Dennis Franz

Born: 28 October 1944
Where: Chicago, Illinois

Franz graduated from Southern Illinois University in 1969 and was immediately drafted into the military, where he served 11 months in Vietnam.

After the military, he joined the Organic Theatre Company. Robert Altman discovered him at an audition and urged him to come to Los Angeles where he became part of Altman's resident company.

Franz first made his mark in TV with a two-part guest spot as a corrupt cop on Hill Street Blues.

Impressed by his performance, producer Steven Bochco hired Franz for the short-lived baseball drama Bay City Blues. After that, he went back to the Hill Street Blues and recreated the character for the spin-off Beverly Hills Buntz.

His next major TV job was co-starring in Bochco's controversial cop show, NYPD Blue. Over the course of its long run, Franz emerged as the heart of the series and his highly-regarded performances have netted him (to date) four Emmy Awards, and a Golden Globe.

Franz has worked in a number of films directed by Robert Altman and Brian De Palma. It was at the urging of these two that he finally moved to L.A. after appearing in Altman's A Wedding and De Palma's The Fury.

Franz went on to appear in Altman's A Perfect Couple, Popeye and The Player, and De Palma's Dressed to Kill, Blow Out and Body Double.

In the 90s, Franz appeared in the Bruce Willis blockbuster sequel, Die Hard 2: Die Harder, teamed with Dustin Hoffman for the screen version of David Mamet's American Buffalo, and appeared in tearjerker City of Angels.