James Howard Woods (born April 18, 1947) is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
filmFilm encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects....
,
stageTheatre is a branch of the performing arts. While any performance may be considered theatre, as a performing art, it focuses almost exclusively on live performers creating a self contained drama. A performance qualifies as dramatic by creating a representational illusion...
and
televisionTelevision is a widely used telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images, either monochromatic or color, usually accompanied by sound. "Television" may also refer specifically to a television set, television programming or television transmission...
actorAn actor or actress is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and
comedianA comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain members of an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
. Woods is best known for starring in films such as
Once Upon a Time in AmericaOnce Upon a Time in America is a 1984 epic crime film directed and co-written by Sergio Leone and starring Robert De Niro and James Woods. The story chronicles the lives of Jewish ghetto youths who rise to prominence in New York City's world of organized crime...
,
Ghosts of MississippiGhosts of Mississippi is a 1996 drama film directed by Rob Reiner and starring Alec Baldwin, Whoopi Goldberg and James Woods. The plot is based on the true story of the 1994 trial of Byron De La Beckwith, the white supremacist accused of the 1963 assassination of civil rights activist Medgar...
,
SalvadorSalvador is a 1986 film which tells the story of an American journalist in El Salvador covering the Salvadoran civil war. While trying to get footage, he becomes entangled with both leftist guerrillas and the right wing military...
,
CasinoCasino is a 1995 crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Nicholas Pileggi, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Scorsese....
and as the
DisneyThe Walt Disney Company , often simply known as Disney, is the largest media and entertainment conglomerate in the world, known for its family-friendly products...
villain
HadesHades is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1997 Disney movie Hercules, based on the Greek god Hades. Unlike the mythological Hades, who is for the most part a relatively passive deity doing a sometimes nasty job, this version is a fast-talking, evil deity, reminiscent of Satan...
in
HerculesHercules is a American animated feature film, produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirty-fifth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film was directed by Ron Clements and John Musker...
.
Early life
Woods was born in
Vernal, UtahVernal is a city in Uintah County, Utah, United States. The population was 7,714 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Uintah County.The city's Vernal-Uintah County Airport has scheduled air service to Denver provided by Great Lakes Aviation. Service is subsidized by the Essential Air...
. His father, Gay Peyton Woods, was an army intelligence officer who died in 1960 following routine surgery. His mother, Martha A. (
néeA married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage, and in speaking of the many cultures where the practice is traditional for women, the maiden name is the family name that the married name replaces....
Smith), operated a pre-school after her husband's death and re-married to Thomas E. Dixon. Woods grew up in
Warwick, Rhode IslandWarwick is a city in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. It is the second largest city in the state, with a population of 85,808 at the 2000 census. Its mayor has been Scott Avedisian since 2000...
, where he attended
Pilgrim High SchoolPilgrim High School is a 9-12th grade secondary school in Warwick, Rhode Island. The school is one floor and features various wings of classes, mainly divided by subject...
. Woods, an
army bratA "military brat" is a term for a person whose parent or parents have served full-time in the armed forces during the person's childhood...
, had been accepted to attend the
United States Air Force AcademyThe United States Air Force Academy , is an accredited college for the undergraduate education of commissioned officers for the United States Air Force. Its campus is located immediately north of Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States...
. But, several weeks before he was to depart, Woods suffered an accident involving a plate glass window which injured his hand tendons severely enough to result in his acceptance being retracted.
Woods chose to pursue his undergraduate studies at
MITThe Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological research...
, where he majored in
political sciencePolitical science is a social science concerned with the theory and practice of politics and the description and analysis of political systems and political behavior. It is often described as the pragmatic application of the art and science of politics defined as "who gets what, when and how",...
(though he originally planned on a career as a surgeon). While at MIT, Woods pledged to
Theta Delta ChiTheta Delta Chi is a social fraternity that was founded in 1847 at Union College. While nicknames differ from institution to institution, the most common nicknames for the fraternity are Theta Delt, Thete, TDX, and TDC. Theta Delta Chi brothers refer to their local organization as Charges rather...
Fraternity. He was also an active member of the student theatre group "Dramashop" where he both acted in and directed a number of plays. He dropped out of MIT in 1969 just before his graduation in order to pursue a career in acting. Woods moved to
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
, calling his mother to tell her of his plans. While his mother wasn't thrilled at the news, she gave him her blessing to pursue a career in acting. At the 2006 CBS UpFront, James Woods stated that his mother told him that if he was going to switch careers to acting that he needed to be the best actor he could possibly be.
Career
Woods began his career in theatre, making his
BroadwayBroadway Theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, is the theatre associated with the 40 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located in the Theatre District, New York in Manhattan, New York City...
debut in 1970 at the Lyceum Theatre in the original production of
Frank McMahonFrank McMahon is an Australian author and playwright perhaps best known for his play Borstal Boy, an adaptation of the Brendan Behan novel of the same title.-External links:...
