James Keach

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James Keach
Born (1947-12-07) December 7, 1947 (age 76)
Education
Occupations
  • Actor
  • producer
  • director
Years active1971–present
Spouses
  • Holly Collins (divorced)
  • Mimi Maynard (divorced)
  • (m. 1993; div. 2015)
Children3
Parent
RelativesStacy Keach (brother)

James Keach (born December 7, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the younger brother of actor Stacy Keach Jr. and son of actor Stacy Keach Sr.

Early life and education[edit]

Keach was born in Savannah, Georgia, the son of Mary Cain (née Peckham), an actress, and Walter Stacy Keach Sr., a drama coach, actor, writer, and producer. His brother, Stacy Keach, is an actor and narrator. Keach received his undergraduate degree from Northwestern University, a M.F.A. from the Yale School of Drama, and is also a classically trained Shakespearean actor. He is a patron of Meningitis UK.

Career[edit]

Best known as a producer and director, Keach has also acted, most famously portraying Jesse James in the 1980 film The Long Riders, a film which he co-wrote and produced. Johnny Cash was so taken by the film that he and June Carter became close friends with Keach and asked him to be involved in the development of Walk the Line, which Keach produced.[1] Keach also appeared in numerous supporting roles in films such as National Lampoon's Vacation with Chevy Chase,[2] The Razor's Edge opposite Bill Murray, and Wildcats with Goldie Hawn. He also played a leading role in the 1985 comedy film Moving Violations as Deputy Hank Halik.

He was the director of the 1993 TV series and 1999 film Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman which starred his wife, Jane Seymour, and other episodic television. Most recently he has directed and produced Waiting for Forever and Blind Dating. He directed a documentary, Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me, about country music singer Glen Campbell and his battle with Alzheimer's disease, that was released in October 2014.[3][4] He won a Grammy Award on March 14, 2021, as producer for the documentary Linda Ronstadt The Sound of My Voice.

In 2010, James Keach received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.

Personal life[edit]

Keach was married to Holly Collins, sister of Judy Collins. Their marriage produced a son, Kalen Keach. Sometime after his marriage to Collins ended, he married Mimi Maynard. Their marriage lasted until 1993.

In 1993, Keach married actress Jane Seymour. The couple had twin boys, born November 30, 1995, John Stacy and Kristopher Steven, who were named after family friends Johnny Cash and Christopher Reeve, and James's brother, actor Stacy Keach.[5] On April 12, 2013, it was announced that the couple separated. The divorce was finalized in December 2015.[6]

Filmography[edit]

Films[edit]

Acting credits[edit]

Title Year Role Notes
Slashed Dreams 1975 Levon
The Noah 1975 (voice)
Cannonball 1976 Wolfe Messer
Death Play 1976 Steve
FM 1978 Lt. Reach
Comes a Horseman 1978 Emil Kroegh
Hurricane 1979 Sgt. Strang
Smokey and the Hotwire Gang 1979 Joshua
The Long Riders 1980 Jesse James
The Legend of the Lone Ranger 1981 The Lone Ranger / John Reid (voice)
Love Letters 1983 Oliver / Anna's lover
National Lampoon's Vacation 1983 Motorcycle Cop
The Razor's Edge 1984 Gray Maturin
Moving Violations 1985 Deputy Halik
Stand Alone 1985 Detective Isgrow
Wildcats 1986 Frank
Evil Town 1987 Christopher Fuller
The Experts 1989 Yuri
Options 1989 Ed Sloan
The Dance Goes On 1992 James Smith
The New Swiss Family Robinson 1998 Jack Robinson
Walk the Line 2005 Warden
Turning Point 2017 Narrator (voice) Documentary film

Filmmaking credits[edit]

Narrative films[edit]
Title Year Director Producer Writer Notes
Sunburst 1975 No No Yes
The Long Riders 1980 No Executive Yes
Armed and Dangerous 1986 No Yes Story
The Experts 1989 No Yes No
False Identity 1990 Yes Associate No
The Stars Fell on Henrietta 1995 Yes No No
Camouflage 2001 Yes No No
Walk the Line 2005 No Yes No
Blind Dating 2006 Yes Yes No
Waiting for Forever 2010 Yes Yes No
Bereave 2015 No Executive No
The Mix Up 2017 Yes No No Short film
A Quest for Rainbows TBA Yes No No
Tough as They Come TBA No Yes No
Documentaries[edit]
Title Year Director Producer
Disease of the Wind 2002 Yes No
Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me 2014 Yes Yes
Turning Point 2017 Yes Yes
Augie 2018 Yes Yes
David Crosby: Remember My Name 2019 No Executive
Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice 2019 No Yes
Steam Power TBA Yes Yes
Horn Maker TBA No Yes

Television films[edit]

Acting credits[edit]

