James Brolin

James Brolin was born as Craig Kenneth Bruderlin in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, on 18 July 1940. His father was Henry Hurst Bruderlin, who worked as a building contractor. His mother was Helen Sue, a housewife. He had one brother and two sisters.

As a child he was much interested in animals and airplanes. He developed his interest in acting only during his teenage years, after he was charmed by the popular actor James Dean. He also formed a friendship with the future-actor Ryan O’Neal, with whom he later went to University High School. He completed his graduation in 1958.

As his interest in acting grew, his parents and Ryan encouraged him to pursue his passion. Thus he enrolled to study drama at the University of California, Los Angeles. During this time, he appeared in various minor and supporting roles in several TV shows including ‘Bus Stop’, Margie’, ‘Valentine’s Day’, ‘The Party Duke Show’, and ‘Batman’.

At the beginning of his acting career, Craig Kenneth Bruderlin adopted the screen name “James Brolin.” His first significant film was ‘Von Ryan’s Express’ a World War II adventure film, which was released in 1965. The film, which was directed by Mark Robson, was about a group of Allied Soldiers, and a daring escape they conduct by hijacking a train. Brolin appeared as soldier Private Ames.

In 1967, he appeared in ‘The Cape Town Affair’, a spy film which was about South African secret agents trying to save a confidential microfilm before the communists could get hold of it. Brolin played a main role, appearing as Skip McCoy. The film received mostly negative reviews.

In 1968, he was cast in a popular television medical drama ‘Marcus Welby, MD’ in which he appeared in a lead role. He appeared as a young, talented assistant physician Dr. Steven Kiley, for which he received much popularity and appreciation. The series became a huge success, and rose to become one of the top-rated TV shows of that time. He won an Emmy Award, along with a Golden Globe Award, for his performance.

He appeared in several movies over the next years, including ‘Skyjacked’ (1972), ‘Trapped’ (1973)’, ‘The Car’ (1977), ‘The Amityville Horror’ (1979), ‘Night of the Juggler’ (1980), and ‘High Risk’ (1981).

In the year 1983, he returned to television to appear in the popular series ‘Hotel’. His role of Peter McDermott, a hotel manager who tries to help people with their problems, was quite appreciated. The role got him nominated for the ‘Golden Globe Award’ twice, though he didn’t win either time.

‘Marcus Welby, MD’, an American medical drama series, in which James Brolin was cast in a main role, was his first significant role for which he received much popularity and appreciation. The series, in which Brolin played a young doctor, was created by David Victor. The show, which aired for 172 episodes, won Brolin one Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award.

‘The Amityville Horror’, a 1979 American horror film in which Brolin played the lead role, is among his most significant works. Directed by Stuart Rosenberg, the film also starred Margot Kidder, Rod Steiger, and Murray Hamilto. The story is based on the supernatural experiences of the Lutz family, who had purchased a new residence in Amityville in New York, where a lot of murders were committed the previous year. The film received negative reviews from critics. However, it managed to be successful commercially, and grossed $86.4 million worldwide.

In the year 2000, Brolin appeared in the popular crime drama film ‘Traffic’, where he played a supporting role as General Ralph Landry. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the film explored the illegal drug trade from a number of perspectives. The film, which was hugely inspired by actual people and events, starred actors Michael Douglas, Don Cheadle, Dennis Quaid, Jacob Vargas, and Catherine Zeta-Zones. It received mostly positive reviews. It also won four Oscars. The film was also a commercial success, grossing more than $200 million worldwide.