Robert James Zdarsky (June 3, 1950 – March 30, 2015), better known by his

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Robert Z'Dar, was an American

character actor A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting character (arts), characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrie ...

and film producer, best known for his role as officer Matt Cordell in the cult horror film ''

Maniac Cop ''Maniac Cop'' is a 1988 American slasher film directed by William Lustig, written by Larry Cohen, and starring Tom Atkins, Bruce Campbell, Laurene Landon, Richard Roundtree, William Smith, Robert Z'Dar, and Sheree North. Z'Dar plays the titl ...

'' (1988) and its two sequels,Maniac Cop Actor Robert Z’Dar Dies at 64

time.com ''Time'' (stylized in all caps as ''TIME'') is an American news magazine based in New York City. It was published weekly for nearly a century. Starting in March 2020, it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York Cit ...

as well as appearances in ''

Tango & Cash ''Tango & Cash'' is a 1989 American buddy cop action comedy film starring Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Jack Palance, and Teri Hatcher. The film follows the titular pair of rival police detectives who are forced to work together after a crim ...

'' and '' Samurai Cop''. Z'Dar worked mainly in low-budget

B movie A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second ...

s and

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, television series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strat ...

features, but occasionally in mainstream Hollywood films and television. Due to his

cherubism Cherubism is a rare genetic disorder that causes prominence in the lower portion in the face. The name is derived from the temporary chubby-cheeked resemblance to putti, the chubby-faced infants featured in Renaissance paintings, which were often ...

, a medical condition resulting in an enlarged jawline, Z'dar had a unique and easily recognizable look with a slightly sinister appearance, which aided his career as he usually portrayed villains. A prolific actor, Z'Dar appeared in 121 films over the course of his 39-year career.

Early life

Born in Chicago, Illinois,R.I.P. Robert Z’Dar, cult actor and Maniac Cop

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...

Z'Dar was of

Lithuanian Lithuanian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Lithuania, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe ** Lithuanian language ** Lithuanians, a Baltic ethnic group, native to Lithuania and the immediate geographical region ** L ...

descent. He first started acting while attending

Proviso West High School Proviso West High School (PWHS) is a public high school located in Hillside, Illinois, United States. It is a part of Proviso Township High Schools District 209, and was opened in 1958. Its sister schools are Proviso East High School and Provi ...

Hillside, Illinois Hillside is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 8,320. It is a suburb of Chicago. Geography Hillside is located at (41.874797, −87.900372). According to the 2021 census gazetteer fi ...

. After high school, Z'Dar attended

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is o ...

where he received a BFA and played on the university football team. After graduation, Z'Dar returned to Chicago where he was employed as a Chicago police officer, member of the band Nova Express, commercial jingle writer and

Chippendales Chippendales is a touring dance troupe best known for its male striptease performances and for its dancers' distinctive upper body costume of a bow tie, collar, and shirt cuffs worn on an otherwise bare torso with jeans and undergarment. Est ...

dancer.

Acting career

Eventually Z'Dar moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting. His first feature film appearance was in the

women in prison film The women-in-prison film (or WiP film) is a subgenre of exploitation film that began in the early 20th century and continues to the present day. Their stories feature imprisoned women who are subjected to sexual and physical abuse, typically by ...

'' Hellhole'' (1985). He appeared in several more films in close succession, including ''

Hot Chili ''Hot Chili'' (also known as ''Hot Summer'') is a 1985 comedy film directed by William Sachs, and co-written by Sachs with Menahem Golan (who is credited in the film as Joseph Goldman). It stars Allan Kayser, Joe Rubbo, and Taaffe O'Connell. It ...

'' (1985), '' The Night Stalker'' (1987), ''

Cherry 2000 ''Cherry 2000'' is a 1988 American science fiction action film directed by Steve De Jarnatt and starring David Andrews, Melanie Griffith, Tim Thomerson and Pamela Gidley. It was produced by Edward R. Pressman and Caldecot Chubb. The screen ...

'' (1987), ''The Killing Game'' (1988), and ''

Grotesque Since at least the 18th century (in French and German, as well as English), grotesque has come to be used as a general adjective for the strange, mysterious, magnificent, fantastic, hideous, ugly, incongruous, unpleasant, or disgusting, and thus ...