's
Borstal BoyBorstal Boy is a play adapted by Frank McMahon from the 1958 autobiographical novel of Irish nationalist Brendan Behan of the same title. The play debuted in 1967 at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, with Frank Grimes as the young Behan...
. He returned to Broadway the following year portraying David Darst in
Daniel BerriganDaniel Berrigan, SJ is a poet, American peace activist, and Roman Catholic priest. Daniel and his brother Philip were for a time on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list for committing acts of vandalism including destroying government property.-History:Daniel Berrigan was born in Virginia,...
's
The Trial of the Catonsville NineThe Catonsville Nine were nine Catholic activists who burned draft files to protest the Vietnam War. On May 17, 1968 they went to the draft board in Catonsville, Maryland, took 378 draft files, brought them to the parking lot in wire baskets, dumped them out, poured homemade napalm over them, and...
. In 1971 he portrayed the role of Bob Rettie in the American premiere of
Michael WellerMichael Weller is a Brooklyn-based playwright who is best known for his plays Moonchildren and Loose Ends. Weller is one of the founders of the Cherry Lane Theatre's acclaimed Mentor Project, which pairs pre-eminent playwrights with emerging playwrights for a season-long mentorship...
's
MoonchildrenMoonchildren is a play by Brooklyn-based playwright Michael Weller. The play chronicles a year in the life of the "moonchildren" referred to in the title: eight college students living communally together in an off-campus attic in the mid 1960s.-Performances:The work was first performed in 1971...
at the
Arena StageArena Stage is a theater production company in Southwest Washington, D.C. The theater company's home is on the DC waterfront, at 1101 Sixth Street, SW...
in
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...
The production moved to Broadway the following year and Woods won a
Theatre World AwardThe Theatre World Award, first awarded for the 1945-46 season, is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway.-History:...
for his performance. He returned to Broadway one last time in 1973 to portray Steve Cooper in the original production of
Jean Kerr-Early life:Born Bridget Jean Collins in Scranton, Pennsylvania, her best-known book was Please Don't Eat the Daisies , a humorous look at suburban life...
's
Finishing Touches. Since then he has been a busy actor, producer, director, and writer for film and television.
Woods is considered one of the finest character actors in Hollywood today. He is known for his dark, intense characters, an early example being his portrayal of a sadistic murderer in 1979's
The Onion FieldThe Onion Field is a 1979 film adapted by Joseph Wambaugh from his book of the same name, and directed by Harold Becker. The Onion Field is rated R by the MPAA....
. He appeared in an episode of
The Rockford FilesThe Rockford Files is an American detective television drama originally aired on the NBC television network between September 13, 1974 and January 10, 1980; it has remained in constant syndication to the present day. The show is notable for the quality of its writing, largely from Stephen J...
, playing a son whose parents were murdered and wanted
James "Jim" RockfordJim Rockford is a fictional character on the television series The Rockford Files. The character, played by James Garner, is a struggling private investigator operating in Los Angeles. Unlike many other fictional "private eyes", he is a former convict, albeit one who was falsely imprisoned...
to find the murderer. He was nominated for an
Academy AwardThe Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are presented annually by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers. The formal ceremony at which the awards are presented is...
twice: the first in
1987-Events:*January 31 - The Cure for Insomnia premieres at The School of the Art Institute in Chicago, Illinois, to officially become the world's longest film according to Guinness World Records.*May 9 - Actor Tom Cruise marries actress Mimi Rogers....
for
Best ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
in
SalvadorSalvador is a 1986 film which tells the story of an American journalist in El Salvador covering the Salvadoran civil war. While trying to get footage, he becomes entangled with both leftist guerrillas and the right wing military...
and again in
1996The year 1996 in film involved some significant events. Major releases this year included Fargo, Trainspotting, The English Patient, Independence Day, Twister, Scream, Jerry Maguire and Madonna's Evita.-Events:...
for
Best Supporting ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
for his acclaimed performance as
Byron De La BeckwithByron De La Beckwith was an American white supremacist and Klansman who was convicted of killing civil rights leader Medgar Evers.-Early life:...
in
Ghosts of MississippiGhosts of Mississippi is a 1996 drama film directed by Rob Reiner and starring Alec Baldwin, Whoopi Goldberg and James Woods. The plot is based on the true story of the 1994 trial of Byron De La Beckwith, the white supremacist accused of the 1963 assassination of civil rights activist Medgar...
. He has also garnered critical praise for his voice work as
HadesHades is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1997 Disney movie Hercules, based on the Greek god Hades. Unlike the mythological Hades, who is for the most part a relatively passive deity doing a sometimes nasty job, this version is a fast-talking, evil deity, reminiscent of Satan...
in
DisneyWalt Disney Pictures refers to several different entities associated with The Walt Disney Company:Walt Disney Pictures, the film banner, was established as a designation in 1983, prior to which Disney films since 1954 were released under the name of the parent company, then named Walt Disney...
's
HerculesHercules is a American animated feature film, produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirty-fifth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film was directed by Ron Clements and John Musker...
.