Title Year Role
Deadly Visitor 1973 Urknown
Miles to Go Before I Sleep 1975 Man in Bar
The Hatfields and the McCoys 1975 Jim McCoy
Six Characters in Search of an Author 1976 The Son
Kill Me If You Can 1977 Officer #1
The Blue Hotel 1977 Johnnie
Nowhere to Run 1978 McEnerney
Lacy and the Mississippi Queen 1978 Parker
Like Normal People 1979 Robert Meyers Jr.
The Great Cash Giveaway Getaway 1980 Bondo
Big Bend Country 1981 Ian McGregor
Thou Shalt Not Kill 1982 Jeff Tompkins
Till Death Do Us Part 1982 Robert Craig
Wishman 1983 Galen Reed
The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains 1987 Father Vincent Godfrey Burns
Good Cops, Bad Cops 1990 Frank Moran
Murder in High Places 1991 Levering
Enslavement: The True Story of Fanny Kemble 2000 Dr. Huston
Perfectly Prudence 2011 Mister

Filmmaking credits[edit]

Title Year Director Producer Writer
A Winner Never Quits 1986 No Yes No
The Forgotten 1989 Yes Yes Yes
Sunstroke 1992 Yes No No
Praying Mantis 1993 Yes Executive No
A Passion for Justice: The Hazel Brannon Smith Story 1994 Yes Executive No
The Absolute Truth 1997 Yes Executive No
A Marriage of Convenience 1998 Yes Executive No
A Memory in My Heart 1999 No Executive No
Murder in the Mirror 2000 Yes Executive No
Enslavement: The True Story of Fanny Kemble 2000 Yes Executive No
Blackout 2001 Yes Executive No
Submerged 2001 Yes No No
Mom's on Strike 2002 Yes No No

Television series[edit]

Acting credits[edit]

Title Year(s) Role Notes
NET Playhouse 1971 Orville Wright Episode: "The Wright Brothers"
Kung Fu 1973 Abe Jones Episode: "The Assassin"
Kojak 1973 Ted Strong Episode: "Girl in the River"
Ironside 1974 Walter Portman Episode: "The Taste of Ashes"
The Rookies 1974 Stoney Putnam Episode: "Legacy of Death"
Movin' On 1974 Ron Episode: "The Trick Is to Stay Alive"
Cannon 1974–76 Johnny Cabe / Pete Wallace 2 episodes
The Manhunter 1975 Reichart Episode: "Man in a Cage"
Police Woman 1975 Cliff Hummel / Del Franklin Episode: "Ice"
S.W.A.T. 1975 Arlie Warren Episode: "A Coven of Killers"
Switch 1975 Dean 'Skip' Crowe Episode: "The Body at the Bottom"
Starsky & Hutch 1975–77 James March Wrightwood / Ed Chambers 2 episodes
Joe Forrester 1976 Urknown Episode: "The Boy Next Door"
The Quest 1976 Blue Episode: "Day of Outrage"
Baa Baa Black Sheep 1977 Captain Ted Gerslinger Episode: "Trouble at Fort Apache"
The Tony Randall Show 1977 Bastian Episode: "Bobby vs. Michael"
The Next Step Beyond 1978 Chris Stabler Episode: "The Haunted Inn"
Quincy M.E. 1979 Gary Harlan Episode: "A Small Circle of Friends"
CHiPs 1981 Motorcycle LAPD Cop Episode: "Karate"
Magnum, P.I. 1983 Killer (uncredited) Episode: "...By Its Cover"
Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman 1997 Brent Currier Episode: "Hostage"
This One 'n That One 2012 Big Jim Unknown episodes
Ray Donovan 2017 Tom 4 episodes

Filmmaking credits[edit]

Title Year(s) Director Producer Notes
Hull High 1990 Yes No Episode #1.7
The Young Riders 1990–92 Yes Yes Director (9 episodes) / Producer (11 episodes)
Covington Cross 1992 Yes No 2 episodes
Jack's Place 1993 Yes No Episode: "The Pipes Are Calling"
Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman 1993–99 Yes Executive Director (26 episodes) / Producer (The Movie)
The District 2003-04 Yes No 2 episodes
JAG 2004 Yes No Episode: "A Girl's Best Friend"
The Quitter Show 2009 No Executive 2 episodes
This One 'n That One 2012 No Yes Urknown episodes

References[edit]

  1. ^ http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20051209/ai_n15922364/print[dead link]
  2. ^ "Yahoo! Movies".
  3. ^ "Indie Wire". Archived from the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved May 2, 2013.
  4. ^ Kreps, Daniel (October 12, 2014). "Glen Campbell Shares Last Poignant Music Video 'I'm Not Gonna Miss You". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  5. ^ "Jane Seymour". TV Guide. Retrieved October 18, 2014.
  6. ^ "Jane Seymour, James Keach's divorce finalized". Fox News. December 17, 2015. Retrieved December 17, 2015.

External links[edit]