Celeb: James Spader
Occupation: Actor
Then
Now
James Spader seems to be holding up pretty well. True he’s put on quite a few pounds (more than necessary I dare suggest) but the face is still young and handsome and I’m sure he could still kick butt on screen. I am of the ilk that it’s James’ choice to avoid tinsel town. Still I remain a cynic so if you ain’t working you’re a wash up in my book. Anyhoo. James got his start as Brooke Shield’s brother (didn’t know she had one in the movie) in the 1981 hit Endless Love. Well so much for James’ impact. In 1986 he became a major movie star when he co-starred with Molly Ringwald, another washed up brat packer (see my blog Molly Ringwald Film Actress and Brat Packer) in Pretty in Pink. Everyone noticed him then. Damn. He co-starred with another brat packer Andrew McCarthy in Mannequin, an utterly dreadful flick that should have tanked both their careers. They got lucky. He co-starred in the major hit Wall Street along with Charlie Sheen (see my blog Charlie Sheen – Actor and Wizard) and Michael Douglas. Fierce. In 1989 he shot to superstardom in Sex, Lies and Videotape playing sexual voyeur Graham. Hot stuff in its day but pretty tame stuff by 21st century standards. To watch a series of scenes from Pretty in Pink titled Why James Spader is Hot click here. To see James in Crash Trailer click here. They should have called it Trash instead of Crash. So it would be the Trash Trailer, which reversed would be Trailer Trash. Now that’s a movie.
His roles in the early 1990s included an affluent widower opposite Susan Sarandon (can’t stand her) in White Palace, John Cusack’s best friend in True Colors, also co-starring the legendary Paul Newman. In 1994, he starred as Egyptologist Daniel Jackson in the blockbuster Stargate. He tormented Michelle Pfeiffer and Jack Nicholson in Wolf. James was car-accident fetishist James Ballard in the controversial (gross) Canadian film Crash in 1996. In 2001, he starred as Maggie Gyllenhaal’s sadistic boss in the Secretary. That’s when James’ career took a nosedive. He stopped gracing the silver screen and took a demotion to TV sitcoms. From 2004 to 2008, Spader starred as the lead character Alan Shore in the TV series The Practice. When that tanked he played the same character in Boston Legal, a highly unusual and successful career move. Good shows, but they weren’t feature films. To watch a scene from Wolf titled Wolf – Laura Meets Stewart click here.
To see James in Secretary click here.
To see James as Alan Shore in The Practice click here.
James gave Playboy an interview in 2005. His latest acting role is in Race, an (egad) play in which he co-stars with some lame celebrities that no one gives a damn about. It opened on December 6, 2009 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on Broadway. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and not suggest he made another downward spiral to the stage and that even TV doesn’t want him anymore. I’ll keep that to myself. To see James Spader in Stargate click here. To see James Spader About Stargate click here.
To connect to James Spader on Facebook click here.
Redemption
Well, he’s still working. Sorta.
Comeback
We’re waiting.
Comeback Grade: G as in Get off the stage and back into film
James’ Facebook Fans: 1,102 – washed up
reruns of boston legal — fun