Woods' favorite role, however, is Max - the domineering gangster in
Sergio LeoneSergio Leone was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter most associated with the "Spaghetti Western" genre.Leone's film making style includes juxtaposing extreme close-up shots with lengthy long shots...
's epic film
Once Upon a Time in AmericaOnce Upon a Time in America is a 1984 epic crime film directed and co-written by Sergio Leone and starring Robert De Niro and James Woods. The story chronicles the lives of Jewish ghetto youths who rise to prominence in New York City's world of organized crime...
(
1984-Events:* The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name.*Tri-Star Pictures, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS, releases its first film....
).
In 1995, Woods took the role of Lester Diamond, the sleazy pimp in
Martin ScorseseMartin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. He is the founder of the World Cinema Foundation, a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema and has won awards from the Oscars, Golden Globe,...
's
CasinoCasino is a 1995 crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Nicholas Pileggi, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Scorsese....
. That same year, he portrayed H.R. Haldeman in
NixonNixon is a 1995 American biographical film directed by Oliver Stone for Cinergi Pictures that tells the story of the political and personal life of former US President Richard Nixon, played by Anthony Hopkins. The film portrays Nixon as a complex and, in many respects, an admirable person, though...
, the biopic of
Richard M. NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States and is the only president to resign the office. He was also the 36th Vice President of the United States ....
directed by
Oliver StoneWilliam Oliver Stone is an American film director and screenwriter. Stone came to prominence as a director with a series of films about the Vietnam War, in which he had participated as an American infantry soldier, and his work continues to focus frequently on contemporary political and cultural...
.
He was briefly considered for the role of
The JokerThe Joker is a fictional character, a comic book supervillain published by DC Comics and appearing as the archenemy of Batman. Created by Jerry Robinson, Bill Finger and Bob Kane, the character first appeared in Batman #1 ....
by
Tim BurtonTimothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, producer, writer and artist. He is famed for his dark and quirky films, such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands and The Nightmare Before Christmas, which he co-wrote and produced...
and
Sam HammSam Hamm is an American screenwriter, perhaps best known for writing the screenplay for Tim Burton's Batman and an unused screenplay for the sequel. As a result of his work, he was invited to write for the Batman comic...
for the
BatmanBatman is a 1989 superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name, directed by Tim Burton. The film stars Michael Keaton in the title role, as well as Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl and Jack Palance...
film in
1989-Events:* "Batman" is released on June 23, and went on to become the biggest blockbuster of the year; Grossing over $250 million at the box office.* Actress Kim Basinger and her brother Mick purchase Braselton, Georgia, for $20 million...
. Hamm recalls that he and Burton thought, "James Woods would be good and wouldn't need any makeup, which would save a couple of hours' work every morning." The role ended up going to
Jack NicholsonJohn Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director and producer. He is renowned for his often dark-themed portrayals of neurotic characters....
.
Quentin TarantinoQuentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s he was an independent filmmaker whose films used nonlinear storylines and aestheticization of violence...
wrote a part in
Reservoir DogsReservoir Dogs is the 1992 debut film of director and writer Quentin Tarantino. It portrays what happens before and after a botched jewel heist, but not the heist itself. Reservoir Dogs stars an ensemble cast with Harvey Keitel, Steve Buscemi, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Quentin Tarantino, Chris Penn...
with Woods in mind, but his agent rejected the script without showing it to the actor. When Woods learned of this some time later, he fired the agent. Woods was also considered for the part of Donald Kimball in
American PsychoAmerican Psycho is a 2000 film by Mary Harron, a film adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's novel of the same name. The film stars Christian Bale as Patrick Bateman, with Jared Leto, Josh Lucas, Justin Theroux, Bill Sage, Chloë Sevigny, Reese Witherspoon, Willem Dafoe, and Samantha Mathis...
, but he turned it down. The part was given to
Willem DafoeWilliam "Willem" Dafoe is an American film and stage actor, and a founding member of the experimental theatre company The Wooster Group...
.
Woods lent his voice again in
DisneyThe Walt Disney Company , often simply known as Disney, is the largest media and entertainment conglomerate in the world, known for its family-friendly products...
's 2001 animated comedy
Recess: School's OutRecess: School's Out is a 2001 animated film based on the Disney television series Recess. This film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and was released theatrically nationwide on February 16, 2001. It was released on video and DVD on August 7, 2001....
as antagonist Phillium Benedict, the twisted former headmaster who attempts to abolish summer vacation. He also appeared as himself in the episode of
The SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated television sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its eponymous family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie...
entitled "
Homer and Apu"Homer and Apu" is the thirteenth episode of The Simpsons
' fifth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 10, 1994. In the episode, Homer participates in a hidden camera investigation of the expired meat selling at the Kwik-E-Mart...
" and in two episodes of
Family GuyFamily Guy is an American animated television sitcom, created by Seth MacFarlane, for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family which consists of Peter, Lois, Meg, Chris, Stewie, and their pet dog Brian...
entitled "
Peter's Got Woods"Peter's Got Woods" is the eleventh episode from the fourth season of the FOX animated series Family Guy. This episode featured guest stars Gabrielle Union as Shauna and James Woods as himself...
