Edward Bunker facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Edward Bunker
Edward Bunker mugshot taken at San Quentin State Prison in 1952
Born	Edward Heward Bunker (1933-12-31)December 31, 1933 Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Died	July 19, 2005(2005-07-19) (aged 71) Burbank, California, U.S.
Resting place	Hollywood Forever, Hollywood, California
Occupation	Author screenwriter actor
Language	English
Genre	Transgressive fiction

Edward Heward Bunker (December 31, 1933 – July 19, 2005) was an American author of crime fiction, a screenwriter, convicted felon and an actor. He wrote numerous books, some of which have been adapted into films. He wrote the scripts for—and acted in—Straight Time (1978) (adapted from his debut novel No Beast So Fierce), Runaway Train (1985) and Animal Factory (2000) (adapted from his sophomore novel of the same name). He also played a minor role in Reservoir Dogs (1992).

He began running away from home when he was five years old, and developed a pattern of criminal behavior, earning his first conviction when he was fourteen, leading to a cycle of incarceration, parole, re-offending and further jail time. Bunker was released from prison for the last time in 1975, after which he focused on his career as a writer and actor. The character Nate, a career criminal who fences stolen goods in the 1995 heist movie Heat, played by Jon Voight, was based on Bunker, who was consultant to director Michael Mann.

Early life

1930s–1940s

Bunker was born on December 31, 1933 into a troubled family in Los Angeles. His mother, Sarah (née Johnston), was a chorus girl from Vancouver, and his father, Edward N. Bunker, a stage hand.

My parents divorced when I was four and I was put in boarding homes, which I didn't like. I went overnight from being an only child—kind of pampered and spoilt—to a "Lord of the Flies" situation with a lot of boys. I didn't like it and I ran away and rebelled and that set a pattern and the pattern went on.

Consistently rebellious and defiant, young Bunker was subjected to a harsh regime of discipline. He attended a military school for a few months, where he began stealing and eventually ran away again, ending up in a hobo camp. While Bunker eventually was apprehended by the authorities, this established a pattern he followed throughout his formative years.

Bunker spent time in the juvenile detention facility Preston Castle in Ione, California, where he became acquainted with hardened young criminals. Although young and small, he was intelligent (with an IQ of 152), streetwise and extremely literate. A long string of escapes, problems with the law and different institutions—including a mental hospital—followed.

At the age of fourteen, following his first criminal conviction, Bunker was paroled to the care of his aunt. However, two years later he was caught on a parole violation, and was this time sent to adult prison.

Career

No Beast So Fierce and early success

In prison, Bunker began to write. While still incarcerated, he finally had his first novel No Beast So Fierce published in 1973, to which Dustin Hoffman purchased the film rights. Novelist James Ellroy said it was "quite simply one of the great crime novels of the past 30 years: perhaps the best novel of the LA underworld ever written". Bunker was paroled in 1975, having spent 18 years of his life in various institutions. While he was still tempted by crime, he now found himself earning a living from writing and acting. He felt that his criminal career had been forced by circumstances; now that those circumstances had changed, he could stop being a criminal.

Animal Factory and film work

He published his second novel, Animal Factory to favorable reviews in 1977. The following year saw the release of Straight Time, a film-adaptation of No Beast So Fierce. While it was not a commercial success, it earned positive reviews and Bunker got his first screenwriting and acting credits. Like most of the roles Bunker played, it was a small part, and he went on to appear in numerous movies, such as The Running Man, Tango & Cash and Reservoir Dogs, as well as the film version of Animal Factory, in 2000, for which he also wrote the screenplay. In 1985, he had written the screenplay for Runaway Train, in which he had a small part, as did Danny Trejo thanks to Bunker's help; the two had known each other when they were incarcerated together years before. The film helped launch Trejo's career.

In Reservoir Dogs, he played Mr. Blue, one of two criminals killed during a heist. The film's director, Quentin Tarantino, had studied Straight Time while attending Robert Redford's Sundance Institute. Bunker was the inspiration for Nate, Jon Voight's character in Michael Mann's 1995 crime film Heat; Bunker also worked as an adviser on the film. In The Long Riders, he had a brief role as Bill Chadwell.

Prior to his death Bunker assisted in production of short films alongside Canadian director Sudz Sutherland such as "The Confessions of a Taxicab Man", "The Spooky House on Lundy's Lane" and "Angie's Bang". He also wrote and directed a Molson Canadian Cold Shot commercial.

Personal life and death

In 1977, Bunker married a young real estate agent, Jennifer Steele. In 1993, a son, Brendan, was born. The marriage ended in divorce.

In the early 1990s Bunker opened a successful taxi company in Kingston, Ontario with his longtime friend Dave Whickham. He would later sell his shares of the company to his cousin Matt “Smitty” Smith. The company now has over 20 taxis in the greater Kingston area.

He is the uncle of Olympic silver medalist Bradley Smith.

A diabetic, Bunker died on July 19, 2005, at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California, following surgery to improve the circulation in his legs. He was 71. The news of Bunker's death was broken by his lifelong friend, screenwriter Robert Dellinger. The two had met in 1973 at the federal prison on Terminal Island, where Dellinger taught a creative writing class.

Bunker's autobiography, Mr. Blue: Memoirs of a Renegade, was published in 1999.

Filmography

• 1978 Straight Time as Mickey (also co-screenwriter, based on his novel No Beast So Fierce)
• 1980 The Long Riders as Bill Chadwell
• 1985 Runaway Train as Jonah (also co-screenwriter)
• 1986 Slow Burn as George
• 1987 Shy People as Chuck
• 1987 The Running Man as Lenny
• 1988 Miracle Mile as The Nightwatchman
• 1988 Fear as Lenny
• 1989 Relentless as Cardoza
• 1989 Best of the Best as Stan
• 1989 Tango & Cash as Captain Holmes
• 1992 Reservoir Dogs as "Mr. Blue"
• 1993 Best of the Best 2 as Spotlight Operator
• 1993 Distant Cousins as Mr. Benson
• 1993 Love, Cheat & Steal as Old Con
• 1994 Somebody to Love as Jimmy
• 1996 Caméléone as Sid Dembo
• 1998 Shadrach as Joe Thorton
• 2000 Animal Factory as Buzzard (also co-screenwriter, based on his novel)
• 2001 Family Secrets as Douglas Marley
• 2002 13 Moons as Hoodlum #1
• 2005 The Longest Yard as "Skitchy" Rivers
• 2005 Nice Guys (AKA: High Hopes) as Joe "Big Joe"
• 2010 Venus & Vegas Micky, The Calc (filmed in 2004; released posthumously) (final film role)

Books

• No Beast So Fierce (1973)
• The Animal Factory (1977)
• Little Boy Blue (1981)
• Dog Eat Dog (1995)
• Mr. Blue: Memoirs of a Renegade (1999)—issued in the U.S. as Education of a Felon (2000)
• Stark (2006)
• Death Row Breakout and Other Stories (2010)—published posthumously

See also

In Spanish: Edward Bunker para niños