Ken Wahl
Encyclopedia
Ken Wahl is an American film and television actor, popular in the 1980s and 1990s. He twice won the title of Sexiest Man on TV, earned an Emmy nomination and won a Golden Globe.
as an extra and the film's director Phil Kaufman
wound up casting him as Richie, the leading man in the film. Lead roles in twelve major movies and a highly acclaimed television show quickly followed.
He was cast opposite Paul Newman
and Edward Asner in Fort Apache, The Bronx
(1981), Lee Marvin
and Ernest Borgnine
in The Dirty Dozen: The Next Mission
(1985), and The Taking of Beverly Hills
(1991). He was the lead in the movies Race for the Yankee Zephyr
(1981) with Lesley Ann Warren
as his leading lady, The Soldier
(1982), Jinxed (1982) with Bette Midler
, Purple Hearts (1984) with Cheryl Ladd
, The Gladiator
(1986), Omega Syndrome (1987) , Search for Grace (1994) with Lisa Hartman
and The Favor
(1994) with Brad Pitt
and Elizabeth McGovern
.
In 1987, he landed the lead in the television show Wiseguy
as Vinnie Terranova. The show ran until 1990 and brought Wahl a Golden Globe award. Wahl wrote an episode for Wiseguy
in 1989 and made his directorial debut for an episode in 1990. In 1996, the film adaptation of Wiseguy was made, bringing back Terranova. Wahl received good reviews for his performance from the then-film critic for the New York Times, John J. O'Connor.
Wahl married his first wife, former Penthouse
Pet of the Year Corinne Alphen
, in 1984 and divorced in 1991. They had one child, Raymond. Ken Wahl married his second wife, Lorrie Vidal, in 1993 and divorced in 1997. He married his current wife, former Playboy model and calendar girl Shane Barbi on September 17, 1997. They renewed their wedding vows in 2008.
Wahl has had a few serious accidents, including falling down a staircase that injured his neck, and since a nearly fatal motorcycle accident in 1992, Wahl has faced a difficult road back. His neck injuries in particular were so severe that he eventually reached the point where he sought professional medical assistance for his ongoing pain management issues. The fallout from these injuries has also hampered his career, despite receiving positive reviews for his role in the 1996 TV movie update of Wiseguy and a history of praise over the course of his acting career, including Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe Win for Best Actor.
and TV Guide
. Wahl was referenced in both Jeopardy!
and, comically, on The Simpsons
episode "This Little Wiggy
".
Career
Wahl received his big break in 1979 walking on to the set of The WanderersThe Wanderers (1979 film)
The Wanderers is a 1979 greaser film based on the novel by Richard Price .-Overview:...
as an extra and the film's director Phil Kaufman
Philip Kaufman
Philip Kaufman is an American film director and screenwriter. His movies have adapted novels of widely different types – from Milan Kundera’s The Unbearable Lightness of Being to Michael Crichton’s Rising Sun; from Tom Wolfe’s heroic epic The Right Stuff to the erotic writings of Anaïs Nin’s...
wound up casting him as Richie, the leading man in the film. Lead roles in twelve major movies and a highly acclaimed television show quickly followed.
He was cast opposite Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
and Edward Asner in Fort Apache, The Bronx
Fort Apache, The Bronx
Fort Apache, The Bronx is a 1981 crime drama film made by Producers Circle, Time-Life Television Productions Inc., and distributed by Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation. It was directed by Daniel Petrie and produced by Martin Richards, Thomas Fiorello, with David Susskind as executive producer...
(1981), Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin was an American film actor. Known for his gravelly voice, white hair and 6' 2" stature, Marvin at first did supporting roles, mostly villains, soldiers and other hardboiled characters, but after winning an Academy Award for Best Actor for his dual roles in Cat Ballou , he landed more...
and Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine is an American actor of television and film. His career has spanned more than six decades. He was an unconventional lead in many films of the 1950s, including his Academy Award-winning turn in the 1955 film Marty...
in The Dirty Dozen: The Next Mission
The Dirty Dozen: The Next Mission
The Dirty Dozen: The Next Mission is a made-for-TV film and sequel to the original Dirty Dozen. It reunited Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine and Richard Jaeckel 18 years after the original hit war film. Marvin returns to lead an all-new dirty dozen on a mission to assassinate an SS General played by...
(1985), and The Taking of Beverly Hills
The Taking of Beverly Hills
The Taking of Beverly Hills is a 1991 American action film, directed by Sidney J. Furie. An action film in the vein of Die Hard, the film stars Ken Wahl, fresh off the success of the television series Wiseguy, as football hero Boomer Hayes, with Matt Frewer stepping up to the plate as his sidekick,...
(1991). He was the lead in the movies Race for the Yankee Zephyr
Race for the Yankee Zephyr
Race for the Yankee Zephyr is a 1981 New Zealand supense-action-thriller film directed by David Hemmings and starring Ken Wahl, Lesley Ann Warren, George Peppard and Donald Pleasence.-Plot:...
