Willis, Bruce 1955- (W. B. Willis)

PERSONAL

Full name, Walter Bruce Willis; born March 19, 1955, in Idar-Oberstein, West Germany (now Germany); arrived in the United States, 1957; raised in Penns Grove, NJ; son of David (a master mechanic, welder, and factory worker) and Marlene Willis; brother of David Willis (a producer and executive) and Robert Willis (a producer; deceased); married Demi Moore (an actress and producer), November 21, 1987 (divorced, October 18, 2000); children: Rumer Glenn (an actress), Scout LaRue, Tallulah Belle. Education: Studied drama at Montclair State College (now Montclair State University), until 1977; also studied with Stella Adler. Avocational Interests: Music, collecting cars.

Addresses:

Office—Willis Brothers Films, 12233 West Olympic Blvd., Suite 166, Los Angeles, CA 90064. Agent—Creative Artists Agency, 2000 Avenue of the Stars, Los Angeles, CA 90067. Publicist—Paul Bloch, Rogers & Cowan Public Relations, Pacific Design Center, Seventh Floor, 8687 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90069.

Career:

Actor, producer, composer, and singer. Willis Brothers Films, Los Angeles, principal; Night Owl Promotions, founder; Liberty Theatre, Hailey, ID, cofounder and owner; First Amendment Comedy Theatre, member of company; Cheyenne Enterprises, LLC, Santa Monica, CA, partner, beginning 2000; Artists Independent Network (management and production company), London, member of creative board, 2001. Loose Goose (band), harmonica player; Bruce Willis and the Accelerators (also known as the Blue Devils), singer and performer at various venues, including a tour of military bases for United Service Organizations/Armed Forces Entertainment (USO/AFE). Appeared in advertisements and public service announcements. Planet Hollywood (chain of restaurants), partner, beginning 1991; Mint Bar, Hailey, ID, owner; worked at a chemical company, a nuclear power plant, and as a security guard and waiter; tended bar at the Kamikaze Club, Cafe Central, and Chelsea Central, all New York City. Children in Foster Care, spokesperson, c. 2002; affiliated with the Bruce Willis National Foster Care Fund (NFCF), beginning 2004; af- filiated with foster care and adoption issues. Some sources state that Willis served as a delegate, Republican National Convention, 1992.

Awards, Honors:

Cited as having the most school spirit, Penns Grove High School, 1973; People's Choice Award, favorite male performer in a new television series, 1986, Emmy Award nomination, 1986, and Emmy Award, 1987, both outstanding lead actor in a drama series, Golden Globe Award nominations, 1986 and 1988, and Golden Globe Award, 1987, all best performance by an actor in a television series—comedy/musical, and TV Land Award nomination, favorite private eye, 2005, all for Moonlighting; Golden Globe Award nomination, best performance by an actor in a supporting role in a motion picture, 1990, for In Country; MTV Movie Award nomination (with Damon Wayans), best onscreen duo, 1992, for The Last Boy Scout; Saturn Award nomination, best actor, Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, 1993, for Death Becomes Her; Chlotrudis Award nomination, best supporting actor, 1995, for Pulp Fiction and Nobody's Fool; Saturn Award nomination, best actor, 1996, for Twelve Monkeys; named one of the top 100 movie stars of all time, Empire magazine, 1997; Blockbuster Entertainment Award nomination, favorite actor—suspense, 1998, for The Jackal; received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, 1998; Blockbuster Entertainment Award, favorite actor—science-fiction, and Saturn Award nomination, best actor, both 1999, for Armageddon; Blockbuster Entertainment Award, favorite supporting actor—suspense, 1999, for The Siege; Blockbuster Entertainment Award, favorite actor—suspense, Saturn Award nomination, best actor, and MTV Movie Award nominations, best male performance and (with Haley Joel Osment) best onscreen duo, all 2000, for The Sixth Sense; American Cinematheque Award, 2000; People's Choice Award, favorite motion picture star in a drama, 2000; Emmy Award, outstanding guest actor in a comedy series, 2000, and American Comedy Award nomination, funniest male guest appearance in a television series, 2001, both for Friends; Blockbuster Entertainment Award nomination, favorite actor—suspense, 2001, for Unbreakable; named man of the year, Hasty Pudding Theatricals, Harvard University, 2002; named one of the top ten box office stars of the 1990s, Star TV, 2003; Blimp Award nomination, favorite voice from an animated movie, Kids' Choice awards, Nickelodeon, 2004, for Rugrats Go Wild; decorated Officer of French Order of Arts and Letters, 2005; TV Land Award nomination, best male star on the little screen or the big screen, 2005; named special ambassador, Idar-Oberstein, Germany, c. 2005; National Movie Award nomination, best performance by a male, British National Movie awards, 2007, for Live Free or Die Hard; Blimp Award nomination, favorite voice from an animated movie, 2007, for Over the Hedge; People's Choice Award nominations, favorite male movie star and favorite male action star, both 2008; named international broadcasting man of the year, Hollywood Radio and Television Society; received an honorary doctorate, Montclair State University, Willis's character of John McClane in the Die Hard films was named as one of the 100 greatest movie characters of all time, Premiere magazine.

CREDITS

Film Appearances:

Man entering diner, The First Deadly Sin, Filmways, 1980.

(Uncredited) Courtroom observer, The Verdict, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1982.

Walter Davis, Blind Date (also known as Blake Edwards' "Blind Date"), TriStar, 1987.

Detective John McClane, Die Hard, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1988.

Tom Mix, Sunset (also known as Catalina), TriStar, 1988.

Himself, That's Adequate, Southgate Entertainment/Vidmark Entertainment, 1989.

Voice of Mikey, Look Who's Talking (also known as Daddy's Home, Allo maman, ici bebe!, De quoi j'me mele, Hei, kuka puhuu, I kto to mowi, Kdopak to mluvi, Kuck' mal wer da spricht!, Mira quien habla, Nicsak, ki beszel, Olha quem esta falando, Olha quem fala, Schau mal, wer da spricht, Senti chi parla, and Titta han snackar!), Columbia/TriStar, 1989.

