1. Early life and career

2. Collaborations

3. Personal life

4. Accolades

5. Filmography

6. References

7. External links

Cassel first came to prominence in the 1960s in the pioneering independent films of writer/director John Cassavetes. The first of these was Too Late Blues (1961), followed by Faces (1968), for which he was nominated for an Academy Award and won a National Society of Film Critics Award. Cassel went on to appear in Cassavetes' Minnie and Moskowitz (1971), The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976), Opening Night (1977), and Love Streams (1984).

He has further appeared in a number of independent and Hollywood film productions. Notable titles include Coogan's Bluff (1968), The Last Tycoon (1976), Valentino (1977), Convoy (1978), Johnny Be Good (1988), Mobsters (1991), In the Soup (1992), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Indecent Proposal (1993), Beer League (2006), and Fort McCoy (2011). Like Cassavetes, Wes Anderson has frequently cast Cassel - first in Rushmore (1998), and then in The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004).

Early life and career

Cassel was born in Detroit, Michigan, the son of Pancretia Ann (née Kearney), a performer, and Seymour Joseph Cassel, a nightclub owner.^[2][3] Cassel's early career was tied to fellow actor John Cassavetes, who is informally part of his clan of actors.^[4] He made his movie debut in Cassavetes' first film, Shadows, on which he also served as associate producer. In 1961 he co-starred with Cassavetes in Too Late Blues and 1962's The Webster Boy. He also appeared in The Lloyd Bridges Show in the episode "A Pair of Boots" directed by his friend Cassavetes. Cassel appeared on such popular programs as Twelve O'Clock High, Combat! and The F.B.I. He also appeared as "Cancelled", one of Colonel Gumm's henchmen, in the 1960s Batman TV episode "A Piece of the Action", which also featured guest stars Van Williams and Bruce Lee as The Green Hornet and Kato, respectively.

Collaborations

In 1968, Cassel was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Chet in John Cassavetes's Faces. Other collaborations with Cassavetes included a starring role with Gena Rowlands in Minnie and Moskowitz, supporting roles in The Killing of a Chinese Bookie and Love Streams, and a cameo appearance in Opening Night. Having appeared in major Hollywood productions such as Dick Tracy, Tin Men, and Indecent Proposal, Cassel has also been very supportive of the American independent film community, especially in the wake of Cassavetes's death. Cassel had a small role in Steve Buscemi's directorial debut Trees Lounge and appeared in three films by Wes Anderson: Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic. Cassel appeared for four seasons in comedian Tracey Ullman's television series Tracey Takes On....

Personal life

Cassel married Elizabeth Deering in 1964; they had two children before divorcing in 1983.

Guitarist Slash (real name Saul Hudson), who was childhood friends with Cassel's son, credited Cassel with giving him his nickname, because he was always zipping from one place to another and never sitting still.^[5]

Accolades

In September 2007, Cassel was a candidate for national president of the Screen Actors Guild, along with Charley M. De La Peña, Alan Rosenberg (incumbent), and Barry Simmonds.

In 2009, Cassel was once again a candidate for national president of the Screen Actors Guild along with Anne Marie Johnson and Ken Howard. Howard was the eventual winner.

In 2012, the Oldenburg Film Festival in Germany introduced an actors' prize named the Seymour Cassel Award.^[6]

He won the National Society of Film Critics Awards, USA award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Faces.^[7]

