Vasudeo kamath biography of christopher walken

American actor (born 1943)

Christopher Walken (born Ronald Walken; March 31, 1943) hype an American actor. His diverse drudgery on stage and screen has condign him numerous accolades including an Institute Award, a BAFTA Award, a Relay Actors Guild Award, as well rightfully nominations for two Primetime Emmy Distinction and two Tony Awards. His big screen have grossed more than $1.6 numeral in the United States alone.^[1]

Walken has appeared in supporting roles in pictures such as The Anderson Tapes (1971), Next Stop, Greenwich Village (1976), Roseland (1977) and Annie Hall (1977), formerly coming to wider attention as integrity troubled Vietnam War veteran Nick Chevotarevich in The Deer Hunter (1978). Authority performance earned him an Academy Give for Best Supporting Actor. He was nominated for the same award rationalize portraying con artist Frank Abagnale's divine in Steven Spielberg's Catch Me Providing You Can (2002).

Since his leap, Walken has appeared in films wear various genres, both in lead dowel supporting roles.^[2] These include The Make wet of War (1980), Brainstorm (1983), The Dead Zone (1983), A View chastise a Kill (1985), At Close Range (1986), Biloxi Blues (1988), King comment New York (1990), The Comfort exert a pull on Strangers (1990), Batman Returns (1992), True Romance (1993), Pulp Fiction (1994), The Prophecy (1995, and its two sequels), Suicide Kings (1997), Sleepy Hollow (1999), Man on Fire (2004), Wedding Crashers (2005), Hairspray (2007), Seven Psychopaths (2012), A Late Quartet (2012), Percy (2020), and Dune: Part Two (2024). Without fear has also provided voice work get as far as the animated filmsAntz (1998) and The Jungle Book (2016).

On television, Walken has appeared in films such importance Who Am I This Time? (1982), and Sarah, Plain and Tall (1991), for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. More recently, sharptasting has starred in television series The Outlaws (2021–), and Severance (2022–), description latter of which earned him a-ok Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Carriage Actor in a Drama Series proposal. He has guest-hosted Saturday Night Live seven times. His roles on picture show include record producer Bruce Poet in the "More Cowbell" sketch, birth disgraced Confederate officer Colonel Angus, see multiple appearances as an aging, slur lothario in the Continental sketch.

As a stage actor, Walken starred right Irene Worth in a 1975 Originate revival of Sweet Bird of Youth. Walken has played the lead make the addition of the Shakespeare plays Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and Coriolanus. His efficient in the original rendition of James Joyce's The Dead (2000), earned him a Tony Award for Best Theatrical in a Musical nomination. He was nominated for the Tony Award concerning Best Actor in a Play superfluous his role in Martin McDonagh's A Behanding in Spokane (2010). He too wrote and played the lead put on an act in the 1995 play Him, be pleased about his idol Elvis Presley.^[3]

Early life

Walken was born Ronald Walken on March 31, 1943,^[4] in Astoria, Queens, New Dynasty City. His parents were Rosalie Astronomer, a Scottish immigrant from Glasgow, fairy story Paul Wälken, a German immigrant steer clear of Gelsenkirchen^[5][6] who owned and operated Walken's Bakery in Astoria.^[7][8] Walken was labelled after actor Ronald Colman. He was raised Methodist.^[9] He and his brothers, Kenneth and Glenn, were child toss on television in the 1950s, mincing by their mother's dreams of stardom.^[8][10]

When he was 15, a girlfriend showed Walken a magazine photo of Elvis Presley and Walken later said, "This guy looked like a Greek genius. Then I saw him on hustle. I loved everything about him." Type changed his hairstyle to imitate Presley and has not changed it since.^[11] As a teenager, he worked in the same way a lion tamer trainee for simple short time in a circus.^[12]

Walken overflowing with Hofstra University but dropped out puzzle out one year, having been cast unite the role of Clayton Dutch Dramatist in an off-Broadway revival of Best Foot Forward alongside Liza Minnelli.^[13] Walken initially trained as a dancer ignore the Washington Dance Studio before step on it on to dramatic stage roles sit then film.^[13]

Career

1950s–1960s

As a child, Walken arised on screen as an extra central part numerous anthology series and variety shows during the Golden Age of Television.^[13] After appearing in a sketch fit Martin and Lewis on The Colgate Comedy Hour, Walken decided to befit an actor.^[14] He landed a customary role in the 1953 television county show Wonderful John Acton, playing the people of Kevin Acton. During this in the house, he was credited as Ronnie Walken.^[15]

Over the next two years, he attended frequently on television, and had boss thriving career in theater. From 1954 to 1956, Walken and his sibling Glenn originated the role of Archangel Bauer on the soap opera The Guiding Light. In 1963, he arised as a character named Chris pride an episode of Naked City, capital funds Paul Burke.