Detective John McClane, Die Hard 2 (also known as Die Hard 2: Die Harder), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1990.

Emmett Smith, In Country, Warner Bros., 1990.

Peter Fallow, Bonfire of the Vanities, Warner Bros., 1990.

Voice of Mikey, Look Who's Talking Too (also known as Allo maman, c'est encore moi, De quoi j'me mele encore, Glej kdo se oglasa 2, Hei, kuka puhuu myoes, I kto to mowi 2, Kuck' mal, wer da spricht—Teil 2, Mira quien habla tambien, Olha quem esta falando tambem, Olha quem fala … tambem, Senti chi parla 2, and Titta hon snackar ocksaa!), TriStar, 1990.

Bo Weinberg, Billy Bathgate, Buena Vista, 1991.

Eddie "Hudson Hawk" Hawkins (title role), Hudson Hawk, TriStar, 1991.

James Urbanski, Mortal Thoughts, Columbia, 1991.

Joe Hallenbeck, The Last Boy Scout, Warner Bros., 1991.

Himself, The Player, Fine Line Features, 1992.

Dr. Ernest Menville, Death Becomes Her, Universal, 1992.

Detective sergeant Tom Hardy, Striking Distance, Columbia, 1993.

(Uncredited) John McClane, National Lampoon's "Loaded Weapon 1" (also known as Loaded Weapon 1), New Line Cinema, 1993.

Butch Coolidge, Pulp Fiction, Miramax, 1994.

Carl Roebuck, Nobody's Fool, Paramount, 1994.

Dr. Bill Capa, Color of Night, Buena Vista, 1994.

Narrator, North, Columbia, 1994.

James Cole, Twelve Monkeys (also known as 12 Monkeys), Universal, 1995.

(Uncredited) Leo, "The Man from Hollywood," Four Rooms (also known as Four Rooms and a Hotel, Grand Hotel, and Groom service), Miramax, 1995.

Lieutenant John McClane, Die Hard: With a Vengeance (also known as Die Hard—Mega Hard, Die Hard New York, Die Hard 3, Glass Trap 3, and Simon Says), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1995.

John Smith and narrator, Last Man Standing, New Line Cinema, 1996.

Voice of Bruno the Kid, Bruno the Kid: The Animated Movie (animated; edited from the series Bruno the Kid), 1996.

Voice of Muddy Grimes, Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (animated), Paramount, 1996.

Title role, The Jackal (also known as The Day of the Jackal, Der Schakal, and Le chacal), Universal, 1997.

Korben Dallas, The Fifth Element (also known as Le cinquieme element), Columbia/TriStar, 1997.

Arthur "Art" Jeffries, Mercury Rising, Universal, 1998.

Himself, Jackie Chan: My Story (documentary), 1998.

Harry S. Stamper, Armageddon, Buena Vista, 1998.

Major general William Devereaux, The Siege, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1998.

Ben Jordan, The Story of Us, Universal, 1999.

Himself, Franky Goes to Hollywood (short documentary), Warner Bros. Home Video, 1999.

Dr. Malcolm Crowe, The Sixth Sense, Buena Vista, 1999.

Dwayne Hoover, Breakfast of Champions, Buena Vista, 1999.

David Dunn, Unbreakable, Buena Vista, 2000.

Jimmy "the Tulip" Tudeski, The Whole Nine Yards (also known as Bergyilkos a szomszedom, Falsas aparencias, Falsas apariencias, FBI: Protezione testimoni, Full pakke, Keine halben Sachen, Koko potti, Le nouveau voisin, Meu vizinho mafioso, Mi vecino, el asesino, Mon voisin le tueur, Ni fod under, Oss torpeder emellan, and Ubica mekog srca), Warner Bros., 2000.

Russell M. "Russ" Duritz at the ages of forty through seventy, The Kid (also known as Disney's "The Kid"), Buena Vista, 2000.

Joseph "Joe" Blake, Bandits, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 2001.

Colonel William A. McNamara, Hart's War, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 2002.

Mr. Blandford (chief executive officer), Grand Champion, American Family Movies, 2002.

(Uncredited) Colonel William Rose Bailey, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, Columbia, 2003.

Lieutenant A. K. Waters, Tears of the Sun, Columbia, 2003.

Voice of Spike, Rugrats Go Wild (animated; also known as Rescue Me, The Rugrats Meet the Wild Thornberrys, The Rugrats Movie III, Rugrats 3: Rescue Me, Les razmoket rencontrent les Delajungle, Los rugrats: Vacaciones salvajes, Os rugrats e os Thornberrys vao aprontar, and Ratjetoe en de Thornberrys—Bij de beesten af), Paramount, 2003.

(Uncredited) Himself, Ocean's Twelve (also known as Ocean's 12), Warner Bros., 2004.

Jimmy "the Tulip" Tudeski, The Whole Ten Yards (also known as The Whole Nine Yards 2, FBI: Protezione testimoni 2, Keine halben Sachen 2—Jetzt erst recht!, Koko potti 2, Le retour du nouveau voisin, Mas falsas apariencias, Meu vizinho mafioso 2, Mi vecino el asesino 2, Mon voisin le tueur 2, and Ti fod under), Warner Bros., 2004.

Himself, Wildwood Days (documentary), Travisty Productions, 2005.

Jeff Talley, Hostage (also known as Hostage—Entfuehrt), Miramax, 2005.

John Hartigan, Sin City (also known as Frank Miller's "Sin City"), Dimension Films, 2005.

Himself, The Hip Hop Project (documentary), Think-Film, 2006.

(Uncredited) Colonel Doug Masterson, The Astronaut Farmer, Warner Bros., 2006.

Detective Jack Mosley, 16 Blocks (also known as Sixteen Blocks), Warner Bros., 2006.

