Steve Railsback
- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Noted for his dangerous, chameleon-like portrayals while possessing the
scariest-looking pair of eyes in the business, leathery-looking Steve
Railsback has mesmerized us over the years with a number of weird,
often warped roles both on film and television. While never achieving
the degree of stardom deserved, he, like the equally infamous and
unpredictable Dennis Hopper, always
commands interest whether the material is good or inferior.
Born on November 16, 1945 in Dallas, Texas, he was raised in Wichita Falls.
Participation in a local college production of "Cinderella" at the age
of 7 spurred his interest in acting. After graduating from high school,
he took a job as a shoe salesman and eventually made enough money to
leave his native Texas and relocate to New York in order to pursue
acting in 1967.
As a student of Lee Strasberg and the
Actors Studio, Railsback was forced to work menial jobs in order to
initially survive, but he eventually became a regular fixture in the
New York theatre scene in the late 1960s/early 1970s, appearing in such
stage productions as "The Bluebird", "Orpheus Descending" and "This
Property Is Condemned". While working out at the Studio, he caught the
attention of renowned director Elia Kazan,
who noticed his strong potential, and offered the fledgling actor a
showy role in the low-budget film
The Visitors (1972). However, he
returned to the theatre with roles in "The Petrified Forest", "One
Sunday Afternoon" and "The Cherry Orchard" before making his Broadway
debut in the short-lived
José Quintero-directed production
of "The Skin of Our Teeth" starring
Elizabeth Ashley in 1975.
Following a second film role with
James Woods in
Cockfighter (1974) and the title role
in the PBS piece
Charlie Siringo (1976),
Steve delivered one of the most shockingly vivid lead roles ever
present in a miniseries with his all-consuming reincarnation of cult
leader and mass murderer Charles Manson
in
Helter Skelter (1976).
While the new guy on the block was unjustly ignored at Emmy time,
Hollywood could not help but pay attention to this electrifying
performer. Thanks primarily to Railsback, the miniseries was the
highest-rated television movie at the time until
Roots (1977) came along the following
year.
Eager to avoid the threat of being typecast in "psycho" parts, Steve
complemented this infamous role with a much more humane performance in
the miniseries
From Here to Eternity (1979),
tackling the role of Pvt. Robert E. Lee Pruitt (made memorable on
screen by the late Montgomery Clift)
and making it completely his own. His next big movie role, as a
fugitive who happens upon a film set in the bizarre and brilliant black
comedy The Stunt Man (1980) with
the equally compelling
Peter O'Toole, assured Hollywood
that his stunning Charlie Manson portrayal was no fluke.
More cutting-edge parts in a variety of genres came his way throughout the
1980s, but without the quality of production to back them up. Such
films as the mystery
Deadly Games (1982); the Australian
sci-fi thriller Turkey Shoot (1982);
the horror film
Trick or Treats (1982); the
animal adventure
The Golden Seal (1983); the
cocaine abuse drama Torchlight (1984);
the bizarre British sci-fi horror film
Lifeforce (1985); the
John Candy/Eugene Levy
action comedy
Armed and Dangerous (1986);
the rock-and-roll drama
Scenes from the Goldmine (1987);
and the ho-hum thriller dramas
Distortions (1988),
The Survivalist (1987) and
Nukie (1987) more often than not wasted his
unique gifts.
While falling into quirky low-budget or direct-to-video fare for some
time, Railsback has also dabbled in writing, producing and directing on
occasion, such as the Vietnam POW story
The Forgotten (1989). At
the turn of the century, Steve came to attention once again with a
showy role as he delved inside the complex mind of another
schizophrenic madman.
Ed Gein (2000),
about infamous serial killer/cannibal Ed Gein
(in which he also served as executive producer) once again showed
Hollywood that the actor was a master at the game of weird.
Into the millennium, Railsback has appeared in mostly minor films, with
roles in Zigs (2001),
Slash (2002),
Neo Ned (2005),
Syndrome of the Trespasser Island (2004),
Plaguers (2008),
Ready or Not (2009),
Follow the Prophet (2009), Infiltrators (2014), Wild in Blue (2015), Gone Are the Days (2018) and It Wants Blood! (2019). On
television, he has had occasional roles tailored to his off-beat, strange ways guesting on such series as "The Practice," "Family Law," "The District," "The Handler," "Supernatural," "The Mentalist," "Femme Fatales" and "Decker."
scariest-looking pair of eyes in the business, leathery-looking Steve
Railsback has mesmerized us over the years with a number of weird,
often warped roles both on film and television. While never achieving
the degree of stardom deserved, he, like the equally infamous and
unpredictable Dennis Hopper, always
commands interest whether the material is good or inferior.
