought a water monster in The Abyss, and was a tormented artist in Pollack.

Synopsis

Born November 28, 1950, Ed Harris's first major film role was in 1980's Borderline, opposite Charles Bronson. His breakthrough came in 1983 when he played John Glenn in The Right Stuff. Harris has starred in a range of films including The Abyss, Glengarry Glen Ross, Apollo 13, and Pollack, for which he won an Oscar nomination. He also received an Obie Award in 1983 for his stage work.

Acting Debut

Actor. Born November 28, 1950, in Tenafly, New Jersey. Harris' first acting role came at the age of eight, when he appeared in The Third Miracle, a made-for-television movie. After studying acting at Oklahoma University and the California Institute of the Arts, he compiled an impressive list of stage credits, including roles in productions of The Grapes of Wrath and A Streetcar Named Desire, and also appeared in several television programs and movies.

Harris' first major film role was as a nemesis of action-star Charles Bronson in Borderline (1980). His breakthrough performance came three years later, when he was cast as astronaut John Glenn in The Right Stuff (1983). Although a box-office bust, Harris, with his clear eyes and rugged good looks, was perfectly suited to play the "moral Marine." Winning critical success for the performance, he went on to win supporting roles in several hit movies, Places in the Heart (1984), starring Sally Field, and Swing Shift (1985), and lead roles in several poorly received films, including Code Name: Emerald and Sweet Dreams (both 1985).




Career Highlights

In 1989, Harris received top billing in James Cameron's The Abyss, lending his distinctive humanity to the underwater sci-fi adventure. In 1992, he joined the assemble cast of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross. Co-starring with actors Jack Lemmon, Kevin Spacey, Alec Baldwin, Alan Arkin, and Al Pacino, Harris gave a forceful performance in the largely overlooked film. In 1993, he appeared opposite Tom Cruise in The Firm, and in 1995, returned to the U.S. space program as head of mission control in Ron Howard's Apollo 13, starring Tom Hanks. Harris was honored with Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for his supporting role in Apollo 13, and won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Supporting Actor.

In 1996, Harris costarred with big-screen heavyweights Nicolas Cage and
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