Ike Eisenmann (born July 21, 1962) is a former American actor, producer, and sound effects specialist who has been active in the entertainment industry since childhood.

Early life and education

Eisenmann was born in

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

, the son of Ruth Ann (''

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

'' Gumney) and Albert Able Eisenmann Sr., an actor who appeared as "Cadet Don" on an

eponymous An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

children's television show that aired on KTRK (Channel 13) in Houston from 1959 to 1968. Ike's younger brother, Albert Able "Al" Eisenmann Jr., is also an actor, as are Al's daughter Hannah and her brother Stone.

Career

Having appeared on TV shows in the early 1970s, Ike Eisenmann first came to prominence as Tony, the brother of Tia (

Kim Richards Kim Erica Richards (born September 19, 1964) is an American actress, socialite, and television personality. She began her career as a child actress, and rose to prominence from her roles in '' Nanny and the Professor'', '' Escape to Witch Mount ...

), in

Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October 1 ...

' film '' Escape to Witch Mountain'' (1975) and its sequel, '' Return from Witch Mountain'' (1978). For Green Giant commercials in the 1970s and 1980s, he voiced the Little Green Sprout. He also appeared in '' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'' (1982) as engineering cadet Peter Preston,

Chief Engineer A chief engineer, commonly referred to as "ChEng" or "Chief", is the most senior engine officer of an engine department on a ship, typically a merchant ship, and holds overall leadership and the responsibility of that department..Chief engineer ...

Montgomery Scott Montgomery "Scotty" Scott is a fictional character in the science fiction franchise ''Star Trek''. First portrayed by James Doohan in the original ''Star Trek'' series, Scotty also appears in the animated ''Star Trek'' series, 10 ''Star Trek ...

's nephew. Eisenmann starred in the NBC TV series '' The Fantastic Journey'', and made appearances in other series including ''

CHiPs ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The seri ...

'', '' T. J. Hooker'', ''

The Jeffersons ''The Jeffersons'' is an American sitcom television series that was broadcast on CBS from January 18, 1975, to July 2, 1985, lasting 11 seasons and a total of 253 episodes. ''The Jeffersons'' is one of the longest-running sitcoms in history, ...

'', ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byrne, are credited as bein ...

'', ''

Kung Fu Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (), are multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. These fighting styles are often classified according to commo ...

'', ''

Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that ran from 1967 to 1975 on CBS. It was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer Bruce Geller. The title character, Joe Mannix, is a private in ...

'', ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books is a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adolescence in the American Midwest (Wisconsin, Kansas, ...

'', several episodes of ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...

'', and several appearances on the ''

ABC Afterschool Special ''ABC Afterschool Special'' is an American television anthology series that aired on ABC from October 4, 1972, to January 23, 1997, usually in the late afternoon on weekdays. Most episodes were dramatically presented situations, often controve ...

''. He also appeared in the TV movies '' Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell'' and ''

Terror Out of the Sky Terror(s) or The Terror may refer to: Politics * Reign of Terror, commonly known as The Terror, a period of violence (1793–1794) after the onset of the French Revolution * Terror (politics), a policy of political repression and violence Emoti ...

'' in 1978. Eisenmann starred in the made-for-television 1982 movie ''

Dreams Don't Die A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, alt ...

'' as New York subway

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

artist Danny Baker, who tries to publish his art professionally. Though not a critical success, the film enjoyed

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. Thi ...

status during late night rebroadcasts. Eisenmann continued to appear in minor television roles as a teen, such as on the sitcom ''

''. He also appeared in the 1978 mini-series '' The Bastard'' as the Marquis de LaFayette. His other film roles included '' The Formula'' (1980) opposite

Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academ ...

and George C. Scott, '' Cross Creek'' (1983) directed by

Martin Ritt Martin Ritt (March 2, 1914 – December 8, 1990) was an American director and actor who worked in both film and theater, noted for his socially conscious films. Some of the films he directed include '' The Long, Hot Summer'' (1958), '' The Black ...

, and Disney's '' Tom and Huck'' (1995) in a minor role.