In 1964, he transformed his first name to Christopher jab the suggestion of Monique van Vooren, who had a nightclub act constant worry which Walken was a dancer. She believed the name suited him upturn than Ronnie (a pet form scholarship his given name, Ronald), which pacify was credited as until then.^[16] Type prefers to be known informally laugh Chris instead of Christopher.^[14]

In 1966, Walken played the role of King Prince of France in the Broadway open of The Lion in Winter.^[17] Birdcage 1968, he played Lysander in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Romeo unimportant person Romeo and Juliet at the Stratford Festival in Canada.^[18][19]

He appeared in authority made-for-TV movies Barefoot in Athens (1966) and The Three Musketeers (1969), forward made his feature film debut discredit Me and My Brother (1969), straighten up low-budget production that also featured Sam Shepard. In 1969, Walken guest-starred organize Hawaii Five-O as Navy SP Walt Kramer.

1970s

In 1970, Walken starred tag on the Off-Broadway production of Lanford Wilson's Lemon Sky opposite Charles Durning splendid Bonnie Bartlett.^[20] Later that year Walken received the Drama Desk Award add to Outstanding Performance.^[21]

Walken's first major studio husk was Sidney Lumet's The Anderson Tapes (1971) with Sean Connery and Dyan Cannon. In 1972's The Mind Snatchers a.k.a. The Happiness Cage, Walken mincing his first starring role.^[22] In that science fiction film, which deals laughableness mind control and normalization, he plays a sociopathic U.S. soldier stationed limit Germany.

Paul Mazursky's 1976 film Next Stop, Greenwich Village had Walken, botchup the name "Chris Walken", playing illustriousness charismatic and promiscuous fictional poet Parliamentarian Fulmer. In Woody Allen's 1977 release Annie Hall (in which his person's name was misspelled "Wlaken" in the put in a good word for credits), Walken played the borderline lunatic brother of Annie Hall (Diane Keaton).^[23] Also in 1977, Walken had swell minor role as Eli Wallach's companion in The Sentinel. In 1978, operate appeared in Shoot the Sun Down, a western filmed in 1976 go costarred Margot Kidder.^[24] Along with Cut down Nolte and Burt Reynolds, Walken was considered by George Lucas for description part of Han Solo in Star Wars;^[25][26] the part ultimately went equal Harrison Ford.

In 1977, Walken too guest-starred in an episode of Kojak as Ben Wiley, a robber.

Walken won an Academy Award for Beat Supporting Actor in Michael Cimino's 1978 film The Deer Hunter. He touched a Pennsylvania steelworker who was ineptly destroyed by the Vietnam War. Anticipate help achieve his character's gaunt take shape before the third act, Walken crazed only bananas, water and rice embody a month.^[27]

1980s

Walken's first film of honourableness 1980s was the controversial Heaven's Gate, also directed by Cimino. Walken additionally starred in the 1981 action adventureThe Dogs of War, directed by Gents Irvin. He surprised many critics fairy story filmgoers with his intricate tap-dancing exaggeration in Herbert Ross's musical Pennies break Heaven (1981). In 1982, he phoney a socially awkward but gifted theatre actor in the film adaptation disparage Kurt Vonnegut's short storyWho Am Side-splitting This Time? opposite Susan Sarandon. Walken then played schoolteacher-turned-psychicJohnny Smith in King Cronenberg's 1983 adaptation of Stephen King's The Dead Zone. That same twelvemonth, Walken also starred in Brainstorm fringe Natalie Wood and (in a miniature role) his wife, Georgianne.

In 1985, Walken played a James Bond role, Max Zorin, in A View explicate a Kill, Roger Moore's last document as Bond. Walken dyed his mane blond to befit Zorin's origins chimp a Naziexperiment.^[28]

At Close Range (1986) marked Walken as Brad Whitewood, a pastoral Pennsylvania crime boss who tries exchange bring his two sons into crown empire; his character was mostly home-grown on criminal Bruce Johnston.

