Kurt Russell

American actor Kurt Russell (1951) started his career as a child star in numerous TV series and Walt Disney Company films. He was nominated for an Emmy Award for his title role in John Carpenter's television film Elvis (1979) and five years later for a Golden Globe for his supporting role in Silkwood (1983). Russell worked repeatedly with directors John Carpenter and Quentin Tarantino.


Big Italian collector card, ca. 1990.


French postcard by Sonis, no. C. 517. Photo: Studio Canal + (U.S.). Kurt Russell in Stargate (Roland Emmerich, 1994).

Kicking Elvis Presley in the leg

Kurt Vogel Russell was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1951. He is the son of actor Bing Russell, known for his role as the sheriff on the TV Western Bonanza, and dancer Louise Julia (née Crone). His family relocated to California when he was a child, and Russell grew up in Thousand Oaks. Kurt appeared in the television series Sugarfoot as early as 1957. His film debut was the Elvis Presley vehicle It Happened at the World's Fair (Norman Taurog, 1961). He played a boy who kicked a pilot (Elvis Presley) in the leg.

At twelve, he made his first major appearance as Jaimie McPheeters in the Western TV series The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters (1963-1964). The series also featured Dan O'Herlihy, Charles Bronson and the then very young Osmonds. In 1966, Russell signed a ten-year contract with Walt Disney Productions and acted in the films Follow Me, Boys! (Norman Tokar, 1966) with Fred MacMurray, The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (Robert Butler, 1969), Now You See Him, Now You Don't (Robert Butler, 1972) and The Strongest Man in the World (Vincent McEveety, 1975).

Russell became the studio's top star of the 1970s. In 1970, he also recorded an unsuccessful pop album, 'Kurt Russell', for Capitol. After his experiences as a child star, he played baseball during the first half of the 1970s. He played second base on a minor league team for the California Angels (now the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim). After suffering a rotator cuff injury to one shoulder, he was forced to retire from the sport in 1973. He then turned his full attention back to acting.

In 1979, he played Elvis Presley in the television movie Elvis (John Carpenter, 1979) in which his then-wife Season Hubley played Priscilla. This would transition Russell's Hollywood career after years as a child actor. It also led to a series of collaborations with director John Carpenter. AllMovie: "His next role as a sleazy used car salesman in Robert Zemeckis' hilariously caustic Used Cars (1980) allowed him to counter his wholesome, all-American nice guy image, and prove that he was an actor of untapped range. Director Carpenter recognized this and cast Russell as ruthless mercenary Snake Plissken in his brooding sci-fi/action film Escape From New York (1981). The role would prove to be one of legendary status and one that would cement Russell as a cult hero for generations to come. Carpenter also cast Russell as a scientist stranded in the Antarctic in his chilling 1982 remake of The Thing. Realizing that his characters were larger than life, Russell typically played them with a subtle tongue-in-cheek quality."

Another success was Silkwood (Mike Nichols, 1983) with Meryl Streep and Cher. The success of that film helped him break into a more mainstream arena. In 1983, Kurt Russell fell in love with Goldie Hawn, while shooting Swing Shift (Jonathan Demme, 1984). The film flopped but the two have been a couple ever since. Their next joint film, the hilarious comedy Overboard (Garry Marshall, 1987) was a success. Other memorable films are the comedy Rocket Man (Roger Spottiswoode, 1986) starring Robin Williams, Big Trouble in Little China (John Carpenter, 1986) and Winter People (Ted Kotcheff, 1989).


British freecard by Boomerang. Image: United International Pictures / Paramount. Kurt Russell in Escape from L.A. (John Carpenter, 1996). Caption: Snake is back. Plan your escape.


American freecard by Max Racks. Image: Paramount Pictures. Kurt Russell in Escape from L.A. (John Carpenter, 1996). Caption: Snake is back. Plan your escape.

Stuntman Mike and Mr. Nobody

At the end of the 1980s, Kurt Russell's career seemed to slip until he got the lead opposite Sylvester Stallone in Tango & Cash (Andrej Konchalovskiy, Albert Magnoli, 1989), as Patrick Swayze refused the role. Russell's role in Backdraft (Ron Howard, 1991) marked his comeback, while Dennis Quaid was the first choice for that role.

He was the star of the Science Fiction film Stargate (Roland Emmerich, 1994) about a stargate that allows one to travel from one planet to another and back again. The blockbuster eventually formed the basis for the Stargate series in 1997 with Richard Dean Anderson in Russell's role.

Russell returned as Snake Plisskin in Escape from L.A. (John Carpenter, 1996). He also co-wrote the screenplay with John Carpenter and Debra Hill. Another highlight in his career is Grindhouse (Robert Rodriguez, Quentin Tarantino, 2007), split into two stories; Death Proof and Planet Terror. Tarantino directed Death Proof in which Russell starred as the psychopathic Stuntman Mike who kills young women with his stunt car.

He co-starred as Mr. Nobody in the action hit Furious 7/Fast & Furious 7 (James Wan, 2015), starring Vin Diesel and Paul Walker. He reunited with Quentin Tarantino for the Western The Hateful Eight (Quentin Tarantino, 2015) starring Samuel Jackson and Jennifer Jason Leigh, and the action film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Quentin Tarantino, 2019) with Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie. Russell returned as Mr. Nobody in The Fate of the Furious/Fast & Furious 8 (G. Gary Gray, 2017), another smash hit, and F9/F9: The Fast Saga (Justin Lin, 2021).

In 2017, Russell and Hawn received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in a joint ceremony. That year, he was seen in the Marvel epic Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (James Gunn 2017) in the role of Ego. The following year, he played Santa Claus in the Christmas film The Christmas Chronicles (Clay Kaytis, 2018). Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn live on a ranch near Aspen. Russell has a son from his first marriage to Season Hubley, Boston Russell, and a son with Hawn, Wyatt Russell. He also has a stepdaughter and a stepson, Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson, the daughter and son of Hawn and Bill Hudson.


Dutch freecard by Boomerang Studycards, Haarlem. Image: Paramount Pictures. Kurt Russell in Escape from L.A. (John Carpenter, 1996).


German postcard in the Actors and Actresses series by Bookking International, Stuttgart, no. 733-748. Photos: Paramount Pictures. Kurt Russell and Valeria Golina in Escape from L.A. (John Carpenter, 1996).

Sources: Anne-Marie Cowsill (IMDb), AllMovie, Wikipedia (Dutch, German and English) and IMDb.