" and "
Back to the Woods"Back to the Woods" is a season six episode of the FOX animated series Family Guy that aired on February 17, 2008. There are special guest voices done by James Woods and Barry Manilow as themselves and Dave Van Dam portrays his role as David Letterman from The Howard Stern Show...
". The high school in
Family Guy is called James Woods High and a forest that is briefly mentioned in
The Fat Guy Strangler"The Fat Guy Strangler" is the seventeenth episode of season four of Family Guy, which originally aired on November 27, 2005. Lois discovers she has a long-lost brother, Patrick...
called James Woods are named after him. In 2004, Woods played the character Jallak in the animated film
"Ark"Ark is a 2004 computer-generated imagery movie, directed by Kenny Hwang, animated by Digital Rim, and produced by John Woo. It is an anime-style film similar in appearance to the movie Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, and is also the flagship project for both the director and the studio...
. Woods also more recently performed in the movie
Surf's UpSurf's Up is a American Academy Award-nominated computer-animated mockumentary film produced by Sony Pictures Animation and distributed by Columbia Pictures. It stars the voices of Shia LaBeouf, Jeff Bridges, Zooey Deschanel, Jon Heder among others....
, voicing the animated otter who recruited surfers and pitted them against each other.
In
2006The year 2006 in film saw many new films released worldwide, including several major mainstream sequels, prequels, and remakes as well as original films.-Top grossing films:...
, Woods starred opposite
Cuba Gooding, Jr.Cuba M. Gooding, Jr. is an American actor. He is best known for his Academy Award-winning portrayal as Rod Tidwell in Cameron Crowe's Jerry Maguire and his critically acclaimed performance as Tré Styles in John Singleton's Boyz n the Hood .-Early life:Cuba Gooding, Jr...
in the political thriller
End GameEnd Game is a 2006 action/thriller film, written and directed by Andy Cheng. The film stars Cuba Gooding, Jr. as Secret Service agent Alex Thomas, who is shot in the hand, while unsuccessfully trying to protect the President from an assassin's bullet...
. Also in 2006, Woods played himself in the premiere episode of
EntourageEntourage is an American comedy-drama that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004. The series was created by Doug Ellin and chronicles the rise of Vincent Chase, a young A-list movie star, and his childhood friends from Queens, New York City, as they navigate the unfamiliar terrain of Hollywood,...
s third season. He also starred in Grand Theft Auto: San AndreasGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a sandbox-style action-adventure computer and video game developed by Rockstar North. It is the third 3D game in the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise, the fifth original console release and eighth game overall...
as Mike Toreno and voiced the falcon in Stuart Little 2Stuart Little 2 is a 2002 film, directed by Rob Minkoff. It is a sequel to the 1999 film Stuart Little, and includes characters from the children's book by E. B...
.
Woods also starred in the CBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is an American television network, one of television's original "big three", which also include NBC and ABC. Like NBC, CBS started out as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System...
legal drama SharkShark is an American legal drama that originally ran on CBS from September 21, 2006 to May 20, 2008. Created by Ian Biederman, the series starred James Woods as Sebastian Stark, a notorious Los Angeles defense attorney who becomes a prosecutor....
, which ran for two seasons between 2006 and 2008. Woods played an infamous Los Angeles defense lawyer who, after growing disillusioned, became a successful prosecutor.
Politics
Woods is a vocal supporter of former U.S. President George W. Bush and the war in Iraq, though he has some politically liberal views. He is a particularly ardent supporter of former Mayor of
New YorkNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
Rudy Giuliani| align="right"|Rudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani is an American lawyer, businessman and politician from New York. He served as Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001....
. Woods lobbied hard to play Giuliani in the biopic
Rudy: The Rudy Giuliani StoryRudy: The Rudy Giuliani Story is a made-for-television movie produced and broadcast in 2003 on the USA Network.-Plot:The movie is a depiction of the life of former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, focusing primarily on his mayoral career and response to the September 11 attacks.-Adaptation:The...
, and considers the role one of the favorites of his career.
In 2001, before the September 11 attacks, while on a commercial flight from Boston to New York City in August, Woods claims to have noticed two men, who were to later become two of the 9/11 hijackers, and informed a flight attendant that he felt they were acting very suspiciously. He stated they never ate, drank, slept, or read during the flight, only whispering to each other in low tones. He filed an official report with the FAA about the incident. Woods has been interviewed several times by FBI agents regarding this incident.
In the 2008 presidential election, Woods endorsed
John McCainJohn Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
for president.