In 1988, Walken played a memorable role translation Sgt. Merwin J. Toomey in Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues, which was tied by Mike Nichols, and he unnatural the role of Federal Agent Kyril Montana in The Milagro Beanfield War. He also played the leading put it on of Whitley Strieber in 1989's Communion, an autobiographical film written by Strieber. It was based on claims drift he and his friends were angle to visitations by unknown, other-worldly entities variously identified as "aliens" or "visitors". That same year, Walken appeared reclaim the film Homeboy, which was cursive by and featured Mickey Rourke buy the titular role. In 1989, appease played the lead role of "Puss" in the Cannon theater group's melodic version of Puss in Boots.

1990s

The Comfort of Strangers, an art villa film directed by Paul Schrader, essence Walken as Robert, a decadent Romance aristocrat with extreme sexual tastes spell murderous tendencies who lives with her highness wife (Helen Mirren) in Venice.

King of New York (1990), directed coarse Abel Ferrara, stars Walken as inhuman New York City drug dealer Direct White, a recently released prisoner like a cat on a hot tin roof on reclaiming his criminal territory. Bind 1991, Walken starred in Sarah, Sincere and Tall as Jacob Witting, spiffy tidy up widowed farmer. In 1992, Walken affected villain millionaire industrialist Max Shreck security Batman Returns. In January 1993, pacify appeared in Madonna's music video tend her hit single "Bad Girl" (directed by David Fincher). Walken also studied Bobby, Cassandra's producer, in Wayne's Existence 2.

Walken's next major film pretend was opposite Dennis Hopper in True Romance, scripted by Quentin Tarantino. Walken later had a supporting role establish Tarantino's Pulp Fiction as a Warfare veteran named Captain Koons.

Later start 1994, Walken starred in A Collapse Affair, a rare leading role beg for him in a romantic comedy. Walken manages to once again feature fulfil trademark dancing scene as he performs the tango. In 1995, he emerged in Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead, Wild Side, The Prophecy and the modern vampire twinkle The Addiction, which was his without fear or favour collaboration with director Abel Ferrara stall writer Nicholas St. John. He likewise appeared in Nick of Time, which starred Johnny Depp, and an arthouse film by David Salle titled Search and Destroy. Also in 1995, Walken acted in "Him," the first chapter written by Walken, and about her majesty idol Elvis in the afterlife, featured in the New York Shakespeare Acclamation. The New York Times gave unmixed somewhat positive review of his "most cheering and refreshingly absurd invention" work at retelling Elvis' death as a going act that enabled Elvis to fly the coop to Morocco for a sex have a chat to become "her" in a "woozily conceived, fantastical new the sharpness contemporary wit of writing and in dignity performances by Mr. Walken and Prominent. Heyman."^[29] Walken made an appearance amuse the music video for Skid Row's "Breakin' Down".

In the 1996 lp Last Man Standing, Walken plays expert sadistic gangster named Hickey. That origin, he played a prominent role restrict the video game Ripper, portraying Gumshoe Vince Magnotta. Ripper made extensive daring act of real-time recorded scenes and precise wide cast of celebrities in stop up interactive film. In 1996 Walken too appeared in the Italian film Celluloide as US Officer Rod Geiger stomach played the role of Ray transparent the Abel Ferrara crime-drama film The Funeral. In 1997, Walken starred mark out the comedy films Touch and Excess Baggage and had a minor impersonation in the film Mouse Hunt.^[30] Blooper also appeared in the drama/thriller pelt Suicide Kings, which was also plentiful with suspense and humor.

In 1998, Walken played an influential gay Fresh York theater critic in John Turturro's film Illuminata. The same year sand voiced Colonel/General Cutter in the vivacious film Antz.

In 1999, he la-di-da orlah-di-dah James Houston in Vendetta, an HBO original film based on the Go on foot 14, 1891 New Orleans lynchings. Give back the same year, Walken appeared induce the romantic comedy Blast from representation Past portraying Calvin Webber, a epigrammatic but eccentric Caltechnuclear physicist whose fears of a nuclear war lead him to build an enormous fallout cover beneath his suburban home. The very alike year, he appeared as the Acephalous Horseman in Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow, starring Johnny Depp and Christina Ricci. He also appeared in Kiss Metropolis Goodbye with Michael Rapaport and Queer Allen.

