• Date of Birth: March 31, 1943
  • Place of Birth: New York City, New York
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Christopher Walken Biography

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Christopher Walken
flixster.actor.pane.162652837 - flixster"People think that my favorite roles to do are villains, but I find comedy to be the most challenging and rewarding."

Christopher Walken Mini Bio

Christopher Walken is an Academy Award-winning American film and theatre actor. Walken initially trained as a dancer in musical theatre before moving on to more serious roles in theatre and then film. He has a considerable body of work in theatre, with over 100 plays to his credit. Walken has also appeared in over 100 movies and television shows since 1953, including The Deer Hunter, The Dead Zone, A View to a Kill, At Close Range, King of New York, Batman Returns, True Romance, Pulp Fiction, The Funeral and Catch Me If You Can, and in classic TV series such as Kojak and The Naked City. Walken attained cult status in 90's, playing the role of the Archangel Gabriel in the first three The Prophecy movies. Walken has a reputation for playing unbalanced characters on-screen, such as his "claim to fame" role in The Deer Hunter, where he played a disturbed Vietnam Veteran, which won him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Walken was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a heart broken and apologetic father to Leonardo DiCaprio in Catch Me If You Can in 2002. Walken has a considerable body of work in theatre. He won the Clarence Derwent Award for his performance in The Lion in Winter in 1966 and an Obie for his 1975 performance in Kid Champion. He has played the main role in a number of Shakespeare plays, notably Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and Coriolanus. His movie talents continue to remain in high demand and movie audiences relish watching how capably he reinvents himself for each new challenging role. In the United States alone, films featuring Walken have grossed over $2 billion dollars. He has stated in interviews that he will never turn down a role unless he is simply too busy on other projects, and regards each role as a new learning experience.




In 2001, Walken's performance in Fatboy Slim's "Weapon of Choice" video won him a MTV Video Music Award for choreographing his own moves.


Christopher Walken
Vital Stats
Birth Name
Ronald Walken
Date of BirthMarch 31, 1943
Eye Color
Walken has a genetic condition known has heterochromia, which is a difference in the color of each eye. He has one blue and the other is hazel.
Height 6' (1.83m)
Nicknames Chris or Ronnie
Nationality
American
Star Sign
Aries - The Ram
Trade Mark Walken always tries to work a dance (jig) into his movies. His haunting, dark humour filled monologues.
Education
  • Professional Children's School
  • Hofstra University
Family Father: Paul Walken
Mother: Rosalie Walken
Siblings: Kenneth and Glenn
Spouse: Georgianne Walken
Children: None
Resides In Wilton, Connecticut and New York, New York, USA
Religious Affiliations Methodist
Interests/Hobbies Working, Cooking, Painting
Other




"I think that if I had grown up and had been in show business and the movies twenty five, thirty years earlier, I think I would have made a lot more musical movies.”

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"I think early on I knew what I was going to do and it was based a lot on familiarity but it was also because I didn’t have a lot of skills. There was nothing I wanted to be. I didn’t want to be a doctor. I wanted to be in show business.”



Awards Won





Trivia/Fun Facts
flixster.actor.pane.162652837 - flixsterDuring the years 1954-1956, Chris alternated with his brother, Glenn Walken, in the role of Mike Bauer on the soap opera Guiding Light.

flixster.actor.pane.162652837 - flixsterChris is a member of Saturday Night Live’s prestigious “Five Timers Club”, having hosted the show six times. Along with Alec Baldwin, he has a standing invitation to host the show.

He is one of the few hosts of the program who has hosted enough times to have his own recurring skit.

When hosting Saturday Night Live, he likes to sing during his monologues (which has become a crowd pleasing favorite). So when he is co-hosting SNL specials, his introduction song I’m Walkin, Im ‘Talkin, is flixster.actor.pane.162652837 - flixsterplayed

Chris’s character, Nick, in The Deer Hunter had a very gaunt and hollow look which Chris achieved by eating mainly rice and bananas.

When preparing for the role of Max Shreck in Batman Returns he requested from director Tim Burton Tim’ cuff-links made of human molars. He had seen them in a film he’d seen earlier. He got them, and wore them in the flixster.actor.pane.162652837 - flixsterfilm as the villain.