Born on November 16, 1945 in Dallas, Texas, he was raised in Wichita Falls.
Participation in a local college production of "Cinderella" at the age
of 7 spurred his interest in acting. After graduating from high school,
he took a job as a shoe salesman and eventually made enough money to
leave his native Texas and relocate to New York in order to pursue
acting in 1967.
As a student of Lee Strasberg and the
Actors Studio, Railsback was forced to work menial jobs in order to
initially survive, but he eventually became a regular fixture in the
New York theatre scene in the late 1960s/early 1970s, appearing in such
stage productions as "The Bluebird", "Orpheus Descending" and "This
Property Is Condemned". While working out at the Studio, he caught the
attention of renowned director Elia Kazan,
who noticed his strong potential, and offered the fledgling actor a
showy role in the low-budget film
The Visitors (1972). However, he
returned to the theatre with roles in "The Petrified Forest", "One
Sunday Afternoon" and "The Cherry Orchard" before making his Broadway
debut in the short-lived
José Quintero-directed production
of "The Skin of Our Teeth" starring
Elizabeth Ashley in 1975.
Following a second film role with
James Woods in
Cockfighter (1974) and the title role
in the PBS piece
Charlie Siringo (1976),
Steve delivered one of the most shockingly vivid lead roles ever
present in a miniseries with his all-consuming reincarnation of cult
leader and mass murderer Charles Manson
in
Helter Skelter (1976).
While the new guy on the block was unjustly ignored at Emmy time,
Hollywood could not help but pay attention to this electrifying
performer. Thanks primarily to Railsback, the miniseries was the
highest-rated television movie at the time until
Roots (1977) came along the following
year.
Eager to avoid the threat of being typecast in "psycho" parts, Steve
complemented this infamous role with a much more humane performance in
the miniseries
From Here to Eternity (1979),
tackling the role of Pvt. Robert E. Lee Pruitt (made memorable on
screen by the late Montgomery Clift)
and making it completely his own. His next big movie role, as a
fugitive who happens upon a film set in the bizarre and brilliant black
comedy The Stunt Man (1980) with
the equally compelling
Peter O'Toole, assured Hollywood
that his stunning Charlie Manson portrayal was no fluke.
More cutting-edge parts in a variety of genres came his way throughout the
1980s, but without the quality of production to back them up. Such
films as the mystery
Deadly Games (1982); the Australian
sci-fi thriller Turkey Shoot (1982);
the horror film
Trick or Treats (1982); the
animal adventure
The Golden Seal (1983); the
cocaine abuse drama Torchlight (1984);
the bizarre British sci-fi horror film
Lifeforce (1985); the
John Candy/Eugene Levy
action comedy
Armed and Dangerous (1986);
the rock-and-roll drama
Scenes from the Goldmine (1987);
and the ho-hum thriller dramas
Distortions (1988),
The Survivalist (1987) and
Nukie (1987) more often than not wasted his
unique gifts.
While falling into quirky low-budget or direct-to-video fare for some
time, Railsback has also dabbled in writing, producing and directing on
occasion, such as the Vietnam POW story
The Forgotten (1989). At
the turn of the century, Steve came to attention once again with a
showy role as he delved inside the complex mind of another
schizophrenic madman.
Ed Gein (2000),
about infamous serial killer/cannibal Ed Gein
(in which he also served as executive producer) once again showed
Hollywood that the actor was a master at the game of weird.
Into the millennium, Railsback has appeared in mostly minor films, with
roles in Zigs (2001),
Slash (2002),
Neo Ned (2005),
Syndrome of the Trespasser Island (2004),
Plaguers (2008),
Ready or Not (2009),
Follow the Prophet (2009), Infiltrators (2014), Wild in Blue (2015), Gone Are the Days (2018) and It Wants Blood! (2019). On
television, he has had occasional roles tailored to his off-beat, strange ways guesting on such series as "The Practice," "Family Law," "The District," "The Handler," "Supernatural," "The Mentalist," "Femme Fatales" and "Decker."