Craig Eric Sheffer (born April 23, 1960) is an American film and television
actor
An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...
. He is known for his starring roles as Hardy Jenns in ''
Some Kind of Wonderful'' (1987), Aaron "Cabal" Boone in ''
Nightbreed'' (1990),
Norman Maclean in ''
A River Runs Through It ''(1992), Joe Kane in ''
The Program'' (1993), Joseph in ''
Bliss
BLISS is a system programming language developed at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) by W. A. Wulf, D. B. Russell, and A. N. Habermann around 1970. It was perhaps the best known system language until C debuted a few years later. Since then, C ...
'' (1997), and as Keith Scott on the
television series
A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...
''
One Tree Hill'' (2003–12).
Early life
Sheffer was born in
York, Pennsylvania
York is a city in York County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. Located in South Central Pennsylvania, the city's population was 44,800 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in ...
, where his father worked as a prison guard. He began acting in school plays while attending
York Suburban Senior High School, competing regional and state drama competitions. He attended
East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania for two years on a sports scholarship, playing baseball and football, until sustaining a knee injury. He dropped out in 1980 to pursue his acting career.
Sheffer moved to
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
at the behest of his then-girlfriend, but they broke up shortly thereafter, and Sheffer spent some time homeless. He "slept under the marble staircase" in
Grand Central Terminal
Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal station, terminal located at 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York Ci ...
for weeks while living off
Unification Church
The Unification Church () is a new religious movement, whose members are called Unificationists or sometimes informally Moonies. It was founded in 1954 by Sun Myung Moon in Seoul, South Korea, as the Holy Spirit Association for the Unificatio ...
spaghetti dinners, and made a living selling newspapers.
Career
After appearing in
commercials
A television advertisement (also called a commercial, spot, break, advert, or ad) is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization. It conveys a message promoting, and aiming to market, a product, service or idea. ...
, Sheffer was first seen on a nationwide basis as Ian Hayden on the
ABC daytime
soap opera
A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
''
One Life to Live
''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as ...
'' in 1982, and on the short-lived primetime drama ''
The Hamptons
The Hamptons, part of the East End (Long Island), East End of Long Island, consist of the town (New York), towns of Southampton (town), New York, Southampton and East Hampton (town), New York, East Hampton, which together compose the South Fork ...
'' in 1983. In 1984, he was cast in his first film role, as the romantic lead opposite
Pia Zadora
Pia Zadora (born Pia Alfreda Schipani; May 4, 1954) is an American actress and singer. She debuted as a child actress on Broadway, in regional theater, and in the film ''Santa Claus Conquers the Martians'' (1964). She came to national attention i ...
in the genre-bending musical ''
Voyage of the Rock Aliens.'' He also starred in the
Broadway play ''
Torch Song Trilogy'', replacing Paul Joynt midway through its run.
He subsequently had starring roles in films as the best friend of troubled teenager
Emilio Estevez
Emilio Estevez (; born May 12, 1962) is an American actor and filmmaker. The son of actor Martin Sheen and the older brother of Charlie Sheen, he made his film debut with an uncredited role in '' Badlands'' (1973). He later received his first ...
in ''
That Was Then... This Is Now'' (1985), a reformatory camp inmate in ''
Fire with Fire'' (1986), an antagonistic rich kid in ''
Some Kind of Wonderful'' (1987), and the romantic love interest of an overweight cosmetician in ''
Baby Cakes ''(1989). In 1990, he played the leading role of Aaron "Cabal" Boone in
Clive Barker
Clive Barker (born 5 October 1952) is an English writer, filmmaker, and visual artist. He came to prominence in the 1980s with a series of short stories collectively named the ''Books of Blood'', which established him as a leading horror author ...
's horror film ''
Nightbreed''.
In 1992, Sheffer starred as author
Norman Maclean in the
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People and fictional and mythical characters
* Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar
* Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...
-winning biographical film ''
A River Runs Through It'', directed by
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received numerous accolades such as an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and two Golden Globe Awards, as well as the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1994, the ...
. He then played
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...
candidate
quarterback
The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
Joe Kane in ''
The Program'' in 1993.
Sheffer's other films include ''
Fire in the Sky'' (1993), ''
Head Above Water'' (1996), and ''
Sleep With Me'' (1994) (as the apex of a romantic triangle which included
Eric Stoltz and
Meg Tilly). Sheffer played the leading role in
Clive Barker
Clive Barker (born 5 October 1952) is an English writer, filmmaker, and visual artist. He came to prominence in the 1980s with a series of short stories collectively named the ''Books of Blood'', which established him as a leading horror author ...
's franchise sequel, ''
Hellraiser: Inferno''. He also played the main character in 1997's ''
Bliss
BLISS is a system programming language developed at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) by W. A. Wulf, D. B. Russell, and A. N. Habermann around 1970. It was perhaps the best known system language until C debuted a few years later. Since then, C ...
'' which starred
Sheryl Lee,
Terence Stamp
Terence Henry Stamp (born 22 July 1938) is an English actor. Known for his sophisticated villain roles, he was named by ''Empire (magazine), Empire'' as one of the 100 Sexiest Film Stars of All Time in 1995. He has received various accolades in ...
and
Leigh Taylor-Young
Leigh Taylor-Young (born January 25, 1945) is an American former actress who has appeared on stage, screen, podcast, radio, and television. Her best-known films include '' I Love You, Alice B. Toklas'' (1968), '' The Horsemen'' (1971), '' The Gan ...
.
Sheffer played Constant Bradley in the 1996
miniseries
In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...
''
A Season in Purgatory.'' He played
Keith Scott on the
CW Network series ''
One Tree Hill'' for three seasons before his character was killed off halfway through season 3 (he also had several guest appearances in season 4). He directed the feature film ''American Crude'', a dark comedy starring
Ron Livingston
Ronald Joseph Livingston (born June 5, 1967) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Peter Gibbons in ''Office Space'' (1999) and Captain Lewis Nixon III in the miniseries ''Band of Brothers (miniseries), Band of Brothers'' (2001). Liv ...
and
Rob Schneider
Robert Michael Schneider ( ; born October 31, 1963) is an American actor and comedian. He rose to prominence as a cast member on NBC's ''Saturday Night Live'' (1990–1994), where he earned three Primetime Emmy Award nominations.
Following ...
; it was released straight to DVD in June 2008. Sheffer had a cameo appearance in the movie ''
Stand Up Guys''.
In 2016, Sheffer starred alongside
Steven Seagal
Steven Frederic Seagal ( ; born April 10, 1952) is an American actor, producer, screenwriter, martial artist, and musician. A 7th-Dan (rank), dan Black belt (martial arts), black belt in aikido, he began his adult life as a martial arts instru ...
in ''
Code of Honor''.
In 2021, he was cast to play American President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
on the horror anthology ''
American Horror Story: Double Feature''.
Personal life
Sheffer was in a relationship with
Gabrielle Anwar from 1989 and until the early-1990s. Sheffer is the godfather to his ex-partner's children, Hugo and Paisley, from her subsequent marriage to John Verea.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
*
Craig Shefferat the
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheffer, Craig
1960 births
American male film actors
American male soap opera actors
American male television actors
Living people
People from York, Pennsylvania
Male actors from Pennsylvania
East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania alumni