I'm from Kennon Road, Tuba, Benguet, Philippines. My name is Richard Lawagan also known as "kunakket". I was born on March 17, 1982, and raised in Camp 6, Kennon Rd.in the shadow of older brother Randy, who began acting at an early age. The younger Quaid decided to make his mark in school plays after the 6’1” blond was deemed not big enough to play football, the favorite sport of Texans. Quaid was a natural performer who also played guitar and sang, and after graduating from high school he headed to his big brother’s alma mater, the University of Houston, where he joined the theater department. Success in a 1974 college production of "Bus Stop" led to a decision to head to L.A., where Randy had just earned an Academy Award nomination for “The Last Detail” (1974). With his killer smile and rugged good looks, Quaid landed a rapid succession of bit parts in films including Jonathan Demme’s “Crazy Mama” (1975), “I Never Promised You a Rose Garden” (1977), and finally, a larger role as one of a group of friends coping with the death of idol James Dean in James Bridges' "9/30/55" (1977). A supporting role in “Our Winning Season” (1978) introduced him to fellow castmate (and future cult figure as star of the 1979 punk classic “Rock and Roll High School) P.J. Soles, whom Quaid would marry later that year. But it was his turn as a frustrated, post-high school townie in the Midwestern coming of age drama "Breaking Away" (1979) that finally brought Quaid to the attention of Hollywood.
The following year, he teamed with brother Randy to play the outlaw Miller brothers in Walter Hill's Western "The Long Riders" (1980), before losing his momentum with a string of forgettable films, including “The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia” (1981) and “Jaws 3-D” (1983), which would introduce him to new love, actress Lea Thompson, around the time his marriage to Soles was disintegrating. The charismatic actor finally got a chance to demonstrate his potential with his fantastic turn as cocksure Houston astronaut Gordon Cooper in "The Right Stuff" (1983), Quaid’s most high profile film to date, as well as an Academy Award nominee for Best Picture.
After appearing on stage opposite brother Randy in Sam Shepard's blistering "True West" in New York and Los Angeles, Quaid landed starring status in flops “Dreamscape” (1984) and “Enemy Mine” (1985), before receiving a much-needed boost to the A-list in Jim McBride’s "The Big Easy" (1987), enjoying excellent reviews as a Louisiana detective. Relaxed and sporting a Cajun accent, the actor was sexy and swaggeringly charming; even more important to viewers was the palpable onscreen chemistry with co-star Ellen Barkin. Off-screen, however, Quaid had become an item with his “Innerspace” (1987) co-star and about to superstar, Meg Ryan. A year before Ryan became “America’s Sweetheart” with her unforgettable performance in “When Harry Met Sally” (1989), the new couple also appeared together in the unsuccessful 1988 remake of the film noir classic “D.O.A.”
Continuing to be in demand as a leading man, Quaid delivered a fine performance as a former high school football star in the middling "Everybody's All American" (1988), and reunited with Jim McBride to star in the biopic of explosive rockabilly legend Jerry Lee Lewis "Great Balls of Fire" (1989), but neither film drew in a big audience. Off-screen, it was later revealed that the actor was battling an addiction to cocaine. Following his turn as a roguishly charming cad opposite Meryl Streep in "Postcards From the Edge" (1990), he underwent treatment for substance abuse, followed by a two-year, self-imposed hiatus, during which time he married Ryan and the pair had a son, Jack. Post-rehab, Quaid returned to the big screen, starring in three little-seen 1993 pictures — the bizarre and confusing "Wilder Napalm," the precious "Thin Man" wannabe "Undercover Blues," and the well-acted family drama "Flesh and Bone." Then the actor literally transformed himself, dropping 40 pounds to play tubercular Doc Holliday in Lawrence Kasdan's epic "Wyatt Earp" (1993). Overall, the film was a disappointment, however reviewers singled out Quaid's performance. He followed up as the charming ne'er-do-well husband of Julia Roberts in "Something to Talk About" (1995) and brought a level of surprising believability to his turn as a medieval knight in "Dragonheart" (1996).
