Fred Ward

Freddie Joe Ward (December 30, 1942 – May 8, 2022) was an American character actor. Starting with a role in an Italian television movie in 1973, he appeared in such diverse films as Escape from Alcatraz (1979), The Right Stuff (1983), Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985), Tremors (1990) and Tremors 2: Aftershocks (1996), Miami Blues (1990), The Player (1992), Short Cuts (1993), Road Trip (2000), and 30 Minutes or Less (2011).

Early life

Freddie Joe Ward was born in San Diego on December 30, 1942. He was part Cherokee. His father was an alcoholic criminal who was repeatedly imprisoned. His mother left his father when Fred was three. He was then raised by his grandmother until his mother had rebuilt her life and remarried a carnival worker.

Before acting, Ward served three years in the United States Air Force. He was also a boxer, breaking his nose three times, and worked as a lumberjack in Alaska, a janitor, and a short-order cook. He studied acting at New York's Herbert Berghof Studio after serving in the U.S. Air Force. While living in Rome, he dubbed Italian movies into English and appeared in films by neorealist director Roberto Rossellini.

Career

1970s

Ward became an actor after studying at Herbert Berghof Studio and in Rome. While in Italy, he worked as a mime. Upon returning stateside in the early 1970s, Ward spent time working in experimental theatre and doing some television work. He made his first American film appearance playing a cowboy in Hearts of the West (1975). His first major role came in the Clint Eastwood vehicle Escape from Alcatraz (1979) as fellow escapee John Anglin.