Kurt Russell

Kurt Vogel Russell on March 17, 1951 in Springfield, Massachusetts to Louise Julia Russell (née Crone), a dancer & 'Bing Russell' (qv), an actor. He is of English, German, Scottish and Irish descent. His first roles were as a child on television series, including a lead role on the Western series _The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters (1963)_ (qv). Russell landed a role in the 'Elvis Presley' (qv) movie, _It Happened at the World's Fair (1963)_ (qv), when he was eleven years old. 'Walt Disney' (qv) himself signed Russell to a 10-year contract, and, according to 'Robert Osborne' (qv), he became the studio's top star of the 1970s. Having voiced adult Copper in the animated Disney film _The Fox and the Hound (1981)_ (qv), Russell is one of the few famous child stars in Hollywood who has been able to continue his acting career past his teen years.Kurt spent the early 1970s playing minor league baseball. In 1979, he gave a classic performance as 'Elvis Presley' (qv) in 'John Carpenter' (qv)'s ABC TV movie _Elvis (1979)_ (qv), and married the actress who portrayed 'Priscilla Presley' (qv) in the film, 'Season Hubley' (qv). He was nominated for an Emmy Award for the role. He followed with roles in a string of well-received films, including _Used Cars (1980)_ (qv) and _Silkwood (1983)_ (qv), for which he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture. During the 1980s, he starred in several films by director Carpenter; they created some of his best-known roles, including the infamous anti-hero Snake Plissken in the futuristic action film _Escape from New York (1981)_ (qv) (and later in its sequel _Escape from L.A. (1996)_ (qv)), Antarctic helicopter pilot R.J. MacReady in the horror film _The Thing (1982)_ (qv), and Jack Burton in the fantasy film _Big Trouble in Little China (1986)_ (qv), all of which have since become cult classics.In 1983, he became reacquainted with 'Goldie Hawn' (qv) (who appeared with him in _The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band (1968)_ (qv)) when they worked together on _Swing Shift (1984)_ (qv). The two have lived together ever since. They made another film together, 'Garry Marshall' (qv)'s comedy _Overboard (1987)_ (qv). His other 1980s titles include _The Best of Times (1986)_ (qv), _Tequila Sunrise (1988)_ (qv), _Winter People (1989)_ (qv) and _Tango & Cash (1989)_ (qv).In 1991, he headlined the firefighter drama _Backdraft (1991)_ (qv), he starred as Wyatt Earp in the Western film _Tombstone (1993)_ (qv), and had a starring role as Colonel Jack O'Neil in the science fiction film _Stargate (1994)_ (qv). In the mid-2000s, his portrayal of U.S. Olympic hockey coach Herb Brooks in _Miracle (2004)_ (qv) won the praise of critics. In 2006, he appeared in the disaster-thriller _Poseidon (2006)_ (qv), and in 2007, in Quentin Tarantino's _Death Proof (2007)_ (qv) segment from the film _Grindhouse (2007)_ (qv). Russell appeared in _The Battered Bastards of Baseball (2014)_ (qv), a documentary about his father and the Portland Mavericks, which debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in 2014. Russell starred in the Western films _Bone Tomahawk (2015)_ (qv) and _The Hateful Eight (2015)_ (qv), and had a leading role in the dramatization _Deepwater Horizon (2016)_ (qv). He also co-starred in the action sequels _Furious 7 (2015)_ (qv) and _The Fate of the Furious (2017)_ (qv).Russell and 'Goldie Hawn' (qv) live on a 72-acre retreat, Home Run Ranch, outside of Aspen. He has two sons, 'Boston Russell' (qv) (from his marriage to Hubley) and 'Wyatt Russell' (qv) (with Hawn). He also raised Hawn's children, actors 'Oliver Hudson' (qv) and 'Kate Hudson' (qv), who consider him their father. Russell is also an avid gun enthusiast, a hunter and a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. He is also an FAA-licensed private pilot holding single/multi-engine and instrument ratings, and is an Honorary Board Member of the humanitarian aviation organization Wings of Hope.::Anne-Marie Cowsill