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Dennis Franz

 
Who2 Biography: Dennis Franz, Actor
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  • Born: 28 October 1944
  • Birthplace: Maywood, Illinois
  • Best Known As: Detective Sipowicz on TV's NYPD Blue

Name at birth: Dennis Franz Schlacta

Dennis Franz is an actor most closely associated with his television role as Detective Andy Sipowicz on the long-running ABC drama NYPD Blue (1993-2004). Franz has been a character actor in the movies and on TV since the late 1970s. Frequently cast as a cop, he became a TV star during the run of the police drama Hill Street Blues in the 1980s. Both Hill Street Blues and NYPD Blue earned numerous Emmy nominations, and Franz himself has won four Emmys. His movies include Body Double (1984), Die Hard 2 (1990, starring Bruce Willis) and American Buffalo (1996, with Dustin Hoffman).

Dennis Franz (pronounced "fronz") has also done cartoon voice work, including for The Mighty Ducks (1996)... In the early episodes of Hill Street Blues, he played Sal Benedetto; that character was killed off and Franz returned to the show as Lt. Norman Buntz... Franz also starred in a Hill Street Blues spin-off series, Beverly Hills Buntz (1987).

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Quotes By: Dennis Franz
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Quotes:

"For lack of a better term, they've labeled me a sex symbol. It's flattering and it should happen to every bald, overweight guy."

Actor: Dennis Franz
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  • Born: Oct 28, 1944 in Maywood, Illinois
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '80s-2000s
  • Major Genres: Drama, Thriller
  • Career Highlights: Die Hard 2, Blow Out, Dressed to Kill
  • First Major Screen Credit: Dressed to Kill (1980)

Biography

Chicago-born Dennis Franz (originally Dennis Schlachta) spent 11 months in an airborne division during the Vietnam War. Afterwards, Franz became a postman -- and, by his own admission, not a very good one. Short, bald, overweight and scrappy, he decided to establish himself as a character actor, making the rounds of Windy City casting agencies in search of film work. Franz made his film debut in a bit part in De Palma's The Fury (1978). He made his TV debut as beat cop Joe Gilland in the 1982 TV series Chicago Story. Franz went on to become a "regular" in the various projects of producer Steven Bochco, playing baseball coach Angelo Carbone on the four-episode Bay City Blues (1983), and two different roles -- unscrupulous detective Sal Benedetto and streetwise lieutenant Norman Buntz -- on the popular Hill Street Blues. An attempt to capitalize on his Hill Street fame led to the short-lived 1987 series Beverly Hills Buntz. In 1993, Dennis Franz was back with Bochco on the controversial series NYPD Blue; once again, he played a cop, this time a recovering alcoholic trying to reassemble his shattered personal life and career. His gritty portrayal of Detective Andy Sipowicz is considered his best role and has won Franz multiple Emmy awards. While primarily a television actor, Franz has appeared in numerous feature films and has worked with such esteemed directors as Brian De Palma and Robert Altman. As with his television career, he is frequently cast as a police officer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Wikipedia: Dennis Franz
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Dennis Franz

at a rehearsal for the 1994 Emmy Awards
Born Dennis Franz Schlachta
October 28, 1944 (1944-10-28) (age 65)
Chicago, Illinois, United States
Occupation Actor
Years active 1978–present

Dennis Franz (born October 28, 1944) is an American actor best known for his role as Andy Sipowicz, a gritty police detective in the television series NYPD Blue

Contents

Early life

Franz was born Dennis Franz Schlachta in Chicago, Illinois, the son of German immigrants[1][2][3] Eleanor, a postal worker, and Franz Schlachta, who was a baker and postal worker.[4] Franz is a graduate of Proviso East High School (in Maywood, Illinois) and Southern Illinois University Carbondale.[5] After graduating from college, Franz was drafted into the United States Army. He served eleven months with the 82nd Airborne Division in Vietnam.[6]

Career

Franz began his acting career at Chicago's Organic Theater Company. Although he has in the past performed Shakespeare, his "look" led to his being typecast early in his career as a police officer. (By Franz' own count, the character of Detective Andy Sipowicz was his 27th role as a police officer). He has also guest-starred in shows such as The A-Team. Other major roles were on the television series Hill Street Blues in which he played two characters over the run of that show: Sal Benedetto and Norm Buntz. He starred in the short-lived Beverly Hills Buntz as the morally-questionable Norman Buntz.

