Ed O'Ross (born Edward Orss; July 5, 1949) is an American actor. Some of his prominent roles are as Itchy in '' Dick Tracy'', Colonel Perry in '' Universal Soldier'', Lt. Touchdown in '' Full Metal Jacket'', ruthless Georgian mobster Viktor Rostavili in ''
Red Heat
The practice of using colours to determine the temperature of a piece of (usually) ferrous metal comes from blacksmithing. Long before thermometers were widely available it was necessary to know what state the metal was in for heat treating it an ...
'', police detective Cliff Willis in '' The Hidden'', and for his role on the TV Shows ‘’ Six Feet Under’’ (2001-2005) and ''
Shark
Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachi ...
'' (2006-2008).
Early life and education
O'Ross was born Edward Orss on July 5, 1949 in Pensacola, Florida,Ed O'Ross Biography (1949-) /ref> of
Czechoslovak
Czechoslovak may refer to:
*A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93)
**First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38)
**Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39)
**Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60)
**Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...
Carnegie Tech
Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...
(which became Carnegie Mellon University, where he studied with Ralph Lewando at Carnegie Tech.
Prior to becoming an actor, O'Ross was a boxer, winning a
Golden Gloves
The Golden Gloves is the name given to annual competitions for amateur boxing in the United States, where they are awarded a belt and a ring. And the title of nations champion is awarded. The Golden Gloves is a term used to refer to the Nation ...
amateur championship in 1964. He was also a minor league baseball player. He even auditioned for two
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
) but was not selected.
He studied acting over several years, under
Stella Adler
Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher. ''
Uta Hagen
Uta Thyra Hagen (12 June 1919 – 14 January 2004) was a German-American actress and theatre practitioner. She originated the role of Martha in the 1962 Broadway premiere of ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' by Edward Albee, who called her "a ...
, among others.
Career
He has appeared in many films and has played several Russian characters including n fact Georgianvillain Viktor Rostavili / Viktor Rosta in
Walter Hill
Walter may refer to:
People
* Walter (name), both a surname and a given name
* Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968)
* Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 1 ...
's action film ''
Red Heat
The practice of using colours to determine the temperature of a piece of (usually) ferrous metal comes from blacksmithing. Long before thermometers were widely available it was necessary to know what state the metal was in for heat treating it an ...
'', Nikolai, one of Ruth Fisher's love interests on the HBO series '' Six Feet Under'' and Leo, a sandwich shop owner on '' Curb Your Enthusiasm'' and playing the voice of
Agent K
Agent K (usually called Kay), born Kevin Brown, is a fictional character and one of the two main protagonists of the ''Men in Black'' franchise (the other being Agent J). Kay is portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones in the three films, with Josh Broli ...
The Pope of Greenwich Village
''The Pope of Greenwich Village'' is a 1984 American crime black comedy film directed by Stuart Rosenberg and starring Mickey Rourke, Eric Roberts, Daryl Hannah, Geraldine Page, Kenneth McMillan and Burt Young. Page was nominated for the Academy ...
Lethal Weapon
''Lethal Weapon'' is a 1987 American buddy cop action comedy film directed and co-produced by Richard Donner, written by Shane Black, and co-produced by Joel Silver. It stars Mel Gibson and Danny Glover alongside Gary Busey, Tom Atkins, D ...
Another 48 Hrs.
''Another 48 Hrs.'' is a 1990 American buddy cop film directed by Walter Hill (director), Walter Hill and starring Eddie Murphy, Nick Nolte, Brion James, Andrew Divoff, and Ed O'Ross. It is the sequel to the 1982 film ''48 Hrs.'' Nolte reprises h ...
Hoodlum
A hoodlum is a thug, usually in a group of misfits who are associated with crime or theft.
Early use
The earliest reference to the word "hoodlum" was in the December 14, 1866, ''San Francisco Daily Evening Bulletin'' after the Hoodlum Band was ...
Walker, Texas Ranger
''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film '' Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both this series and that film starring Chuck Norris as a member of the ...
'', '' CSI: NY'', '' The Outsiders'' and '' Moonlighting'' (in the episode "Brother, Can You Spare A Blonde?").
O'Ross has occasionally done voice work, namely in the video game
Judgment
Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct uses. Aristotle s ...
as Shigeru Kajihira.
Personal life
O'Ross resides in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
and
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...