This prolific, incredibly versatile character player's one career constant is that he has always appeared in unusual films or played unusual characters in more mainstream fare. With his weathered, craggy features and dynamic intelligence, Rip Torn favors roles which allow him to be at once surly and sensitive, violent and intelligent. His occasional leading roles have showcased an explosive talent, as in "Tropic of Cancer" (1969), as expatriate author Henry Miller, "Payday" (1973), as a country singer and the made-for-TV "Blind Ambition" (1979), as Richard Nixon.

Often cast as Southern