Chris Sarandon

Christopher Sarandon, Jr. was born on July 24, 1942, in Beckley, West Virginia, to Greek-American restaurateurs. As a teenager, he participated in local musical theater and played drums and sang with a band called The Teen Tones, touring and backing up artists such as Bobby Darin and Gene Vincent. He pursued higher education at West Virginia University, where he majored in speech and performed in musical productions, before earning a master’s degree in theater from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. His professional acting career began in 1965 with his debut in “The Rose Tattoo,” followed by a season with the Long Wharf Theatre Company. In 1968, Sarandon moved to New York and secured the role of Dr. Tom Halverson on the daytime soap opera “Guiding Light,” a part he played for two years. Throughout the 1970s, he built a strong theatrical foundation, appearing on Broadway in “The Rothschilds” and replacing Raul Julia in “Two Gentlemen from Verona.” He also performed in various Shakespeare and Shaw festivals in the U.S. and Canada.

Sarandon made his film debut in 1975 with a significant role in “Dog Day Afternoon,” where he portrayed Al Pacino’s character’s partner, earning him the New York Film Critics award and nominations for an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor. He continued to take on varied film roles, including in the thriller “Lipstick” (1976) and “The Sentinel” (1977). To diversify his roles and avoid typecasting, Chris embraced a wider range of characters. He played the title role in the critically acclaimed TV-movie “The Day Christ Died” (1980) and received praise for his dual portrayal of Sydney Carton and Charles Darnay in “A Tale of Two Cities” (1980). His work in the 1980s included memorable performances such as the vampire Jerry Dandridge in “Fright Night” (1985), the cruel Prince Humperdinck in Rob Reiner’s “The Princess Bride” (1987), and Detective Mike Norris in “Child’s Play” (1988). A significant voice acting role came in 1993 as Jack Skellington in “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” a character he reprised in sequels and video games.

His career continued steadily across stage, film, and television, albeit at a different pace. In 1991, he co-starred on Broadway in “Nick and Nora” and later married his co-star, Joanna Gleason, in 1994. They appeared in several films together. Into the new millennium, Sarandon focused more on Broadway and Off-Broadway theater, with roles in productions like “The Light in the Piazza,” “Cyrano de Bergerac,” and “Preludes,” where he played multiple historical figures. His film appearances in the 2000s and 2010s included “Perfume” (2001), “Loggerheads” (2005), and a cameo in the “Fright Night” remake (2011). He also made guest appearances on popular TV shows like “ER,” “Charmed,” “Law and Order,” “The Good Wife,” and “Orange Is the New Black,” and voiced Count Dracula in “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.”