Bruce Davison facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bruce Davison
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Davison in 2015
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Bruce Allen Davison
June 28, 1946 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
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| Alma mater | Pennsylvania State University, University Park (BA) New York University (MFA) |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1968–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Jess Walton
(m. 1972; annulled 1973)Lisa Pelikan
(m. 1986; div. 2006)Michele Correy
(m. 2006) |
| Children | 2 |
Bruce Allen Davison (born June 28, 1946) is an American actor. He has been in over 270 movies, TV shows, and plays since 1968.
He became well-known for his role as Willard Stiles in the 1971 movie Willard. Bruce Davison won a Golden Globe Award and an Independent Spirit Award for his acting in the movie Longtime Companion (1989). He was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
You might also know him from his roles as George Henderson in the TV show Harry and the Hendersons (1991–93). He played Captain Wyler in the crime show Hunter (1985–89). He was also Senator Robert Kelly in the superhero movies X-Men (2000) and X2 (2003). Bruce Davison has been nominated for both a Daytime Emmy and a Primetime Emmy Award.
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Early Life and Education
Bruce Davison was born in 1946 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His parents separated when he was three years old. His mother raised him, and he spent weekends with his father.
He finished high school in 1964. He started college at Penn State to study art. He found acting by chance when he went with a friend to an audition. He later studied acting at New York University and graduated in 1969.
Acting Career Highlights
Bruce Davison started acting on Broadway in 1968 in a play called Tiger at the Gates. He also played the main character, John Merrick, in The Elephant Man. He starred in The Glass Menagerie with famous actress Jessica Tandy.
His first movie role was in Last Summer in 1969. In 1970, he acted in The Strawberry Statement, a movie about student protests. A year later, he played the main role in the 1971 movie Willard. This film was based on a book about a boy and his rats.
Davison also had a small, uncredited part in Steven Spielberg's movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977). He said he was friends with Spielberg and got to be an extra.
Television Roles
Bruce Davison has worked a lot in television. In 1973, he was in a TV movie called The Affair. In 1978, he played Dean Torrence in Deadman's Curve, a movie about the music group Jan & Dean. That same year, he was the main character in the TV movie Summer of My German Soldier.
In 1981, he had the main role in The Wave. This TV movie was based on a true story about a history teacher. The teacher did an experiment with his students to show them how people can be influenced by certain ideas.
He also played the father in the TV show Harry and the Hendersons. This show was about a family who adopted a Bigfoot creature.
Important Film Roles
In 1990, Bruce Davison acted in the movie Longtime Companion. He played a character whose friend was dealing with a serious illness. His performance earned him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor nomination and a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture. He used his Golden Globe speech to talk about helping people with illnesses.
He also appeared in other movies that touched on similar themes. In 1995's The Cure, he played a doctor. In 1996, he was in It's My Party. Bruce Davison is a supporter of groups that help people with illnesses.
Davison played Senator Robert Kelly in the X-Men movies. In the first X-Men film, he was the real senator. In X2, he played a character who could change shape and pretended to be the senator. He also played Reverend Samuel Parris in the 1996 movie The Crucible.
He has been a guest star on many popular TV shows. These include Murder, She Wrote, Seinfeld, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Enterprise, Battlestar Galactica, Lost, CSI: Miami, and Hawaii Five-0.
In 2001, Bruce Davison directed a TV movie called Off Season. He was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for directing it. In 2007, he was in the movie Breach. He also played Dr. Charles Graiman in the TV show Knight Rider.
More recently, he appeared in the TV show Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. He also played Nick Anderson, a secret Santa Claus, in the TV movie Christmas Angel in 2009. In 2010, he was in the movie Titanic II. He also appeared in The Lords of Salem (2012) and played William H. Seward in Saving Lincoln (2013).
In 2014, he voiced the character of Zuko in the animated series The Legend of Korra. He has continued to act in many films and TV shows, including Insidious: The Last Key (2018) and Ozark (2022).
Personal Life
Bruce Davison has been married three times and has two children. He married actress Jess Walton in 1972, but their marriage ended in 1973. He has a son named Ethan, born in 1996, from his marriage to actress Lisa Pelikan. They were married from 1986 to 2006. Bruce Davison married Michele Correy in 2006. They have a daughter named Sophia, born in 2006. They live in Woodland Hills, California.
Images for kids
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Davison in 2015
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Davison at an Academy Awards after party in 2007
See also
In Spanish: Bruce Davison para niños
