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{{Infobox actor
{{real world}}
| image =James Marsters DragonCon 2007-1.jpg
'''James Marsters''' (born [[20th August]] [[1962]]) played [[John Hart]] in ''[[Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang]]'', ''[[Fragments]]'' and ''[[Exit Wounds]]''.
| caption = Marsters at the 2007 [[Dragon Con]]
| birthdate = {{birth date and age|1962|8|20}}
| birthplace = [[Greenville, California]] [[United States|U.S.]]
| deathdate =
| birthname = James Wesley Marsters
| othername =
| website = http://www.jamesmarsters.com
| awards        = '''[[Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television]]'''<br>2000 ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series)|Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' <br> 2003 ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series)|Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]''
}}
'''James Wesley Marsters''' (born [[August 20]], [[1962]]) is an [[United States|American]] actor and musician, best known for playing the popular platinum-blond  character [[Spike (Buffyverse)|Spike]], an [[England|English]] [[Vampire (Buffyverse)|vampire]], in the [[television series]] ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series)|Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' and its [[spinoff]] series, ''[[Angel (TV series)|Angel]]''.
 
==Biography==
===Early life===
Marsters was born in [[Greenville, California]], the son of a former minister and social worker.<ref>[http://www.filmreference.com/film/77/James-Marsters.html James Marsters Biography (1962-)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> He grew up with his brother and sister in [[Modesto, California]].  Dreaming about becoming an actor since he played Eeyore in ''[[Winnie the Pooh]]'' in fourth grade, James joined the theater group at Davis High School, acting in many plays including musicals. After graduation, Marsters studied at the [[Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts]], 1980–1982, and [[Juilliard Drama School]], 1982–1984.
 
In an appearance on the ''[[Loveline]]'' radio show in early 2003 he spoke very negatively about the school and his experience at Juilliard, which he was "basically kicked out of", saying that they were not concerned about being entertaining and that it "wasn't an acting school, it was a speech school".
 
===Career===
Marsters moved to [[Chicago]] where his first professional acting role was Ferdinand in ''[[The Tempest]]'' at the [[Goodman Theatre]] in 1987. In this production, he was rolled onto the stage strapped naked to a wheel. He also appeared with well-known Chicago companies such as the [[Northlight Theatre|Northlight]] and the [[Bailiwick Repertory Theatre|Bailiwick]] and with his own group, the [[Genesis Theatre Company]]. Marsters was nominated for a [[Joseph Jefferson Awards|Joseph Jefferson Award]] for his performance of the lead role of [[Maximilian de Robespierre|Robespierre]] in the six-hour drama ''Incorruptible: The Life, Death and Dreams of Maximilian de Robespierre'' in 1989.
 
In 1990, Marsters moved to [[Seattle]] and, with Liane Davidson and Greg Musick, formed the New Mercury Theatre, named after [[Orson Welles|Orson Welles']] own [[Mercury Theatre|theatre group]]. In this and other companies, Marsters was involved in a wide range of plays, including ''[[Teechers]]'' (a British play by [[John Godber]]), [[Jean Anouilh|Anouilh's]] ''[[Antigone (Anouilh play)|Antigone]]'', an original work based on the [[Dr. Seuss]] books, and [[George Bernard Shaw|Shaw's]] ''[[Misalliance]].''
 
In 1992, Marsters got his first acting job on TV—on ''[[Northern Exposure]]'', a show that was shot near Seattle, in which he appeared for two episodes as a bellboy and a church minister. He has made guest appearances on television series such as ''[[Andromeda (TV series)|Andromeda]]'', as well as the independent films ''[[Chance (film)|Chance]]'' (2002), ''[[Winding Roads]]'' (1999), and the 2005 [[USA Network]] movie ''[[Cool Money]]''. In 1999, Marsters had a small role in the remake of ''[[House on Haunted Hill]]'' as a TV cameraman. During November 2005, Marsters filmed a thriller, ''Shadow Puppets'', with [[Jolene Blalock]].
 
