Gil Birmingham
| Gil Birmingham | |
|---|---|
| Born |
July 13, 1953 San Antonio, Texas, United States |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1986–present |
| Website |
www |
Gil Birmingham (born July 13, 1953)[1] is an American actor of Comanche ancestry, best known for his portrayal of Billy Black in the The Twilight Saga film series.
Early life
Birmingham was born in San Antonio, Texas. His family moved frequently during his childhood, due to his father's career in the military. He learned to play the guitar at an early age and considers music his "first love".[2] After obtaining a Bachelor of Science from the University of Southern California, he worked as a petrochemical engineer before becoming an actor.[3][4]
Career
Music videos
In the early 1980s, a talent scout spotted Birmingham at a local gym, where he had been bodybuilding and entering bodybuilding contests. This led to his first acting experience, in a music video for Diana Ross, for her 1982 hit song "Muscles".[5]
Theme parks
After appearing in Ross' music video, Birmingham began to pursue acting as his primary career. He studied acting with Larry Moss and Charles Conrad. He portrayed the character of Conan the Barbarian in Universal Studios Hollywood's theme park attraction The Adventures of Conan: A Sword and Sorcery Spectacular.[3]
Television
In 1986, Birmingham made his television debut on an episode of the series Riptide. By 2002, he had a recurring role as the character Oz in the medical drama Body & Soul, starring Peter Strauss. In 2005, he was cast as the older Dogstar in the Steven Spielberg six-part miniseries Into the West.
He has appeared in a number of television series, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Veronica Mars, 10 Items or Less, Nip/Tuck, Castle, The Mentalist, House of Cards and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. He has also had roles in several television films, such as Gentle Ben (with Dean Cain) and Gentle Ben 2: Danger on the Mountain,[6] Dreamkeeper, The Lone Ranger, and Love's Long Journey (with Erin Cottrell and Irene Bedard).
Films
In 2001, Birmingham appeared in his first feature film, The Doe Boy, in which he portrayed Manny Deadmarsh.
In 2008, Birmingham was cast as the character Billy Black in The Twilight Saga film series and has appeared in all four of the films.[7][8]
The Twilight series has led to roles in other major film roles, including that of Sheriff Johnny Cortez in Love Ranch (with Joe Pesci and Helen Mirren), and Cal Bishnik in Shouting Secrets (with New Moon castmate Chaske Spencer). In September 2011, Birmingham appeared in the film Crooked Arrows, cast in the role of Ben Logan.[9]
Birmingham voiced Wounded Bird in the animated film Rango and has provided voice work for the television series The Wild Thornberrys (in which he voiced an Inuit elder) and the film Night at the Museum. He played Jeff Bridges' character's Texas Ranger partner in the bank robbery film Hell or High Water (2016).
In the Chickasaw Nation production of Te Ata, Birmingham plays Thomas Benjamin 'T.B.' Thompson, Mary Frances 'Te Ata' (Thomoson) Fisher's father.[10][11] Birmingham attended the film's premiere in Moore, Oklahoma on September 13, 2016.[12]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Riptide | Cop | Episode #3.20 "Chapel of Glass" |
| 1987 | House II: The Second Story | Featured Warrior | |
| Falcon Crest | Episode #6.28 "Desperation" | ||
| 1996 | Le Jaguar | French movie | |
| Night Man | Vargus | Episode #1.4 "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" | |
| 1997 | Buffy the Vampire Slayer | The Bodyguard | Episode #2.4 "Inca Mummy Girl" |
| Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman | Brave #1 | Episode #6.11 "Safe Passage" | |
| Night Man | Vargus | Episode #1.4 "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" | |
| 1999 | The Wild Thornberrys | Jim's dad | voice over, Episode #2.10 "Tamper Proof Seal" |
| 2001 | Family Law | Bernard | Episode #2.21 "Americans" |
| V.I.P. | Roland | Episode #4.7 "Uncle from V.A.L." | |
| The Doe Boy | Manny Deadmarsh | ||
| 2002 | Gentle Ben | Pete | TV movie |