Personal life
Woods plays on the
World Poker TourThe World Poker Tour is a series of international poker tournaments featuring most of the world's professional players. It was started in the United States by attorney/television producer Steven Lipscomb, who now serves as CEO of WPT Enterprises , the firm that controls the World Poker Tour. In...
in the Hollywood Home games for the American Stroke Association charity. In 2006, James finished in 24th place out of 692 at the L.A. Poker Classic for $40,000. Woods has shared an endorsement for the
online pokerOnline poker is the game of poker played over the Internet. It has been partly responsible for a dramatic increase in the number of poker players worldwide...
website
Hollywood PokerHollywoodPoker.com is an online poker site endorsed by Hollywood celebrities James Woods and Vince Van Patten.Featuring both free play and real money games, Hollywood Poker offers Limit and No Limit Texas Holdem, Omaha , 7 Card Stud , and 5 Card Draw.Tournaments are available in single table or...
which is run in conjunction with
Ongame Networkbwin Interactive Entertainment AG , formerly Betandwin.com , is an Austrian based online gaming company. The group operates under international and regional licences in countries like Gibraltar, the Amerindian reserve of Kahnawake , Belize and Germany, Italy, Mexico, Croatia, Austria and the United...
, and "co hosted" with poker enthusiast
Vince Van PattenVincent Van Patten is an American actor. He was born in Bellerose, New York.He is the youngest son of actor Dick Van Patten and his wife, Pat, née Poole, a former June Taylor dancer. Van Patten was first urged into show business at age nine by his father’s agent...
. He can be found playing regularly at Hollywood Poker, and contributes content to the website.
His brother and fellow actor, Michael Jeffrey Woods, died of
cardiac arrestA cardiac arrest, also known as cardiopulmonary arrest or circulatory arrest, is the abrupt cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively during systole....
on July 26, 2006. This occurred shortly after James Woods finished 24th at a
World Poker TourThe World Poker Tour is a series of international poker tournaments featuring most of the world's professional players. It was started in the United States by attorney/television producer Steven Lipscomb, who now serves as CEO of WPT Enterprises , the firm that controls the World Poker Tour. In...
event.
During a press interview for
Kingdom Hearts IIis an action role-playing game developed by Square Enix and published by Buena Vista Games and Square Enix in 2005 for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console...
, Woods noted that he is an avid video game player.
He volunteers as a Reserve Police Officer for the LAPDThe Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With nearly 9,900 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 3.8 million people, it is one of the largest law enforcement agencies in the United...
.
Filmography
Hickey and Boggs
(1972)
The VisitorsThe Visitors is a 1972 drama film directed by Elia Kazan. It was entered into the 1972 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Patrick McVey - Harry Wayne* Patricia Joyce - Martha Wayne* James Woods - Bill Schmidt* Steve Railsback - Mike Nickerson...
(1972)
The Way We WereThe Way We Were is a 1973 American romantic drama film directed by Sydney Pollack. The screenplay by Arthur Laurents was based on his college days at Cornell University and his experiences with the House Un-American Activities Committee....
(1973)
KojakKojak is an American television series starring Telly Savalas as the eponymous, bald New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theo Kojak. It aired from October 24, 1973 to March 18, 1978 on CBS. It took the time slot of the popular Cannon series, which was moved one hour earlier...
: Death is Not a Passing Grade (1974)
Night MovesNight Moves is a 1975 film directed by Arthur Penn, and starring Gene Hackman, Jennifer Warren and Susan Clark. It features very early career appearances by Melanie Griffith and James Woods. The film was written by Alan Sharp...
(1975)
Billion Dollar BubbleEquity Funding Corporation of America was a Los Angeles-based U.S. financial conglomerate that marketed a package of mutual funds and life insurance to private individuals in the 1960s and 70s...
(TV movie) (1976)
Raid on EntebbeRaid on Entebbe is a 1977 TV movie directed by Irvin Kershner. It is based on an actual event: Operation Entebbe and the freeing of hostages at Entebbe Airport in Entebbe, Uganda on july 4, 1976...
(1977)
Holocaust
(TV miniseries) (1978)
The Onion FieldThe Onion Field is a 1979 film adapted by Joseph Wambaugh from his book of the same name, and directed by Harold Becker. The Onion Field is rated R by the MPAA....
(1979)
Fast-WalkingFast-Walking is a 1982 film directed by James B. Harris and starring James Woods, Tim McIntire, Kay Lenz, and M. Emmet Walsh....
(1982)
VideodromeVideodrome is a Canadian psychological thriller film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring James Woods and singer Debbie Harry from Blondie.-Plot:...
(1983)
Against All OddsAgainst All Odds is a neo-noir 1984 film, a remake of Out of the Past. The movie was directed by Taylor Hackford and features Rachel Ward in a variation of Jane Greer's original role, Jeff Bridges filling in for Robert Mitchum, and James Woods in a version of Kirk Douglas's part...
(1984)
Once Upon a Time in AmericaOnce Upon a Time in America is a 1984 epic crime film directed and co-written by Sergio Leone and starring Robert De Niro and James Woods. The story chronicles the lives of Jewish ghetto youths who rise to prominence in New York City's world of organized crime...
(1984)
Terror in the AislesTerror in the Aisles is a 1984 horror film documentary featuring clips from Friday the 13th I and II, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween I and II, Jaws I and II, Alien, John Carpenter's The Thing, The Shining, etc. The film is hosted by Donald Pleasence and Nancy Allen...
