Rider Strong
Encyclopedia
Rider King Strong is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...

, director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...

, producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...

 and screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...

. He is best known for his role as Shawn Hunter on the 1990s sitcom Boy Meets World
Boy Meets World
Boy Meets World is an American comedy-drama series that chronicles the events and everyday life lessons of Cory Matthews, played by Ben Savage, a kid from suburban Philadelphia who grows up from a young boy to a married man. The show aired for seven seasons from 1993 to 2000 on ABC, part of the...

.

Early life

Rider King Strong was born in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...

, the son of Lin (née Warner), a teacher and nutritionist, and King Strong, a firefighter. He graduated from high school in Sebastopol, California
Sebastopol, California
Sebastopol is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, approximately north of San Francisco. The population was 7,379 at the 2010 census, but its businesses also serve surrounding rural portions of Sonoma County, totaling about 50,000 people...

 in 1997. His brother is Shiloh Strong
Shiloh Strong
Shiloh Strong is an American actor, screenwriter, photographer and film director whose roles include "Zelos Wilder" from Tales of Symphonia, "David Scott" from Dinotopia, and "Grant" from Buck Naked Arson....

, an actor and still photographer.

Career

Strong began his acting career at the young age of nine, when he starred as Gavroche
Gavroche
Gavroche is a fictional character from the novel Les Misérables by Victor Hugo.-Gavroche in the novel:Gavroche is the eldest son of M. and Mme Thénardier. He has two sisters, Éponine and Azelma, and two unnamed younger brothers. He is also technically unnamed; the reader is told he chooses the...

 in the San Francisco production of Les Misérables
Les Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....

. After the stage production, he appeared in small screen roles on television. In 1992, he received his first regular television series role as Julie Andrews
Julie Andrews
Dame Julia Elizabeth Andrews, DBE is an English film and stage actress, singer, and author. She is the recipient of Golden Globe, Emmy, Grammy, BAFTA, People's Choice Award, Theatre World Award, Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award honors...

's son on Julie. When the series was canceled, Strong made his debut on film as Amy Irving
Amy Irving
Amy Davis Irving is an American actress, known for her roles in the films Crossing Delancey, The Fury, Carrie, and Yentl as well as acclaimed roles on Broadway and Off-Broadway. She has been nominated for an Academy Award, two Golden Globes, and has won an Obie award...

's son in Benefit of the Doubt
Benefit of the Doubt
Benefit of the Doubt is a 1967 documentary on Peter Brook's anti-Vietnam protest play, with the Royal Shakespeare Company, known under the title US. It was filmed at London's Aldwych Theatre and features Peter Brook, Michael Kustow, Michael Williams and Glenda Jackson. It was directed by Peter...

.
It was not until he was chosen for the role of Shawn Hunter in the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...

 series Boy Meets World
Boy Meets World
Boy Meets World is an American comedy-drama series that chronicles the events and everyday life lessons of Cory Matthews, played by Ben Savage, a kid from suburban Philadelphia who grows up from a young boy to a married man. The show aired for seven seasons from 1993 to 2000 on ABC, part of the...

that he received widespread recognition.

During the seven year run he was nominated twice for the Young Artist Award
Young Artist Award
The Young Artist Award is an accolade bestowed by the Young Artist Foundation, a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to recognize and award excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically and/or financially challenged.The Young Artist...

 and nominated for a Hollywood Reporter YoungStar Award. When the series ended, Strong returned to the big screen to star as Paul in the indie horror film Cabin Fever, directed by Eli Roth
Eli Roth
Eli Raphael Roth is an American film director, producer, writer and actor. He is known for his role as Donny "The Bear Jew" Donowitz in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds for which he won both a SAG Award and a BFCA Critic's Choice Award...

. In 2006, he returned to television for a regular series role in Pepper Dennis
Pepper Dennis
Pepper Dennis is a comedy-drama television series that aired on The WB from April to July 4, 2006. It was quickly announced on May 17, 2006 that Pepper Dennis would not be one of the WB shows transferred to The CW Television Network....

on the WB
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...

. The show was short-lived and was not chosen as one of the transferring shows to The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB...

. He has a brief cameo appearance in Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever
Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever
Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever is an American horror film directed by Ti West and starring Giuseppe Andrews and Noah Segan.-Plot:A very disfigured Paul escapes from the creek and wanders through the woods, leaving pieces of his own flesh in the way. When he finally makes it to the highway, his body...

, the sequel to Cabin Fever. It was released in 2009.

