Chris Sarandon

American actorTemplate:SHORTDESC:American actor[[Category:**Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Pagetype/config' not found.**s with short description]]

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**Christopher Sarandon Jr.** (Template:IPAc-en; born July 24, 1942) is an American actor. He is known best for playing Prince Humperdinck in the movie *The Princess Bride*, the vampire Jerry Dandrige in *Fright Night*, Detective Mike Norris in *Child's Play* (1988), and for providing the speaking voice of Jack Skellington in *The Nightmare Before Christmas*. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as Leon Shermer in *Dog Day Afternoon*.

## Early life

Sarandon was born and raised in Beckley, West Virginia, the son of restaurateurs Christopher "Chris" Sarandon and Cliffie (née Cardullias). His father, whose surname was originally "Sarondonethes", was born in Istanbul, Turkey, of Greek ancestry; his mother is also of Greek descent.

Sarandon graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in Beckley. He earned a degree in speech at West Virginia University. He earned his master's degree in theater from The Catholic University of America (CUA) in Washington, D.C..

## Career

After graduation, he toured with numerous improvisational companies and became much involved with regional theatre, making his professional debut in the play *The Rose Tattoo* during 1965. In 1968, Sarandon moved to New York City, where he obtained his first television role as Dr. Tom Halverson for the series *The Guiding Light* (1973–1974). He appeared in the primetime television movies *The Satan Murders* (1974) and *Thursday's Game* before obtaining the role of Al Pacino's transgender wife in *Dog Day Afternoon* (1975), a performance which earned him nominations for Best New Male Star of the Year at the Golden Globes and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

 File:ChrisSarandon Skellington.jpg
Sarandon appeared in the Broadway play *The Rothschilds* and *The Two Gentlemen of Verona*, as well making regular appearances at numerous Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw festivals in the United States and Canada. He also had a series of television roles, some of which (such as *A Tale of Two Cities* in 1980) corresponded to his affinity for the classics. He also had roles in the thriller movie *Lipstick* (1976) and as a demon in the movie *The Sentinel* (1977).

To avoid being typecast in villainous roles, Sarandon accepted various roles of other types during the years to come, portraying the title role of Christ in the made-for-television movie *The Day Christ Died* (1980). He received accolades for his portrayal of Sydney Carton in a TV-movie version of *A Tale of Two Cities* (1980), co-starred with Dennis Hopper in the 1983 movie *The Osterman Weekend*, which was based on the Robert Ludlum novel of the same name, and co-starred with Goldie Hawn in the movie *Protocol* (1984). These were followed by another mainstream success as the vampire-next-door in the horror movie *Fright Night* (1985). He starred in the 1986 TV movie *Liberty*, which addressed the making of New York City's statue of Liberty.

 File:Chris Sarandon, Fan Expo Canada 2012 (crop).jpg
He is best known in the film industry for his role as Prince Humperdinck in Rob Reiner's 1987 movie *The Princess Bride*, though he also has had supporting parts in other successful movies such as the original *Child's Play* (1988). In 1992, he played Joseph Curwen/Charles Dexter Ward in *The Resurrected*. He also provided the voice of Jack Skellington, the main character of Tim Burton's animated Disney movie *The Nightmare Before Christmas* (1993), and has since reprised the role in other productions, including the Disney/Square video games *Kingdom Hearts* and *Kingdom Hearts II* and the Capcom sequel to the original movie, *Oogie's Revenge*. Sarandon also reprised his role as Jack Skellington for several Disneyland Halloween events and attractions including; *Halloween Screams*, the *Frightfully Fun Parade,* and the Haunted Mansion Holiday, a three-month overlay of the Haunted Mansion, where Jack and his friends take control of a mansion in an attempt to introduce Christmas, much as his character did in the movie.

Sarandon appeared in TV again with a recurring role as Dr. Burke on NBC's long-running medical drama *ER*.

In 1991 he performed on Broadway in the short-lived musical *Nick & Nora* (based on the movie *The Thin Man*) with Joanna Gleason, the daughter of Monty Hall. Sarandon married Gleason in 1994. They have appeared together in a number of movies, including *Edie & Pen* (1996), *American Perfekt* (1997), and *Let the Devil Wear Black* (1999). During the 2000s he made guest appearances in several TV series, notably as the Necromancer demon, Armand, in *Charmed*, and as superior court judge Barry Krumble for six episodes of *Judging Amy*.

In 2006 he played Signor Naccarelli in the six-time Tony award-winning Broadway musical play *The Light in the Piazza* at Lincoln Center. Most recently he appeared in *Cyrano de Bergerac* as Antoine de Guiche, with Kevin Kline, Jennifer Garner, and Daniel Sunjata. He is on the Advisory Board for the Greenbrier Valley Theatre in Lewisburg, West Virginia. In 2016 he performed in the Off-Broadway production of the Dave Malloy musical *Preludes* as Anton Chekhov, Tchaikovsky, Alexander Glazunov, Leo Tolstoy, Tsar Nicholas II, and The Master.

## Personal life

Sarandon has been married three times: he married actress Susan Sarandon in 1967, the couple first met while attending The Catholic University of America together in Washington, D.C.. The marriage lasted for twelve years; the pair divorced in 1979. After divorcing from Susan, he married his second wife, fashion model Lisa Ann Cooper, in 1980. The couple had two daughters and one son: Stephanie (born 1982), Alexis (born 1984) and Michael (born 1988). The marriage ended in divorce in 1989 after nine years of marriage. In 1994, he married his third wife, actress and singer Joanna Gleason. The couple met while performing in Broadway's short-lived 1991 musical *Nick & Nora*; they returned to the stage together in 1998's *Thorn and Bloom*. They also collaborated in several films together, such as *Road Ends*, *Edie & Pen*, *Let the Devil Wear Black*, and *American Perfekt*.

## References

1. ↑ "WHEN IT COMES TO FILMS, SARANDON IS JUST PLAIN PICKY" (August 4, 1985). Retrieved on December 9, 2007.
2. ↑ "Chris Sarandon Biography (1942-)". http://www.filmreference.com/film/35/Chris-Sarandon.html. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
3. ↑ "Woodrow Wilson High School, Beckley WV, Alumni Page". Jeff560.tripod.com. Archived from the original on May 12, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120512014949/http://jeff560.tripod.com/wwhsalumni/sarandon.html. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
4. ↑ Sager, Jessica (February 16, 2017). "Susan Sarandon had a 'very loving affair' with a gay man", *Page Six*.
5. ↑ King, Susan (25 September 2015). "How Chris Sarandon looks at 'Dog Day Afternoon' 40 years later".
6. ↑ Harding, Laura (16 February 2017). "Susan Sarandon says her sexuality is 'up for grabs'".
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Chris Sarandon Biography (1942-)". http://www.filmreference.com/film/35/Chris-Sarandon.html.
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Simonson, Robert (July 9, 1988). "Joanna Gleason and Chris Sarandon Pluck L.A. Thorn & Bloom July 9", Brightspot.
9. ↑ "Liberty". http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091407/. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
10. ↑ "Chris Sarandon". https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001697/. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
11. ↑ Template:Cite video game

## External links

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* Chris Sarandon – *Downstage Center* interview at American Theatre Wing.org

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