Robert Z'Dar

This biography of a living person does not cite any references or sources. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living people that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately. (October 2009) Find sources: (Robert Z'Dar – news, books, scholar)

Robert Z’Dar (born June 3, 1950) is an American actor and film producer. Due to his unique facial structure, he is often referred to as "The Chin".

Early life

Born Robert J. Zdarsky in Chicago, Illinois, Z'Dar is of Lithuanian descent. He first started acting while attending Proviso West High School in Hillside, Illinois. After high school, Z’Dar attended Arizona State University where he received a BFA. After graduation, Z'Dar returned to Chicago, for a time, where he was employed as a police officer.

Acting career

Eventually Z’Dar made his move to Hollywood, California to pursue a career in acting. In 1984, Z’Dar appeared in his first feature film, Joe Tornatore’s Code Name Zebra, a film about a band of ex-soldiers forming an international anti-crime unit.

Z’Dar has appeared in at least one film a year, including: The Night Stalker (1987), The Killing Game (1988), and Dead End City (1988) and Marching out of Time (1993) directed by Anton Vassil. Z’Dar's name became recognizable when he played Matt Cordell in 1988’s Maniac Cop, a film about a maniac in an NYPD cop uniform who brutally murders people. Z'Dar repeated this role in both of its sequels (1990 and 1993).

It was perhaps Z’Dar’s performance in Maniac Cop that landed him the role of “Face” in 1989’s Tango and Cash alongside action stars Sylvester Stallone and Kurt Russell. In 1991 he shared the screen with F. Murray Abraham, Christian Slater, and Lara Flynn Boyle in Mobsters.

Robert Z’Dar has continued making at least one film every year despite a serious back injury he suffered in 2002 on a movie set. As of January 2006 he has acted in seventy-six films, produced three films, and also appeared on television. Two of Z’Dar’s films, Soultaker and Future War appeared in season 10 of Mystery Science Theater 3000. On seeing Z’Dar on screen as the Angel of Death, Crow T. Robot remarks, “My God, he’s a catcher’s mitt with eyes!”

External links

• The Official Website for Robert Z'Dar
• Robert Z'Dar at the Internet Movie Database
• Robert Z'Dar at Allmovie
• Z’Dar Speaks