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From SCIFIPEDIA
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Jonathon Voight (December 29, 1938) is an American actor born in Yonkers, New York to a Czech immigrant Elmer Voight and Barbara Voight. He is known to younger audiences as the father of actress, Angelina Jolie with whom he appeared in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. Voight attended Archbishop Stepinac High School in nearby White Plains, New York where he developed an interest in acting. Following his graduation, he moved to New York City to pursue acting as a career.
Career
In 1960, he studied at Neighborhood Playhouse with mentor Sanford Meisner. He made his debut on Broadway in 1961's O Oyster Revue receiving a poor review for his performance. He persevered and appeared in The Sound of Music where he met future wife, Lauri Peters.
Voight began appearing on television in the early 60's. Early roles included Naked City, The Defenders and Twelve O'Clock High. He made his film debut in 1967 in Fearless Frank and followed up with a small role in the western, Hour of the Gun. In 1969, he appeared in Midnight Cowboy with Dustin Hoffman. His performance garnered an Oscar nomination. The film was released with an X-rating and is the only X-rated film to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards.
Roles in the 70's included Deliverance. His performance opposite Burt Reynolds won him critical acclaim. He also appeared in Catch-22, The All-American Boy , Coming Home, and The Champ. In the 80's he appeared in Lookin' to Get Out, Table for Five, and Runaway Train based on a story by Akira Kurosawa. He was again nominated for an Oscar for his performance though the film was not a success.
The 90's brought Chernobyl: The Final Warning,his first television movie, The Rainbow Warrior, The Tin Soldier and Heat. In 1996, he appeared in Mission Impossible in which he played spy master Jim, Phelps. The film also starred Tom Cruise. He followed up with Rosewood, costarring Ving Rhames, Anaconda with Jennifer Lopez, U-Turn with Sean Penn, John Grisham's Rainmaker with Matt Damon and Danny DeVito, The General, and Enemy of the State with Will Smith.
The 21st century brought Pearl Harbor in which he starred as President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider in which he played Lord Richard Croft the father of title character Lara Croft' played by daughter Angelina. He then appeared with Ben Stiller in Zoolander playing Zoolander's father, and the TV movies Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story, and Uprising. In 2001 he played Howard Cosell in the biopic Ali. He mimiced Cosell perfectly and his amazing performance garnered yet another Oscar nomination.
Recent roles include 2004's The Manchurian Candidate, SuperBabies: Baby Geniuses 2, the adventure film National Treasure with Nicholas Cage, the TV Movie based on the life of Pope John Paul II, Glory Road and The Legend of Simon Conjurer. Upcoming appearances include September Dawm, Transformers, Pride and Glory, National Treasure II: The Book of Secrets and The Uninvited.
Personal Life
Voight married actress Lauri Peters in 1962 and they divorced in 1967. He remarried in 1971 to Marcheline Bertrand. They had two children, James Haven, and Angelina Jolie before divorcing in 1978. Voight's relationship with Angelina has been rocky. He has publicly pleaded with her to mend their relationship and get help for her problems. They are currently estranged.
External Links
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