Harry Rydell, Fast Food Nation, Fox Searchlight Pictures, 2006.

Mr. Goodkat, Lucky Number Slevin (also known as Lucky # Slevin, Lucky Number S7evin, and The Wrong Man), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 2006.

Sonny Truelove, Alpha Dog, Universal, 2006.

Voice of R. J., Hammy's Boomerang Adventure (animated short film), Paramount Home Entertainment, 2006.

Voice of R. J., Over the Hedge (animated), Paramount, 2006.

(Uncredited) Bruce, Nancy Drew (also known as Nancy Drew Girl Detective and Nancy Drew: The Mystery in Hollywood Hills), Warner Bros., 2007.

Harrison Hill, Perfect Stranger, Columbia, 2007.

John McClane, Live Free or Die Hard (also known as Die Hard 4, Die Hard 4.0, Die Hard 4: Die Hardest, Die Hard: Reset, Die Hard: Tears of the Sun, Die hard—Vivere o morire, Die Hard 4—Retour en enfer, Duro de matar 4.0, La jungla 4.0, Poly skliros gia na pethanei 4.0, Smrtonosna pasca 4.0, Smrtonosna past 4.0, Stirb langsam 4.0, Szklana pulapka 4.0, Umri muski 4.0, Vis libre ou creve, Visa hing 4, and Zor oeluem 4.0), Twentieth Century-Fox, 2007.

Lieutenant Muldoon, Planet Terror, released as part of Grindhouse (also known as Grindhouse: Double Feature, Grindhouse: Planet Terror, Grindhouse Presents: Robert Rodriguez's "Planet Terror," Project Terror, and Robert Rodriguez's "Planet Terror"), The Weinstein Company, 2007, Planet Terror also released separately.

(Uncredited) Himself, Shine a Light (documentary; also known as Rolling Stones, Rolling Stones: Shine a Light, The Rolling Stones: Shine a Light, Untitled Rolling Stones Documentary, and Untitled Stones/Scorsese Film), Paramount Vantage, 2008, also released as Shine a Light: The IMAX Experience.

Himself, What Just Happened? (also known as What Just Happened), Magnolia Pictures/2929 International, 2008.

Principal Kirkpatrick, Assassination of a High School President (also known as The Sophomore), Yari Film Group, 2008.

Agent Thomas Greer, The Surrogates, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, 2009.

Radio host, Morgan's Summit, Warner Bros., 2009.

Harry O'Beirne, The Last Full Measure, Essential Pictures/Trilogy Entertainment Group, c. 2009.

Three Stories about Joan, Foresight Unlimited, c. 2009.

Film Producer:

Co-executive producer, Sunset (also known as Catalina), TriStar, 1988.

Coproducer, Color of Night, Buena Vista, 1994.

Producer of television series, Bruno the Kid: The Animated Movie (animated; edited from the series Bruno the Kid), 1996.

Producer, The Whole Nine Yards (also known as Bergyilkos a szomszedom, Falsas aparencias, Falsas apariencias, FBI: Protezione testimoni, Full pakke, Keine halben Sachen, Koko potti, Le nouveau voisin, Meu vizinho mafioso, Mi vecino, el asesino, Mon voisin le tueur, Ni fod under, Oss torpeder emellan, and Ubica mekog srca), Warner Bros., 2000.

Executive producer, The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 2002.

Producer, Hostage (also known as Hostage—Entfuehrt), Miramax, 2005.

Executive producer, The Hip Hop Project (documentary), ThinkFilm, 2006.

Producer, Three Stories about Joan, Foresight Unlimited, c. 2009.

Worked on other projects.

Film Work; Other:

Stand-in, The First Deadly Sin, Filmways, 1980.

(As W. B. Willis) Musician (harmonica player), Rugrats Go Wild (animated; also known as Rescue Me, The Rugrats Meet the Wild Thornberrys, The Rugrats Movie III, Rugrats 3: Rescue Me, Les razmoket rencontrent les Delajungle, Los rugrats: Vacaciones salvajes, Os rugrats e os Thornberrys vao aprontar, and Ratjetoe en de Thornberrys—Bij de beesten af), Paramount, 2003.

Director, Three Stories about Joan, Foresight Unlimited, c. 2009.

Television Appearances; Series:

David Addison, Jr., Moonlighting, ABC, 1985-89.

Voice of Bruno the Kid, Bruno the Kid (animated), syndicated, 1996-97, episodes of the series edited as the film Bruno the Kid: The Animated Movie, 1996.

(With others) Narrator, America's Game: The Superbowl Champions (documentary), NFL Network, beginning 2006.

Television Appearances; Miniseries:

Himself, Bravo Profiles: The Entertainment Business (documentary), Bravo, 1998.

(In archive footage) Himself, One Hit Wonders, VH1, 2002.

(In archive footage) Himself, Retrosexual: The 80s, VH1, 2004.

Television Appearances; Movies:

Extra, Ein Guru kommt (also known as A Guru Comes), [West Germany (now Germany)], 1980.

Television Appearances; Specials:

The ABC All-Star Spectacular, ABC, 1985.

Himself (audience member), One Voice (also known as Barbra Streisand: One Voice), HBO, 1986.

Whatta Year … 1986, ABC, 1986.

Himself, The Pointer Sisters … Up All Night (also known as The Pointer Sisters: Up All Nite), NBC, 1987.

Bruno Radolini, Bruce Willis: The Return of Bruno, HBO, 1987.

Himself, All-Star Tribute to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, NBC, 1989.

Himself, Saturday Night Live: 15th Anniversary, NBC, 1989.

Himself, Die Harder: The Making of "Die Hard 2," 1990.

Himself, Sinatra 75: The Best Is Yet to Come, CBS, 1990.

Himself, Time Warner Presents the Earth Day Special (also known as The Earth Day Special), ABC, 1990.

Seriously … Phil Collins, CBS, 1990.