Along with his brother, Shiloh Strong, he wrote and directed the short film, Irish Twins
Irish Twins (film)
Irish Twins is a 2008 film which was written and directed by brothers Rider Strong and Shiloh Strong. The lead roles were performed by Rider and Shiloh. The film also features John Di Maggio, Al Vicente, Devon McGinn, and Chris Solari....

, which premiered at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...

. It went on to win both the Jury Award and Audience Award at the Woods Hole Film Festival
Woods Hole Film Festival
The Woods Hole Film Festival was founded in 1991 by Judith Laster and Kate Davis.Over the years, it has grown from a one day invitational event to an eight day event with films submitted from around the world. The Festival is held each year from the last Saturday of July through the first Saturday...

, a Special Jury Prize in the Action/Cut Short Film Competition and Best First-Time Director at DC Shorts. Speaking to Pure Movies in 2010 he expressed that he wanted to expand his writing and directing career: 'Acting is always there and I enjoy it but it’s kind of got a little unfulfilling lately. You know, I’m in the low budget horror world… I have a whole lot of other stuff I want to do.'

In April 2008, Strong co-created (with his brother and his girlfriend, actress Alexandra Barreto
Alexandra Barreto
Alexandra Barreto is an American actress who starred in the 2006 television series Pepper Dennis with Rider Strong and Rebecca Romijn and in the horror film Tooth and Nail a part of the annual After Dark Horrorfest in 2007....

) a 30-second television ad in support of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

, titled "It Could Happen to You." The ad, submitted to MoveOn.org, became one of 15 finalists from a pool of over 1,100 submitted ads, and was chosen as the funniest ad in May 2008. In August, MoveOn raised $200,000 to air the ad on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 and Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....

; it was the first political commercial to ever appear on Comedy Central. In early 2009, Strong narrated the audiobook of The Obama Revolution by Alan Kennedy-Shaffer. In 2010, Strong starred in the science fiction-thriller film The Darkening Sky alongside Ezra Buzzington
Ezra Buzzington
Ezra Buzzington is an American character actor for film and TV.With over 40 film credits to his name, Ezra Buzzington has been referred to as "the Dennis Hopper of underground cinema". He's played characters ranging from "Weird Al the Waiter" in GHOST WORLD to "Goggle" in THE HILLS HAVE EYES...

, Charley Rossman, Sally Berman, Daniel Kirschner and LaShan Anderson under the direction of Victor Bornia.

Personal life

In 2004, Strong graduated Magna Cum Laude from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

 as an English major. While a student at Columbia, he wrote the foreword for fellow Columbian Steve Hofstetter
Steve Hofstetter
Steve Hofstetter is an author, columnist and comedian, who started with material particularly pertaining to college life, and has since become a social commentator...

's "Student Body Shots". Before Columbia, Strong attended Occidental College
Occidental College
Occidental College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in the Eagle Rock neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1887, Occidental College, or "Oxy" as it is called by students and alumni, is one of the oldest liberal arts colleges on the West Coast...

. Strong was a vocal public proponent of UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...

's enshrinement of Turkish oil wrestling as part of the "intangible cultural heritage of humanity." He completed his Master of Fine Arts
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...

 degree in June 2009 at Bennington College
Bennington College
Bennington College is a liberal arts college located in Bennington, Vermont, USA. The college was founded in 1932 as a women's college and became co-educational in 1969.-History:-Early years:...

.

Filmography

Film
Year Film Role Other notes
1993 Benefit of the Doubt Pete Braswell
1998 My Giant
My Giant
My Giant is a 1998 comedy drama film starring Billy Crystal, and NBA player Gheorghe Muresan in his only film appearance. Crystal also co-wrote the story.-Synopsis:A huckster named Sammy travels to Romania on business...

Justin Allen
2001 Buck Naked Arson Willy Producer
The Pact
The Pact
The Pact is a novel by bestselling author Jodi Picoult about a possible suicide pact between two teenage lovers.-Plot summary:"Chris and Emily, teenagers from the same neighborhood and very close families, have been as close as siblings since birth, but as teenagers their relationship develops...

Lenny B. Dalton
2002 Cabin Fever Paul
2004 Death Valley Daniel
2005 Paradise, Texas
Paradise, Texas (film)
Paradise, Texas is a 2005 family drama film directed by Lorraine Senna and starring Timothy Bottoms, Ben Estus, and Meredith Baxter. Premiering at the 2006 WorldFest Film Festival, Paradise, Texas received a Gold Remi Award...

Charlie
2007 Cosmic Radio Justin
Borderland
Borderland (film)
Borderland is a 2007 horror film written and directed by Zev Berman. It is released as one of the 8 Films to Die For at Horrorfest 2007. It is very loosely based on the true story of Adolfo de Jesús Constanzo, the leader of a religious cult that practiced human sacrifice...

