Jeff Fahey

Biography: Jeff Fahey was born on November 29, 1952, in Olean, New York. He was the 6th child of a family of thirteen children (eight boys and five girls). Despite the large difference in ages, the family was always a close one.
When Jeff was seventeen years old, after graduating from high school, he began traveling extensively. His travels took him to Alaska, Europe, Israel, India, the Himalayas and Afghanistan. His great range and diversity as an actor may well be a direct result of his traveling days, as he lived and learned of the life and cultures of the vast diversity of people wherever he traveled, working his way around by taking odd jobs at different locations.
When Jeff was in his early twenties he returned to the States where he successfully experimented with a wide variety of employment opportunities which included working as a vacuum cleaner salesman, selling encyclopedias, as a trainer in a health club, and teaching ballroom dancing. At the age of twenty five, while he worked as a ballroom dancing teacher he was invited to attend the ballet. He applied and won a full scholarship to dance with the Joffrey Ballet in New York City. It was while he was dancing that he learned the importance of utilizing his entire body to tell a story, and not to rely only on a tone of voice or change in facial features to express his thoughts and emotions. The Joffrey Ballet led to stage roles, first in the chorus, then in more and increasingly longer speaking roles. An accident in London necessitated Jeff to return home prematurely. Jeff remained, as ever, undaunted. A few weeks later, in 1982, he landed his first major television role, as Gary Corelli in the popular daytime soap opera One Life To Live.
From 1982 to 1985, Jeff lived and enjoyed the life of a daytime soap idol. In 1985, Jeff's big break came. He was offered his first major big-screen role, as Deputy Tyree in Silverado. From his first break in Silverado in 1984, and continuing to the present day, he has never experienced a lull in his acting career. Calling himself a "jobber actor", Jeff makes around four or five films per year, selecting his parts according to the needs he wishes to fulfill inside himself. Once it might be a place in the world he has never seen (Dazzle), another time it might be an actor he would like to work with (Robert Mitchum), or he might want the experience of working with a female director to understand a role from a different point of view (Sandra Locke). In 1994, Jeff had the opportunity to star in a weekly television series, The Marshal, produced by his close friend, and acting colleague, Don Johnson. Jeff has said that more than any other vehicle he had acted in to date, his own personality, values, and feelings become encompassed in the character that was to evolve, and emerge, as Winston MacBride. Unique in its concept, the show starred only Jeff, as he liked to say in interviews at the time, one man, one hour. It was a show which showcased the talent of a very versatile actor well. Once the series ended (after two seasons) Jeff continued to make around four or five films a year, and became a big celebrity in European markets. Never one to wait for life to catch up to his aspirations and goals, Jeff now added producing to his resume, bringing the experience of years to his movie rolls and projects. Continuing to seek out roles that would allow him to stretch the bounds of his own individuality, he has always remained faithful to the inner voices that urges him to explore the multiplicity of the human condition in all of its varied manifestations. His movies, therefore, represent an extremely eclectic mixture of type and content, as Jeff has repeatedly accepted the challenge of portraying multiple personas that are living and reacting to a variety of life and experiences.… Collapse