Malcolm McDowell

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Malcolm McDowell

Malcolm McDowell (1974)
Birth name Malcolm John Taylor
Born June 13, 1943
Leeds, West Yorkshire
Notable roles Alex DeLarge in A Clockwork Orange
Caligula in Caligula
Gangster 55 in Gangster No. 1

Malcolm McDowell (born June 13, 1943) is an English actor. He was born Malcolm John Taylor in Leeds, West Yorkshire.

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[edit] Film career

Possibly best known for his portrayal of Alex DeLarge in A Clockwork Orange (1971), he began his professional life serving drinks in his parents' pub and then as a coffee salesman (the latter job providing inspiration for the movie O Lucky Man!) While enrolled in Cannock House School, he began taking acting classes, and eventually he secured work as an extra with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

McDowell made his screen debut in Poor Cow (1967) followed by The Raging Moon (1970), Figures in a Landscape (1970) and If... (1968) by British director Lindsay Anderson. His performances caught the attention of Stanley Kubrick, who cast McDowell as the lead in A Clockwork Orange. Despite winning great acclaim (nominated for Best Actor by the New York Film Critics Circle) for his role as the leader of a gang of futuristic toughs, the role created a characterization so unforgettable that the public had a hard time separating actor from character.

He rejoined Lindsay Anderson for the ambitious O Lucky Man! (1973) and Britannia Hospital (1982), and starred in Royal Flash (1975). McDowell regularly turned up on British Television productions in the early 1970s in adaptations of theatre classics. He co-starred in Voyage of the Damned (1976), and made a favourable Hollywood-movie debut as H. G. Wells in Time After Time (1979).

McDowell played mainly villainous parts in the late 1970s and 1980s — none more notorious than the title character in the controversial Caligula (1979). He also appeared in the 1983 action film Blue Thunder as F.E. Cochrane, and the 1982 remake of Cat People.

McDowell in his signature role as Alex DeLarge in A Clockwork Orange.
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McDowell in his signature role as Alex DeLarge in A Clockwork Orange.

He is also well known in Star Trek circles as "the man who killed Captain Kirk" in the film Star Trek: Generations, in which he played the mad scientist Dr. Tolian Soran. Incidentally, McDowell is also the uncle of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine cast member Alexander Siddig.

McDowell played himself in Robert Altman's The Player, appearing in a cameo role in which he chastises protagonist Griffin Mill (Tim Robbins) for badmouthing him behind his back.

McDowell also had a part in the computer games Wing Commander II, Wing Commander III, and Wing Commander IV as Admiral Geoffrey Tolwyn, co-starring next to Mark Hamill.

McDowell appeared in the short-lived 1996 - 1997 sitcom Pearl, opposite Rhea Perlman, and appeared in 1995's Tank Girl. He also played Mr. Roarke (formely played by Ricardo Montalban) in the short lived 1998 remake of Fantasy Island.

Teaming up with Altman once again in 2003, McDowell convincingly portrayed fictional artistic director Alberto Antonelli in The Company, an intimate portrait of the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago.

In 2005, McDowell lent his voice talent to the album Back Against The Wall

In 2005 McDowell played vicious agency owner Terence in the HBO Series Entourage. Terence returns from retirement to try to lure the show's main character, Vincent Chase, from his current agent and Terence's partner, Ari Gold.

In 2006 he was a special guest star on Law & Order: Criminal Intent as radio mogul Jonas Slaughter, who admits to killing one of his sons and manipulates the other into a dying declaration confession to save his own life. He also appeared in Monk as an arrogant fashion photographer who committed cold blooded murder.

[edit] Personal life

McDowell first met actress Mary Steenburgen while filming Time After Time. They married in 1980 and divorced 10 years later in 1990. Steenburgen and McDowell had two children together: Lily Amanda, born January 21, 1981 and Charles Malcolm born July 10, 1983. In 1991, McDowell married Kelley Kuhr, with whom he has one child, Beckett Taylor (born January 29, 2004).

McDowell with Helen Mirren in O Lucky Man! (1973)
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McDowell with Helen Mirren in O Lucky Man! (1973)

[edit] Trivia

[edit] Partial filmography

[edit] External links

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