| Skins | Sonny Yellow Lodge | ||
| Body & Soul | Oz | recurring character, 8 episodes | |
| 2003 | Gentle Ben 2: Danger on the Mountain | Pete | TV movie |
| la milla verde | Sam | TV movie | |
| The Lone Ranger | One Horn | TV movie | |
| Dreamkeeper | Sam | TV movie | |
| 2005 | Love's Long Journey | Sharp Claw | TV movie |
| Into the West | Older Dogstar | TV miniseries, 4 episodes | |
| Medical Investigation | Walter Shepard | episode: Tribe | |
| End of the Spear | Moipa | uncredited | |
| 2006 | Night at the Museum | Voice over | |
| Charmed | Indian Chief | TV | |
| 2006 | Veronica Mars | Leonard Lobo | TV |
| 2007 | Cosmic Radio | Tribal Council leader | |
| 2008 | Turok: Son of Stone | Nashoba | Voice over |
| California Indian | Chi Thomas | ||
| Twilight | Billy Black | ||
| 2009 | 10 Items or Less | John Greene | "Dances with Groceries" |
| Nip/Tuck | Shaman | Episode #5.20 "Budi Sabri" | |
| Love Ranch | Sheriff Johnny Cortez | ||
| The Twilight Saga: New Moon | Billy Black | ||
| 2010 | The Mentalist | Markham Willis | Episode "Aingavite Baa" |
| The Twilight Saga: Eclipse | Billy Black | ||
| Castle | Cacaw Te | Episode "Wrapped up in Death" | |
| 2011 | Rango | Wounded Bird (a crow) | |
| Shouting Secrets | Cal Bishnik | In post-production | |
| The Lying Game | Ben Whitehorse | 5 Episodes | |
| Californian Indian | Charles 'Chi' Thomas | ||
| The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1 | Billy Black | ||
| 2012 | Crooked Arrows[9] | Ben Logan | |
| The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 | Credited | ||
| Vegas | Don Simmons | episodes: Pilot, and Solid Citizens | |
| 2013 | The Lone Ranger | Red Knee | |
| 2014 | House of Cards | Daniel Lanagin | 4 episodes |
| 2015-present | Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt | Virgil White (Jacqueline's father) | 5 episodes |
| 2016 | Hell or High Water | Alberto Parker | |
| 2016 | Te Ata | Thomas Benjamin Thompson | Plays father of Te Ata |
Awards
- 2001: The Doe Boy (in which Birmingham starred as Manny Deadmarsh) wins the Sundance International Filmmaker's Award
- 2002: First Americans in the Arts (FAITA) award for an Outstanding Performance in a Recurring Role as Oz in Body & Soul
- 2005: American Indian LA Film and Television Award for Outstanding Supporting Role as Sam in Dreamkeeper
References
- ↑ https://www.google.com/search?q=gil+birmingham&rlz=1C1CHMO_enUS526US526&oq=GIl+Birmi&aqs=chrome.0.0j57j5j65j0j62.4371j0&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8. Retrieved 1 July 2013. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - ↑ "Billy Black actor talks of role on eve of visiting LaPush". Peninsuladailynews.com. 2010-07-16. Retrieved 2011-09-03.
- 1 2 Pond, Roscoe (April 2, 2003). "Through the Kindess of Strangers; Actor Gil Birmingham Arrives". Indian Country Today. 22 (42): D1.
- ↑ Gire, Dann (2010-06-24). "Daily Herald | A little bit of job advice, courtesy of two 'Twilight' stars". Prev.dailyherald.com. Retrieved 2011-09-03.
- ↑ Kimberly Sherman (2009-06-10). "An exclusive chat with Billy Black actor Gil Birmingham - Twilight Moonlighter". Blogs.hellomagazine.com. Retrieved 2011-09-03.
- ↑ "Gil Birmingham Biography". Filmreference.com. Retrieved 2011-09-03.
- ↑ Ditzian, Eric (2010-07-08). "'Breaking Dawn' Part Two Release Date Not Set For Summer 2012 - MTV Movie News". MTV. Retrieved 2011-09-03.
- ↑ Kilpatrick, Christine (2011-04-01). "Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart Married in Breaking Dawn". People.com. Retrieved 2011-09-03.
- 1 2 Rosenberg, Steven A. (2011-08-11). "Local players add extra authenticity to movie about lacrosse - Boston.com". Articles.boston.com. Retrieved 2011-09-03.
- ↑ "Gil Birmingham". Te Ata. The Chickasaw Nation. October 9, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
- ↑ "Te Ata Full Cast & Crew". IMDb. IMDb. October 9, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
- ↑ "Te Ata". Facebook. September 13, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
- ↑ www.gilbirmingham.com. Missing or empty
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