Finally Quaid scored a box office hit in 1998, co-starring with Natasha Richardson in the remake of Disney’s "The Parent Trap,” and offered a stellar performance as a mercenary in the little-seen "Savior" (1998), before turning in one of the more memorable performances of his career as an aging quarterback in the Oliver Stone-directed "Any Given Sunday" (1999). His run of solid, well-respected films continued when Quaid was included in a Screen Actors Guild Award given to the cast of “Traffic” (2000), in which he played a slippery lawyer advising the wife of a drug lord. Unfortunately, as he was savoring the success of the award-winning film, he found himself in a very public split with Ryan, after she and her “Proof of Life” (2000) co-star, Russell Crowe came out as a couple. Although there had been whispers of trouble between the couple for a few years, no one could have predicted “America’s Sweetheart” would have an affair with the then hottest actor in town at that time, Russell Crowe, her co-star in “Proof of Life” (2000), and then leave Quaid not long after. Although a brutal split, on a public relations level, Quaid came out on top, being the perceived wronged party in the scandalous love triangle.
After starring in the critically acclaimed television film "Dinner with Friends," he returned to the big screen in another sports-set drama, the surprising hit "The Rookie" (2002). Quaid had first billing in this fact-based story of a middle-aged high school baseball coach who tries out for the Major Leagues and becomes its oldest rookie. Quaid truly hit one out of the park in that year’s intense drama "Far From Heaven" (2002), earning an Independent Spirit Award for his co-starring role opposite Julianne Moore. Set in Connecticut during the 1950s, Quaid was pitch-perfect in a fearless performance as a family man who is secretly homosexual, a secret which makes him neglectful, abusive and alcoholic. Universally praised for his tragic, tormented turn, Quaid delivered a powerful performance and was a force to be reckoned with in Hollywood again.
Next up, Quaid teamed with Sharon Stone in Mike Figgis' sly but commercially lackluster take on the haunted house thriller in "Cold Creek Manor' (2003), then took on the history of his home state by portraying Sam Houston in Disney's unfortunate box-office bomb "The Alamo" (2004). Bigger at the box office than either film was director Roland Emmerich's big budget disaster film "The Day After Tomorrow" (2004), in which Quaid starred as a climatologist racing northward to find his young son after the planet experiences a radical climate change.
After a turn in the superfluous but crowd-pleasing remake "Flight of the Phoenix" (2004), Quaid soared in a career-defining role as a successful middle-aged magazine ad salesman who suddenly finds himself working under a new boss (Topher Grace) nearly half his age in writer-director Paul Weitz's comedy "In Good Company" (2004). A remake of the 1968 Lucille Ball-Henry Fonda comedy “Yours, Mine and Ours” (2005), co-starring Rene Russo as the other half of a blended family, did moderately well at the box office despite tanking critically. The limp political satire “American Dreamz” (2006), in which Quaid played a doofus president, tanked on both accounts. Quaid followed up with a very different film centering on a U.S. president, playing a secret service agent who witnesses an assassination in “Vantage Point” (2008). The film brought action-oriented audiences to the theaters but sent critics home early. Quaid had three more releases scheduled for the year, including the college-set comedy “Smart People” co-starring young Oscar nominee Ellen Page, and “The Express,” in which Quaid portrayed a football coach in the real-life story of Ernie Davis, the first African-American to win the Heisman trophy.