(1981) with Lesley Ann Warren
Lesley Ann Warren
Lesley Ann Warren is an American actress and singer. She has been nominated once for an Academy Award and Emmy Awards and five times for Golden Globe, winning one....
as his leading lady, The Soldier
The Soldier (film)
The Soldier is a 1982 action film directed by James Glickenhaus and starring Ken Wahl. The film also features Klaus Kinski, Alberta Watson and a cameo by country music superstar George Strait.-Cast:...
(1982), Jinxed (1982) with Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
, Purple Hearts (1984) with Cheryl Ladd
Cheryl Ladd
Cheryl Ladd is an American actress, singer and author. Ladd is best known for her role as Kris Munroe in the television series Charlie's Angels, hired amid a swirl of publicity prior to its second season in 1977 to replace the departing Farrah Fawcett-Majors...
, The Gladiator
The Gladiator (1986 film)
The Gladiator is a vigilante made for TV action film directed by Abel Ferrara and starring Nancy Allen and Ken Wahl. Robert Culp, Brian Robbins and Rick Dees have supporting roles. The film was released in February of 1986...
(1986), Omega Syndrome (1987) , Search for Grace (1994) with Lisa Hartman
Lisa Hartman
Lisa Hartman is an American actress and singer.After some minor television appearances, Lisa Hartman starred in the short-lived Bewitched spin-off, Tabitha during 1977-78...
and The Favor
The Favor
The Favor is a romantic comedy film directed by Donald Petrie and written by Sara Parriott and Josann McGibbon.-Plot:Kathy has seemingly been happily married to Peter, but their relationship has grown routine. She cannot help but wonder what would happen if she ever got together with her high...
(1994) with Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
and Elizabeth McGovern
Elizabeth McGovern
-Early life:McGovern was born in Evanston, Illinois, the daughter of Katharine Wolcott , a high school teacher, and William Montgomery McGovern, Jr., a university professor. Her paternal grandfather was adventurer William Montgomery McGovern and her maternal great-grandfather was U.S. diplomat...
.
In 1987, he landed the lead in the television show Wiseguy
Wiseguy
Wiseguy is an American crime drama series that aired on CBS from September 16, 1987 to December 8, 1990 for a total of four seasons. Starring Ken Wahl, the series was produced by Stephen J...
as Vinnie Terranova. The show ran until 1990 and brought Wahl a Golden Globe award. Wahl wrote an episode for Wiseguy
Wiseguy
Wiseguy is an American crime drama series that aired on CBS from September 16, 1987 to December 8, 1990 for a total of four seasons. Starring Ken Wahl, the series was produced by Stephen J...
in 1989 and made his directorial debut for an episode in 1990. In 1996, the film adaptation of Wiseguy was made, bringing back Terranova. Wahl received good reviews for his performance from the then-film critic for the New York Times, John J. O'Connor.
Personal life
Born as Anthony Calzaretta in Chicago of Italian and German descent, Wahl is one of 11 siblings. He states that he took the stage name Ken Wahl in honor of the man who saved his father's life during the Korean War.Wahl married his first wife, former Penthouse
Penthouse (magazine)
Penthouse, a men's magazine founded by Bob Guccione, combines urban lifestyle articles and softcore pornographic pictorials that, in the 1990s, evolved into hardcore. Penthouse is owned by FriendFinder Network. formerly known as General Media, Inc. whose parent company was Penthouse International...
Pet of the Year Corinne Alphen
Corinne Alphen
Corinne Alphen is an American model and actor. She was a Penthouse Pet of the Month and a Pet of the Year. Alphen is also a professional Tarot card reader...
, in 1984 and divorced in 1991. They had one child, Raymond. Ken Wahl married his second wife, Lorrie Vidal, in 1993 and divorced in 1997. He married his current wife, former Playboy model and calendar girl Shane Barbi on September 17, 1997. They renewed their wedding vows in 2008.
Wahl has had a few serious accidents, including falling down a staircase that injured his neck, and since a nearly fatal motorcycle accident in 1992, Wahl has faced a difficult road back. His neck injuries in particular were so severe that he eventually reached the point where he sought professional medical assistance for his ongoing pain management issues. The fallout from these injuries has also hampered his career, despite receiving positive reviews for his role in the 1996 TV movie update of Wiseguy and a history of praise over the course of his acting career, including Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe Win for Best Actor.
In popular culture
Wiseguy has been included in the "Top 100 Best Shows Ever" in both Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
and TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
. Wahl was referenced in both Jeopardy!
Jeopardy!
Griffin's first conception of the game used a board comprising ten categories with ten clues each, but after finding that this board could not be shown on camera easily, he reduced it to two rounds of thirty clues each, with five clues in each of six categories...
and, comically, on The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated 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 family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "This Little Wiggy
This Little Wiggy
"This Little Wiggy" is the eighteenth episode of The Simpsons ninth season and originally aired on the Fox network on March 22, 1998. It was written by Dan Greaney, and directed by Neil Affleck. The episode sees Ralph Wiggum becoming friends with Bart, leading to the near electrocution of Mayor...
".