- Born
- Died
- Birth nameMilton Dillard Askew Jr
- Height5′ 11″ (1.80 m)
- Tall and rangy, usually sporting long mangy hair, and frequently projecting a strong and intense on-screen presence, character actor Luke Askew made a potent and lasting impression playing a substantial volume of mean and fearsome villains in both motion pictures and television shows alike in a career that spanned over forty years.
Askew was born on March 26, 1932 in Macon, Georgia, of English and Scandinavian descent. He first developed an interest in acting towards the end of his high school years. He attended the University of Georgia (where he initially planned on getting a B.A. in Business Administration), Mercer University, and the Walter F. George School of Law. Askew served in the U.S. Air Force in strategic air command intelligence during his college years.
Following college Askew worked as a radio deejay and television announcer prior to beginning his acting career in Off-Broadway stage productions in New York City (Askew lived in Greenwich Village in the early 1960s and kept himself afloat working as a furniture mover). Luke moved to Los Angeles in 1966 and made his film debut in 1967 in "Harry Sundown". Best known as the stranger on the highway in the hippie counterculture cult classic "Easy Rider", Askew's other memorable roles included the redoubtable Boss Paul in "Cool Hand Luke", the peaceful hippie commune leader Jonathan Tremaine in "Angel Unchained", the scary and brutal thug Automatic Slim in the grim revenge thriller "Rolling Thunder", the sleazy coroner Dexter Ward in "The Beast Within," and the no-nonsense Irish gypsy crime lord Boss Jack Costello in "Traveller".
Askew also appeared in a sizable number of Westerns made throughout the 1960s and 1970s: he had a rare lead role in the spaghetti Western "Night of the Serpent" and gave an especially fine performance as tough and stoic veteran cowpoke Luke in the gritty gem "The Culpepper Cattle Co."
Among the many TV series Askew popped up in throughout the years are "The High Chaparral", "Mission: Impossible", "Cannon", "Quincy, M.E.", "The Six Million Dollar Man", "Fantasy Island", "T.J. Hooker", "The Fall Guy", "Airwolf", "Murder, She Wrote", "Walker, Texas Ranger", "Everwood", and "Cold Case". He had a recurring role as the dangerous polygamist Hollis Greene on the acclaimed cable TV program "Big Love".
Askew died at age 80 at his home in Portland, Oregon on March 29, 2012. He was survived by his wife and his son, Christopher, a painter and tattoo artist.- IMDb Mini Biography By: woodyanders
- SpouseMargaret Patton Beasley(December 23, 1967 - March 28, 2012) (his death, 1 child)
- ChildrenChristopher Conn Askew
- ParentsMilton Dillard Askew Sr.Dorothy Doolittle
- Used to sing blues songs in the same club (the Gaslight) as Bob Dylan in the 1960s. A 33-rpm record was issued once but sold poorly. Confessed to Philippe Garnier (in the book "Caractères") that it was not so bad because "I had lost my voice when we taped this. Had too much booze the night before . . . ". According to the same interview, his Easy Rider (1969) contract had stipulated his name should appear as big as Peter Fonda's and Dennis Hopper's.
- His most famous role was in the 1969 film Easy Rider (1969) as the stranger on the highway.
- The way I feel about a movie has more to do with the experiences I had making it. Did I like the people? Did I like the location? Did I like the wardrobe? You know, wardrobe is very important. It's overlooked by a lot of people, but it's one of the most important things in the business because once you put on that outfit, you can be that guy. Like when you're a kid and you put on a cowboy suit, you're a cowboy. Easiest thing in the world.
- [on his acting technique] I don't do anything really; I'm just there.
- [about making Rolling Thunder (1977)] I received one of the best compliments ever on that film. The director, John Flynn, told me that working with me was like working with Robert Ryan, and Robert Ryan was one of my favorite actors years ago. So I asked him, "Why is that?" And he said, "Well, you can do anything--you do it by the numbers. All you gotta do is one shot and that's it." Because I am a very good, as they say in the business, technical actor. If there's a lot of physical business to be taken care of, I can do it. For instance, when I threw the knife in The Culpepper Cattle Co. (1972), I'd never thrown a knife before. But you just do it. And that's one of the great things about being an actor: You get to do things you'd never do otherwise.
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