Tall (6'4") with blond boyish looks, Jon Voight burst into public awareness with his Academy Award-nominated turn as Joe Buck, a naive, blue-eyed Texan come to conquer NYC with his sexual prowess, in John Schlesinger's "Midnight Cowboy" (1969), which has been labeled one of the signature films of the 1960s. His bumpkin as a victim of a dysfunctional upbringing was years ahead of its time, a character so pathetic, so needy, so vulnerable ... and yet likable, because he is that lost soul we see in ourselves. Prior to his breakthrough, Voight had enjoyed some success on the boards, debuting on
Broadway debut, playing Rolf Gruber in "The Sound of Music"; appeared opposite first wife Lauri Peters who played Liesl
1964
Film debut, "Fearless Frank" (shot in 1964; shown at Cannes in 1967; US release 1969)
1965
Acted with Robert Duvall in Off-Broadway production of Arthur Miller's "A View from the Bridge"; assistant to the director Ulu Grossbard was Dustin Hoffman
