Actor Bio Page #1

CHRISTOPHER LLOYD, an actor whose performing credits include a wide variety of motion picture, television and theatrical roles, has been known to make magic on more than one performance. There are several actors who can be instantly identified to a single character role. For Lloyd, single character recognition is impossible. He has captivated both critics and audiences alike with his winning portrayals of quirky, off-beat characters; portrayals that have taken him to untold dimensions. Constantly astounding and amusing fellow cast and crew members with outrageous improvisation, his performances take on a variety of facial and body contortions that are unique only to Lloyd. Christopher Lloyd grew up in nearby New Canaan and Westport. He was drawn to acting at the age of 14, and only two years later, was apprenticing in summer stock. At the age of 19, he moved to New York and began acting classes, most notably at the Neighborhood Playhouse with Sanford Meisner. Opting for the bright lights of the big city over college, he moved to New York City to study acting. Before long, off-Broadway became his new stomping grounds. Christopher Lloyd has appeared in countless Broadway, New York Shakespeare Festivals, and off-Broadway productions. Among these are: "Happy End", "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (both opposite Meryl Streep), "Red, White and Maddox", "Kaspar", "The Harlot and the Hunted", "The Seagull", "Total Eclipse", "MacBeth", "In the Boom Boom Room", "Cracks", "Professional Resident Company", "What Every Woman Knows", "As They Put Handcuffs on the Flowers", "The Father", "King Lear", and "Power Failure".

MICHAEL J. FOX began acting professionally at age 15 in the regional Canadian Broadcasting Company series Leo and Me. After moving to Los Angeles at age 18, he appeared in a number of television episodes of the acclaimed CBS series Palmerstown U.S.A. by Alex Haley. After a small role in the television film Letters From Frank with Art Carney and Maureen Stapleton, he moved to Los Angeles on his own and was soon at work on the Walt Disney feature, Midnight Madness. He guest-starred on series such as Trapper John, M.D., Lou Grant, Family and Night Court, before being cast in the role for which he would ultimately win three Emmy® Awards, bringing him worldwide popularity and millions of devoted fans during the course of its seven season run -- that of Alex P. Keaton on NBC's Family Ties (September 22, 1982 - May 17, 1989). When the part of Alex came along, he was not the producer's first choice, but a loyal casting director managed to wear him down and Fox soon became a network favorite and the recipient of approximately 500 fan letters per week. Ironically, it was the flexibility and solid support of Family Ties producer Gary Goldberg that made it possible for Fox to schedule his series and a motion picture at the same time. From mid-January through mid-March 1985, a typical day in the life of Michael J. Fox meant reporting to Paramount Studios for his TV show Family Tiesfrom 10 AM to 6 PM, and then on to Universal for Back to the Future from approximately 6:30 PM to 2:30 AM. But it was his Friday schedule that left both crews shaking their heads in wonder. Since Family Ties taped in front of a live audience on Friday evenings, Michael would rehearse with his TV family from noon until 5 PM, perform two tapings, and then report to the set of his film at 10 PM. The motion picture crew would then film until 6 or 7 AM., leaving the exhausted actor a weekend in which to rest and recuperate, only to start the routine all over again on Monday morning. "When I first started on the movie, we filmed several special effects sequences, and I remember being a bit intimidated by it all," says Fox. "On the very first day of work, I climbed out of a DeLorean wearing a yellow space suit, into a barn full of smoke and hypnotized chickens. After a while I learned to relax and enjoy all the commotion around me." Upon thinking of all the hanging and flying that Marty does, and the number of devices necessary to implement their successful filming, he is reminded of a saying that he and director Zemeckis would quote in situations of that nature. "Pain is temporary, film is forever." Michael once jokingly described Back to the Future as a "comedy-action-fantasy-adventure-coming-of-age film," adding, "It's got a lot of everything, comedy, gadgetry and a story that doesn't quit. I call it a $20 investment, because you may have to see it four times before you absorb all the terrific things that are going on in those two hours. I think what made it such an immense hit is that it was cross-generational. Just by the nature of the story, its appeal reached people who remembered the '50s, and interested a whole new generation in the period. It was also a very life-affirming story about relationships, as well as a 'what if?' movie, which is another thing audiences love. It's hard to analyze, and maybe it's best left that way. It's like Mark Twain's analogy between comedy and a frog. If you dissect it, you might find out what makes it work, but it'll die in the process."

TOM WILSON has been acting for over twelve years and performing his stand-up act even longer. He is a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he grew up as the eldest of five children. He was heavily involved in the dramatic arts at Radnor High School, as well as serving as president of the debate team. He played the tuba in his high school band, and to this day, that very same tuba remains a staple in his comedy routine. He studied international politics at Arizona State University in 1978, before turning his attention towards the performing arts, with a stint in summer stock at Villanova University at the age of 19. He appeared in Joseph Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival productions of "Richard III" and "Henry IV, Part I". It was during a production of "Richard III" that Tom began performing improvisation and stand-up comedy with some other actors in the cast. Tom returned home to Pennsylvania, and on a whim, began performing stand-up comedy at "open-mike" nights at a club in Rosemont in 1979. Polishing his act, Wilson worked his way up to comedy clubs in Las Vegas, Baltimore, Washington D.C. and New York, performing at night clubs such as Catch a Rising Star and The Comedy Store. While working the clubs, he also found the time to study acting with a number of private teachers, as well as attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He began to attract attention from casting directors in Los Angeles and moved there in 1981 on the advice of agents, where he found work at comedy clubs such as The Comedy Store in Hollywood and The Improv, often doubling as the clubs' bouncer. During that time, he shared an apartment with fellow up-and-coming comedians Andrew "Dice" Clay and Yakov Smirnoff. He landed a number of commercials and made appearances in episodic television shows such as Knight Rider and The Facts of Life, before being cast as "Biff", the nemesis of Marty McFly in Back to the Future.