Actor Ron Silver died after a two-year battle with esophageal cancer, the New York Post reports. Silver, 62, had a long, distinguished career on stage, screen and television. He's probably best known for his recurring role as Bruno Gianelli on The West Wing and for his portrayal of famed lawyer Alan Dershowitz in the 1990 film Reversal of Fortune, starring Glenn Close and Jeremy Irons. Silver won the Tony Award for Best Actor in 1988 for David Mamet's Speed the Plow. His family is making arrangements for a private service.
Ronald Arthur "Ron" Silver[1] (July 2, 1946 – March 15, 2009) was an American actor, director, producer, and political activist.
Silver was born in New York City, New York, the son of May (née Zimelman), a substitute teacher, and Irving Roy Silver, a clothing sales executive.[1][2] Silver was raised in the Lower East Side of Manhattan and attended The East Side Hebrew Institute ("ESHI") and then Stuyvesant High School.[3] He went on to graduate from SUNY at Buffalo with a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Chinese, and received a Master's Degree in Chinese History from St. John's University in New York and the College of Chinese Culture in Taiwan. He also attended Columbia University's Graduate School of International Affairs and studied acting at the Herbert Berghof Studio.
Silver made his film debut in Tunnel Vision in 1976. From 1976 to 1978 he played downstairs neighbor Gary Levy in the series Rhoda. Additional screen roles include Lovesick (1983), the devoted son of Anne Bancroft in Garbo Talks (1984), an incompetent detective in Eat and Run (1986), the pistol-wielding psychopath opposite Jamie Lee Curtis in 1989's Blue Steel. and the lead in Paul Mazursky's Oscar-nominated Enemies: A Love Story (1989). Silver also starred opposite Jerry Lewis in the "Garment District Arc" of the crime show Wiseguy (1988). He often said in interviews that growing up the son of a man working in the garment industry was a great help in preparing for the role. He also portrayed defense attorney Alan Dershowitz in Reversal of Fortune (1990), based on the trial of Claus von Bülow. In 1998, he starred opposite Kirstie Alley for the last 2 seasons of Veronica's Closet.
Silver was featured in such diverse films as Mr. Saturday Night (1992), Timecop (1994), and as Muhammad Ali's boxing cornerman Angelo Dundee in Ali (2001). From 2001 to 2002 and 2005 to 2006, Silver portrayed presidential campaign advisor Bruno Gianelli on The West Wing.
From 1991 to 2000, Silver served as president of the Actors' Equity Association.
In February 2008, Silver began hosting The Ron Silver Show on Sirius Satellite Radio, which focused on politics and public affairs. The show aired live at 9–11am ET on Indie Talk, Sirius 110.
Silver traveled to more than 30 countries and spoke fluent Mandarin Chinese and Spanish. He taught at the high school level and was a social worker for the Department of Social Services.
He was a co-founder in 1989 of the entertainment industry political advocacy organization the Creative Coalition.
Silver was a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. In 2000, he co-founded the organization One Jerusalem to oppose the Oslo Peace Agreement. Its purpose is to maintain "a united Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel."[4]
Silver, a Democrat for many years, left the party and became an Independent, and a supporter of President George W. Bush, citing the September 11, 2001 attacks and Democratic policies regarding terrorism as reasons. He spoke at the United States 2004 Republican National Convention and continued to support President Bush. Silver was appointed Chairman for the Millennium Committee by New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. He had a blog on the Pajamas Media website.
On October 7, 2005, Silver was nominated by President Bush to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the United States Institute of Peace.
On September 8, 2006, it was announced that Silver had joined an advisory committee to the Lewis Libby Legal Defense Trust.[5]
Silver was born in New York City, New York, the son of May (née Zimelman), a substitute teacher, and Irving Roy Silver, a clothing sales executive.[1][2] Silver was raised in the Lower East Side of Manhattan and attended The East Side Hebrew Institute ("ESHI") and then Stuyvesant High School.[3] He went on to graduate from SUNY at Buffalo with a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Chinese, and received a Master's Degree in Chinese History from St. John's University in New York and the College of Chinese Culture in Taiwan. He also attended Columbia University's Graduate School of International Affairs and studied acting at the Herbert Berghof Studio.
Silver made his film debut in Tunnel Vision in 1976. From 1976 to 1978 he played downstairs neighbor Gary Levy in the series Rhoda. Additional screen roles include Lovesick (1983), the devoted son of Anne Bancroft in Garbo Talks (1984), an incompetent detective in Eat and Run (1986), the pistol-wielding psychopath opposite Jamie Lee Curtis in 1989's Blue Steel. and the lead in Paul Mazursky's Oscar-nominated Enemies: A Love Story (1989). Silver also starred opposite Jerry Lewis in the "Garment District Arc" of the crime show Wiseguy (1988). He often said in interviews that growing up the son of a man working in the garment industry was a great help in preparing for the role. He also portrayed defense attorney Alan Dershowitz in Reversal of Fortune (1990), based on the trial of Claus von Bülow. In 1998, he starred opposite Kirstie Alley for the last 2 seasons of Veronica's Closet.Silver was featured in such diverse films as Mr. Saturday Night (1992), Timecop (1994), and as Muhammad Ali's boxing cornerman Angelo Dundee in Ali (2001). From 2001 to 2002 and 2005 to 2006, Silver portrayed presidential campaign advisor Bruno Gianelli on The West Wing.
From 1991 to 2000, Silver served as president of the Actors' Equity Association.
In February 2008, Silver began hosting The Ron Silver Show on Sirius Satellite Radio, which focused on politics and public affairs. The show aired live at 9–11am ET on Indie Talk, Sirius 110.
Silver traveled to more than 30 countries and spoke fluent Mandarin Chinese and Spanish. He taught at the high school level and was a social worker for the Department of Social Services.He was a co-founder in 1989 of the entertainment industry political advocacy organization the Creative Coalition.
Silver was a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. In 2000, he co-founded the organization One Jerusalem to oppose the Oslo Peace Agreement. Its purpose is to maintain "a united Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel."[4]
Silver, a Democrat for many years, left the party and became an Independent, and a supporter of President George W. Bush, citing the September 11, 2001 attacks and Democratic policies regarding terrorism as reasons. He spoke at the United States 2004 Republican National Convention and continued to support President Bush. Silver was appointed Chairman for the Millennium Committee by New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. He had a blog on the Pajamas Media website.
On October 7, 2005, Silver was nominated by President Bush to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the United States Institute of Peace.
On September 8, 2006, it was announced that Silver had joined an advisory committee to the Lewis Libby Legal Defense Trust.[5]
Silver died on March 15, 2009, in New York City after a two-year battle with esophageal cancer. He is survived by both parents, brothers Mitchell and Keith, son Adam, and daughter Alexandra.[6] more
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