Tom Nolan

**Tom Nolan** is an actor, musician, and educator who starred as alien leader ABCD (Absid) in *Voyage of the Rock Aliens*.

## Bio

Raised in Indianapolis, he was the second oldest of eight children. He developed an appreciation for live performance from his grandmother, who regularly brought him to the theatre, and by the age of 14, he was playing various instruments from guitars to drums.

Nolan attended Harvard with the intention of becoming a lawyer like his father, but he was bitten by the acting bug. He graduated with a B.A. in English and then attended Cornell, where he earned a master's degree in acting. His next stop was New York, where he appeared in Off-Off Broadway productions before he booked a small role in the 1979 Richard Gere film "*Yanks*." Soon he was in Hollywood portraying Judge Reinhold's boss in the 1982 classic "*Fast Times at Ridgemont High*." The same year as "*Voyage of the Rock Aliens*," he had a supporting role as one of the military goons in the cult classic "*Up the Creek*," and then he landed the lead as a horny ghost in 1985's sex comedy "*School Spirit*."

Over the next few years, the size and frequency of his roles dwindled, but he had two notable roles in 1990. First, he reunited with Gere in a bit part as one of Jason Alexander's coworkers in the monster hit "*Pretty Woman*." Then he landed a recurring role on the popular syndicated sitcom "*Out of This World,*" portraying the rock star uncle of a girl whose father was from outer space. He was credited for most of the season but appeared only sporadically. He continued to pop up in films and television until the turn of the century, but he had two other careers eating away at his time...

With two small children to feed and acting roles scarce, Nolan took a job in 1985 as a teacher at Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences, a private school in Santa Monica, California, where he's continued to work for nearly 40 years, rising through the ranks to Dean of Students, and eventually Dean of Alumni.

## Filmography

### Movies

* Yanks (1979)
* Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
* Voyage of the Rock Aliens (1984)
* Up the Creek (1984)
* School Spirit (1985)
* The Falcon and the Snowman (1985)
* Dead Heat (1988)
* Tequila Sunrise (1988)
* Lisa (1989)
* Last of the Finest (1990)
* Pretty Woman (1990)
* Taking Care of Business (1990)
* Pacific Heights (1990)
* The Thing Called Love (1993)
* White Man's Burden (1995)

#### TV

* Beggarman, Thief (1979) - TV Movie
* For Love and Honor (1983) - 1 episode
* Jessie (1984) - 9 episodes
* Simon & Simon (1986) - 1 episode
* Santa Barbara (1987) - 1 episode
* Sweet Bird of Youth (1989) - TV Movie
* Out of This World (1990-1991) - 18 episodes (credited)
* Bed of Lies (1992) - TV Movie
* Harry and the Hendersons (1993) - 2 episodes
* Indictment: The McMartin Trial (1993) - TV Movie
* Miracle in Lane 2 (2000) - TV Movie

## Discography

* I Don't Wanna Die Workin'! (1996)
* Everyday Hero (1999)
* Life is Good (2001)
* TNB (2003)
* Feel the Future Start (2006)
* Soul (2006)
* Live at Rusty's (2008)
* Tip of the Hat (2016)
* Workin' It! (2022)

## External Links

* IMDb
* Official TNB Site
* YouTube - Tom Nolan
* YouTube - TNB Member David Hoyt