(1984)
Cat's Eye
(1985)
Joshua Then and NowJoshua Then and Now is a 1985 film and a TV mini-series, adapted by Mordecai Richler from his semi-autobiographical novel Joshua Then and Now. James Woods starred as the adult Joshua, Gabrielle Lazure as his wife, and Alan Arkin as Joshua's father...
(1985)
SalvadorSalvador is a 1986 film which tells the story of an American journalist in El Salvador covering the Salvadoran civil war. While trying to get footage, he becomes entangled with both leftist guerrillas and the right wing military...
(1986)
PromisePromise is a 1986 Hallmark Hall of Fame television movie that aired on December 21, 1986. The award-winning film is based on a story by Ken Blackwell and Tennyson Flowers, and stars James Garner and James Woods.-Plot:...
(1986)
Best SellerBest Seller is a 1987 movie written by Larry Cohen and starring Brian Dennehy and James Woods. The plot concerns a career hitman, played by Woods, who wants to turn his life story into a book, to be written by Dennehy's character, a veteran police officer turned author....
(1987)
Cop
(1987)
The BoostThe Boost is a 1988 drama film about an investor/salesman who descends into drug addiction following a financial misfortune. The film was directed by Harold Becker; it stars James Woods, Sean Young, John Kapelos, Steven Hill, June Chandler and--in her final role--Amanda Blake of Gunsmoke fame....
(1988)
My Name is Bill W.My Name Is Bill W. is a 1989 CBS television movie directed by Daniel Petrie, starring James Woods and James Garner. The movie is based on the true story of Bill W., the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous...
(1989) (TV movie) Best Actor Emmy Award
True BelieverTrue Believer is a 1989 courtroom drama directed by Joseph Ruben and released by Columbia Pictures.-Synopsis:The film stars James Woods as burnt-out attorney Eddie Dodd, who has left behind civil rights work to defend drug dealers. Robert Downey Jr...
(1989)
Immediate FamilyImmediate Family is a 1989 drama film directed by Jonathan Kaplan. It stars Glenn Close and James Woods as a married childless couple who want a baby...
(1989)
The Hard WayThe Hard Way is a 1991 action-comedy film starring Michael J. Fox and James Woods. It is directed by John Badham. The film also had notable performances by Stephen Lang, Annabella Sciorra, Luis Guzmán, LL Cool J, Delroy Lindo, Penny Marshall, and Bryant Gumbel, as himself...
(1991)
Straight TalkStraight Talk is an American 1992 comedy film starring Dolly Parton and James Woods.-Plot summary:Parton stars as Shirlee Kenyon, a down-home country girl who through a series of mistakes is hired as a radio talk show host. Her show is wildly successful but her success is based on the lie that she...
(1992)
DiggstownDiggstown is a movie directed by Michael Ritchie, and starring James Woods, Louis Gossett, Jr. and Bruce Dern. It also features Heather Graham, Oliver Platt and Randall "Tex" Cobb.-Synopsis:...
(1992)
Citizen CohnCitizen Cohn is a 1992 cable film covering the life of Joseph McCarthy's controversial chief counsel Roy Cohn. James Woods, who starred as Cohn, was nominated for both an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his performance...
(1992)
ChaplinChaplin is a 1992 British biographical film about the life of English comedian Charlie Chaplin. It was produced and directed by Richard Attenborough and stars Robert Downey, Jr., Dan Aykroyd, Kevin Kline, and Anthony Hopkins...
(1992)
The SpecialistThe Specialist is a 1994 action film from Warner Bros. Pictures. It is directed by Luis Llosa, produced by Jerry Weintraub, and written by Alexandra Seros. Among the cast are Hollywood notables Sylvester Stallone, Sharon Stone, James Woods and Rod Steiger.The film has an MPAA rating of R for...
(1994)
The GetawayThe Getaway is a crime thriller and a remake of the 1972 film of the same name. The film stars Alec Baldwin, Kim Basinger, Michael Madsen, James Woods, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jennifer Tilly, and was directed by Roger Donaldson.-Plot summary:...
(1994)
The SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated television sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its eponymous family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie...
, episode "Homer and Apu"Homer and Apu" is the thirteenth episode of The Simpsons
' fifth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 10, 1994. In the episode, Homer participates in a hidden camera investigation of the expired meat selling at the Kwik-E-Mart...
" (TV series) (1994)
Next DoorNext Door is a 1994 American black comedy television movie starring James Woods, Randy Quaid, Kate Capshaw and Lucinda Jenney. It originally aired September 4 1994 on the Showtime network and was made available on VHS January 17 1995...
(1994) (TV movie)
CasinoCasino is a 1995 crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Nicholas Pileggi, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Scorsese....
(1995)
Indictment: The McMartin TrialIndictment: The McMartin Trial is a made for TV movie that originally aired on HBO on May 20, 1995. Indictment is based on the true story of the McMartin preschool trial.-Summary:...
