Kevin Tighe | |
|---|---|
 Tighe in cast photo fromEmergency! | |
| Born | Jon Kevin Fishburn (1944-08-13)August 13, 1944 (age 80) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Education | Pasadena High School |
| Alma mater | University of Southern California (MFA) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1967–present |
| Known for | |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 1 |
Kevin Tighe (/taɪɡ/;[1] bornJon Kevin Fishburn; August 13, 1944) is an Americanactor who has worked in television, film, and theater since the late 1960s. He is best known for his character, firefighter-paramedic Roy DeSoto, on the 1972–1977 NBC seriesEmergency!
Tighe was cast in his first major film as an extra in 1967'sThe Graduate. After being under contract withParamount andUniversal, Tighe's career took a turn from bit parts andextra work when he was cast as Roy DeSoto onEmergency! FollowingEmergency!, Tighe went on to make numerous guest appearances in television shows such asEllery Queen,Cos,The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, andThe Six Million Dollar Man.
Aside fromThe Graduate, some of Tighe's film credits includeRoad House,City of Hope,What's Eating Gilbert Grape, andJade. Tighe won a 1994Genie Award forBest Supporting Actor inI Love a Man in Uniform. In the 2000s he playedAnthony Cooper on theABC television seriesLost, as well as Giles Corey in the premiere episode of the originalWGN America seriesSalem.
Tighe has also been seen in a number of stage productions, includingA Reckoning,[2]Mourning Becomes Electra,Anna Christie,Other Desert Cities, andCurse of the Starving Class.[3]
Tighe was born on August 13, 1944,[4] as Jon Kevin Fishburn inLos Angeles, California, of Czech-Bohemian and Irish descent, the son of an actor.[5]
When he was five, Tighe moved with his family from Los Angeles to nearbyPasadena, where he began acting at an early age, auditioning for juvenile leads at thePasadena Playhouse.[3] He graduated fromPasadena High School in 1962,[6] and went on to attendPasadena City College[7] andCSULA where he was a member of Beta Chi fraternity, before receiving a Bachelor's degree fromUSC and then anMFA for acting in 1967.[3] After USC, Tighe was drafted into theUnited States Army. Due to an injury to his finger, he was stationed for two years atFort Knox rather than being sent toVietnam.[3]
Tighe's first film appearance was in 1967 as a fraternity brother inThe Graduate (only the back of his head is seen, while taking a shower), after which he appeared in two other films:Narcotics: Pit of Despair andYours, Mine and Ours. After being discharged from the Army, Tighe appeared at the Taper Theater in Los Angeles inThe Trial of the Catonsville Nine and in Noël Coward'sDesign for Living at theAhmanson Theatre, also in Los Angeles.[3] After this, he went on to perform inDesign for Living with the National Theatre of Great Britain.[8] During this period Tighe worked with a number of well-known actors includingLorne Greene,Maggie Smith, andMichael Landon before signing a contract withUniversal Studios. During Tighe's tenure at Paramount, he appeared on NBC'sBonanza in the episode, "The Weary Willies".[9]
Tighe auditioned for a newJack Webb television series,Emergency! in 1972 and landed the role of firefighter-paramedic Roy DeSoto, alongsideRandolph Mantooth as his partner, John Gage.[10] DeSoto and his team would respond to vehicle crashes, medical emergencies, and other rescues in afire departmentrescue squad. After receiving advice and treatment orders from a local hospital via radiotelephone, the medics performedadvanced life support techniques to stabilize patients needing aid before having them transported to a medical facility.[10]
In order to better portray his character, Tighe, along with other actors on the show, sat in on paramedic classes and participated in "ride-alongs" with theLA County Fire Department.[11] When the show premiered, there were only 12 fire departments or ambulance services in North America fielding paramedics;[12] the show is credited with introducing its audience to the concept of pre-hospital care, fire prevention, and CPR.[12] In a 2006 Seattle radio interview, Tighe stated thatEmergency! "...resonated with working people and I was always very proud of that fact. It promoted the paramedic program."[13]
The show ran six seasons (129 episodes) with seven two-hour television movie specials including a pilot film,The Wedsworth-Townsend Act and averaged 30 million viewers each week.[10] Tighe directed four episodes ofEmergency!: "Gossip" (1974), "Inventions" (1974), "Equipment" (1975), and "Fair Fight" (1977).[12] and wrote one episode for the show, "Up all Night" (1977).[12][14] Tighe and Mantooth did many of their own stunts in the early years of the show. Mantooth has been quoted as saying, "If you could see our faces, it was us doing the stunts, if you couldn't, it was our stunt double."[14][15]