Siskel & Ebert: Actors on Acting, 1991.

Himself, A Night to Die for, 1995.

Planet Hollywood Comes Home, ABC, 1995.

(In archive footage) Himself, First Annual Mystery Science Theatre 3000 Summer Blockbuster Review, Sci-Fi Channel, 1997.

Armageddon: Target Earth, ABC, 1998.

Himself, Telling the Story of Us, 1999.

Himself, Entertainment Tonight Presents: "Moonlighting" Exposed, 2000.

Himself, A Kid Becomes the Kid (also known as Spotlight on Spencer Breslin), 2000.

(In archive footage) John McClane, Twentieth Century-Fox: The Blockbuster Years, 2000.

Reel Comedy: Bandits, Comedy Central, 2001.

Himself, Stars: An Oscars Party, 2002.

Lee, True West, Showtime, 2002.

(In archive footage) Himself, One Hit Wonders Presents: Star Tracks (also known as VH1's "One Hit Wonders Presents: Star Tracks"), VH1, 2003.

Himself, Genius: A Night for Ray Charles, CBS, 2004.

(In archive footage) Himself, Mouthing Off: 51 Greatest Smartasses, Comedy Central, 2004.

Himself, Reel Comedy: The Whole Ten Yards, Comedy Central, 2004.

Host and narrator, True Dads with Bruce Willis, Spike TV, 2004.

(In archive footage) Die Geschichte des erotischen Films, 2004.

(In archive footage) "Pulp Fiction" on a Dime: A 10th Anniversary Retrospect, Independent Film Channel, 2004.

Himself, Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast, multiple networks, 2005.

Himself, Tsunami Aid: A Concert of Hope, multiple networks, 2005.

Starz on the Set: Sin City, 2005.

(In archive footage) Himself, Cannes 2006: Cronica de Carlos Boyero, Canal+ Espana (Spain), 2006.

Himself, "T4" Goes "Over the Hedge," Channel 4 (England), 2006.

Himself, Tony Bennett: An American Classic, NBC, 2006.

(Uncredited; in archive footage) Dr. Malcolm Crowe, Boffo! Tinseltown's Bombs and Blockbusters, HBO, 2006.

Himself, Live Free or Die Hard: Inside the Action, MTV, 2007.

Television Appearances; Awards Presentations:

The 37th Primetime Emmy Awards, ABC, 1985.

The 38th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, NBC, 1986.

The American Music Awards, ABC, 1987.

The 44th Annual Golden Globe Awards, syndicated, 1987.

The 39th Annual Emmy Awards, Fox, 1987.

Presenter, The 61st Annual Academy Awards Presentation, ABC, 1989.

(Uncredited; in archive footage) Dr. Malcolm Crowe, The 72nd Annual Academy Awards, ABC, 2000.

Presenter, The 52nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, ABC, 2000.

(Uncredited) Presenter, 2000 Blockbuster Entertainment Awards, Fox, 2000.

Hollywood Salutes Bruce Willis: An American Cinematheque Tribute, TNT, 2000.

The 26th Annual People's Choice Awards, CBS, 2000.

2002 ABC World Stunt Awards, ABC, 2002.

E! Entertainer of the Year 2003, E! Entertainment Television, 2003.

Hollywood Celebrates Denzel Washington: An American Cinematheque Tribute, American Movie Classics, 2003.

MTV Video Music Awards 2004, MTV, 2004.

Al Pacino: An American Cinematheque Tribute, American Movie Classics, 2006.

Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards '06, Nickelodeon, 2006.

Presenter, The 2007 Taurus World Stunt Awards, American Movie Classics, 2007.

Julia Roberts: An American Cinematheque Tribute, American Movie Classics, 2007.

The 2007 MTV Movie Awards, MTV, 2007.

Premio Donostia a Meryl Streep, Television Espanola (TVE, Spain), 2008.

Television Appearances; Episodic:

Tony Amato, "No Exit (a.k.a. Three-Eyed Turtle)," Miami Vice (also known as Gold Coast and Miami Unworthiness), NBC, 1984.

Peter Jay Novins, "Shatterday/A Little Peace and Quiet," The Twilight Zone (also known as The New Twilight Zone), CBS, 1985.

Himself, American Bandstand (also known as AB, Bandstand, The New American Bandstand, and VH1's "Best of American Bandstand"), syndicated, 1987.

Himself, Dolly, ABC, 1987.

Himself, Top of the Pops (also known as All New Top of the Pops and TOTP), BBC, 1987.

Saturday Night Live (also known as NBC's "Saturday Night," Saturday Night, Saturday Night Live '80, SNL, and SNL 25), NBC, 1988.

(Uncredited) Himself, "Dear Mom and Dad," Roseanne, ABC, 1989.

Guest host, Saturday Night Live (also known as NBC's "Saturday Night," Saturday Night, Saturday Night Live '80, SNL, and SNL 25), NBC, 1989.

Face to Face with Connie Chung, CBS, 1990.

Himself, "Behind the Scenes: ‘Die Hard: With a Vengeance,’" HBO First Look, HBO, 1995.

Himself, "Arnold Schwarzenegger: Flex Appeal," Biography (also known as A&E Biography: Arnold Schwarzenegger), Arts and Entertainment, 1996.

Himself, Cinema tres (also known as Informatiu cinema), 1996.

Himself, Primer plano, 1996.

Himself, "The Birth: Part 2," Mad about You (also known as Loved by You), NBC, 1997.

Himself, "Filmen ‘Femte elementet’/Nyheter och vaeder," Nyhetsmorgon, 1997.

Himself, "Filmen ‘Armageddon,’" Nyhetsmorgon, 1998.

(Uncredited) Dr. Nickle, "Love Unlimited," Ally McBeal, Fox, 1999.

Himself, "The 80s," VH1 Where Are They Now?, VH1, 2000.

Paul Stevens, "The One Where Paul's the Man," Friends (also known as Across the Hall, Friends Like Us, Insomnia Cafe, and Six of One), NBC, 2000.