Filmography

• Shadows (1958) (uncredited)
• Man on a String (1960) as Hotel Pageboy (uncredited)
• Juke Box Racket (1960) as Seymour
• Murder, Inc. (1960) as Teenager (uncredited)
• Too Late Blues (1961) as Red
• The Webster Boy (1962) as Vic
• The Nutty Professor (1963) as Bored Man (uncredited)
• The Killers (1964) as Postal Clerk
• The Hanged Man (1964, TV Movie) as Bellboy
• Faces (1968) as Chet
• The Sweet Ride (1968) as Surfer / Cyclist (uncredited)
• Coogan's Bluff (1968) as Young Hood
• The Revolutionary (1970) as Leonard II
• Minnie and Moskowitz (1971) as Seymour Moskowitz
• Moment to Moment (1975) as Wise Guy (uncredited)
• The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976) as Mort Weil
• The Last Tycoon (1976) as Seal Trainer
• Death Game (1977) asGeorge Manning
• Black Oak Conspiracy (1977) as Homer Metcalf
• Valentino (1977) as George Ullman
• Opening Night (1978) as Himself (uncredited)
• Convoy (1978) as Governer Haskins
• California Dreaming (1979) as Duke Slusarski
• Ravagers (1979) as Blind Lawyer
• Sunburn (1979) as Dobbs
• Mr. Mike's Mondo Video (1979) as Himself
• The Mountain Men (1980) as La Bont
• King of The Mountain (1981) as Barry Tanner
• Double Exposure (1982) as Dr. Frank Curtis
• Love Streams (1984) as Jack Lawson
• Beverly Hills Madam (1986, TV Movie) as Tony
• Eye of the Tiger (1986) as Sheriff
• Tin Men (1987) as Cheese
• Best Seller (1987) as Carter (uncredited)
• Survival Game (1987) as Dave Forrest
• Plain Clothes (1987) as Ed Malmburg
• Johnny Be Good (1988) as Wallace Gibson
• Colors (1988) as Sullivan
• Track 29 (1988) as Dr. Bernard Fairmont
• Wicked Stepmother (1989) as Feldshine, Magick Shop Owner
• John Cassavetes, the Man and His Work (1989, Documentary) as Himself
• Sweet Bird of Youth (1989) as Hatcher
• Dick Tracy (1990) as Sam Catchem
• Cold Dog Soup (1990) as Jojo
• White Fang (1991) as Skunker
• Mobsters (1991) as Father Bonotto
• Cold Heaven (1991) as Tom Farrelly
• Diary of a Hitman (1991) as Koening
• In the Soup (1992) as Joe
• Love Is Like That (1992) as Uncle Bud
• Chain of Desire (1992) as Mel
• Honeymoon in Vegas (1992) as Tony Cataracts
• Adventures in Spying (1992) as Ray Rucker
• Trouble Bound (1993) as Santino
• Indecent Proposal (1993) as Mr. Shackleford
• Boiling Point (1993) as Virgil Leach
• When Pigs Fly (1993) as Frank
• Chasers (1994) as Master Chief Bogg
• It Could Happen To You (1994) as Jack Gross
• There Goes My Baby (1994) as Pop
• Dark Side of Genius (1994) as Samuel Rourke
• Imaginary Crimes (1994) as Eddie
• Hand Gun (1994) as Jack McCallister
• Tollbooth (1994) as Larry / Leon
• Good Company (1996, TV series) as Jack O'Shea
• Dead Presidents (1995) as Saul (uncredited)
• Things I Never Told You (1996) as Frank
• Dream for an Insomniac (1996) as Uncle Leo
• Trees Lounge (1996) as Uncle Al
• Slaughter of the Cock (1996) as Ahilleas
• Dead Girl (1996) as Ira Golub
• Caméléone (1996) as Francis
• The Last Home Run (1996) as Older Jonathan
• Tracey Takes On... (1996-1999, TV Series) as Candy Casino
• This World, Then the Fireworks (1997) as Detective Harris
• Cannes Man (1997) as Sy Lerner
• Obsession (1997, German TV) as Jacob Frischmuth
• Motel Blue (1997) as Capistrano Minister
• The Last Don I & II (1997, TV Series) as Alfred Gronevelt
• Hollywood Salome (1998)
• Relax...It's Just Sex (1998) as Emile Pillsbury
• Hoods (1998) as Pop Martinelli (uncredited)
• The Treat (1998) as Chip O'Herlihee
• Snapped (1998) as Bob
• Rushmore (1998) as Bert Fischer
• The Last Call (1998)
• Getting to Know You (1999) (uncredited)
• Ballad of the Nightingale (1999) as Jimmy
• Smoking Cuban Style (1999) as Dragan
• Me and Will (1999) as Roy
• Black and White (1999) as Sal
• Temps (1999) as Arthur, the studio president
• Animal Factory (2000) as Lt. Seeman
• The Crew (2000) as Tony 'Mouth' Donato
• Just One Night (2000) as Arthur Imperial
• The Sleepy Time Gal (2001) as Bob
• Bartleby (2001) as Frank Waxman
• 61 (2001, TV Movie) as Sam Simon
• Women of the Night (2001) as Sally
• The Cure for Boredom (2001) as Eddie
• The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) as Dusty
• The Chameleon (2001) as Richard Cavanaugh
• Passionada (2002) as Daniel Vargas
• Sonny (2002) as Albert
• Stealing Harvard (2002) as Uncle Jack
• Manna from Heaven (2002) as Stanley
• The Burial Society (2002) as Sam Goldberg
• The Biz (2002) as Eugene Hinkle
• A Good Night to Die (2003) as Guy
• Stuck on You (2003) as Morty O'Reilly
• Sweet Underground (2004) as Wally
• Thanksgiving (2004, Short) as Del
• The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) as Esteban du Plantier
• Lonesome Jim (2005) as Don
• The Wendell Baker Story (2005) as Boyd Fullbright
• Bittersweet Place (2005) as Jack "Pappy" Schaffer
• The Tenants (2005) as Levenspiel
• Before It Had a Name (2005) as Jeff
• Welcome to California (2005) as Jim's Father
• Circadian Rhythm (2005) as Hoover
• Sea of Dreams (2006) as Tomaso
• Hollywood Dreams (2006) as Rupert
• Heist (2006, TV series) as Pops
• Ray of Sunshine (2006) as Victor
• Artie Lange's Beer League (2006) as Dirt
• The Happiest Day of His Life (2007) as Mrd. Jacobs
• Postal (2007) as Paul
• Cosmic Radio (2007) as Malcolm Stone
• Beau Jest (2008) as Abe Goldman
• Barbiere, IL (2008) as Mort
• Big Heart City (2008) as Larry
• Reach for Me (2008) as Alvin
• Flight Of The Conchords (2009, TV Series) as Johnny Boy
• Staten Island (2009) as Jasper Sabiano
• Not Dead Yet (2009) as Francis
• Irene in Time (2009)
• Chasing 3000 (2010) as Poppy
• Kissing Strangers (2010) as Mr. Koster
• Pete Smalls Is Dead (2010) as Saco
• Now Here (2010) as Commissioner
• Fort McCoy (2011) as Father Mivkovek
• Without Borders (2011) as Detective McKenneth
• L!fe Happens (2011) as Pop Pop
• Freerunner (2011) as Gramps
• The Call (2011, co-starring Ryan Newman)
• Silver Case (2012, directed by Christian Filippella) as Dealer
• Booster (2012) as Harold
• Broken Kingdom (2012) as Clayton
• Lost Angeles (2012) as Film Critic
• The Secret Lives of Dorks (2013) as Principal
• Pride of Lions (2014) as Dominic Ackers
• Lucky Dog (2014) as The Real Spencer
• The Algerian (2014) as Professor Wright
• At the Maple Grove (2014) as Boyle
• The Last Beat (2014)
• Silver Case: Director's Cut (2015) as Dealer

References

External links

• {{IMDb name|1025}}
• Interview with the Palisadian-Post

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