James Patrick Healey (born in

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

) is an Irish-born Australian actor.

Early life

His family moved to

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, England before emigrating to

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Australia in 1970. He studied acting at both NIDA (Sydney) and

RADA The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, also known by its abbreviation RADA (), is a drama school in London, England, which provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in Bloomsbury, Central Lond ...

(London).

Career

In Australia he acted in television

police procedural The police procedural, police show, or police crime drama is a subgenre of procedural drama and detective fiction that emphasises the investigative procedure of police officers, police detectives, or law enforcement agency, law enforcement agencies ...

Homicide Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...

'' in guest roles in 1975 and 1976. George Miller's first choice for the starring role of ''

Max Rockatansky Max Rockatansky is the title character and antihero protagonist of the Australian post-apocalyptic action film series ''Mad Max'' created by director George Miller (filmmaker), George Miller and producer Byron Kennedy. Max was played by actors ...

'' was Healey himself whom at the time worked at a Melbourne abattoir, while pursuing his theatrical film debut. Upon reading the script of ''

Mad Max ''Mad Max'' is an Australian media franchise created by George Miller and Byron Kennedy. It centres on a series of post-apocalyptic and dystopian action films. The franchise began in 1979 with '' Mad Max'', and was followed by three sequels: ...

'' (1979) given to him, Healey declined the role of the strong but taciturn character, finding the lead's meager and terse dialogue too unappealing for his vocal acting performance. Up-and-coming young American-Australian actor

Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. The recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Mel Gibson, multiple accolades, he is known for directing historical films as well for his act ...

landed the role of Max. During the release of ''

Mad Max 2 ''Mad Max 2'' (released as ''The Road Warrior'' in the United States) is a 1981 Australian Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, post-apocalyptic Utopian and dystopian fiction, dystopian action film directed by George Miller (filmmaker), G ...

'' in theaters, Healey on the other hand had a regular role on the

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 ...

The Restless Years ''The Restless Years'' is an Australian soap opera which followed the lives of several Sydney school-leavers and the drama and relationships faced by young adults. It was created by Reg Watson and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation for N ...

'' as the murderous villain Gary Fisher in 1981. He also appeared in '' Sons and Daughters'' for two episodes, as Wayne Hamilton's

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be selected. From his groomsmen, the groom usuall ...

, in 1983. On American

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

he appeared on the soap opera ''

Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. H ...

'' as

Sean Rowan ''Dynasty'' is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 12, 1981, to May 11, 1989. The series, created by Richard and Esther Shapiro and produced by Aaron Spelling, revolves around the Carringtons, a wealthy fa ...

. He appeared in the show throughout the 1987–88 season, during which time his character became the fourth husband of Alexis Carrington Colby, played by

Joan Collins Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. She is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Awards, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primetime Emm ...

after saving her life following a car crash. After that he had a regular role on daytime serial '' Santa Barbara'' in 1990.

Arrest

In 1993, Healey was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon, and sentenced to 200 hours of community service and three years' probation upon suspension of a two-year state prison term.

References

External links

* Living people Irish emigrants to Australia Australian male television actors Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Irish expatriates in the United States Male actors from County Galway Male actors from Melbourne Year of birth missing (living people) {{Australia-actor-stub