===Marsters as "Spike"===
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Spike Promo.jpg|thumb|right|160px|James Marsters as Spike in ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series)|Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'']] -->
 
It was his appearance as [[Spike (Buffyverse)|Spike]] on the television series ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series)|Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' (first appearing in Season Two) that attracted the attention of the general public. The immediate fan response prevented his character from being killed off, allowing him a presence throughout the series. Spike became a regular in Season Four, and remained so until the show's finale. After the conclusion of ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', Marsters carried Spike over to the Buffy spinoff show, ''[[Angel (TV series)|Angel]]'', also in a regular role (second title billing after [[David Boreanaz]], who played "Angel"). In April 2004, following the end of ''Angel'', Marsters had Spike's trademark bleached hair shaved off for charity live on television in ''[[On Air with Ryan Seacrest]]''.<ref name=RyanSeacrest>{{cite episode | title= On Air with Ryan Seacrest| serieslink= On Air with Ryan Seacrest |credits= [[Ryan Seacrest]], [[James Marsters]] | airdate= 2004-04-27}}</ref>
 
Marsters' inspiration for Spike's English accent was from his co-star, [[Anthony Stewart Head]]. Head, who was born in [[Camden Town]], affected a light, [[Received Pronunciation]] accent as [[Rupert Giles|Giles]]; he has a deeper, more notably [[London]] accent when not in character.  Marsters' accent was so convincing, many crew members were not aware that he was an American.<ref>{{cite video |title="Casting Buffy" featurette |medium=''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'': The Complete Fifth Season DVD}}</ref>
 
Aside from playing the character, Marsters also wrote a comic book one-shot for Dark Horse Comics, ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Spike and Dru,'' which the story considers to be non-canonical to the show.
 
===Other work===
Marsters has also narrated the audiobooks for  ''[[The Dresden Files]]'' produced by [[Buzzy Multimedia]], a series of detective novels with a supernatural bent. The third audio in the series, ''Grave Peril'',<ref>[http://www.buzzymultimedia.com/products.cfm?sid=67075193D14203080805002G2905054250O62Q252Q192Q10D92974265D105999&c=167 Buzzy Multimedia]</ref> was released in March of 2005 and Marsters is contracted to narrate the fourth in the series, ''Summer Knight'', in 2006. In late [[2005 in music|2005]], Marsters appeared on the [[television series]] ''[[Smallville (TV series)|Smallville]]'' playing Dr. Milton Fine &mdash; the popular ''[[Superman]]'' villain "[[Brainiac (comics)|Brainiac]]" &mdash; in eight episodes throughout the show's fifth season.  He returned to Smallville in a four-episode arc in 2008.<ref>[http://www.eonline.com/gossip/kristin/detail/index.jsp?uuid=f3d3a26b-7933-4ff1-8b4c-fbdf1ac1a737&sid=fd-hot2-txt Watch with Kristin - Exclusive! James Marsters Returning to ''Smallville''<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
 
[[Image:Image-fine.jpeg|thumb|left|300px|James Marsters as Professor Milton Fine in ''[[Smallville (TV series)|Smallville]]'']]
 
On [[October 29]], [[2005]], Marsters presented two performances of his own abridged adaptation of [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]]'s ''[[Macbeth]]'' with American actress [[Cheryl Puente]] as Lady Macbeth, followed by question and answer sessions with the audience and acoustic concerts in London.
 
In September, 2006, Marsters' own interpretation of Godber's ''Teechers'' was performed on the Queen Mary with two other actors in [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]]. This is a play he had received critical acclaim for as a stage actor prior to his television work. Marsters co-starred in the 2007 cinematic release of ''[[PS, I Love You (film)|P.S. I Love You]]'' alongside [[Kathy Bates]], [[Hilary Swank]], and [[Gerard Butler]].<ref>[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0431308 Marsters at IMDB]</ref> Released in September 2007, Marsters starred in the direct-to-DVD animated movie, [[Superman: Doomsday]], providing the voice of iconic villain [[Lex Luthor]]. The film received mostly positive reviews, with most of the critics and fans stating that Marsters and co-star [[Adam Baldwin]], (who played Luthor's nemesis Superman) gave excellent performances. 2007 would also see James portray "Detective Mars" on the [[CBS]] drama ''[[Without a Trace]]''.
 