- Also Credited As: Dennis William Quaid
- Born: Dennis William Quaid on April 9, 1954 in Houston, Texas, USA
Job Titles:
Actor, Singer, Songwriter, Producer
Family
Brother: Randy Quaid. Born in 1950; known for his roles in The Last Detail (1973), National Lampoon s Vacation (1983), Kingpin (1996) and Independence Day (1996)
Daughter: Zoe Grace Quaid. Twin of Thomas; delivered by a surrogate on Nov. 8, 2007; mother is Kimberly (Buffington) Quaid
Father: William Quaid. Divorced from Quaid s mother when Quaid was in high school; died of a heart attack in 1987
Half-brother: Buddy Quaid. Born in 1974
Mother: Nita Quaid. divorced from Quaid s father when Quaid was in high school
Son: Jack Henry Quaid. Born April 24, 1992; mother, Meg Ryan
Son: Thomas Boone Quaid. Twin of Zoe; delivered by a surrogate on Nov. 8, 2007; mother is Kimberly (Buffington) Quaid
Significant Others
Wife: Kimberly Buffington. Began dating in early 2003; engaged June 2004; married July 4, 2004 in Montana
Companion: Anna Poche. dating as of July 2002
Companion: Cynthia Garrett. dating since March 2002
Companion: Lea Thompson. met during the filming of Jaws 3-D in 1983; lived together for four years
Companion: Shanna Moakler. dated since early 2001; no longer together since December 2001
Education
University of Houston, Houston, TX
Milestones
1969 Began career as an impressionist in Houston nightclubs at age 15
1974 Moved to Los Angeles
1975 First screen appearance in an uncredited bit part, Crazy Mama
1977 Film acting debut in 9/30/55 directed by James Bridges
1978 TV acting debut, Are You in the House Alone? (CBS)
1979 Had breakthrough screen role as Mike, the high school jock, in Breaking Away
1980 Co-starred with his brother Randy in Walter Hill s The Long Riders
1981 Appeared in the CBS TV-movie Bill alongside Mickey Rooney
1981 Wrote songs for and sang on screen in The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia
1983 Gained good notices for his turn as the cocky astronaut Gordon Cooper in The Right Stuff
1983 Reprised his TV role in the sequel Bill on His Own (CBS)
1984 Starred opposite brother Randy in the Off-Broadway production of Sam Shepard s True West
1987 Won acclaim for his performance in The Big Easy ; directed by Jim McBride
1989 Portrayed singer Jerry Lee Lewis in the biopic Great Balls of Fire , also directed by Jim McBride
1993 Co-starred with then wife, Meg Ryan in Flesh and Bone
1994 Earned praise for his performance as Doc Holliday in Lawrence Kasdan s epic Wyatt Earp
1996 Starred as a medieval knight in Dragonheart
1998 Co-starred in the remake of Disney s The Parent Trap
1998 Made directorial debut with made-for-cable TV-movie Everything That Rises (TNT); also starred
1999 Portrayed a past his prime football quarterback in Oliver Stone s Any Given Sunday
2000 Cast as the long-dead firefighting father of a contemporary detective in the supernatural-themed Frequency
2000 Had pivotal role as a lawyer in Traffic
2001 Co-starred in the HBO adaptation of the Pulitzer-winning play Dinner With Friends
2002 Appeared with Julianne Moore in the drama Far From Heaven ; received Golden Globe and SAG nominations for Best Supporting Actor
2002 Portrayed a high school baseball coach in the fact-based feature The Rookie
2004 Played a climatologist who tries to find a way to save the world in Roland Emmerich s The Day After Tomorrow
2004 Starred in a remake of the 1965 film The Flight of the Phoenix
2004 Starred with Scarlett Johansson and Topher Grace in the comedy In Good Company directed by Paul Weitz
2005 Co-starred with Rene Russo in the remake of Yours, Mine and Ours, a comedy about a blended family
2005 Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (November)
2006 Portrayed the US President in Paul Weitz American Dreamz
2008 Cast in the ensemble film, Vantage Point as a Secret Service agent
2008 Joined Sarah Jessica Parker, Ellen Page and Thomas Haden Church in the indie feature, Smart People
2009 Co-starred as Hawk, the team leader, in the live action film adaptation of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Born and raised in Texas
Formed Summers/Quaid Productions with Cathleen Summers