Phil
Tooth and Nail
Tooth and Nail (film)
Tooth & Nail is a 2007 horror film about a group of people in a post-apocalyptic world who must fight to survive against a band of vicious cannibals.- Plot :...

Ford
2008 Irish Twins
Irish Twins (film)
Irish Twins is a 2008 film which was written and directed by brothers Rider Strong and Shiloh Strong. The lead roles were performed by Rider and Shiloh. The film also features John Di Maggio, Al Vicente, Devon McGinn, and Chris Solari....

Michael Sullivan Director, writer
Spy School
Spy School
Spy School is a 2008 American comedy-drama made-for-television film, released outside the United States as Doubting Thomas or Lies and Spies. The films stars Forrest Landis and AnnaSophia Robb as the lead characters.- Premise :...

Mr. Randall Alternative title: Doubting Thomas
H2O Extreme Greg
Pulse 2: Afterlife Adam (Cameo) Direct-to-DVD release
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...

Pulse 3: Invasion
Pulse 3: Invasion
Pulse 3 or Pulse 3: Invasion is an American film released on December 23 2008, starring Noureen DeWulf, Rider Strong and Brittany Renee Finamore. The video was a straight-to-DVD release.-Plot:...

Adam
2009 Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever
Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever
Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever is an American horror film directed by Ti West and starring Giuseppe Andrews and Noah Segan.-Plot:A very disfigured Paul escapes from the creek and wanders through the woods, leaving pieces of his own flesh in the way. When he finally makes it to the highway, his body...

Paul
Darkening Sky
Darkening Sky
Darkening Sky is an American thriller film directed by Victor Bornia and stars Rider Strong, Danica Stewart and Ezra Buzzington.-Plot:When a troubled UFO skeptic finds his girlfriend has vanished, he is forced to consider the one explanation he finds impossible to accept...

Eric Rainer
2010 The Penthouse Kieran Alternative title: Erica, Kieran and Lexi
Your Lucky Day Young Man Shown at the 2010 Seattle International Film Festival
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1991 Long Road Home Benjy Robertson NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

 TV-Movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...

Going Places David Episode: "The Camping Show"
1992 Julie Adam Unknown episodes
Empty Nest Philip Logan Episode: "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?"
Home Improvement Danny Episode: "The Haunting of Taylor House"
1993 Nurses
Nurses (TV series)
Nurses is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from 1991 to 1994, developed and produced by Susan Harris as a spin-off of Empty Nest .-Synopsis:...

Max Kaplan Episode: "The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea"
Time Trax
Time Trax
Time Trax was an American/Australian co-produced science fiction television series that first aired in 1993. A police officer, sent through time into the past, has to track down and return convicted criminals who have escaped prison in the future...

William Peterman Episode: "The Prodigy"
The Last Hit Jimmy Dunne NBC TV-Movie
Evening Shade
Evening Shade
Evening Shade was an American sitcom television series that aired on CBS from 1990 to 1994. The series starred Burt Reynolds as Wood Newton, an ex-professional football player for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who returns to rural Evening Shade, Arkansas to coach a high school football team with a long...

Jimmy Episode: "The Diary of Molly Newton"
1993–2000 Boy Meets World
Boy Meets World
Boy Meets World is an American comedy-drama series that chronicles the events and everyday life lessons of Cory Matthews, played by Ben Savage, a kid from suburban Philadelphia who grows up from a young boy to a married man. The show aired for seven seasons from 1993 to 2000 on ABC, part of the...

Shawn Hunter 158 episodes
1994 Summertime Switch Frederick Egan III ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...

 TV-Movie
1996 Maybe This Time
Maybe This Time
Maybe This Time is an American sitcom which aired on ABC from September 1995 to February 1996. Created by veteran TV creator Michael Jacobs and his longtime colleague, Bob Young....

Shawn Hunter Episode: "Acting Out"
Party of Five
Party of Five
Party of Five is an American teen drama television series that aired on Fox for six seasons, from September 12, 1994, until May 3, 2000.Critically acclaimed, the show suffered from low ratings and after its first season was slated for cancellation...

Byron Episodes: "Summer Fun, Summer Not"
"Going, Going, Gone"
1997 Oddville, MTV
Oddville, MTV
Oddville, MTV is an American variety television series starring Rich Brown. The series premiered June 16, 1997, on MTV.-History:Oddville, MTV is based on the New York City public-access television cable TV series Beyond Vaudeville that Rich Brown hosted from 1987 to 1996.-Cast:*Rich Brown as host...

