Otto Felix (December 31, 1942 – December 13, 2008) was a motion picture and television actor, acting teacher and still photographer. Raised in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, and a graduate of

Fishburne Military School Fishburne Military School (FMS) is a private, military boarding school for boys in Waynesboro, Virginia, United States. It was founded by James A. Fishburne in 1879 and is the oldest military high school in Virginia, and the 13th oldest in the ...

Waynesboro, Virginia Waynesboro (; formerly Flack) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. It is a principal city of the Staunton-Waynesboro micropolitan area, Staunton-Waynesboro Metropoli ...

, then he served in the U.S. Army, and worked as a disc jockey in Florida, before beginning an acting career. Felix was cast in over 350 TV commercials after arriving in Hollywood in the early 1970s. He played the mellow cop in the

Cheech and Chong Cheech & Chong are a comedy duo founded in Vancouver and consisting of American Cheech Marin and Canadian Tommy Chong. The duo found commercial and cultural success in the 1970s and 1980s with their stand-up routines, studio recordings, and fea ...

feature motion picture ''

Up in Smoke ''Up in Smoke'' (also referred to as ''Cheech & Chong's Up in Smoke'') is a 1978 American buddy stoner comedy film directed by Lou Adler and starring Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong, Tom Skerritt, Edie Adams, Strother Martin, and Stacy Keach. It ...

'' (1978). In his later life Otto Felix was an acting teacher based in Hollywood, California. He specialized in actors just getting a start in the fields of film and television, acting at his Film Actors Shop that also served as the office for his efforts on behalf of H.A.A.P.I. - Handicapped Artists, Performers & Partners, Inc. that he founded. As a screenwriter, he received a "story by" credit on ''

South of Heaven, West of Hell ''South of Heaven, West of Hell'' is a 2000 American western film starring Dwight Yoakam, who also co-wrote, directed, and scored the film. The film follows Valentine Casey (Yoakam), a Marshal in the Arizona territory when he receives a surpri ...

'' (2000) a movie western directed by

Dwight Yoakam Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and filmmaker. He first achieved mainstream attention in 1986 with the release of his debut album ''Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. Yoakam had considerable s ...

. Felix authored several books of poems, still photographs and drawings. As a still photographer he shot the cover for Dwight Yoakam's first album Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc. (1986). His photographs appeared in ''Time, People, Life, BAM, L.A. Weekly, Billboard, Drama Logue, Variety,'' and ''Photographer.'' He won the Golden Boot Award for Best Country Album and The American Photographers Association Award for best Black & White in 1989 & 99. Felix died unexpectedly on the 13th December 2008 after a short illness, with a diagnosis of amyloidosis.

Notes

Otto Felix studied radio & television at Cambridge School of Broadcasting, Boston ( Later renamed

Grahm Junior College Grahm Junior College was a non-profit junior college located in Boston, Massachusetts. It opened in 1951 under the name Cambridge School, as part of a chain of schools that started in New York City and later included Chicago and Philadelphia bra ...

. ) March 1965, he was a founding Brother, and first President of Delta Omega Delta fraternity. ( originally Delta Phi Delta )

External links

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Fan clubOfficial siteOtto Felix - Founder of H.A.P.P.I.

Otto Felix - Founder of Film Actors Shop

South of Heaven, West of HellDwight Yoakam album cover photo
1942 births 2008 deaths American male film actors American male television actors American drama teachers United States Army soldiers 20th-century American photographers Fishburne Military School alumni 20th-century American male actors {{US-tv-actor-1940s-stub