Paul Stevens, "The One Where Ross Meets Elizabeth's Dad," Friends (also known as Across the Hall, Friends Like Us, Insomnia Cafe, and Six of One), NBC, 2000.

Paul Stevens, "The One with the Ring," Friends (also known as Across the Hall, Friends Like Us, Insomnia Cafe, and Six of One), NBC, 2000.

Himself, Inside the Actors Studio, Bravo, 2001.

Himself, On the Record with Bob Costas (also known as Costas Now), HBO, 2001.

Himself, "Extreme Close Up with … Bruce Willis—‘Bandits,’" Extreme Close Up with …, E! Entertainment Television, c. 2001.

Himself, "100th Episode Spectacular," The Electric Playground, TechTV, 2002.

Himself, "25 Toughest Stars," Rank, E! Entertainment Television, 2002.

Himself, "Demi Moore," The E! True Hollywood Story (also known as Demi Moore: The E! True Hollywood Story and THS), E! Entertainment Television, 2003.

Himself, "Moonlighting," ET in TV Land, TV Land, 2003.

Himself, Kela on the Karpet, NYC TV, 2003.

Himself, Tinseltown TV (also known as Tinseltown.TV), International Channel, 2003.

Himself, "Murphy Lee Video Walk-On," 106 and Park Top 10 Live (also known as 106 and Park), Black Entertainment Television (BET), 2004.

Guest star, "13 Going on 30; The Whole Ten Yards; Passion of the Christ; SpongeBob SquarePants," Coming Attractions, E! Entertainment Television, 2004.

Himself, "Bruce Willis," Biography (also known as A&E Biography: Bruce Willis), Arts and Entertainment, 2005.

Himself, "Janice Dickinson," The E! True Hollywood Story (also known as Janice Dickinson: The E! True Hollywood Story and THS), E! Entertainment Television, 2005.

Himself, "Sylvester Stallone," Biography (also known as A&E Biography: Sylvester Stallone), Arts and Entertainment, 2005.

Guest star, "Hostage; Bambi; The Longest Yard; Cinderella Man; XXX: State of the Union," Coming Attractions, E! Entertainment Television, 2005.

Guest star, "Unleashed; The Upside of Anger; Sin City; Beauty Shop," Coming Attractions, E! Entertainment Television, 2005.

Vic, "Misfire," That '70s Show (also known as Feelin' Alright, The Kids Are Alright, Reeling in the Years, and Teenage Wasteland), Fox, 2005.

(In archive footage) Himself, Cinema mil, Televisio de Catalunya (TV3, Spain), multiple episodes, 2005.

Himself, Tout le monde en parle, 2005.

Himself, Le grand journal de Canal+, 2005, 2006.

Himself, Corazon de …, Television Espanola (TVE, Spain), 2005, 2007.

Himself, "The Final Goodbye," That '70s Show (also known as Feelin' Alright, The Kids Are Alright, Reeling in the Years, and Teenage Wasteland), Fox, 2006.

Himself, "Over the Hedge: Off the Strip & onto the Screen," HBO First Look, HBO, 2006.

Himself, "16 Blocks," HBO First Look, HBO, 2006.

Himself, "That '70s Show," The E! True Hollywood Story (also known as That '70s Show: The E! True Hollywood Story and THS), E! Entertainment Television, 2006.

(In archive footage) John McClane, "Magnificent Movies," 20 to 1, Nine Network (Australia), 2006.

(In archive footage) David Addison, Jr., La imagen de tu vida, 2006.

(Uncredited; in archive footage) Himself, "Brat Pack," Biography (also known as A&E Biography: Brat Pack), Arts and Entertainment, 2007.

Himself (celebrity traveler), "Golden Getaway: Getaway Goes to the Movies," Getaway (also known as United Travel Getaway), Nine Network (Australia), 2007.

Himself, "Show 80—A New Start (Part 2)," The Matt Davidson Show (also known as The Matthew Charles Show), 2007.

Himself, L'hebdo cinema, 2007.

Himself, Quelli che … il calcio, 2007.

Appeared as himself in "Awesomely Wacky Celebrity Baby Names," VH1: All Access, VH1; appeared in other programs, including an episode of Hart to Hart (also known as Hart & Hart, Detectivii Hart, Hart aber herzlich, Par i hjaerter, Par i hjerter, and Pour l'amour du risque), ABC.

Television Guest Appearances; Episodic:

Late Night with David Letterman, NBC, 1985.

Pebble Mill (also known as Daytime Live, Pebble Mill at One, and Scene Today), BBC, 1991.

Showbiz Today, Cable News Network, 1991.

Wogan (also known as The Wogan Years), BBC, 1991.

Aspel & Company, London Weekend Television, 1993.

The Late Show with David Letterman (also known as The Late Show, Late Show Backstage, and Letterman), CBS, multiple appearances, beginning 1993.

Extra (also known as Extra: The Entertainment Magazine), syndicated, 2003.

(And in archive footage) Entertainment Tonight (also known as Entertainment This Week, E.T., ET Weekend, and This Week in Entertainment), syndicated, multiple appearances, beginning 2003.

On-Air with Ryan Seacrest, syndicated, 2004.

The Tavis Smiley Show (also known as Tavis Smiley), PBS, 2004.

Total Request Live (also known as Total Request with Carson Daly and TRL), MTV, 2004.

GMTV, Independent Television (England), 2004, 2005.

The View, ABC, 2004, 2005, 2006.

The Daily Show (also known as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Global Edition, Jon Stewart, Ha-Daily Show, and I satira tou Jon Stewart), Comedy Central, multiple appearances, 2004-2007.

Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show (also known as Ellen and The Ellen DeGeneres Show), syndicated, 2005.

Parkinson, BBC, 2005.

Sunday Morning Shootout (also known as Hollywood Shootout and Shootout), American Movie Classics, 2005.

