Brad Davis (actor)

Robert Creel Davis (November 6, 1949 – September 8, 1991), known professionally as Brad Davis, was an American actor. For his debut film role as Billy Hayes in the 1978 film '' Midnight Express,'' he won the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor and was nominated for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama, along with BAFTA Award nominations for Best Actor in a Leading Role and Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles.

Davis subsequently played the title role in the Rainer Werner Fassbinder film '' Querelle'' (1982), and appeared in such films as '' A Small Circle of Friends'' (1980), ''Chariots of Fire'' (1981), and '' Cold Steel'' (1987). He also starred in television films and miniseries.

Davis, who struggled with substance abuse issues throughout his adult life, was diagnosed with HIV in 1985 and committed assisted suicide by a drug overdose due to AIDS in 1991.

Biography

Early life

He was born in Tallahassee, Florida, to Eugene Davis, a dentist whose career declined due to alcoholism, and his wife, Anne (née Creel) Davis. His brother Gene is also an actor. Davis was known as Bobby during his youth, but took Brad as his stage name in 1973.Witchel, Alex. (April 16, 1997
"For the Widow of Brad Davis, Time Cannot Heal All the Wounds"
''The New York Times''; accessed July 31, 2007. He attended and graduated from Titusville High School.

According to a 1997 ''New York Times'' interview with his widow Susan Bluestein, Davis suffered physical abuse from his father and sexual abuse from his mother. As an adult, Davis was an alcoholic and an intravenous drug user, then became sober in 1981. Davis was bisexual.

Early acting roles

At 16, after winning a music-talent contest, Davis worked at Theater Atlanta. He later moved to New York City and attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and the American Place Theater where he studied acting. After a role on the soap opera '' How to Survive a Marriage'', he performed in Off-Broadway plays.

In 1976, he was cast in the television mini-series ''Roots'', then as Sally Field's love interest in the television film '' Sybil''. The same year, he married casting director Susan Bluestein. They would have one child together, Alex Blue Davis (b. 1983), a musician and actor.

In 1977, he was cast as John Rambo in ''First Blood'' when John Frankenheimer was scheduled to direct the film before it was cancelled due to Orion Pictures' acquisition of Filmways.

''Midnight Express'' and stardom

His most successful film role was as the main character Billy Hayes in '' Midnight Express'' (1978), for which he won the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor. He was nominated for a similar award at that year's BAFTA Awards, in addition to receiving Best Actor nominations at both ceremonies (Richard Dreyfuss won for '' The Goodbye Girl'').

In 1980, Davis would play war correspondent Phil Caputo in the biographical made-for-television film '' A Rumor of War''. The same year, he would be top-billed for his role in the film '' A Small Circle of Friends''.

In 1981, he played American track star Jackson Scholz in the Academy Award-winning film ''Chariots of Fire''.

In 1982, Davis played the title role of Georges Querelle in the film film '' Querelle,'' Rainer Werner Fassbinder's final film before his death by a drug overdose.

Supporting roles and television films

Davis played the lead role of Ned Weeks in '' The Normal Heart'' (1985), Larry Kramer's play about AIDS.

While continuing to play supporting roles in theatrical films, Davis appeared regularly in made-for-television films, including '' Chiefs'', '' Robert Kennedy & His Times, The Rainbow Warrior Conspiracy'', and '' The Plot to Kill Hitler.'' He played Queeg in a 1988 television adaptation of ''The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial'', directed by Robert Altman, opposite Eric Bogosian and Jeff Daniels.

Illness and death

Diagnosed with HIV in 1985, Davis kept his condition private until shortly before his death at age 41 on September 8, 1991, in Los Angeles. In 1997, his wife Susan revealed that he probably contracted HIV through intravenous drug use, and that he committed assisted suicide by a drug overdose. It was revealed in a book proposal that Davis had written before his death that he had to keep his HIV-positive status a secret to be able to continue to work and support his family.

He is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills.Wilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Location 11241). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Brad
1949 births
1991 deaths
1991 suicides
20th-century American male actors
American bisexual male actors
American male film actors
American male stage actors
American male television actors
American people of Welsh descent
Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)
Deaths by euthanasia
Drug-related suicides in California
LGBTQ people from Florida
Male actors from Tallahassee, Florida
New Star of the Year (Actor) Golden Globe winners
People with HIV/AIDS
Titusville High School alumni
People from Titusville, Florida