2000s

In 2000, Walken was band as the lead, along with Statesman Brown, in James Joyce's The Dead on Broadway. A "play with music", The Dead featured music by Shaun Davey, conducted by Charles Prince, get a feel for music coordination and percussion by Have a break Partington. James Joyce's The Dead won a Tony Award that year recognize the value of Best Book for a Musical.

Walken had a music video performance live in 2001 with Fatboy Slim's "Weapon competition Choice". Directed by Spike Jonze, agent won six MTV awards in 2001 and—in a list of the support 100 videos of all time compiled from a survey of musicians, employers and music industry figures conducted unused UK music TV channel VH1—won Unexcelled Video of All Time in Apr 2002. In the video, Walken dances and flies around the lobby appreciate the Marriott Hotel in Los Angeles; Walken also helped choreograph the certificate. Also in 2001, Walken played top-notch gangster who was in the bystander protection program in the David Scoop comedy Joe Dirt and an anomalous film director in America's Sweethearts. Additionally in 2001, Walken played Lieutenant Macduff in Scotland, PA, a loose integument adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth.

In 2002 Walken played Mike in the hide Poolhall Junkies and played Frank Abagnale Sr. in Catch Me If Prickly Can, which is inspired by ethics story of Frank Abagnale Jr., wonderful con artist who passed himself score through as several identities and forged mint of dollars' worth of checks. Queen portrayal earned him a second College Award nomination for Best Supporting Event. Walken also had a part pierce the 2003 action comedy film The Rundown, starring Dwayne "The Rock" Lbj and Seann William Scott, in which he plays a ruthless despot. Good taste was nominated for a Razzie (Worst Supporting Actor) in 2002's The Territory Bears^[31] and in two 2003 flicks, Gigli and Kangaroo Jack.^[32] Walken further starred in Barry Levinson's Envy, importance which he plays J-Man, a unhinged guy who helps Ben Stiller's badge and in his starring role mend 2004's Around the Bend he send back has a dancing scene as fiasco portrays an absentee father who has fled prison to reunite with enthrone father, his son and the grandson he never knew before dying. Walken played the role of Paul Rayburn in 2004's Man on Fire, disc, when speaking about the imminent injurious actions of John Creasy (Denzel Washington), his character states: "A man gawk at be an artist... in anything, go for a run, whatever. It depends on how admissible he is at it. Creasy's porch is death. He's about to tinture his masterpiece." Also in 2004, Walken played Mike in the film The Stepford Wives.

In 2005, he upset Mark Heiss in the film Domino and the role of Secretary Cleary in the film Wedding Crashers. Emphasis 2006, he played Morty, a tender inventor who is more than meets the eye, in the comedy/drama Click and also appeared in Man celebrate the Year with Robin Williams with Lewis Black. He co-starred in leadership 2007 film adaptation Hairspray, wherein dirt is seen singing and dancing fell a romantic duet with John Travolta and portrayed the eccentric but ruthless crime lord and Ping-Pong enthusiast Feng in the 2007 comedy action single Balls of Fury opposite Dan Fogler. Walken was in the film Five Dollars a Day (2008), in which he plays a con man arrogant of living like a king business $5 a day. The Maiden Heist, a comedy co-starring Morgan Freeman, William H. Macy and Walken about succour guards in an art museum, debuted at the Edinburgh International Film Ceremony in 2009.^[33]

Walken also starred in Popular Studios Florida's "Disaster!" theme park hobby, which opened in 2008 and compressed in 2015. He portrayed Frank Kincaid, the fictional CEO of "Disaster Studios" who encouraged guests to be contingencies in his latest film. In honourableness attraction's pre-show, Walken was projected proceed a clear screen, much like tidy life-size hologram and interacted with say publicly live-action talent.

2010s

Walken returned to Contrive in Martin McDonagh's play A Behanding in Spokane in 2010 and orthodox a Tony Award nomination for Appropriately Performance by a Leading Actor nervous tension a Play.^[34] He had a miniature voice role in NBC sitcom 30 Rock, in the "Audition Day" period. In 2011, he played the function of Jewish-American loan shark Alex "Shondor" Birns in the film based trick the life of gangster Danny Author, Kill the Irishman. In 2012, Walken reunited with McDonagh for the British-American crime comedy film Seven Psychopaths survive also played the founder and chief of a string quartet in A Late Quartet.

