Rip Torn Net Worth

Rip Torn's Quotes

• [about being called volatile] What do they say about all the guys that are tremendous actors? Don't they say they have a volatile temper and emotions? Yeah, sure they do! They're not saying they like a nice, mild guy. Look at Sean Penn.
• [on receiving his first Oscar nomination] People are finally realizing I'm one of the few actors who has never missed a performance. I've worked with broken legs, arms, ankles. I once passed a kidney stone during the opening night of a show.
• Never think you're better than anyone else, but don't let anyone treat you like you're worse than they are.
• I honor religion except when it gets into shedding blood.
• I used to be friends with Miles Davis. He didn't like many folks. I lived across the street from him.

Interesting Facts about Rip Torn

1. Torn and his first wife had a daughter, Danae Torn. He and second wife Geraldine Page had a daughter and twin sons (Angelica Page, Tony Torn and John Torn). Although he and Page never divorced, their relationship deteriorated and Torn began a relationship with Amy Wright in 1976. Wright became his third wife, and had two daughters named Katie and Claire.
2. On March 14, 1997, it was reported that he won a $475,000 defamation suit against Dennis Hopper. The lawsuit came about after remarks made by Hopper on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992) on 31 May 1994.
3. First cousin of Sissy Spacek. First cousin once-removed of actresses Schuyler Fisk and Madison Fisk. Godfather of Clay Liford.
4. Was nominated for Broadway's 1960 Tony Award as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Dramatic) for "Sweet Bird of Youth," a performance he recreated in the film version with the same title, Sweet Bird of Youth (1962).
5. Was a close friend from boyhood of actor Larry Blyden. As boys, friends would refer to the two as "Torn and Bleedin'," Bleiden being the original spelling of the latter's name.
6. In 1997, he appeared in Men in Black (1997) and Hercules (1997). In "Men in Black" he plays "Zed", head of MIB. Also in that film, Tommy Lee Jones' character, "Kay", is swallowed by a giant cockroach, and escapes by blowing the creature up from the inside. In "Hercules", Torn plays "Zeus", head of the Olympian gods. In that film, Hercules is swallowed by the Hydra and escapes by cutting the creature's head off from inside.
7. Attended the Republican National Convention in New York in 2004.
8. Grew up in Texas. He attended Texas A & M College, graduating in 1952. Later, studied acting at the University of Texas, where he joined Sigma Chi Fraternity.
9. Was the league commissioner of GSN's Extreme Dodgeball.
10. In 1970 a bullet was fired through the window of his home after he spoke out against the Vietnam War on The Dick Cavett Show (1968).
11. Served as a U.S. Army military police officer after college.
12. On January 29, 2010, Torn was arrested in Salisbury, Litchfield County, Connecticut, after police found him passed out, holding a loaded gun, on the floor of a bank that had just been broken into. Torn was drunk and thought the bank was his home. He was charged with criminal trespass, carrying a firearm without a permit, carrying a firearm while intoxicated, burglary and criminal mischief. He later entered a plea of guilty and was given a suspended 2.5-year prison sentence, three years of probation during which time he was forbidden from carrying a firearm and agreed to be subject to random drug and alcohol testing.
13. Played three American presidents: Ulysses S. Grant, Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
14. Torn was born to a father of German, Austrian, and Bohemian (Czech), descent, and a mother of Moravian (Czech) and German ancestry. He grew up in Taylor, Texas, a farming community 30 miles northeast of Austin. His parents are buried in Taylor's local cemetery. As a graduate of Taylor High School, home of the Taylor Ducks, he was a member of the inaugural group inducted into the Duck Hall of Fame. He attended the ceremonies personally where he visited with many former classmates.
15. Starred in two unrelated movies focusing on The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover (1977) (playing Dwight Webb) and J. Edgar Hoover (1987) (playing Lyndon Johnson).
16. Best remembered by the public for his starring role as the producer - "Artie" on The Larry Sanders Show (1992).
17. Along with Garry Shandling and Jeffrey Tambor, Torn was one of the 3 actors to have appear in every episode of The Larry Sanders Show (1992).
18. At age 25, Torn moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1956, to become an actor.
19. Bore a slight resemblance to Richard Karn.
20. His uncle (on his father's side), Roland Sarrazin "Rip" Torn, passed away on August 13, 1999. He lived to be 82.