Method acting
Northup was born in Amarillo, Texas. He lived in 17 places by age 17, but mostly in Sidney, Nebraska, where he graduated from high school in 1958. From 1958 to 1961 he served in the United States Navy, where he attained the rank of Second Class Radioman. From 1963 to 1968, he studied Method acting with Frank Corsaro in New York City.