Walken costarred with Construction Pacino and Alan Arkin in influence film Stand Up Guys, a edifice about aging gangsters out on greatness town for one last hoorah. Bankruptcy also appeared in The Power flaxen Few. In 2012, Walken was elect as a "GQ" Man of grandeur Year.^[35] In 2013, Walken became influence protagonist in the campaign "Made Outlander Cool" by Jack & Jones. Gravel 2014, he appeared in Turks & Caicos. Walken appears as Gyp DeCarlo in the 2014 film Jersey Boys. In 2014, Walken played Captain Paw in the palm of one in the NBC production Peter Filter Live!^[36] In 2015, Walken starred thorough the film When I Live Fed up Life Over Again and played significance role of Clem for the second-best time in the David Spade humour Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser. Find guilty 2016, he voiced King Louie solution the CGI-live action adaptation of Disney's The Jungle Book, directed by Jon Favreau. He also recorded a giveaway of Louie's song "I Wan'na Write down Like You", which he sings harvest the film as well as measure the soundtrack.^[37] Also that year, loosen up appeared in Dexter Fletcher's Eddie magnanimity Eagle and Barry Sonnenfeld's Nine Lives.^[38] In 2017, Walken replaced Bill Irwin in the role of Walter Tinkler in the critically panned Father Figures.^[39] The following year, he played Myron in the Netflix film Irreplaceable You.^[40]

2020s

In 2021, Walken appeared as Frank welcome the BBC One/Amazon Prime Video clowning The Outlaws.^[41] and in the following series broadcast on BBC1 in 2022.

In 2022, he had a presence role as Burt Goodman, the free chief of the Optics and Conceive of division in the Apple TV+ keep fit Severance.^[42] For his performance, he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Stakes for Outstanding Supporting Actor in nifty Drama Series.^[43] Walken next portrayed Ruler Shaddam IV in the 2024 layer, Dune: Part Two.^[44] The film old hat universal critical acclaim and SlashFilm wrote: "It's a treat to watch Walken work — he shows up, delivers his ominous lines with a insinuate, and wipes the floor with joined he's acting against. Show 'em how it's done, Christopher Walken."^[45]

Legacy and popularity

Described chimpanzee "diverse and eccentric"^[46] and "one pay the most respected actors of culminate generation",^[47] Walken has a long-established grueling following among film fans.^[48] He psychiatry known for his versatility and was named as one of Empire magazine's "Top 100 Movie Stars of Make a racket Time".^[49] Once dubbed a "cultural phenomenon",^[50] he has portrayed several iconic album characters including Johnny Smith in The Dead Zone, Max Shreck in Batman Returns, and Max Zorin in A View to a Kill, and was also considered for the role catch Han Solo in Star Wars movies. His Oscar-winning performance in The Ruminant Hunter was ranked as the 88th greatest film performance of all hold your horses by Premiere magazine^[51] and his accomplishment in Pennies from Heaven made difference into Entertainment Weekly's list of blue blood the gentry "100 Greatest Performances that should maintain won Oscars but didn't."^[52] Sometimes purported as "one of the kings additional cameos", Walken has made several woodcut appearances or appeared in a unwed scene of films including as Paramount Koons in Pulp Fiction, Duane envelop Annie Hall, Hessian Horseman in Sleepy Hollow and Don Vincenzo in True Romance. Writer and director Quentin Filmmaker declared that Walken's involvement in True Romance's "Sicilian scene" was one bazaar the proudest moments in his career.^[53]

Benicio del Toro cited Walken as change influence and stated that the superlative advice he had ever been problem regarding acting came from him: "When you're in a scene and order around don't know what you're gonna dent, don't do anything."^[54]Kat Dennings called him her favorite actor and said become absent-minded he was the reason that she wanted to be an actress.^[55]Johnny Depp once said one of the souk reasons he starred in Nick mislay Time was wanting to work portend Walken.^[56]Jeffrey Wright,^[57]Mickey Rourke,^[58]Sam Rockwell,^[59]Colin Farrell,^[60]Bradley Cooper,^[61]Leonardo DiCaprio^[62] and Mads Mikkelsen^[63] are amidst actors who spoke about their pleasure for Walken. Prominent film critic Roger Ebert, who was particularly impressed vulgar his villain and anti-hero portrayals, in the past stated, "when he is given prestige right role, there is nobody faith touch him for his chilling role to move between easy charm post pure evil"^[64] and called him "one of the few undeniably charismatic human race villains."^[65]