(1995)
NixonNixon is a 1995 American biographical film directed by Oliver Stone for Cinergi Pictures that tells the story of the political and personal life of former US President Richard Nixon, played by Anthony Hopkins. The film portrays Nixon as a complex and, in many respects, an admirable person, though...
(1995)
Ghosts of MississippiGhosts of Mississippi is a 1996 drama film directed by Rob Reiner and starring Alec Baldwin, Whoopi Goldberg and James Woods. The plot is based on the true story of the 1994 trial of Byron De La Beckwith, the white supremacist accused of the 1963 assassination of civil rights activist Medgar...
(1996) as Byron De La BeckwithByron De La Beckwith was an American white supremacist and Klansman who was convicted of killing civil rights leader Medgar Evers.-Early life:...
Killer: A Journal of MurderKiller: A Journal Of Murder is a 1996 American film. It is based on the life of serial killer Carl Panzram, and uses passages of his biography. -Plot outline:...
(1996)
ContactContact is a 1997 science fiction drama film adapted from the Carl Sagan novel of the same name and directed by Robert Zemeckis. Both Sagan and wife Ann Druyan wrote the story outline for the film adaptation of Contact. Jodie Foster portrays the film's protagonist, Dr...
(1997)
HerculesHercules is a American animated feature film, produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirty-fifth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film was directed by Ron Clements and John Musker...
(voice) (1997)
John Carpenter's Vampires
(1998)
Another Day in ParadiseAnother Day in Paradise is a 1998 drama film directed by Larry Clark, and released by Trimark Pictures. It is based on the novel Another Day in Paradise written by Eddie Little.-Plot:...
(1998)
Of Light and Darkness: The Prophecy
(video game) (1998)
True CrimeTrue Crime is a 1999 mystery drama film directed by Clint Eastwood, and based on Andrew Klavan's 1997 novel of the same name. Eastwood also stars in the film as a journalist covering the execution of a death row inmate, only to discover that the convict may actually be innocent.-Plot:Clint...
(1999)
Any Given SundayAny Given Sunday is a 1999 film directed by Oliver Stone featuring an ensemble cast, consisting of Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, Jamie Foxx, James Woods, LL Cool J, Matthew Modine, John C...
(1999)
The General's DaughterThe General's Daughter is a 1999 film starring John Travolta. The plot concerns the mysterious death of the daughter of a prominent general. The movie is based on the novel by the same name written in 1992 by Nelson DeMille, and was directed by Simon West...
(1999)
The Virgin SuicidesThe Virgin Suicides is a 1999 American film written and directed by Sofia Coppola, starring James Woods, Kathleen Turner, Kirsten Dunst and Josh Hartnett. Based on the novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, the film tells of the suicides of the five Lisbon sisters in an upper middle class suburb of Detroit...
(1999)
Clerks
(2000)
Dirty PicturesDirty Pictures is a 2000 American docudrama directed by Frank Pierson. The teleplay by Ilene Chaiken focuses on the 1990 trial of Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center director Dennis Barrie, who was accused of promoting pornography by presenting an exhibit of photographs by Robert Mapplethorpe that...
(2000)
Riding in Cars with BoysRiding in Cars with Boys is a 2001 film based on the autobiography of the same name by Beverly Donofrio, about a woman who overcame difficulties including being a teen mother to earning a master's degree from the span of 1961 to 1986. It stars Drew Barrymore, Steve Zahn, Brittany Murphy, and James...
(2001)
Recess: School's OutRecess: School's Out is a 2001 animated film based on the Disney television series Recess. This film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and was released theatrically nationwide on February 16, 2001. It was released on video and DVD on August 7, 2001....
(voice) (2001)
Scary Movie 2Scary Movie 2 is a 2001 American dark comedy which parodies the horror, slasher, and mystery genres. It is the second film of the Scary Movie franchise.- Plot :...
(2001)
Final Fantasy: The Spirits WithinFinal Fantasy: The Spirits Within is a computer animated science fiction film by Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of the Final Fantasy series of role-playing games...
(voice) (2001)
Race to SpaceRace to Space is an American family/drama film. The film has shot on location at Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach and Edwards AFB CA in cooperation with NASA and the U.S. Air Force.-Plot:...
(2002)
Rolie Polie OlieRolie Polie Olie is a children's television cartoon produced by Nelvana and created by William Joyce. The show centers around a little boy who is composed of several spheres and other three-dimensional geometric shapes....
(2002)
Kingdom Heartsis an action role-playing game developed and published by Square in 2002 for the PlayStation 2 video game console. The first game in the Kingdom Hearts series, it is the result of a collaboration between Square and The Walt Disney Company. The game combines characters and settings from Disney...
(video game) (2002)
Stuart Little 2Stuart Little 2 is a 2002 film, directed by Rob Minkoff. It is a sequel to the 1999 film Stuart Little, and includes characters from the children's book by E. B...
(voice of the Falcon) (2002)
John QJohn Q is a 2002 film by Nick Cassavetes; starring Denzel Washington as John Quincy Archibald, a father and husband whose son is diagnosed with an enlarged heart and then finds out he cannot receive a transplant because HMO insurance will not cover it...
