James Tolkan
Fiery, forceful and intimidating character actor James Tolkan has 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 ruthless and dangerous criminals. Tolkan first began acting in movies in the late 1960s and was highly effective in two pictures for Sidney Lumet: He was a rabidly homophobic police lieutenant in the superbly gritty Serpico (1973) and a sneaky district attorney in the equally excellent Prince of the City (1981). Best known as the obnoxiously overzealous high school principal Gerard Strickland in the Back to the Future films, Tolkan's other most memorable roles include Napolean in Woody Allen's Love and Death (1975), a ramrod army officer in WarGames (1983), mayor Robert Culp's mordant, wisecracking assistant in Turk 182 (1985), the hard-nosed Stinger in Top Gun (1986), the choleric Detective Lubric in Masters of the Universe (1987), meek mob accountant Numbers in Dick Tracy (1990), and Wesley Snipes' bullish superior in Boiling Point (1993).
Back to the Future
(Mr. Strickland)
Back to the Future Part II
(Strickland)
Back to the Future Part III
(Marshal Strickland)
WarGames
(Wigan)
Val
(Self (archive footage))
Top Gun
(Stinger)
Family Business
(Judge)
Boiling Point
(Levitt)
Opportunity Knocks
(Sal)
Masters of the Universe
(Detective Lubic)
Iceman
(Maynard)
Made in Heaven
(Mr. Bjornstead)
Heavens Fall
(Thomas Knight, Sr.)
Problem Child 2
(Mr. Thron)
Off Beat
(Harry)
7 Times Lucky
(Dutch)
Bloodfist IV: Die Trying
(Agent Sterling)
Little Spies
(Kennel Master)
Split Decisions
(Benny Pistone)
True Blood
(Det. Joseph Hanley)
Phil Spector
(Judge Fidler)
Looking Back to the Future
(Self)
The Case of the Hillside Stranglers
(Lt. Ed Henderson)
Love and Death
(Napoleon)
They Might Be Giants
(Mr. Brown)
Hangfire
(Patch)
The Amityville Horror
(Coroner)
Armed and Dangerous
(Lou Brackman)
Robo Warriors
(Quon)
Turk 182!
(Hanley)
Second Sight
(Coolidge)
Weekend War
(Dr. Alex Thompson)
Serpico
(Steiger)
Driving Me Crazy
(Vince)
Prince of the City
(George Polito)
Viper
(William Tansey)
The River
(Howard Simpson)
Sketch Artist II: Hands That See
(Tonelli)
Bone Tomahawk
(Pianist)
Underworld
(Dan 'Iceberg' Eagan)
Hanky Panky
(Conferee)
Dick Tracy
(Numbers)
Back in Time
(Self)
Ministry of Vengeance
(Colonel Freeman)
Flanagan
(Turner)
The Three Sisters
Tales from the Future
(Self)
Wolfen
(Baldy)
The Friends of Eddie Coyle
(The Man's contact man)
Question of Faith
(Doctor Siegel)
Author! Author!
(Lt. Glass)
Sketch Artist
(Tonelli)
Stiletto
(Edwards)
The Werewolf of Washington
(Dark Glasses)
Sunset Beat
(Ray Parker)
Wings
(Billy)
Remington Steele
(Norman Keyes)
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
(Dr. Oates)
The Pretender
(FBI Special Agent Korkos)
Early Edition
Naked City
(Evan Humbolt, Mail Clerk)
Hill Street Blues
Cobra
(Dallas Cassel)
The Equalizer
(Ruger)
The Wonder Years
(Coach Silva)
Mary
(Lester Mintz)
The Hat Squad
(Mike Ragland)
Nowhere Man
(Commander Cyrus Quinn)
A Nero Wolfe Mystery
(Richard Wragg)
A Nero Wolfe Mystery
(Mr. Hackett)
A Nero Wolfe Mystery
(FBI Agent Richard Wragg)
Leverage
(Dean Chesny)
Tales from the Crypt
(Sgt. McClaine)
Miami Vice
(Mason Mather)
The Wonderful World of Disney
(The Kennel Master)