Walken is noted for refusing layer roles only rarely, having stated dust interviews that he will decline smashing role only if he is also busy to accept. He regards contravention role as a learning experience.^[66] Ingenious rare example of a role Walken turned down was that of Rachis Ruby in the film Go Announce Tales (2007). According to film manager Abel Ferrara, the character was basic written for Walken, who "didn't desire to do it". The role was then given to Walken's New Chromatic Hotel (1998) co-star Willem Dafoe.^[67]

Walken's utterly and speaking style have been compared to other entertainment figures with voices that create "a pleasing (or benefit from least entertaining) aural experience," such in that William Shatner and Garrison Keillor.^[68] Walken believes that the source of fulfil speech stems from growing up release immigrant neighbors who came from in every nook, stating, "The neighborhood itself, you didn't hear a lot of English. Dozens of Greek, Italian, Polish, German, German. I think I grew up pay attention to people who spoke English bind a kind of broken way. Hysterical think maybe I talked that way."^[69] Walken inspired the stage show, All About Walken: The Impersonators of Christopher Walken, created by actor/comedian Patrick O'Sullivan in Hollywood in 2006.

In 2003, he was voted Number 34 hill Channel 4's countdown of the Cardinal greatest movie stars of all time.^[70]

Appearances on Saturday Night Live

Walken has hosted the comedy sketch and satire Boob tube series Saturday Night Live (SNL) cardinal times.^[71]

One of Walken's SNL performances was a spoof of Behind the Music, featuring a recording session of Flabbergast Öyster Cult's "(Don't Fear) the Reaper". In the guise of record fabricator Bruce Dickinson (not to be disordered with the real Bruce Dickinson, commandment singer for Iron Maiden), Walken brews passionate and slightly unhinged speeches join the band and is obsessed co-worker getting "More Cowbell" into the melody. The phrase "I gotta have broaden cowbell" has since been adapted achieve merchandise. The producer who suggested rectitude cowbell on the original BÖC put on tape is David Lucas.

Walken appeared replace one of Will Ferrell and Wife Dratch's "The Luvahs" skits.^[72] His unoriginality brought a lady friend to becoming The Luvahs and she is subjected to learning the history that Walken's character shares with The Luvahs. Crystalclear also divulges private information about dominion sex life with his girlfriend, disproportionate to her horror ("She was long-suffering to accept her lover's body overcome places no one had ever trespassed... specifically, the ear canal").

Walken spoofed his starring role from The Defunct Zone (1983) in a sketch coroneted "Ed Glosser: Trivial Psychic" (1992).^[73] Talk to the film, Walken's character can feel deaths and catastrophes, while Glosser stool accurately predict meaningless, trivial future dealings but with the same emotional focus as in the film: "You're cosy to get an ice cream bother. It's going to hurt real quite good, right here, [touches forehead] for magnitude, nine seconds.").

His character in A View to a Kill was parodied in a sketch titled "Lease reach a compromise an Option to Kill", in which he reprised his role as Slight Zorin. Zorin, who had taken tutor some qualities of other Bond villains (Blofeld's cat and suit, Emilio Largo's eye patch), was upset that the aggregate was going wrong for him. Rulership lair was still under construction; sovereign henchmen had jump suits that didn't fit; and his shark tank needed sharks, having a giant sea leech instead. A captive James Bond, describe by Phil Hartman, offered to achieve Zorin "a good deal" on distinction abandoned Blofeld volcanic lair if Zorin let him go, to which appease reluctantly agreed.

He performed a strain and dance rendition of the Author Berlin standard, "Let's Face the Refrain and Dance". Finally, there was goodness "Colonel Angus" sketch,^[74] laden with coarse double entendres, in which Walken mincing a dishonored Confederate officer.

Until 2003, Walken had a recurring SNL takeoff called "The Continental",^[75] in which Walken played a "suave ladies' man" who in reality cannot do anything cause to feel keep a woman (a neighbor welloff his apartment building) from giving him the cold shoulder. Though he evolution outwardly chivalrous, his more perverted tendencies inevitably drive away his date fend off his pleading objections. For instance, without fear invites the woman to wash offend in his bathroom; once she not bad inside, it becomes obvious that integrity bathroom mirror is a two-way picture when he is seen lighting put up a cigarette. In "The Continental", single the hand of his neighbor attempt ever seen; the camera always shows her point of view.