'' (1988). Z'Dar's name became recognizable when he played Matt Cordell in 1988's ''

'', a film about a back from the dead hero

NYPD The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...

cop turned evil avenger who brutally murders people. Z'Dar reprised his role in the 1990 sequel and '' Badge of Silence'' (1993). It was perhaps Z'Dar's performance in ''Maniac Cop'' that landed him the role of "Face" in 1989's ''

'', alongside action stars

Sylvester Stallone Sylvester Gardenzio "Sly" Stallone (; born July 6, 1946) is an American actor and filmmaker. In a Sylvester Stallone filmography, film career spanning more than fifty years, Stallone has received List of awards and nominations received by Syl ...

and

Kurt Russell Kurt Vogel Russell (born March 17, 1951) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor before transitioning to leading roles as an adult in various genres such as action adventures, science-fiction, westerns, romance films, co ...

. He went on to appear in films such as ''Killing American Style'' (1988), '' The Final Sanction'' (1990), ''

A Gnome Named Gnorm ''A Gnome Named Gnorm'' (also known in some markets as ''Upworld'') is a 1990 fantasy buddy comedy film directed by Stan Winston and written by Pen Densham and John Watson. The film stars Anthony Michael Hall, Jerry Orbach and Claudia Christian ...

'' (1990), '' Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time'' (1991), ''

Mobsters A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level ...

'' (1991), '' Samurai Cop'' (1991), ''

Return to Frogtown ''Return to Frogtown'' (also known as ''Frogtown II'') is a 1993 B movie directed by Donald G. Jackson. It is the sequel to the 1988 cult film '' Hell Comes to Frogtown''. Like its predecessor, the film is set in a post-apocalyptic future where ...

'' (1993), ''

Marching Out of Time ''Marching Out of Time'' is a 1993 comedy film directed by Anton Vassil. It is about time-traveling Nazis. Plot summary When German World War II soldiers are mistakenly teleported to present-day Venice Beach, California, by his next-door neighbo ...

'' (1993), ''Death from Above'' (2011), ''Meltdown'' (2009) and ''Easter Sunday'' (2014). Robert Z'Dar appeared in more than 121 films and television episodes, with at least one film appearance per year in 27 of the last 29 years of his career (missing only 1986 and 2001). He continued making at least one film every year despite a serious back injury he suffered in 2002 on a movie set. Two of Z'Dar's films, ''

Soultaker is an anime series that focuses on seventeen-year-old Kyosuke Date who was killed by his mother Mio Date, and afterward gained the ability to turn into an incredibly powerful winged mutant known as "The SoulTaker" and that he has a long-los ...

'' (1990) and ''

Future War Invasion literature (also the invasion novel or the future war genre) is a literary genre that was popular in the period between 1871 and the First World War (1914–1918). The invasion novel was first recognised as a literary genre in the UK, ...

'' (1997) appeared in season 10 of ''

Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on WUCW, KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. It then ...

'', increasing his renown somewhat.Robert Z'Dar (1950 - 2015)
''

The Dissolve ''The Dissolve'' was a film review, news, and commentary website which was operated by Pitchfork and based in Chicago, Illinois. The site was focused on reviews, commentary, interviews, and news about contemporary and classic films.{{cite web, url ...

'' In 2012, he was inducted to International Indie Filmmakers Hall of Fame at The Indie Gathering film festival.

Death

While appearing at Pensacon in

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only incorporated city, city in Escambia County, Florida, Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

, Z'Dar was hospitalized for chest pains. He seemed to recover, but subsequently went into

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest (also known as sudden cardiac arrest CA is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. When the heart stops beating, blood cannot properly Circulatory system, circulate around the body and the blood flow to the ...

and died on March 30, 2015, one month after his hospitalization.Cult actor Robert Z'Dar dies in Pensacola

Pensacola News Journal The '' Pensacola News Journal'' is a daily morning newspaper serving Escambia and Santa Rosa counties in Florida. It is Northwest Florida's most widely read daily. The ''News Journal'' is owned by Gannett, a national media holding company t ...

Selected filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Z'Dar, Robert 1950 births 2015 deaths 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors Male actors from Chicago Chicago Police Department officers American male film actors Film producers from Illinois American male television actors American people of Lithuanian descent Arizona State University alumni Film producers from Arizona