While onEmergency!, Tighe appeared as Roy DeSoto in episodes of two other shows created byRobert A. Cinader,Sierra [12][14] which had its backdoor pilot as anEmergency! episode, andAdam-12 (the episode "Lost and Found").[12][14] Tighe voiced Roy DeSoto on the animated spin-offEmergency +4.[12] and narrated an episode about the work of paramedics in LA County with Mantooth on NBC'sGo! [12][16]
During the series' run and after it was cancelled, Tighe became and remained friends with Mantooth as well as co-starsJulie London andBobby Troup. Tighe served as a best man at Mantooth's second wedding in 2002. Through his friendship with Troup and London, who were married to each other as well as recording artists prior to being cast on the show, Tighe had the opportunity to meet well known jazz musicians and artists.[13]
Both Tighe and Mantooth appear in the video presentationThe Pioneers of Paramedicine Story, a project done in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Fire Museum. Originally filmed in 2001 with additional scenes filmed in 2013, the video is a documentation of the history of pre-hospital medicine.[17]
Tighe was an honorary committee member on Project 51 and its efforts to honorEmergency!'s legacy.[18] Tighe conducted interviews and compiled a brief history of American EMS for the project.[19] Roy DeSoto's uniform, along with some of the medical equipment used on the show was inducted into theSmithsonian Institution'sNational Museum of American History in the Public Services division in May 2000.[12][20]
Along with Mantooth, Tighe was presented in 2012 with a traditional white leather firefighter helmet by the Los Angeles County Fire Department as Honorary Fire Chief.[21] The honor was bestowed for contributions to the fire service and emergency medicine through educating and inspiring others to work in firefighting andEMS.[21]
After the cancellation ofEmergency!, Tighe continued to work in episodic television, appearing onEllery Queen,Cos,The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries,The Six Million Dollar Man, andThe Love Boat. He also appeared on the CBS Library production of "Orphans, Waifs, and Wards" and as Thomas Jefferson in an adaptation of theJohn Jakes novelThe Rebels in 1979.
During the 80s, Tighe taught drama at USC.[14] To keep his acting skills honed, he once again studied acting, this time with Robert Lewis and Stella Adler in New York City.[3] He worked in summer stock as part of a company directed by Alfred Christie at theHampton Playhouse in 1980,[22] and performed inCome Blow Your Horn.[23] In 1983, Tighe was cast inTwo for the Seesaw at William Putch's Totem Pole Playhouse in Caledonia, Pennsylvania.[24]
Tighe made his Broadway debut at theMusic Box Theatre in the play,Open Admissions;[25] the show closed after two weeks. He then acted inNight of the Iguana withMcCarter Theatre Company, in Princeton, NJ; Mark Weller'sThe Ballad of Soapy Smith in 1983 at theSeattle Repertory Theatre in Seattle; and the New York Shakespeare Festival at the Public Theatre in New York City.[25] In 1989, he received anNEA fellowship at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. Tighe also wrote and directedHomegirl for the Seattle Repertory Theatre in 1986.
After returning to Los Angeles in 1986, Tighe began working again in television and movies. His late 1980s movie appearances were inMatewan,Eight Men Out,K-9, and as club-owner Frank Tilghman in 1989'sRoad House withPatrick Swayze. During a 2006 interview, Tighe stated, "I've gotten more comments on that movie than any other film I've ever done." Saying he is amazed by the film's broad audience appeal, he further said, "Working class people like it, (college kids), white people, black people. I think a lot of that is due to the music ... the movie had great music."[26]
Tighe's work in the 1990s included work on episodic television crime, drama, and science-fiction programs. Tighe appeared on episodes ofMurder, She Wrote,Tales from the Crypt,Under Suspicion,Chicago Hope,The Single Guy,ER,The Outer Limits. For six episodes, he portrayed police detective David Blalock on the crime and legal drama,Murder One. He was a special guest star onStar Trek: Voyager as Henry Janeway, an ancestor of CaptainKathryn Janeway, in the episode "11:59".
Besides episodic work, Tighe appeared in a number of television movies during the 90s, includingPerry Mason: The Case of the Defiant Daughter, the remake ofEscape to Witch Mountain, and slain Kansas father and farmer Herb Clutter in the1996 miniseries adaptation ofTruman Capote's bookIn Cold Blood. Tighe also portrayed newspaper legendWilliam Randolph Hearst inWinchell.