In 2008, James Marsters guest starred in ''[[Torchwood]]'', a spin-off of the popular [[United Kingdom|British]] [[science fiction television|sci-fi]] series ''[[Doctor Who]]''. First appearing in the episode "[[Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (Torchwood)|Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang]]",<ref>{{cite web |url= http://jamesmarsterslive.com/|title= Daffodils, Dragons and Demons |accessdate=2007-06-19 |format= |work=James Marsters Live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.gallifreyone.com/news.php#newsitemEElkkyEZkFIpQsCopC |title= James Marsters in Torchwood |accessdate=2007-06-19 |format= |work= [[Outpost Gallifrey]] }}</ref> as the nefarious [[omnisexuality|omnisexual]] [[time travel in fiction|time traveller]] [[List of Torchwood minor characters#Captain John Hart|Captain John Hart]]. He reprises the role in the last two episodes of the second season as the villain. He has also stated that he will return for the third series.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/cult/a92592/james-marsters-torchwood.html| title= Cult Interview: James Marsters (Torchwood)| accessdate=2008-04-28 |format= |work= Digital Spy}}</ref>
 
Marsters will also portray the character "[[Piccolo (Dragon Ball)|Lord Piccolo]]" in the [[Dragonball (film)|live-action film adaptation]] of the popular ''[[Dragon Ball (franchise)|Dragon Ball]]'' [[manga]] and [[anime]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117975946.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1| title= 'Dragonball' comes to bigscreen| accessdate=2007-11-13 |format= |work= Variety}}</ref> directed by [[James Wong (producer)|James Wong]] and produced by [[Stephen Chow]], which scheduled for worldwide release on [[April 10]] [[2009]].
 
===Musical career===
Marsters had played in bands and solo in bars and clubs for many years and enjoyed several successful sell-out solo gigs at [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]] clubs before forming a band. For these solo gigs he mainly performed covers of classic [[folk music|folk]] and [[rock music|rock]] musicians such as [[Tom Waits]], [[Neil Young]], and [[Bruce Springsteen]]. He also sang in "[[Once More, with Feeling (Buffy episode)|Once More, with Feeling]]", a musical episode of ''Buffy''. The songs "Walk Through the Fire" and "Something To Sing About" featured Marsters singing in a solo capacity, and "Rest in Peace" was sung entirely by him.
 
[[Image:Unionchapel.JPG|thumb|left|180px|James Marsters performing at the Union Chapel Concert on [[4 May]] [[2007]]]]
 
In 2003–2004, Marsters was the lead singer for the rock band [[Ghost of the Robot]]. Their debut album ''Mad Brilliant'' was released on [[February 2]], [[2003]]. The band played its first gigs in Los Angeles and [[Paris]]. They went on to play successful dates in and around Los Angeles and two sold-out tours of Europe in 2003 and 2004. In addition to ''Mad Brilliant'', they released three singles ("Valerie", "David Letterman" and "New Man") and one mid-length [[Extended play|EP]], ''It's Nothing''. All these releases carried tracks written and co-written by Marsters.
 
Marsters' solo musical career was launched in October 2004, in [[London]]. His solo acoustic tour of the [[United Kingdom]] in April 2005 sold out.<ref name=JML>[http://www.jamesmarsterslive.com James Marsters Live]</ref> A new solo album ''Civilized Man''<ref name=JML/> was released on [[April 15]], [[2005]]. It includes several new songs as well as the popular "Katie" and "Smile". He has played songs from the album live in [[Detroit, Michigan|Detroit]], [[Houston, Texas|Houston]], [[Sacramento, California|Sacramento]]. Ten of the eleven songs are written by Marsters.
 
New solo songs not included on the album but sung at live solo concerts include "Birth of the Blues", "Finer than Gold", "Louise", and "London City". "Finer than Gold", "London City", and "Louise" were composed while on tour in the UK in April 2005. "Birth of the Blues" was composed by Marsters in [[Amsterdam]] in 2004 while touring with his now-defunct band.
 
During his October 2005 mini-tour of the UK, Marsters introduced other new songs to his sets: "Button Down Vandals", "Up On Me", and "All That She Wanted". These songs were available only as part of his recently released ''Words and Music'' DVD, which has his abridged version of ''Macbeth'' as well as a full-length solo music performance.
 