Franz went on to win four Emmy Awards for his portrayal of Andy Sipowicz on NYPD Blue. The character of Sipowicz was ranked #23 on Bravo's 100 Greatest TV Characters list.[7]

He starred as "Earl", the abusive husband, in the Dixie Chicks' music video "Goodbye Earl" and as Nathaniel Messinger in the 1998 film, City of Angels.

Filmography

References

  1. ^ SMOKE 03/98 - Dennis Franz
  2. ^ TV HEROES: #6: Dennis Franz.(Features) - The Independent (London, England) - HighBeam Research
  3. ^ News-Record.com: Archives Search: 01 results for search "( (unq:"0EAF85A3C033421C") ) "
  4. ^ Dennis Franz Biography (1944-)
  5. ^ Utterback, Wayne (2007-04-19). "Emprace the 'Dark': Author, SIUC alumnus reprints book about Strip" (in English). Daily Egyptian: pp. 7. 
  6. ^ Dennis Franz - Trailer - Showtimes - Cast - Movies - New York Times
  7. ^ The 100 Greatest TV Characters: Famous Television Stars and Pop Icons - Official Bravo TV Site

External links

United States Department of the Army Seal.svg United States Army portal
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Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor – Drama Series

Peter Falk (1976) · James Garner (1977) · Edward Asner (1978) · Ron Leibman (1979) · Edward Asner (1980) · Daniel J. Travanti (1981) · Daniel J. Travanti (1982) · Ed Flanders (1983) · Tom Selleck (1984) · William Daniels (1985) · William Daniels (1986) · Bruce Willis (1987) · Richard Kiley (1988) · Carroll O'Connor (1989) · Peter Falk (1990) · James Earl Jones (1991) · Christopher Lloyd (1992) · Tom Skerritt (1993) · Dennis Franz (1994) · Mandy Patinkin (1995) · Dennis Franz (1996) · Dennis Franz (1997) · Andre Braugher (1998) · Dennis Franz (1999) · James Gandolfini (2000)
v • d • e
Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama

Kyle MacLachlan (1990) · Scott Bakula (1991) · Sam Waterston (1992) · David Caruso (1993) · Dennis Franz (1994) · Jimmy Smits (1995) · David Duchovny (1996) · Anthony Edwards (1997) · Dylan McDermott (1998) · James Gandolfini (1999) · Martin Sheen (2000) · Kiefer Sutherland (2001) · Michael Chiklis (2002) · Anthony LaPaglia (2003) · Ian McShane (2004) · Hugh Laurie (2005) · Hugh Laurie (2006) · Jon Hamm (2007) · Gabriel Byrne (2008)

Complete List · (1969–1989) · (1990–present)
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Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series

Dennis Franz (1994) · Anthony Edwards (1995) · Dennis Franz (1996) · Anthony Edwards (1997) · Sam Waterston (1998) · James Gandolfini (1999) · Martin Sheen (2000) · Martin Sheen (2001) · James Gandolfini (2002) · Kiefer Sutherland (2003) · Jerry Orbach (2004) · Kiefer Sutherland (2005) · Hugh Laurie (2006) · James Gandolfini (2007) · Hugh Laurie (2008)
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NYPD Blue
Characters
Actors
Creators
Episodes
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Psycho series
Robert Bloch's novels
Psycho (1959) · Psycho II (1982) · Psycho House (1990)
Films
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Characters
Other

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