About
Fiery, forceful and intimidating character actor James Tolkan carved out a nice little niche for himself in both movies and television alike as a formidable portrayer of fierce and flinty hard-boiled tough guy types. James Stewart Tolkan was born on June 20, 1931 in Calumet, Michigan. His father, Ralph M. Tolkan, was a cattle dealer. James attended the University of Iowa, Coe College and Eastern Arizona College. After serving a year-long stint in the United States Navy, Tolkan went to New York and studied acting with both Lee Strasberg and Stella Adler at the Actors Studio. Short and bald, with beady, intense eyes, a wiry, compact, muscular build, a gruff, jarring, high-decibel voice, and an aggressive, confrontational, blunt-as-a-battle-ax, rough-around-the-edges demeanor, Tolkan has been often cast as rugged, cynical no-nonsense cops, mean, domineering authority figures, and various...
Known for
Remington SteeleSeries • 1982
Miami ViceSeries • 1984
Hill Street BluesSeries • 1981
American PlayhouseSeries • 1982
The Wonder YearsSeries • 1988
The EqualizerSeries • 1985
Back to the FutureMovie • 1985
The PretenderSeries • 1996
Naked CitySeries • 1958
Early EditionSeries • 1996
The Fresh Prince of Bel-AirSeries • 1990
LeverageSeries • 2008
Tales from the CryptSeries • 1989
Top GunMovie • 1986
Back to the Future Part IIMovie • 1989
A Nero Wolfe MysterySeries • 2001
Back to the Future Part IIIMovie • 1990
Nowhere ManSeries • 1995
The Wonderful World of DisneySeries • 1954
Bone TomahawkMovie • 2015
WarGamesMovie • 1983
Masters of the UniverseMovie • 1987
SerpicoMovie • 1973
CobraSeries • 1993