About
| Birth Name: | Peter Edward Ostling |
| Birth Notes: | 22 July 1944, Hollywood, California, USA |
| Height: | 5' 9" |
| Family: | * 'Eileen' (? - present) |
| Biography: | Excellent, prolific and versatile character actor Peter Jason was born on July 22, 1944, in Hollywood, CA, and grew up in Balboa. He attended Newport Beach Elementary School, Horace Ensign Junior High and Newport Harbor High School. He originally planned on being a football player, but fell in love with acting after playing the lead in a high school production of "The Man Who Came to Dinner." Following his high school graduation he attended Orange Coast Junior College and did a season of summer stock at the Peterborough Playhouse in New Hampshire. He then studied as a drama major at the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh, PA. More stage work followed with the acting group the South Coast Repertory Company. He made his film debut in Howard Hawks' final film, Rio Lobo (1970) (which Jason says is one of his favorites). He worked with Orson Welles on the uncompleted The Other Side of the Wind (1972) as an actor, boom operator, prop man and even cook for the cast and crew. Jason has appeared in many films for director Walter Hill ; he's especially memorable as the racist redneck bartender in 48 Hrs. (1982). He has also appeared in many films for director John Carpenter : he's very engaging as the jolly Dr. Paul Leahy in Prince of Darkness (1987) and was terrific as underground guerrilla army leader Gilbert in They Live (1988). Other notable roles include a sinister government agent in Dreamscape (1984), rugged Maj. G.F. Devin in Clint Eastwood's Heartbreak Ridge (1986), jerky detective Fedorchuk in Alien Nation (1988), a newspaper reporter in Seabiscuit (2003) and the U.S. president in Alien Apocalypse (2005) (TV). Jason recently had a recurring role as dissolute gambler Con Stapleton in the superbly gritty cable Western TV series "Deadwood" (2004). He also had a regular part as Capt. Skip Gleason on "Mike Hammer, Private Eye" (1997). Among the many TV shows Peter has done guest spots on are "Desperate Housewives" (2004), "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch" (1996), "Nash Bridges" (1996), "Coach" (1989), "The Golden Girls" (1985), "Murder, She Wrote" (1984), "Married with Children" (1987), "Roseanne" (1988), "Dear John" (1988), "Quantum Leap" (1989), "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" (1993), "B.J. and the Bear" (1978), "The Incredible Hulk" (1978), "Gunsmoke" (1955) and "Hawaii Five-O" (1968). In addition to his substantial film and TV show credits, Jason has acted in over 150 plays and hundreds of TV commercials. An accomplished baritone vocalist, Jason has sung in such musical stage productions as "The Music Man" (this is one of his favorite plays), "Stop the World, I Want to Get Off," "The Roar of the Greasepaint" and "Threepenny Opera" (as Mack the Knife). He's been married to his wife Eileen for 33 years. In his spare time he makes his own furniture with found, recycled wood. |
Filmography
| 13th Child (2002) as Coroner |
| 48 Hrs. (1982) as Cowboy Bartender |
| Adaptation. (2002) as Defense Attorney |
| Alien Nation (1988) as Fedorchuk |
| Angel (1984) as The John |
| Arachnophobia (1990) as Henry Beechwood |
| Congo (1995) as Mr. Janus |
| Employee of the Month (2004) as Bill Gartin |
| Escape from L.A. (1996) as Duty Sergeant |
| Ghosts of Mars (2001) as McSimms |
| Hair High (2004) as Coach |
| Heartbreak Ridge (1986) as Major G.F. Devin |
| How to Make Love to a Woman (2010) as Mr. Conners |
| Kicking & Screaming (2005) as Clark |
| Milk (2008) as Alan Baird |
| Nice Dreams (1981) as Det. Drooler |
| Prince of Darkness (1987) as Dr. Paul Leahy |
| Seabiscuit (2003) as Reporter Max |
| Sledge: The Untold Story (2005) |
| Surviving Christmas (2004) as Suit |
