Rip Torn was born Elmore Rual Torn, Jr. on February 6, 1931 in Temple, Texas. "Rip" is a family name, taken by generations of Torn men and bestowed on Elmore by his father, who was also called "Rip". Torn attended Texas A & M and the University of Texas, where he majored in animal husbandry. Extremely naïf when he was young, Torn hitchhiked to Hollywood with the idea of becoming a movie star; he wanted to make enough money in order to buy a ranch. Success did not come overnight, as he had hoped, and Torn had to work many odd jobs while occasionally being cast in television roles. He made his feature film debut in 'Elia Kazan' Institute.
Graduated from Texas A & M College in 1952.
He and Geraldine Page have a daughter and twin sons.
On March 14, 1997, it was reported that he won a $475,000 defamation suit against Dennis Hopper. The lawsuit came about after remarks made by Hopper on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" on 31 May 1994.
Cousin of Sissy Spacek.
First cousin once removed of actresses Schuyler Fisk and Madison Fisk.
Was nominated for Broadways 1960 Tony Award as Best Supporting or Featured Actor for "Sweet Bird of Youth," a performance he recreated in the film version with the same title, Sweet Bird of Youth .
Godfather of Clay Liford.
Was a close friend from boyhood of actor Larry Blyden. As boys, friends would refer to the two as "Torn and Bleedin," Bleiden being the original spelling of the latters name.
Is a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.
In 1997 he appeared in Men in Black and Hercules . In "Men in Black" he plays "Zed", the head of the MIB agency. Also in that film, Tommy Lee Jones character, "Kay", is swallowed by a giant cockroach, and escapes by blowing the creature up from the inside. In "Hercules" he plays "Zeus", chief of the gods. In that film, Hercules is swallowed by the Hydra and escapes by cutting the creatures head off from inside.
Attended the Republican National Convention in New York in 2004.
Grew up in Texas.
Studied acting at the University of Texas.
Father of Tony Torn , John Torn , Angelica Page and Danae Torn.
Was the league commissioner of GSNs Extreme Dodgeball.
In 1970 a bullet was fired through the window of his home after he spoke out against the Vietnam War on "The Dick Cavett Show" .
Served as a U.S. Army military police officer after college.
Although he and Geraldine Page never got divorced, their relationship was already over in the mid-70s. Torn began a relationship with his third wife Amy Wright in 1976.
Mentioned in mini biography of Brenda Whitehead.
On January 29, 2010, he was arrested in Salisbury, CT, after police found him passed out, holding a loaded gun, on the floor of a bank that had just been broken into. Torn was drunk and thought the bank was his home. He was charged with criminal trespass, carrying a firearm without a permit, carrying a firearm while intoxicated, burglary and criminal mischief. He later pleaded guilty and was given a suspended 2.5-year prison sentence, three years of probation during which time he was forbidden from carrying a firearm and agreed to be subject to random drug and alcohol testing.
Has played three American presidents: Ulysses S. Grant, Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
His father was of Austrian and German descent. His mother was of three-quarters Moravian (Czech) and one quarter German descent.
I honor religion except when it gets into shedding blood.
You can never turn your back on the ocean.
Be your own politics, grow your own garden, and maybe you can help out,more.
Let the other guys do the crybaby stuff. Go for the laughs.
I think most actors are shy. I really do. The greatest actors can,disappear. I had friends call me the Blend-In Man.
Everybody says, "You impress me as a guy who never wanted to be a movie,star". I say, "Everybody in the world wants to be a movie star".
Be your own politics, grow your own garden, and maybe you can help out more.
