Loren Dean

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Loren Dean
Born	Loren Dean Jovicic July 31, 1969 (1969-07-31) (age 38) Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1988-present (2007)
Awards won Other Awards Theatre World Award for outstanding New York City stage debut performance

Loren Dean Jovicic (July 31, 1969) is an award-winning American actor. He has appeared in live theatre, but is primarily known for his films.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Film career 3 Partial filmography (notable films only) 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Early life

Loren Dean was born in Las Vegas, Nevada to a mother who worked as a family and marriage counselor and a father involved in the clothing business.^[1] His parents divorced when he was a small child. His mother won custody of Loren, and the family moved to Los Angeles, California. When visiting his father, the two often went to the movies—which Dean says led to his love of film. His childhood was a difficult one, and he ran away from home when he was 16 years old. He graduated from Santa Monica High School in Santa Monica, California in 1986.^[2][3]

Loren Dean moved to New York City to pursue an acting career. Unable to make a living at acting, he lived in extreme poverty for two years. A friend introduced him to an agent,^[4] and Dean began appearing in stage plays in New York. He won a Theatre World Award in 1989 for his Off Broadway debut in the play Amulets Against the Dragon Forces at the Manhattan Theatre Club. He is playwright and Academy Award-winning screenwriter John Patrick Shanley's favorite actor, having appeared in many of the author's plays—most notably 4 Dogs and a Bone and Beggars in the House of Plenty.^{[5][3][6][7][8][9]}

During his time in New York, Dean became an animal lover. After his income rose, he also developed a love of shopping.^[10]

[edit] Film career

Dean's first film was 1988's Plain Clothes. But his big break came a year later, when he was cast as a bad ex-boyfriend in Say Anything.... His third film, Billy Bathgate, came in 1991. Although the film did not do well at the box office, Dean won very positive reviews for his performance in the film.^[5][11][12] Dean was also lauded for his role as a cocaine-addicted, has-been young-hunk movie star who is accidentally re-launched on the road to fame and fortune by a fan in Starf*cker (aka Starstruck). Variety noted that Dean "nails his role with precision".^[13] Most critics say his best work was as the mysterious small-town psychiatrist in Mumford (1999).^[14][15][16] Dean's performance was considered "plausible and generous", and he was favorably compared to a "young Charles Grodin."^[17]

Much of his acting career, however, has been in supporting roles. Notable performances include Apollo 13 (1995), How to Make an American Quilt (1995), Gattaca (1997), Enemy of the State (1998) and Space Cowboys (2000). In the last half-decade, Dean has appeared in a number of independent films (most notably, The War Bride) and several well-received television miniseries (such as The Bronx Is Burning).^{[18][19][20][21][22][23]}

As of the summer of 2007, Dean's latest effort was the independent feature film, The Poker Club. The suspense film was written by Johnathon Schaech and co-produced by Schaech and Richard Chizmar. The film is about four poker-playing buddies who accidentally kill a burglar during one of their poker nights. But the burglar was not alone, and his partner in crime takes revenge on the four men.^[24]

Dean has also supported films and filmmakers behind the scenes as well. In 1999, he was a juror for the third annual Shorts International Film Festival.^[25]

[edit] Partial filmography (notable films only)

• The Bronx Is Burning (2007)
• Bones (2006-07)
• The War Bride (2001)
• Space Cowboys (2000)
• Mumford (1999)
• Enemy of the State (1998)
• Starstruck (1998)
• Gattaca (1997)
• The End of Violence (1997)
• Rosewood (1997)
• Mrs. Winterbourne (1996)
• How to Make an American Quilt (1996)
• Apollo 13 (1995)
• The Passion of Darkly Noon (1995)
• J.F.K.: Reckless Youth (1993) (mini series)
• The American Clock (1993)
• 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992)
• Billy Bathgate (1991)
• Say Anything... (1989)
• Plain Clothes (1988)

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Loren Dean at the Internet Movie Database
• Loren Dean - One Good Actor - Fan site
• Loren Dean - Fan site
• Theatre World Award winners