Frank Whaley Biography
Born: July 20, 1963
Actor, writer, director, and musician Frank Whaley is best known for his vivid portrayals of put-upon, sometimes ill-fated young men. Born in Syracuse, NY, on July 20, 1963, Whaley studied theater at both the University of New York, Albany and New York City's Actors Studio, where he earned a B.A.
The actor got his first break with a role in Ironweed (1987), sharing the screen with Jack_Nicholson and Meryl_Streep. Following secondary parts in films like Field of Dreams and Born on the Fourth of July (both 1989), he landed the more substantial role of Steve Bushak in The_Freshman (1990). The film put Whaley on the Hollywood map, and he was able to work consistently throughout the rest of the decade, turning in particularly strong performances in films like A_Midnight_Clear (1991), in which he played a doomed World War II soldier; The_Doors (1991), which cast him as Doors guitarist Robby Kreiger; Swing_Kids (1993), in which he played a musician and a doomed man; and Pulp_Fiction (1994), in which he had a brief but memorable appearance as an ill-fated business associate of Marsellus Wallace. The same year that he appeared in Pulp_Fiction, Whaley starred in Swimming_With_Sharks, a black comedy that gave him one of his comparatively few leading roles. As used and abused office boy of a sadistic studio executive (Kevin_Spacey), Whaley gave torment a good name, proving that it was possible to display a certain kind of finesse when portraying someone relentlessly slapped by power.
In 1999, after spending the previous few years playing more conflicted men (to particular acclaim in the made-for-TV World War II drama When_Trumpets_Fade), Whaley took matters into his own hands by writing and directing Joe the King. A dark independent feature starring John_Leguizamo, Camryn_Manheim, Val_Kilmer, and Ethan_Hawke, it premiered at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, where Whaley won a Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award for his efforts. Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi
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