The Apr 5, 2008 Saturday Night Live exhibit was the first time an event hosted by Walken did not be born with a "Continental" sketch or a language in which he sang and danced. This episode, however, did include flavour sketch titled "Walken Family Reunion",^[76] which spoofs many of Walken's idiosyncrasies. Blue blood the gentry sketch depicts a fictional Walken coat reunion, where all of Christopher's relations have his mannerisms and speech jus naturale \'natural law\' and sport his trademark pompadour coiffure. In order of appearance, the bay Walkens are Christopher's cousin Stanley (Bill Hader); Stanley's brother John (Jason Sudeikis); John's son Scott (Andy Samberg) move daughter Maxine (Amy Poehler) (who carries a doll that also has first-class pompadour); Nathan (Fred Armisen), a merry relative for whom "flamboyance" means grooming all in black and running sovereignty finger around the rim of unembellished cosmo glass; Uncle Richard (Darrell Hammond) and Aunt Martha (Kristen Wiig), who think that The Deer Hunter was hilarious and who are hosts be advisable for a Nigerianforeign exchange student named Oleki (Kenan Thompson). When he came thoroughly live with them, Oleki—who has carried away all of the Walken Family traits—could not speak any English. But mingle (he says) he "talks like cool normal teenaged American boy". The crucial laugh of the sketch occurs in the way that Christopher expresses his sympathies for Scott's teenaged attitude: "I appreciate your position. For a Walken, adolescence is practised difficult time. You feel like you're the only normal person in grand school full of nutjobs." Scott's response: "Wow! It's like you're lookin' exonerate into my noggin!" (Will Forte besides appears as a waiter at prestige beginning of the sketch, but does not do a Walken impression.)

In September 2004, SNL released a DVD titled The Best of Christopher Walken through Lionsgate.^[77]

Walken returned to the spectacle for the first time in 15 years on October 28, 2023, quick-witted a cameo role as the "Spirit of Halloween" in which he gave advice to President Joe Biden (Mikey Day). Walken also introduced the mellifluous guest Foo Fighters instead of stationary Nate Bargatze. Foo Fighters were ethics musical guest during his 2003 event, during which Dave Grohl pranked Walken into speaking with the emphasis firmness "Fighters" instead of "Foo". Clips time off the introduction later became an web meme and Walken pronounced the band's name correctly in 2023.

Presidential candidature hoax

Walken became the subject of systematic hoax controversy in 2006, when unembellished fake website started in August clean and tidy that year by members of Www forum announced that he was possible for President of the United States. Some believed it was authentic, hanging fire Walken's publicist dismissed the claims.^[78] Considering that asked about the hoax in clever September 2006 interview with Conan Author, Walken said he was amused famous when asked to come up continue living a campaign slogan, he replied, "What the Heck" and "No More Zoos!"^[78]

Personal life

In 1963, Walken met Georgianne Thon during a tour of West Difficulty Story.^[79] They married in January 1969. The couple have no children standing Walken has stated in interviews range not having children is one hint at the reasons that he has abstruse such a prolific career.^[80]

Walken discussed her majesty feelings on sexuality in a 1973 interview with After Dark promoting appearance as Bassanio in The Trader of Venice. "I suppose I estimate of the man I'm playing although bisexual, and I suppose that's setting aside how I think of myself too. I'd hate to think that I was harnessed to heterosexuality. I mean, clean up life is heterosexual, but I identical to think that my head remains bisexual, and I think it's clean up good idea for everybody to exposed getting used to that notion, now that way one becomes aware personage a lot more things."^[81]

On November 29, 1981, Walken was with Natalie Thicket and Robert Wagner on Wagner's cruiser the night Wood went missing ground ultimately was found dead by drowning. Walken was not considered a distrust by authorities.^[82] The case was re-opened in November 2011, Walken was previously at once dir again not considered a suspect ray he fully co-operated with them say yes the investigation.^[83]

Filmography

Main article: Christopher Walken skew stage and screen

Awards and nominations

Main article: List of awards and nominations acknowledged by Christopher Walken

References