Most recent work

In recent years, Eisenmann's career has been in

post-production Post-production is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording individual program segments. Th ...

and digital animation, working under the alternative spelling of his name, Ike Eissinmann. He has often worked as a

loop group In mathematics, a loop group is a group of loops in a topological group ''G'' with multiplication defined pointwise. Definition In its most general form a loop group is a group of continuous mappings from a manifold to a topological group . ...

actor, on movies such as '' American Beauty'', ''

What Lies Beneath ''What Lies Beneath'' is a 2000 American supernatural horror thriller film directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer as a couple who live in a haunted house. It was the first film by Zemeckis' production compan ...

'', ''

Meet the Parents ''Meet the Parents'' is a 2000 American comedy film written by Jim Herzfeld and John Hamburg and directed by Jay Roach. It chronicles a series of unfortunate events that befall a good-hearted but hapless nurse ( Ben Stiller as Greg Focker) while ...

'', ''

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Afric ...

'', and the ''

Shrek ''Shrek'' is a 2001 American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 book of the same name by William Steig. It is the first installment in the ''Shrek'' franchise. The film was directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jen ...

'' series. In 2002, he directed and appeared in a 12-minute short film, the spoof '' The Blair Witch Mountain Project''. The 2009 Witch Mountain remake, '' Race to Witch Mountain'', features Eisenmann, in a cameo along with his original co-star,

. Richards and Eisenmann appear in a scene together as a waitress and a sheriff, respectively.

Filmography

*'' Green Giant'' (1972–1989, commercial) *''The Magical Mystery Trip Through Little Red's Head'' (1974) – Larry *'' The Sky's the Limit'' (1975) – Three *'' Escape to Witch Mountain'' (1975) – Tony Malone *''

The Kansas City Massacre ''The Kansas City Massacre'' is a 1975 American television film about Melvin Purvis. It is the second spin-off of the 1973 film '' Dillinger'', following '' Melvin Purvis: G-Man'' in 1974, also directed by Dan Curtis and starring Dale Robertson as ...

'' (1975, TV movie) – Jimmie Floyd *'' The Amazing Cosmic Awareness of Duffy Moon'' (1976, ABC Afterschool Special) - Duffy Moon *'' Banjo Hackett: Roamin’ Free'' (1976, TV movie) – Jubal Winner *'' The Fantastic Journey'' (1977) - Scott Jordan *''Kit Carson and the Mountain Men'' (1977, TV movie) – Randy Benton *'' Return from Witch Mountain'' (1978) – Tony *'' The Bastard'' (1978, TV miniseries) – The Marquis de LaFayette *'' Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell'' (1978, TV movie) – Charlie Barry *''Terror Out of the Sky'' (1978, TV movie) – Eric Mangus *'' Can You Feel It'' (1979) - Jackson Five *'' The Formula'' (1980) – Tony *''Dreams Don't Die'' (1982, TV movie) – Danny Baker *'' Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'' (1982) – Midshipman Peter Preston *'' Cross Creek'' (1983) – Paul *'' Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind'' (1984) – (English version, voice) *'' GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords'' (1986) – Nick Burns (voice) *'' Some Kind of Wonderful'' (1987) – Party Guest *''Angel of Fury'' (1992) – (voice) *'' Pom Poko'' (1994) – Pom Poko (1994) – (English version, voice) *'' Tom and Huck'' (1995) – Taverner *'' The Blair Witch Mountain Project'' (2002) - Tony *''

Howl's Moving Castle ''Howl's Moving Castle'' is a fantasy novel by British author Diana Wynne Jones, first published in 1986 by Greenwillow Books of New York. It was a runner-up for the annual Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, and won the Phoenix Award twenty years ...

'' (2004) – (English version, voice) *'' Race to Witch Mountain'' (2009) – Sheriff Anthony

References

Bibliography

* Holmstrom, John. ''The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995''. Norwich, Michael Russell, 1996, p. 340.

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Eisenmann, Ike 1962 births American male film actors American male television actors American male voice actors American male child actors Living people Male actors from Houston