| The Hunt for Red October (1990) as USS Reuben James commander |
| The Karate Kid (1984) as Soccer Coach |
| The Long Riders (1980) as Pinkerton |
| The Man Who Came Back (2008) as The Warden |
| They Live (1988) as Gilbert |
| Undisputed (2002) as Oakland TV Announcer |
| Village of the Damned (1995) as Ben Blum |
| A Woman in the West (2008) as Frank Blake |
| Adventures in Plymptoons! (2011) as Himself |
| Agua Dulce (2001) as Walter Tracy |
| Beaverton (2009) as Bob |
| Beyond the Universe (1981) |
| Brewster's Millions (1985) as Chuck Fleming |
| Butterfly (1982) as Allen |
| Cahoots (2001) as Eddie |
| Dante's Peak (1997) as Norman Gates |
| Detonator (2003) as U.S. Attorney Fred Goldenberg |
| Dreamscape (1984) as Babcock |
| Falling Up (2009) as John O'Shea |
| Finding Kelly (2000) as Monte Harrington |
| Gears of War (2012) as Dizzy |
| Hopelessly in June (2010) as Frankie Flowers |
| Hyper Sapien: People from Another Star (1986) as Mr. McAlpin |
| Impulse (1984) as Man in Truck |
| In the Mouth of Madness (1995) as Mr. Paul |
| Jack in the Box (1989) as Reese |
| Johnny Handsome (1989) as Mr. Bonet |
| La ilegal (1979) |
| Little Murder (2010) as Police Chief |
| Locked In (2010) as Super Ray |
| Marked for Death (1990) as Pete Stone |
| Mommie Dearest (1981) as Pepsi Executive #4 |
| Mortal Kombat (1995) as Master Boyd |
| Moving McAllister (2007) as Mr. Robinson |
| Oxford Blues (1984) as Mr. De Angelo |
| Party Camp (1987) as Sarge |
| Rage (1995) as Griggs |
| Red Heat (1988) as TV Announcer |
| Richard III (2008) as Ringside Announcer |
| Rio Lobo (1970) as Lt. Forsythe (gold train detail officer) |
| Robosapien: Rebooted (2010) as Adm. Victor |
| Run for the Money (2002) as The Counter Boss |
| Some Kind of Hero (1982) as Honcho #2 |
| Son of Morning (2010) as Ned Jensen |
| Streets of Fire (1984) as Ardmore Cop Harry |
| Sunset (1988) as Frank Coe |
| Texas Lightning (1981) as Frank Whitman |
| The Adventures of Black Feather (1995) as Judge Battle |
| The Baltimore Bullet (1980) as Bert |
| The Demolitionist (1995) as Higgins |
| The Driver (1978) as Commuter |
| The Enigma with a Stigma (2006) as Bill Herman |
| The Glimmer Man (1996) as Millie's Father |
| The Other Side of the Wind (1972) as Marvin P. Fassterbender |
| The Rose Technique (2002) as Detective Atwood |
| The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (2006) as Lt. Hamilton |
| Trick or Treats (1982) as Malcolm |
| Valley of the Sun (2010) as Myron McGill |
| Wild Bill (1995) as Dave McCandless |
Trivia
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* Is frequently cast by director John Carpenter . Some of his more notable appearances in Carpenter films are Prince of Darkness (1987), They Live (1988), In the Mouth of Madness (1995), Village of the Damned (1995), Escape from L.A. (1996) and Ghosts of Mars (2001). * He has appeared in 12 Walter Hill films. |
Quotes
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* If you want to be an auto mechanic what you do is work on as many cars as you can until you know what makes them tick. If you want to be an actor you get in as many plays as you can until you find out what makes you tick. There is a technique that must be learned. Otherwise you will never be able to repeat it. You have to learn how to listen. Otherwise you will never know how to hear. And you have to have more fun than anyone else because nobody wants to watch you work. * [On his experience filming 'Party Camp'] I spent a week in bed with a young beautiful naked woman (April Wayne). Best experience of my life. I bragged to all my buddies that I shot all these wild sex scenes where she was on top of me, calling me a 'stud.' Then the bastards cut all the scenes out. I'd love to see those scenes again, though. |
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