Lou Diamond Phillips

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Lou Diamond Phillips
LouDiamondPhillipsByPhilKonstantinPublicDomain.jpg
Lou Diamond Phillips, August 2007
Born Lou Diamond Upchurch
(1962-02-17) February 17, 1962 (age 52)
Subic Bay Naval Station, Philippines
Occupation Actor, film director, television director
Years active 1984–present
Spouse(s) Julie Cypher (1987–1990)
Kelly Phillips (1994–2007)
Yvonne Marie Boismier (2007–present)

Lou Diamond Phillips (born Lou Diamond Upchurch; February 17, 1962) is an American actor and director.[1][2] His breakthrough came when he starred in the film La Bamba as Ritchie Valens. He earned a supporting actor Golden Globe Award nomination for his role in Stand and Deliver and a Tony Award nomination for his role in The King and I. Other notable films in which Phillips has starred include Courage Under Fire, Che, and Love Takes Wing.

Early life[edit]

Phillips was born at the Subic Bay Naval Station in the Philippines, the son of Lucita Aranas and Gerald Upchurch, an officer in the United States Navy.[3][4] His father was an American of Scottish-Irish and one-quarter Cherokee descent, and his mother, a native of Candelaria, Zambales, is of Filipino Spanish descent.[4][5][6]

Phillips was named after Marine legend Leland "Lou" Diamond.[7] After his father died, he took his stepfather's surname "Phillips" as his own.[5]

He was raised in Texas, where he attended Flour Bluff High School in Corpus Christi graduating in 1980. He graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington with a BFA in Drama.

Career[edit]

The first low-budget film in which he starred was called Trespasses. Phillips' big break came with the starring role in 1987's La Bamba, in which he played early rocker Ritchie Valens. Prior to his cinematic breakthrough, he starred in the Miami Vice episode "Red Tape" (13 Mar 1987), portraying detective Bobby Diaz.

In 1988, Phillips co-starred with Edward James Olmos in the inner-city high school drama Stand and Deliver, in a role for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture". He plays Angel Guzman, a cholo gangster who is inspired by his math teacher, Jaime Escalante, to excel at calculus. Working to master the subject, he develops a friendship with his teacher. Stand and Deliver was filmed before La Bamba, but it was released a year later. In 1988 and 1990, Phillips co-starred with Emilio Estevez and Kiefer Sutherland in the Western films Young Guns and Young Guns II, in which he plays Jose Chavez y Chavez, a historical Old West outlaw.

In the mid-1990s, Phillips was a vocalist with the Los Angeles based rock group The Pipefitters.[8]

In 1996, Phillips made his Broadway debut as the King in Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's The King and I. Phillips won a Theatre World Award and was nominated for both a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award for his performance.[9]

In 1998, he starred as Cisco, the counterpart of the main character Melvin Smiley (played by Mark Wahlberg), in the comedy-action movie The Big Hit.

He later featured a minor role in the TV sitcom George Lopez (2002–2004) as George Lopez's half-brother.

On September 11, 2007, Phillips joined the touring troupe for Lerner and Loewe's Camelot in the role of King Arthur.[10]

He also played a role in the first season of the TV series 24 as secret government agent Mark DeSalvo, opposite former Young Guns star Kiefer Sutherland. Phillips played the recurring role of FBI agent Ian Edgerton in the television series Numb3rs. Edgerton is an FBI tracker and sniper who works as an instructor at Quantico FBI Academy when he is not working a case in the field. Phillips won the second season of the NBC reality series, I'm a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!, over pro-wrestler Torrie Wilson. Lou currently hosts the weekly series An Officer and a Movie on The Military Channel. This series features various theatrical World War II dramas, with discussion breaks during the film in which Phillips interviews members of the US Military and Intelligence communities about details of the events that inspired each film.

Phillips had a recurring role as Colonel Telford in the Stargate Universe television series during its two-season run on the SyFy channel 2009-2011. He played the would-be commander of the Destiny expedition, who is left behind when an accident launches an unsuspecting crew into deep space. The commander works from Earth to bring the crew home, often coming into conflict with the shipborne command characters.

Phillips has been a regular poker player since college.[11] In May 2009, Phillips placed 31st of 403 entrants in the 2009 California State Poker Championship Limit Texas hold 'em.[12] He placed in the money at the $10,000 July 2009 World Series of Poker World Championship No Limit main event.[13] He was eliminated as the original field of 6,494 was trimmed from 407 to 185. He entered the day in 114th place among the 407 and was eliminated on the final hand of the day finishing in 186th place and earning $36,626.[14][15]

In January 2012, he was one of eight celebrities participating in the Food Network reality series Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off.[16] On January 29, 2012, he was announced as the winner with a Zagat score of 28 out of 30, winning $50,000 for his charity.

In June 2012, Philips began costarring in Longmire, about a modern day sheriff played by Robert Taylor. Phillips is playing Henry Standing Bear, a Native American, who is Longmire's good friend—often helping him with cases and in dealing with the reservation police who do not respect or like outsiders, especially other law enforcement.

In December 2012, he was featured in Imagine Dragons music video for "Radioactive".

Personal life[edit]

Relationships and family[edit]

During the making of Trespasses, he met Julie Cypher, an assistant director. They married on September 17, 1987. They divorced on August 5, 1990.

He met Jennifer Tilly, to whom he was briefly engaged, although the two never married. He later married Penthouse model and television extra Kelly Preston; they have two daughters: Grace Moorea and Isabella Patricia (twins born on October 5, 1997). They reside with their mother. Phillips and Preston separated in 2004 and their lengthy divorce was finalized in July 2007.[17]

He began dating artist Yvonne Boismier in 2004, after his separation. They married in August 2007. Their daughter, Indigo Sanara Phillips, was born in October 2007.

