Dennis franz vietnam service11/6/2023 ![]() After meeting Robert Altman during an audition, Franz enjoyed several small parts in the director's late-1970s and early '80s output, including "A Wedding" (1978), "A Perfect Couple" (1979) and "Popeye" (1980). He was a flatfoot on the trail of Michael Caine's cross-dressing killer in De Palma's "Dresssed to Kill" (1980) and made his TV debut as a hard-working Chicago beat cop in "Chicago Story" (NBC, 1982). His burly frame and streetwise intensity made him a natural for figures on both side of the law, though policemen and detectives seemed to be his specialty. A 2002 version of the play was broadcast on Showtime.įranz began auditioning for film and television during the 1970s, making his debut in Brian De Palma's "The Fury" in 1978. ![]() Franz, who also appeared in the original theater production, was among the credited writers for the play and its screenplay, along with future director Stuart Gordon of "Re-Animator" fame (1985). In 1979, he appeared in a televised PBS production of the play "Bleacher Bums," which began life at the Organic Theater as a story conceived by actor Joe Mantegna. There, he was nominated for two Joseph Jefferson Awards in 19, which acknowledged excellence in Windy City theater. Eventually, he made his way back to acting via Chicago's acclaimed Organic Theater, which he joined in 1972. The experience was a difficult one for Franz, and he struggled with depression in the years following his discharge. Army, which shipped him to Vietnam for 11 months with the 82nd Airborne Division. After graduation, he was drafted into the U.S. Franz attended Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, where he majored in speech and theater. Franz landed the part - the girlfriend did not - and his future was set in stone. His impetus to audition for a part in a production of "The Crucible" was his girlfriend at the time, who was also trying out for a role. Though he was a bonafide sports nut who played on the baseball, football and swim teams at Proviso East High School in Maywood, IL, he discovered a new passion - acting - in the 11th grade. The son of German immigrants who worked for the postal service, Dennis Franz Schlachta was born in Chicago, IL on Oct. But "NYPD Blue" provided his finest hours, and ensured Franz a place in television history as one of the medium's most complicated lawmen. Prior to his success on "Blue," Franz was a veteran of the Chicago theater scene and a character actor specializing in cops and heels, most notably on "Hill Street Blues" (NBC, 1981-1987) as Lt. It took an actor of Franz's talent and presence to find the sympathetic elements beneath Sipowicz's bristling hide, and Franz brought them out in every single episode of the benchmark series, earning four Emmys in the process. I didn't know how I fit in… I was torn up and angry for a year.Two decades of playing cops in films and on television prepared actor Dennis Franz for the role of his lifetime - that of troubled Detective Andy Sipowicz on "NYPD Blue" (ABC, 1993-2005). When I came back in the early 1970s, there was still a lot of anti-war feeling. I could feel and hear bullets whizzing over my head, and that shakes you up quite a bit. I got as close to being shot as I care to. ![]() I experienced death over there, and losing friends. I ended up in the 82nd Airborne and the 101st Airborne in Vietnam for 11 months." "I regretted my curiosity about two weeks after I was in. "I was curious about the military service and went into the Army," Franz told TV Guide. I came back a much different person than when I left, much more serious. "It was the loneliest, most depressing, frustrating time," he said in a 1995 interview. He served 11 months with the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions in Vietnam.įranz served 11 month in Vietnam in a reconnaissance unit, and after his service he suffered depression for some time afterwards." Army After graduating from college in 1968, Franz was drafted and immediately enlisted in officer's school. Vietnam vet US Army 82nd Airborne's Dennis Franz Schlachtaĭennis Franz: Airborne Division, U.S.
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