During his September 2006 convention, James Marsters & Friends,<ref name=JML/> Marsters debuted several new songs including "The Truth Is Heavy", "Fall of Night", "Jealous Man", and "Not A Millionaire". All these songs reflect his new blues music and folk sound.
 
He also performed a cover version of [[Keb Mo]]'s classic "Baby Blue".
 
In 2007, Marsters performed live several times in the UK and debuted two new songs written in [[Cardiff]]. "Layabout" and "Looking At You" reflect a more upbeat light folk move in Marsters' music. These songs as well as some of his previously unrecorded work will be released on Marsters' second solo album, to be formally launched in [[Los Angeles]] and [[Cardiff]] in October and November 2007 respectively. The new album, ''Like A Waterfall'',<ref name=JML/> will include twelve songs. All written by Marsters, most have been performed and recorded live but not in the studio. An exception is "When I Was A Baby", a song never previously performed in public.
 
''Like A Waterfall'' is produced by [[Ryan Shore]] and features several other musicians including [[Blair Sinta]], who has drummed for [[Alanis Morissette]], and [[Five for Fighting]] bass player [[Curt Schneider]].  It is unknown whether Marsters will form a new band for live performances. He is scheduled, however, to perform from his new album in London in late April and early May 2008.
 
==Filmography==
{| border="2" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 90%;"
|- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center"
! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Film
|- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center"
! Year
! Film
! Role
! Other notes
|-
| [[1999 in film|1999]]
| ''[[House on Haunted Hill (1999 film)|House on Haunted Hill]]''
| Channel 3 Cameraman
|
|-
| [[2002 in film|2002]]
| ''[[Chance (film)|Chance]]''
| Simon
|
|-
| rowspan="3"|[[2007 in film|2007]]
| ''[[Shadow Puppets (film)|Shadow Puppets]]''
| Jack
|
|-
| ''[[Superman: Doomsday]]''
| [[Lex Luthor in other media#Superman: Doomsday|Lex Luthor]]
| Direct-to-Video Release
|-
| ''[[P.S. I Love You (film)|P.S. I Love You]]''
| John McCarthy
|
|-
| [[2009 in film|2009]]
| ''[[Dragonball (film)|Dragonball]]''
| [[Piccolo (Dragon Ball)|Lord Piccolo]]
|- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center"
! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Television
|- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center"
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
| [[1992 in television|1992]], [[1993 in television|1993]]
| ''[[Northern Exposure]]''
| Bellhop <br> Reverend Harding
| [[List of Northern Exposure episodes#Season 3: (1991-1992)|Episode: It Happened in Juneau]] <br> [[List of Northern Exposure episodes#Season 4: (1992-1993)|Episode: Grosse Pointe 48230]]
|-
| [[1995 in television|1995]]
| ''[[Medicine Ball (TV series)|Medicine Ball]]''
| Mickey Collins
| '''Episode''': Heart and Sole
|-
| [[1997 in television|1997]]
| ''[[Moloney (TV series)|Moloney]]''
| Billy O'Hara
| '''Episode''': Herniated Nick
|-
| [[1997 in television|1997]]&ndash;[[2003 in television|2003]]
| ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series)|Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]''
| [[Spike (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)|Spike]]
|
|-
| [[1999 in television|1999]], [[2003 in television|2003]]&ndash;[[2004 in television|2004]]
| ''[[Angel (TV series)|Angel]]''
| [[Spike (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)|Spike]]
|
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[1999 in television|1999]]
| ''[[Millennium (TV series)|Millennium]]''
| Eric Swan
| [[List of Millennium episodes#Season 3 (1998-99)|Episode: Collateral Damage]]
|-
| ''[[Winding Roads]]''
| Billy Johnson
| [[Television movie|TV-Movie]]
|-
| rowspan="3"|[[2001 in television|2001]]
| ''[[The Enforcers (TV miniseries)|The Enforcers]]''
| Charles Haysbert
| [[Miniseries]]
|-
| ''[[Strange Frequency (TV series)|Strange Frequency]]''
| Mitch Brand
| '''Segment''': Soul Man
|-
| ''[[Andromeda (TV series)|Andromeda]]''
| [[Andromeda (TV series)#Recurring and notable guest characters|Charlemagne Bolivar]]
| [[List of Andromeda episodes#Season 2 (1/10/2001 - 18/5/2002)|Episode: Into the Labyrinth]]
|-
| [[2004 in television|2004]]
| ''[[The Mountain (TV series)|The Mountain]]''
| Ted Tunney
|
|-
| [[2005 in television|2005]]
| ''[[Cool Money]]''
| Bobby Comfort
| [[USA Network]] [[Television movie|TV-Movie]]
|-
| [[2005 in television|2005]]&ndash;[[2008 in television|2008]]
| ''[[Smallville (TV series)|Smallville]]''
| [[Brainiac (comics)#Smallville|Prof. Milton Fine/Brainiac]]
| Season 5 + 7
|-
| [[2007 in television|2007]]&ndash;[[2008 in television|2008]]
| ''[[Without a Trace]]''
| Det. Grant Mars
|
|-
| [[2007 in television|2007]]
| ''[[Saving Grace (TV series)|Saving Grace]]''
| Dudley Payne
| [[List of Saving Grace Episodes#Season 1: 2007|Episode: Bring It On, Earl]]
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[2008 in television|2008]]
| ''[[Torchwood]]''
| [[List of Torchwood minor characters#Captain John Hart|Captain John Hart]]
| [[Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (Torchwood)|Episode: Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang]]  <br> [[Fragments (Torchwood)|Episode: Fragments]] <br> [[Exit Wounds (Torchwood)|Episode: Exit Wounds]]
|-
| ''[[The Capture of the Green River Killer]]''
| [[Ted Bundy]]
| [[Miniseries]]
|-
|}
 