Late Night with Conan O'Brien, NBC, 2005, 2006.

This Morning (also known as This Morning with Richard and Judy), Independent Television, 2005, 2006.

The Early Show, CBS, 2006.

Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, BBC, 2006, 2007.

HypaSpace (also known as HypaSpace Daily and HypaSpace Weekly), Space Channel, multiple episodes, 2007.

Television Appearances; Pilots:

David Addison, Jr., "Moonlighting (Pilot)," Moonlighting, ABC, 1985.

Television Executive Producer; Series:

(And creator) Bruno the Kid (animated), syndicated, 1996-97, episodes of the series edited as the film Bruno the Kid: The Animated Movie, 1996.

Touching Evil, USA Network, 2004.

Television Executive Producer; Specials:

Bruce Willis: The Return of Bruno, HBO, 1987.

True West, Showtime, 2002.

Television Work; Other; Specials:

Source of film clips, AFI's 100 Years … 100 Heroes and Villains (also known as AFI's 100 Years, 100 Heroes & Villains: America's Greatest Screen Characters), CBS, 2003.

Television Executive Producer; Pilots:

The Law and Mr. Lee (also known as Junkyard Dog, The Henry Lee Project, and The Law and Henry Lee), CBS, 2003.

Touching Evil, USA Network, 2004.

Scarlett, Lifetime, 2005.

Executive producer of Damage Control, USA Network. Worked on other projects.

Stage Appearances:

Heaven and Earth, New York City, 1977.

The Bullpen, various locations, between 1980 and 1984.

Sheriff, Railroad Bill (also known as The Ballad of Railroad William), Labor Theatre, St. Peter's Hall, New York City, 1981.

The Bayside Boys, Labor Theatre, 1981.

Understudy for the role of Eddie, Fool for Love, Circle Repertory Company, Douglas Fairbanks Theatre, New York City, 1983-84.

Eddie, Fool for Love, Circle Repertory Company, Douglas Fairbanks Theatre, 1984-85.

True West, Liberty Theatre, Hailey, ID, 2001.

Appeared in other productions, including an appearance as Brick, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Montclair State College (now Montclair State University).

Stage Work:

Director, True West, Liberty Theatre, Hailey, ID, 2001.

Executive producer, Ephraim's Song (musical), Norman J. Pattiz Concert Hall, Beverly Hills, CA, 2004.

RECORDINGS

Videos:

(Uncredited) Himself, The Hamster Factor and Other Tales of Twelve Monkeys, Universal Studios Home Video, 1997.

Himself, The Making of "The Jackal," Universal Studios Home Video, 1998.

Himself, Watch the Mercury Rising, Universal Studios Home Video, 1999.

Himself, Conversations with Jon Turteltaub (also known as Spotlight on Jon Turteltaub), Buena Vista, 2000.

Himself, Film-Fest DVD: Issue 3—Toronto, Broadcast-DVD, 2000.

(In archive footage) Himself, Playboy: The Complete Anna Nicole Smith, 2000.

Himself, Inside "Bandits," Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Home Entertainment, 2002.

(In archive footage) Himself, Pulp Fiction: The Facts, 2002.

Himself, "The Sixth Sense": Reflections from the Set, Buena Vista Home Video, 2002.

Himself, Journey to Safety: Making "Tears of the Sun," Columbia/TriStar Home Video, 2003.

Himself, Scene 71 Filmmakers Workshop, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Home Entertainment, 2003.

The Moonlighting Phenomenon, Lions Gate Films Home Entertainment, 2005.

Not Just a Day Job: The Story of Moonlighting, Part 1, Lions Gate Films Home Entertainment, 2005.

Inside the Blue Moon Detective Agency: The Story of Moonlighting, Part 2, Lions Gate Films Home Entertainment, 2005.

Himself, Meet the Cast of "Over the Hedge," Blue Collar Productions, 2006.

Himself, Memories of Moonlighting, DVD Group, 2006.

Himself, Analog Hero in a Digital World: Making of "Live Free or Die Hard," Sparkhill Production, 2007.

Himself, The Story of "Hudson Hawk," Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, 2007.

Video Games:

Voice of Korben Dallas, The Fifth Element (also known as Le cinquieme element), 1998.

Voice of Trey Kincaide, Apocalypse, 1998.

Voice of John McClane, Die Hard Trilogy 2, 2000.

Albums:

The Return of Bruno, Motown, 1986.

If It Don't Kill You, It Just Makes You Stronger, Motown, 1989.

Singles:

"Young Blood," 1986.

"Respect Yourself," 1987.

"Under the Boardwalk," 1987.

"Save the Last Dance for Me," 1989.

(With Dr. John) "Hudson Hawk" (also known as "Hudson Hawk Theme"), 1991.

Music Videos:

"Young Blood," 1986.

"Respect Yourself," 1987.

"Under the Boardwalk," 1987.

"Save the Last Dance for Me," 1989.

(With Dr. John) "Hudson Hawk" (also known as "Hudson Hawk Theme"), 1991.

WRITINGS

Screenplays:

(Story) Hudson Hawk, TriStar, 1991.

Film Music:

(With Robert Kraft) Song "Daddy's Coming Home," Look Who's Talking Too (also known as Allo maman, c'est encore moi, De quoi j'me mele encore, Glej kdo se oglasa 2, Hei, kuka puhuu myoes, I kto to mowi 2, Kuck' mal, wer da spricht—Teil 2, Mira quien habla tambien, Olha quem esta falando tambem, Olha quem fala … tambem, Senti chi parla 2, and Titta hon snackar ocksaa!), TriStar, 1990.

Theme music, Hudson Hawk, TriStar, 1991.

Song "Tenth Avenue Tango," The Whole Nine Yards (also known as Bergyilkos a szomszedom, Falsas aparencias, Falsas apariencias, FBI: Protezione testimoni, Full pakke, Keine halben Sachen, Koko potti, Le nouveau voisin, Meu vizinho mafioso, Mi vecino, el asesino, Mon voisin le tueur, Ni fod under, Oss torpeder emellan, and Ubica mekog srca), Warner Bros., 2000.