Arrest[edit]

On August 11, 2006, he was arrested for domestic violence at his Los Angeles home following a dispute with his live-in girlfriend and future wife, makeup artist Yvonne Boismier.[18] In December 2006, he pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor count of domestic battery and was sentenced to three years' probation. He also was ordered to undergo one year of domestic violence counseling and to serve 200 hours of community service.[19]

Activism[edit]

Phillips speaking at the Filipino American Library Spirit Awards and Dinner GALA in Los Angeles in October 2006.

Phillips has been an outspoken advocate of HR 4574, the Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2006, legislation to provide the same benefits to Filipino World War II veterans who served with the United States as have been available to other U.S. World War II veterans.[20]

He is also a supporter of the Thoughtful House Center for Children, founded by Doctor Andrew Wakefield. It is controversial because of Wakefield's claims about the connection between the MMR vaccine and autism.[citation needed]

Phillips is very close to the Native American community. In 1990, he was adopted by the Sioux tribe, although he is Cherokee by blood. "Star Keeper" is his Sioux name.[21] That year, he also organized a concert, The Winds of Life, to benefit Native American causes.[22] After Phillips was cast as Henry Standing Bear in A & E's Longmire, he met with Cheyenne elders in Montana who adopted him as one of their own. “I visited the rez, received a blessing from one of the Cheyenne elders, met with Tribal President Leroy Spang, participated in a sweat with a lot of the brothers, and got to experience their culture firsthand.” [23]

Awards and achievements[edit]

  • 1989 Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male (Stand and Deliver, 1988)
  • 1989 Golden Globe Award nominee for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture (Stand and Deliver, 1988)
  • 1989 Western Heritage Award Bronze Wrangler Theatrical Motion Picture (Young Guns, 1988). Shared with John Fusco (producer), Christopher Cain (producer), Charlie Sheen (actor), Emilio Estevez (actor), Kiefer Sutherland (actor)
  • 1993 Oxfam America award for his dedication toward ending world hunger
  • 1994 Houston International Film Festival Gold award for Best Theatrical Feature Film for Ultimate Revenge
  • 1996 Tony Award nominee for Best Actor on Broadway (The King And I)
  • 1996 Theater World Award: The King and I
  • 1996 New York Outer Critics Circle: Outstanding Broadway Debut Award of an Actor, The King & I
  • 1997 Blockbuster Entertainment Award Favorite Supporting Actor - Adventure/Drama (Courage Under Fire, 1996)
  • 1997 Lone Star Film & Television Award for Best Supporting Actor (Courage Under Fire, 1996)
  • 2001 Filipinas magazine "Achievement award for Entertainment"
  • 2003 Cinemanila Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award (Philippines)
  • 2005 Asia Pacific Islander Heritage Award for Excellence in Entertainment and Arts
  • 2009 I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here! King of the Jungle
  • 2012 Rachael vs Guy Celebrity Cook Off: Winner

Filmography[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ The New York Times
  2. ^ Los Angeles Times
  3. ^ Lou Diamond Phillips Biography
  4. ^ a b "The Return of the Native". Starweek Magazine. 1999.  ; no longer online, transcript at http://www.ritchievalens.org/thereturnofthenative.html
  5. ^ a b Second Generation
  6. ^ Honeycutt, Kirk (1990-08-19). "Lou Diamond Phillips: From Young Gun to Young Writer". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2009-11-28. 
  7. ^ My name is Lou Diamond Phillips, an American citizen of Filipino descent
  8. ^ LA Times: Pipefitters: A Diamond Is Their Ace in the Hole
  9. ^ IBDb
  10. ^ Broadway World.com. Accessed on February 24 2008
  11. ^ "Lou Diamond Phillips: The Mayor of Pokerville". Bluff Magazine. January 2006. Retrieved 2009-07-13. 
  12. ^ "2009 California State Poker Championship: Limit Hold'em". Bluff Magazine. 2009-05-03. Retrieved 2009-07-11. 
  13. ^ "2009 40th Annual World Series of Poker: World Championship NL Texas Hold'em (Event 57)". Harrah's License Company, LLC. 2009-07-??. Retrieved 2009-07-11. 
  14. ^ Stutz, Howard (2009-07-13). "WSOP giant falls; '08 champ still in: Final table of nine expected on Wednesday". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 2009-07-13. 
  15. ^ "2009 40th Annual World Series of Poker: World Championship NL Texas Hold'em (Event 57)". Harrah's License Company, LLC. Retrieved 2009-07-15. 
  16. ^ Rachael vs. Guy Celebrity Cook-Off: New Show Premieres This Winter
  17. ^ Lou Diamond Phillips and Kelly Preston Divorce
  18. ^ People magazine, August 11, 2006
  19. ^ "Lou Diamond Phillips sentenced to probation". MSN. 
  20. ^ Gazette.net
  21. ^ http://www.cowboysindians.com/Cowboys-Indians/September-2012/Lou-Diamond-Phillips/Lou-Diamond-Phillips-Strength-From-Versatility/
  22. ^ Honeycutt, Kirk (August 19, 1990). "Lou Diamond Phillips: From Young Gun to Young Writer". Los Angeles Times. 
  23. ^ http://www.cowboysindians.com/Cowboys-Indians/September-2012/Lou-Diamond-Phillips/

External links[edit]

https://www.theinvitedmovie.com

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