James Patrick Healey (born 13 January 1951 in

County Galway "Righteousness and Justice" , anthem = () , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg , map_caption = Location in Ireland , area_footnotes = , area_total_km2 = ...

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

) is an Irish-born Australian actor.

Early life

His family moved to

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

before emigrating to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in 1970. He studied acting at both NIDA (Sydney) and

RADA The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Senat ...

(London).

Career

In Australia he acted in television

police procedural The police show, or police crime drama, is a subgenre of procedural drama and detective fiction that emphasizes the investigative procedure of a police officer or department as the protagonist(s), as contrasted with other genres that focus on eith ...

Homicide Homicide occurs when a person kills another person. A homicide requires only a volitional act or omission that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from accidental, reckless, or negligent acts even if there is no inten ...

'' in guest roles in 1975 and 1976. George Miller's first choice for the starring role of '' Max Rockatansky'' was Healey himself whom at the time worked at a Melbourne abattoir, while pursuing his theatrical film debut. Upon reading the script of '' Mad Max'' (1979) given to him, Healey declined the role of the strong but taciturn character, finding the lead's meager and terse dialogue too unappealing for his vocal acting performance. The American up-and-coming young actor

Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apocaly ...

then served as Healey's starring replacement for the role of Max. During the release of ''

Mad Max 2 ''Mad Max 2'' (released as ''The Road Warrior'' in the United States) is a 1981 Australian post-apocalyptic action film directed by George Miller. It is the second installment in the ''Mad Max'' franchise, with Mel Gibson reprising his role a ...

'' in theaters, Healey on the other hand had a regular role on the

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

The Restless Years ''The Restless Years'' is an Australian soap opera which followed the lives of several Sydney school-leavers and the drama and relationships faced by young adults. It was created by Reg Watson and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation for N ...

'' as the murderous villain Gary Fisher in 1981. He also appeared in '' Sons and Daughters'' for two episodes, as Wayne Hamilton's best man, in 1983. On

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

he appeared on the soap opera ''

Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

'' as

Sean Rowan ''Dynasty'' is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 12, 1981 to May 11, 1989. The series, created by Richard and Esther Shapiro and produced by Aaron Spelling, revolves around the Carringtons, a wealthy f ...

. He appeared in the show throughout the 1987–88 season, during which time his character became the fourth husband of Alexis Carrington Colby, played by

Joan Collins Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primetime ...

after saving her life following a car crash. After that he had a regular role on daytime serial '' Santa Barbara'' in 1990.

Arrest

In 1993, Healey was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon, and sentenced to 200 hours of community service and three years' probation upon suspension of a two-year state prison term. His acting career ended in 1996.

References

External links

* Living people Irish emigrants to Australia Australian male television actors Place of birth missing (living people) Alumni of RADA 1951 births Irish expatriates in the United Kingdom {{Australia-actor-stub Male actors from County Galway Male actors from Melbourne