Teleplays; Specials:

Bruce Willis: The Return of Bruno, HBO, 1987.

Television Music:

Song "Bruno's Bop," The Pointer Sisters … Up All Night (special; also known as The Pointer Sisters: Up All Nite), NBC, 1987.

Theme song lyrics, Bruno the Kid (animated series), syndicated, 1996-97.

OTHER SOURCES

Books:

International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, Volume 3: Actors and Actresses, fourth edition, St. James Press, 2000.

St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture, St. James Press, 2000.

Periodicals:

AARP, March, 2005, p. 108.

Boston Herald, June 29, 1998.

Chicago Tribune, June 25, 2007.

Empire, October, 1997, p. 191.

Entertainment Weekly, May 19, 1995, pp. 26-32; December 22, 2000, p. 28; October 26, 2001, p. 128.

Flicks, August, 1998, pp. 32-33.

George, July, 1998, pp. 74-81, 110.

Good Housekeeping, March, 2003, pp. 132-39.

IFQ: Independent Film Quarterly, May, 2003, pp. 6-7.

InStyle, March, 1996, pp. 88-93.

Los Angeles Times, September 21, 1993.

Movieline, Volume 7, number 11, 1996, pp. 34-38, 76, 77, 86.

Parade, February 10, 2002, pp. 6-7.

People Weekly, April 22, 1996, p. 119; May 15, 2000, p. 126; November 6, 2000, p. 70; July 16, 2001, p. 17; June 14, 2004, p. 19; March 21, 2005, p. 102.

Playboy, February, 1996.

Premiere, Volume 5, number 5, 1997, pp. 40-42.

Starlog, March, 1996.

Time, July 2, 2007, p. 77.

US, October 2, 1989.

USA Today, October 12, 1999; June 25, 2007, p. 2D.

Vanity Fair, May, 2007.

Variety, October 23, 2000, p. 9.

Washington Post, March 10, 2005, p. C1.

WILLIS, Bruce

Nationality: American. Born: West Germany, 19 March 1955. Education: Attended public school in Penn's Grove, New Jersey; Montclair State College, New Jersey—left in 1977 before graduating; studied acting briefly with Stella Adler. Family: Married the actress Demi Moore, 1987 (divorced, 1998), daughters: Rumer Glenn, Scout LaRue, and Tallulah Belle. Career : 1977—stage debut, off-Broadway in Heaven and Earth; member of Barbara Contardi's First Amendment Comedy Theatre; 1980—film debut, The First Deadly Sin; 1984–85—worked on TV: guest starred in Miami Vice ("No Exit"), Twilight Zone ("Shatterday"); 1985–89—starred in TV series Moonlighting (as David Addison); 1987—wrote, produced, starred in an HBO special, The Return of Bruno (as Bruno); 1987—first starring film role, Blind Date; also has performed and recorded as a R & B singer; has done advertisements for Levi's jeans, Seagram's Wine Coolers (1987), and Sears (1995). Awards: Best Actor Emmy Award, for Moonlighting, 1987. Agent: Arnold Rifkin, William Morris Agency, 151 El Camino Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, U.S.A.

Films as Actor:

1980

The First Deadly Sin (Hutton) (as extra, uncredited)

1982

The Verdict (Lumet) (as a courtroom observer, uncredited)

1987

Blind Date (Edwards) (as Walter Davis)

1988

Die Hard (McTiernan) (as John McClane); Sunset (Edwards) (as Tom Mix, + co-exec pr)

1989

In Country (Jewison) (as Emmeth Smith); Look Who's Talking (Heckerling) (as voice of Mikey); That's Adequate (Hurwitz)

1990

Bonfire of the Vanities (DePalma) (as Peter Fallow); Die Hard 2: Die Harder (Die Harder) (Harlin) (as John McClane); Look Who's Talking Too (Heckerling) (as voice of Mikey)

1991

Billy Bathgate (Benton) (as Bo Weinberg); Hudson Hawk (Lehmann) (as Hudson Hawk; + co-story); The Last Boy Scout (Tony Scott) (as Joe Hallenbeck ); Mortal Thoughts (Rudolph) (as James Urbanski)

1992

Death Becomes Her (Zemeckis) (as Ernest Menville); The Player (Altman) (as himself)

1993

National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1 (Quintano) (as Wrong Mobile Home Owner, uncredited); Striking Distance (Herrington) (as Tom Hardy)

1994

Color of Night (Rush) (as Dr. Bill Capa); Nobody's Fool (Benton) (as Carl Roebuck); North (Rob Reiner) (as narrator); Pulp Fiction (Tarantino) (as Butch Coolidge)

1995

Die Hard: With a Vengeance (Die Hard 3) (McTiernan) (as John McClane); "The Man from Hollywood" ep. of Four Rooms (Tarantino) (as Leo, uncredited); 12 Monkeys (Gilliam) (as James Cole)

1996

Breakfast for Champions (Rudolph); Le Cinquieme element (The Fifth Element) (Besson); Combat! (Hill); Firestorm (Andrew Davis); Last Man Standing (Walter Hill) (as John Smith); Beavis and Butt-head Do America (Judge and Kaplan) (as voice of Muddy Grimes); Bruno the Kid (series for TV) (as Bruno the Kid, mus, exec pr)

1997

The Jackal (Caton-Jones) (as title role); Apocalypse (as Trey Kincaide)

1998

Mercury Rising (Becker) (as Arthur "Art" Jeffries); Armageddon (Bay) (as Harry S. Stamper); The Siege (Zwick)

1999

Breakfast of Champions (Rudolph) (as Dwayne Hoover); The Sixth Sense (M. Night Shyamalan) (as Malcolm Crowe); The Story of Us (Rob Reiner) (as Ben Jordan)

2000

The Whole Nine Yards (Lynn) (as Jimmy Tudeski); The Kid (Turteltaub) (as Russ Duritz); Unbreakable (Shyamalan) (as David Dunne)

Publications

By WILLIS: articles—

Interview with Lawrence Grobel, in Playboy (Chicago), November 1988.

