Charles Napier | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:CharlesNapierApr08.jpg) Napier in April 2008 | |
| Born | Charles Lewis Napier April 12, 1936 Mt. Union, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Died | October 5, 2011 (aged 75) Bakersfield, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Bakersfield National Cemetery |
| Alma mater | Western Kentucky University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1968–2011 |
| Spouse |
Dee Napier (m. 1980) |
| Children | 3 |
Charles Lewis Napier (April 12, 1936 – October 5, 2011) was an American actor who was known for playing supporting and occasional leading roles in television and films. He was frequently cast as police officers, soldiers, or authority figures, many of them villainous or corrupt. After leaving his Kentucky hometown to serve in the Army, he graduated from college and worked as a sports coach and art teacher before settling on acting as a career. His first prominent role in a film was in Cherry, Harry & Raquel! (1969), which was the first of four films he would do with director Russ Meyer. Napier established himself in character roles and worked steadily for the next 35 years. He made numerous collaborations with director Jonathan Demme, including roles in Something Wild (1986), Married to the Mob (1988), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), Philadelphia (1993), Beloved (1998), and The Manchurian Candidate (2004).
Other notable roles include the short-tempered country singer Tucker McElroy in The Blues Brothers (1980), gruff army Commander Gilmour in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997), General Hawk in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999), and bureaucratic CIA officer Marshall Murdock in Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985). He also had numerous voiceover roles in television, most notably the character of Duke Phillips on the prime time animated sitcom The Critic and Agent Zed in Men in Black: The Series.