In 2004, Christopher received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and that same year planted his hand and footprints in the cement outside the famed Grauman’s Chinese Theatre.

His character in Sleepy Hollow, The Headless Horseman, has no speaking lines, only a couple of HAAs to his horse and shhhh.

Chris is credited for more than 100 plays and doesn’t think that a 200-film career is out of the question.
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Chris has played 3 different characters with the name Max. In A View to a Kill in 1985, in Batman Returns in 1992 and in Kiss Toledo Goodbye in 1999.

He frequently works with director Tim Burton.

flixster.actor.pane.162652837 - flixsterIn his years in film he has rarely turned down a part under the belief that making movies is always a rewarding experience no matter if it is good or bad.

Manages to insert a little dance number into nearly all of his roles, no matter how small, scripted or not.

His parents gave him the name Ronald, for actor Ronald Colman. His nickname’s are both Ronnie and Chris.

Chris first appeared as a baby model on an calender.

When he was only 15 years old he had a job as a lion tamer in a circus.

When Chris was 21 he changed his name from Ronald to Christopher. A friend of his thought it suited him better but now he thinks it sounds “like a sneeze” so nowadays he prefers to be known informally as “Chris Walken”.

In 1980, Chris was assaulted in New York when he asked two men to turn down their music. His nose was broken in the incident.
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In 1998, he was mugged at the Venice airport, with his The Prophecy II script being stolen, along with his glasses, keys, drivers licence, and $100 in cash. All his items were found, except for the money of cause.

Chris has different-colored eyes one is blue and the other one is hazel. This condition is known as heterochromia.

He is a fan of horror films that feature zombies.

Chris has a phobia of going too fast in cars and has an intense dislike of handguns.

Christopher Walken Fan Mail




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flixster.actor.pane.162652837 - flixster
Christopher Walken
ID Public Relations
8409 Santa Monica Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA 90069
USA

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How to send your fan mail and autograph requests to Christopher Walken?
If you want to request an autograph, follow the guidelines below.
Send a properly stamped and self addressed envelope (minimum size 8.5" x 4") with your request letter and a photo. You can include a piece of cardboard to keep the photo from bending in shipping and also add "Do Not Bend" on the envelopes. Send your letter and wait. On average, there is going to be a 3+ month wait for a response.

Comments

  • aiforge
    It's funny that with each of his different roles, he changes just a few minor things about them and he's a completely different character. His voice is still the same, face same...I just don't get it??

    He should have more fanatics.
    posted 28 days ago
  • comfortdiaaku
    Hello,
    complement of the day,it is my pleasure to be your friend,after going through your profile here,i am miss comfort a kind responsible and humble sweet girl ,i saw your profile here and like it so please write to me at(comfortdiaaku@yahoo.com) for full introduction of my self,and to send you my pictures OK.please do not let distance race, or color be a barrier for relationship i will love to hear from you soon have a nice day.
    miss comfort.
    posted 263 days ago
  • bluevixen1
    Can someone add this to the facts about him. For some reason I can't. Even though it's barely noticeable now he was born with different coloured eyes. One is green and the other is blue.
    posted 414 days ago
  • Erinofbriarose
    Now here is a man I'd love to meet in a dark alley
    posted 450 days ago
  • j360chd
  • maruschk
    You're a fucking icon.
    posted 497 days ago
  • figureitdid
    Wow!

    ND Wolf


    I especially love to watch you dance! I'd love to have, "A little bit of this and a little bit of that".

    posted 526 days ago
  • rosiecozie225
    I think he is a very good actor but i luvvvvvv PAul RUdd
    posted 572 days ago
  • canucks1624
    i love this guy! he is sooo diverse with his roles...hes a mobster in one movie and a quirky musical guy...wow, brilliant!
    posted 588 days ago
  • punkroxskid
    i remember the first time i seen you in the jack the ripper game for the pc before seeing you in a movie.
    posted 589 days ago

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Christopher Walken Trivia

  • He has played a demonic headless horseman, a villain of Gotham City, and recently, an eccentric inventor of a universal remote control. Who is he?  Answer »
  • Who connects the following movies: True Romance, Pulp Fiction, Catch Me If You Can and Suicide Kings  Answer »
  • Who played the horseman in Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow?  Answer »
  • Which of the Following Films has Christopher Walken not stared in?  Answer »

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