"Bruce Willis Looks for the Man within the Icon," interview with Kenneth Turan, in New York Times, 1 July 1990.

"From the Top of the Heap, a View of the End of the Line," interview with Bernard Weinraub, in New York Times, 30 September 1991.

"Mr. Misunderstood? Willis Makes Himself Clear," interview with Bernard Weinraub, in New York Times, 21 September 1993.

"Finally, Bruce Willis Gets Invited to the Ball," interview with Jill Gerston, in New York Times, 2 October 1994.

"Bruce Willis in the Hot Zone," interview with Jay McInerney, in Esquire (New York), May 1995.

"Bruce Willis: Extreme Close-up," interview with Garry Jenkins, in Cosmopolitan, June 1995.

Interview with David Sheff, in Playboy (Chicago), February 1996.

On WILLIS: books—

Siegel, Barbara, and Scott Siegel, Cybill & Bruce: Moonlighting Magic, New York, 1987.

Parker, John, Bruce Willis: The Unauthorised Biography, Virgin Publishing, 1997.

Shepherd, Cybill, Cybill Disobedience; How I Survived Beauty Pageants, Elvis, Sex, Bruce Willis, Marriage, Motherhood, Hollywood & the Irrepressible Urge to Say What I Think, New York, 1999.

On WILLIS: articles—

Williams, J. P., "The Mystique of Moonlighting: 'When You Care Enough to Watch the Very Best,"' in Journal of Popular Film and Television (Washington, D.C.), Fall 1988.

Powers, John, "Look upon a Star," in Sight and Sound (London), July 1991.

Bart, Peter, "An Artful Gesture," in Variety (New York), 4 March 1996.

Appelo, T., "Fool for Fun," in Village Voice, 15 July 1997.

Bruce Willis has pioneered a character type that might be called the postmodern proletarian. When his seven years on-stage in New York led to television stardom with Moonlighting, all the elements of his arsenal were already on display. Like the show itself, Willis's David Addison was at once a generic staple and a parody. Sturdy physically but stunted emotionally, private-eye Addison is a working man's man as beleaguered as attracted by his nouvelle poor feminist boss (Cybill Shepherd). And yet Addison is also a self-aware, verbally hyperagile ironist—indeed, often a self-conscious media construct.

It is not surprising, given the loaded, conflicted range of emotions called forth from Willis by Moonlighting, that he has subsequently forged a multifaceted film persona: as an action hero, a comic foil, and a dramatic artist, a megastar and a supporting player. His pursuit of these many genres and modes of performance has resulted in some strikingly huge hits, and some flops of similar size. Blind Date, his first big-screen starring vehicle, faltered in its would-be comic reliance upon the smooth-talking, uneasily romantic side of Willis. (Sunset similarly did not translate his comic appeal for movie audiences.) Die Hard also deployed his mastery of flippancy, but sparingly, accentuating instead his aura of besieged masculinity. The displaced cop John McClane is, like most of Willis's characters, a battling underdog. McClane, however, does not fight either against or beside a woman; with McClane, the class-edged wars waged by Willis's characters begin to play out centrally not "between the sexes" but upon Willis's ever more bruised, sweating (and even aging) body itself.

Having established himself as a bona fide box-office draw with Die Hard (thereby starting a franchise which went on to yield two lucrative sequels), Willis played a wrecked Vietnam veteran in the well-reviewed but little-seen drama, In Country. This sort of creative daring underpins the strain of slightly off-mainstream dramas which has combined with supremely mainstream action adventures and comedies to make up the three-pronged thrust of his post-Die Hard movie career. In Look Who's Talking, Willis brought his comic timing alone to bear on yet a second multiple sequel-spawning franchise, as the voice of a toddler. North five years later is of the same genre, although it does allow Willis on-screen in a bunny suit. From 1989 to 1994, Willis had only uneven box-office and critical success, with Hudson Hawk, The Last Boy Scout, and Striking Distance (all in the Die Hard mode, all flops), and Bonfire of the Vanities, Billy Bathgate, Mortal Thoughts, Death Becomes Her, and Color of Night (all stretches—in all but the last Willis sacrifices top billing for artistic satisfaction—but none hits).

In 1994, however, Willis's embrace of working acting and not just stardom paid handsome dividends in the capital of hip. As Butch Coolidge, doomed but unbowed boxer in wunderkind Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, Willis is a perfect match for Tarantino's characteristic man-to-man battering, and bantering. By 1996, Variety would publish a column praising Willis's willingness to accept little money to do low-budget but high-quality projects; such publicity around films such as Pulp Fiction and Nobodys Fool countermanded the rash of earlier articles that had decried the "excess" of Willis's multimillion dollar per picture salaries.

His thinning hair shaved to the nub, Willis was not first-billed in Pulp Fiction; but his performance in it surely helped win him the similarly coifed lead role of James Cole in Terry Gilliam's 1995 remake of the Chris Marker landmark La Jetée, 12 Monkeys. Cole allows all of Willis's talents to shine, in a way that not one of his projects has since Moonlighting. A man under attack from unknown quarters, very possibly from the very social forces that command him, Cole fights through abuse and confusion—at first against, then towards, and finally alongside a psychiatrist played by Madeleine Stowe. The moment when Cole hears a pop song on the doctor's car radio epitomizes what Willis brings to the film, and to film in general. Stress draining from his face, Cole's unwillingly assumed armor drops away for an instant as he connects to something of the best in human creation, trivial as it may seem to the unenlightened. Willis knows how to depict not only the fight but what the fight is for, and it is this that has made him one of the modern screen's most prominent artists of the ordinary man.

—Susan Knobloch