Tighe's roles in feature films included lawyers, law enforcement officers, and military figures including the part of Blake Wilson in the Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte vehicleAnother 48 Hrs. Other film roles during this period were inBright Angel,City of Hope,Newsies,School Ties, andMumford. Tighe portrayed Ken Carver inWhat's Eating Gilbert Grape and Brigadier General Nelson MilesGeronimo: An American Legend. In 1994, he won aGenie Award forBest Supporting Actor in the role of "Frank" inI Love a Man in Uniform.
Tighe continued to work in theater and appeared in three different roles: Hilton Lasker, Swifty, and Lord Kitterson inThe End of the Day: An Entertainment at the Seattle Repertory Theatre, in 1989 and 1990. Tighe continued to do plays in the 1990s at the Seattle Repertory Theatre includingHedda Gabler in 1992.[27]
Tighe continued to do episodic work on both cable and network television and appeared onFreaks and Geeks,Family Law,The West Wing portraying Governor of Indiana Jack Buckland,Strange World,Everwood,Law & Order: Criminal Intent,The 4400, andLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit. Tighe appeared numerous times on ABC show,Lost, asAnthony Cooper, father ofJohn Locke. His work included episodes ofNumb3rs,Leverage, andLie to Me.
His work on television included two movies and mini-series. Tighe appeared inThe Sight, andNancy Drew. He has also continued to work heavily in film and has appeared inThe Deal,Today You Die, andMy Bloody Valentine. Tighe portrayed William Gottschalk in three of the Tulse Luper films:The Tulse Luper Suitcases, Part 1: The Moab Story,The Tulse Luper Suitcases: Antwerp, andA Life in Suitcases.[citation needed]
Tighe worked in regional and repertory theater, with the bulk of his stage work in Seattle. Tighe played Mick Dowd, a gravedigger, inMartin McDonagh'sA Skull in Connemara atACT Theatre in Seattle in 2000.[28] Six months later, the production moved to New York, where it played at theRoundabout Theatre Company andGramercy Theatre.[29]
He played Brigadier General Ezra Mannon inMourning Becomes Electra and the play was initially performed at theACT Theatre withJane Alexander in 2001.[30] The play was staged later in 2001 at theLong Wharf Theatre inNew Haven, Connecticut with Tighe and Alexander in the cast.[31] Tighe worked with his daughter, Jennifer, inA Reckoning at the Magic Theater in San Francisco.[2] Tighe played Matt inAnna Christie,[32] along withSam Shepard'sBuried Child, and Yuri Lubymov's production ofCrime And Punishment [8] on The Arena Stage at the Kreeger Theatre inWashington, D.C.[when?]
Tighe played Salter inA Number, exploring the human consequences of cloning,[13] at theACT Theatre in Seattle.[33] His character examines parent-child relationships in five concentrated scenes through his three cloned sons and the nature of human bonds.[13][34]
Tighe played Captain Channing onTrauma. His recent episodic television work includesCommon Law,Complications, andSalem. His most recent film appearance isI Am I, released in June 2014.[35]
Tighe narrated the documentary,The Mountain Runners,[36] examining the mountain marathon runners at Mount Baker in the early 1900s. Tighe was interviewed forAmerica on Stage examining the development of new plays funded by theNational Endowment for the Arts.[37] Tighe appeared on a documentary that was aired on thePBS program,Independent Lens. The documentary examined the development and staging of a new play in "Playwright: From Page to Stage".[38]
Tighe played the title role inRajiv Joseph'sPulitzer Prize-nominated dramaBengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, about the lives of American soldiers who guard a philosophical tiger (Tighe) while on duty in theIraq War. Tighe played the role in both the New York and at theMark Taper Forum in Los Angeles productions, replacingRobin Williams,[3][39] He won positive reviews for his performance of the Tiger. He won a 2010 Garland Award for best Performance in a Play.[40]
Tighe played Fredrik inAnatomy of Pain on the Mirror Stage at the Ethnic Cultural Theatre in Seattle in 2012.[41] InSam Shepard'sCurse of the Starving Class, Tighe played Weston in 2013 at theLong Wharf Theatre in New Haven withJudith Ivey.[42][43] He had the following thoughts in his approach to doing Shepard's play,"You have to beware of naturalism, which is the place actors tend to go into. You have to leave the ground for awhile and then hope you land."[26] Later in 2013, Tighe played Lyman Wyeth inOther Desert Cities withPamela Reed atACT Theatre in Seattle.[44]
Since 1985, Tighe has resided inSkagit County, Washington[44] with his wife, the artist Rebecca Fletcher.[45][46][47]
From Skagit County, he travels to Los Angeles and New York City for work.[5] Tighe has a daughter from his first marriage (to Mary Lou Seaman), Jennifer Tighe, an actress with whom he appeared in the stage production ofA Reckoning.[2]
|
|
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