==Awards & Nominations==
'''[[Teen Choice Awards]]'''
*2000: Nominated, "TV - Choice Sidekick" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2002: Nominated, "TV - Choice Actor" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2003: Nominated, "TV - Choice Actor" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
 
'''[[Saturn Awards]]'''
*2000: Nominated, "Best Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Series - Drama" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2001: '''Won''', "Best Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Series - Drama" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2002: '''Won''', "Cinescape Genre Face of the Future Award" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2002: Nominated, "Best Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Series - Drama" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2003: Nominated, "Best Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Series - Drama" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2004: '''Won''', "Best Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Series - Drama" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2005: Nominated, "Best Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Series - Drama" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
 
'''[[Satellite Awards|Golden Satellite Awards]]'''
*2003: Nominated, "Best Performance by an Supporting Actor in a  Series - Drama" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
 
'''SFX Awards, UK'''
*2002: '''Won''', "Best Comedy Performance" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
*2002: '''Won''', "Best TV Actor" — ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
 
==References==
{{reflist|2}}


==External links==
==External links==
{{commons|James Marsters}}
{{imdb name|id=0551346|name=James Marsters}}
{{wikiquote}}
*{{imdb name|id=0551346|name=James Marsters}}
*[http://www.jamesmarsters.com James Marsters Official Site]
*[http://search.dmoz.org/cgi-bin/search?search=james+marsters Fan site listings for Marsters] at [[Open Directory Project]]
 
{{Buffyversenav}}
 
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<!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]] -->
 
{{Persondata
|NAME=Marsters, James
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Marsters, James Wesley
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=Actor
|DATE OF BIRTH=[[August 20]], [[1962]]
|PLACE OF BIRTH=[[Greenville, California]], [[United States|U.S.]]
|DATE OF DEATH=
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marsters, James}}
[[Category:1962 births]]
[[Category:American actor-singers]]
[[Category:American male singers]]
[[Category:American stage actors]]
[[Category:American television actors]]
[[Category:California actors]]
[[Category:Juilliard School alumni]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Modesto, California]]
[[Category:People from the San Francisco Bay Area]]


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Revision as of 03:38, 29 June 2008

RealWorld.png

James Marsters (born 20th August 1962) played John Hart in Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, Fragments and Exit Wounds.

External links

Retrieved from "https://tardis.wiki/w/index.php?title=James_Marsters&oldid=114366"