(2002)
This Girl's LifeThis Girl's Life is a 2003 film written and directed by Ash. The story revolves around the life of Moon, a porn star . The movie also stars James Woods, Michael Rapaport, Rosario Dawson and Kip Pardue.-Plot summary:...
(2003)
Rudy: The Rudy Giuliani StoryRudy: The Rudy Giuliani Story is a made-for-television movie produced and broadcast in 2003 on the USA Network.-Plot:The movie is a depiction of the life of former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, focusing primarily on his mayoral career and response to the September 11 attacks.-Adaptation:The...
(2003)
NorthforkNorthfork is a 2003 film directed by Michael Polish and written by Michael and Mark Polish. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 21, 2003 and later received a limited release in the United States on July 11, 2003. The film stars James Woods, Nick Nolte, Daryl Hannah, and Peter...
(2003)
Grand Theft Auto: San AndreasGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a sandbox-style action-adventure computer and video game developed by Rockstar North. It is the third 3D game in the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise, the fifth original console release and eighth game overall...
(video game) (2004) as Mike Toreno
Be CoolBe Cool is a American comedy film which was adapted from a 1999 novel. The book was the sequel to the 1990 novel Get Shorty by Elmore Leonard about mobster Chili Palmer's entrance into the film industry....
(2005)
Family GuyFamily Guy is an American animated television sitcom, created by Seth MacFarlane, for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family which consists of Peter, Lois, Meg, Chris, Stewie, and their pet dog Brian...
: Peter's Got Woods"Peter's Got Woods" is the eleventh episode from the fourth season of the FOX animated series Family Guy. This episode featured guest stars Gabrielle Union as Shauna and James Woods as himself...
(voice) (2005)
Pretty PersuasionPretty Persuasion is a 2005 black comedy/satirical film about a 15 year old schoolgirl who makes a false allegation of sexual harassment against her drama teacher. The film's tagline is: "Revenge knows no mercy." It was written by Skander Halim and directed by Marcos Siega...
(2005)
Kingdom Hearts IIis an action role-playing game developed by Square Enix and published by Buena Vista Games and Square Enix in 2005 for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console...
(video game) (2006)
Scarface: The World Is YoursScarface: The World Is Yours is a video game developed by Radical Entertainment and published by Sierra Entertainment. The game is based on and is a quasi-sequel to the 1983 motion picture Scarface with André Sogliuzzo hand picked by Al Pacino to provide Tony Montana's voice...
(video game) (2006)
SharkShark is an American legal drama that originally ran on CBS from September 21, 2006 to May 20, 2008. Created by Ian Biederman, the series starred James Woods as Sebastian Stark, a notorious Los Angeles defense attorney who becomes a prosecutor....
(TV series) (2006-2008)
ERER is an American medical drama series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 1994 to April 2009. It is set primarily in the emergency room of fictional County General Hospital in Chicago, Illinois. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment in...
(2006)
EntourageEntourage is an American comedy-drama that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004. The series was created by Doug Ellin and chronicles the rise of Vincent Chase, a young A-list movie star, and his childhood friends from Queens, New York City, as they navigate the unfamiliar terrain of Hollywood,...
(2006)
End GameEnd Game is a 2006 action/thriller film, written and directed by Andy Cheng. The film stars Cuba Gooding, Jr. as Secret Service agent Alex Thomas, who is shot in the hand, while unsuccessfully trying to protect the President from an assassin's bullet...
(2006)
Surf's UpSurf's Up is a American Academy Award-nominated computer-animated mockumentary film produced by Sony Pictures Animation and distributed by Columbia Pictures. It stars the voices of Shia LaBeouf, Jeff Bridges, Zooey Deschanel, Jon Heder among others....
(voice) (2007)
Family GuyFamily Guy is an American animated television sitcom, created by Seth MacFarlane, for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family which consists of Peter, Lois, Meg, Chris, Stewie, and their pet dog Brian...
: "Back to the Woods"Back to the Woods" is a season six episode of the FOX animated series Family Guy that aired on February 17, 2008. There are special guest voices done by James Woods and Barry Manilow as themselves and Dave Van Dam portrays his role as David Letterman from The Howard Stern Show...
" (voice) (2008)
Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories
(video game) (2008)
An American CarolAn American Carol is a 2008 American comedy film, directed by David Zucker and starring Kevin Farley. Outside North America, the film is known as Big Fat Important Movie...
(2008)
Justice League: Crisis on Two EarthsJustice League: Crisis on Two Earths is a 2010 announced original direct-to-video animated film, that is based in part on the abandoned Justice League Unlimited mid season multiple episode story entitled "Justice League: Worlds Collide", but later used on Batman The Brave and The Bold episode "Deep...
(voice) (2010)
Straw Dogs
(2011)
Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of DoomKung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom is an upcoming animated film and the sequel to Kung Fu Panda. It is set to be in 3-D and will be directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson, with most of the original cast returning in the previous film, along with newer characters. The film is set to be released on June 3,...
(2011)
External links