Episode: July 7, 1997
1998 Hercules: The Animated Series
Hercules: The Animated Series
Hercules is an animated series based on the 1997 film of the same name and the Greek myth. The series follows teenage Hercules training as a hero as well as trying to adjust to life. With his free-spirited friend Icarus, his future-seeing friend Cassandra and his teacher Philoctetes , he battles...

Pollux (Voice) Episode: "Hercules and the Trojan War"
Invasion America
Invasion America
Invasion America is an animated science fiction miniseries that aired in the prime time lineup on The WB Television Network and later as a part of the Kids' WB programming block...

Jim Bailey (Voice) The WB
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...

 Miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...

1999 The Practice
The Practice
The Practice is an American legal drama created by David E. Kelley centering on the partners and associates at a Boston law firm. Running for eight seasons from 1997 to 2004, the show won the Emmy in 1998 and 1999 for Best Drama Series, and spawned the successful and lighter spin-off series Boston...

Gary Armbrust Episodes: "Home Invasions"
"Infected"
Batman Beyond
Batman Beyond
Batman Beyond is an American animated television series created by Warner Bros. Animation in collaboration with DC Comics as a continuation of the Batman legacy...

Bobby Vance (Voice) Episode: "Lost Soul"
1999–2000 Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles
Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles
Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles was a CGI animated television series based on both the novel by Robert A. Heinlein and the 1997 film adaptation directed by Paul Verhoeven...

Special Operations Tactician Carl Jenkins (Voice) 6 episodes
2002 Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the second spin-off of Wolf's successful crime drama...

Ethan Edwards Episode: "The Pilgrim
The Pilgrim (Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode)
"The Pilgrim" is a second season episode of the television series Law & Order: Criminal Intent.-Plot summary:In this episode, Detectives Goren and Eames are called in when the adult daughter of a retired policeman turns up missing...

"
2002–2004 Kim Possible
Kim Possible
Kim Possible is an American animated television series about a teenage crime fighter who has the task of dealing with worldwide, family, and school issues every day. The show is action-oriented, but also has a light-hearted atmosphere and often lampoons the conventions and clichés of the...

Brick Flagg (Voice) 5 episodes
2005 Kim Possible: So the Drama Brick Flagg (Voice) Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...

 TV-Movie
2006 Crumbs
Crumbs
Crumbs is an American television sitcom starring Fred Savage and Jane Curtin that debuted on ABC on January 12, 2006. It also starred William Devane, Maggie Lawson and Eddie McClintock...

Dennis Episode: "Six Feet Blunder"
Pepper Dennis
Pepper Dennis
Pepper Dennis is a comedy-drama television series that aired on The WB from April to July 4, 2006. It was quickly announced on May 17, 2006 that Pepper Dennis would not be one of the WB shows transferred to The CW Television Network....

Chick Dirka 13 episodes
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...

Rafe Episode: "My Big Fat Greek Rush Week"
2007 Bones
Bones (TV series)
Bones is an American crime drama television series that premiered on the Fox Network on September 13, 2005. The show is based on forensic anthropology and forensic archaeology, with each episode focusing on an FBI case file concerning the mystery behind human remains brought by FBI Special Agent...

Greg Episode: "Mummy in the Maze"
2009 Castle
Castle (TV series)
Castle is an American comedy-drama television series, which premiered on ABC on March 9, 2009. The series is produced by Beacon Pictures and ABC Studios. On January 10, 2011, Castle was renewed for a fourth season...

Rocco Episode: "The Fifth Bullet"

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Film or series Result
1994 Young Artist Award
Young Artist Award
The Young Artist Award is an accolade bestowed by the Young Artist Foundation, a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to recognize and award excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically and/or financially challenged.The Young Artist...

Best Youth Comedian Boy Meets World
1994 Best Performance in a TV Comedy - Supporting Young Actor Boy Meets World
2000 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards
Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards
The Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, also known as the KCAs or Kids Choice Awards, is an annual awards show that airs on the Nickelodeon cable channel, which airs live and is usually held and telecast live on a...

Favorite Television Friends Boy Meets World
(Shared with Ben Savage
Ben Savage
Bennett Joseph "Ben" Savage is an American film and TV actor and child star of late 1980s and 1990s. Savage is best known for his role as lead character Cory Matthews on the TV sitcom Boy Meets World from 1993 to 2000....

)
2008 Washington DC Shorts Film Festival Best First Time Filmmaker Irish Twins
(Shared with Shiloh Strong)

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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