Roy Scheider

Athletic Scheider was born in November 1932 in Orange, New Jersey, to Anna (Crosson) and Roy Bernhard Scheider, a mechanic. He was of German and Irish descent. A keen sportsman from a young age, he competed in baseball and boxing (his awkwardly mended broken nose is a result of his foray into Golden Gloves competitions). While at college, his pursuits turned from sports to theater and he studied drama at Rutgers and Franklin and Marshall. After a stint in the military, Scheider appeared with the New York Shakespeare Festival and won an "Obie Award" for his appearance in the play "Stephen D.

1947: Lost - Roy Scheider was stopped in two rounds (TKO), when he suffered a nose injury by Myron Greenberg in an amateur boxing match in Orange, New Jersey. Scheider's nose was broken and he was unable to continue (Golden Gloves Tournament: Novice Division).

1948: Won - Roy Scheider knocked out Peter Read in two rounds of an amateur boxing match in New Jersey.

1950 (March 17): Won - Roy Scheider knocked out Earl Garrett in the first round of an amateur boxing match in New Jersey. Scheider suffered a nose injury and drops out of the tournament (Golden Gloves).

1953 (July 20): Won - Roy Scheider knocked out Nick Welling in two rounds of an amateur boxing match in Cliffside Park, New Jersey.

1958: Won - Roy Scheider knocked out Ted LaScalza in one round in an amateur boxing match.

Was predeceased by his daughter, Maximillia Connelly Lord (B. July 6, 1963), who died on August 2, 2006 at age 43 of leukemia.

"His film career commenced with the campy Z-grade horror cheesefest The Curse of the Living Corpse (1964), and he then showed up in Star! (1968), Paper Lion (1968), Stiletto (1969) and Puzzle of a Downfall Child (1970).

In the early 1970s the Peter Benchley novel "Jaws" was a phenomenal best-seller, and young director Steven Spielberg was chosen by Universal Pictures to direct the film adaptation, Jaws (1975), in which Scheider played police chief Brody and shared lead billing with Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss in the tale of a New England seaside community terrorized by a hungry Great White shark. "Jaws" was a blockbuster, and for many years held the record as the highest-grossing film of all time.

In 1971 he really came to the attention of film audiences with his role in the Jane Fonda thriller Klute (1971) and then as Det.

Buddy Russo (scoring his first Oscar nomination) alongside fiery Gene Hackman in the crime drama The French Connection (1971). His performance as a tough street cop in that film led him into another tough cop role as NYC Det.

Buddy Manucci in the underappreciated The Seven-Ups (1973), which features one of the best car chase sequences ever put on film.

Lean, angular-faced and authoritatively spoken lead / supporting actor Roy Scheider obviously never heard the old actor's axiom about "never appearing with kids or animals" lest they overshadow your performance. Breaking that rule did him no harm, though, as he achieved pop cult status by finding, fighting and blowing up a 25-foot-long Great White shark (nicknamed "Bruce") in the mega-hit Jaws (1975) and then electrocuting an even bigger Great White in the vastly inferior Jaws 2 (1978).

Scheider then turned up as the shady CIA agent brother of Dustin Hoffman in the unnerving Marathon Man (1976) and in the misfired William Friedkin-directed remake of The Wages of Fear (1953) titled Sorcerer (1977), before again returning to Amity to battle another giant shark in Jaws 2 (1978).

He was originally cast as Michael Vronsky in The Deer Hunter (1978), as the second movie of a three movie deal with Universal Studios. Because he did not believe that the character would travel around the world to find his friend, he quit the picture. Universal executives were furious, but they agreed to let him out of his Universal contract if he made Jaws 2 (1978), which he did. He later regarded pulling out of The Deer Hunter (1978) as the career decision he most regrets.

Seeking a change from tough cops and hungry sharks, he took the role of womanizing, drug-popping choreographer Joe Gideon, the lead character of the semi-autobiographical portrayal of director Bob Fosse in the sparkling All That Jazz (1979). It was another big hit for Scheider (and another Oscar nomination), with the film featuring a stunning opening sequence to the tune of the funky George Benson number "On Broadway", and breathtaking dance routines including the "Airotica" performance by the glamorous Sandahl Bergman.

By the middle 1980s, Roy Scheider's career as a leading man was in decline.

Was in talks to appear in the drama film The Verdict (1982).

Returning to another law enforcement role, Scheider played a rebellious helicopter pilot in the John Badham conspiracy / action film Blue Thunder (1983), a scientist in the sequel to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) simply titled 2010 (1984), a cheating husband who turns the tables on his blackmailers in 52 Pick-Up (1986), a cold-blooded hit man in Cohen and Tate (1988) and a CIA operative in the muddled and slow-moving The Russia House (1990). The versatile Scheider was then cast as the captain of a futuristic submarine in the relatively popular TV series SeaQuest 2032 (1993), which ran for three seasons.

His name was inspiration for Japanese enterprise Toei create television series Uchû keiji Shaider (1984).

Son, Christian Scheider (born 1990), and daughter, Molly Scheider (born 1995), with wife Brenda Siemer Scheider.

Has played the President of the United States three times: Executive Target (1997), The Peacekeeper (1997) and Chain of Command (2000).

Was politically active and participated in protests against the Vietnam and Iraq wars and for environmental issues on Long Island. In March 2003, he was among a group of protesters who laid down on a Long Island highway in a symbolic reference to the casualties of war.

Underwent a bone marrow transplant to treat multiple myeloma, a cancer of the plasma cells. [June 2005]

On March 4, 2007, Scheider was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the SunDeis Film Festival at Brandeis University, following a screening of his classic film All That Jazz (1979). It was the sixth time that Scheider had seen the film, and the first time for his young daughter, Molly, who accompanied him.

When he was shown in the "In Memoriam" segment during the telecast of the 15th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2009), his name was spelled incorrectly: Schieder instead of Scheider.

Has played two characters with pet dolphins: Heywood Floyd in 2010 (1984) and Captain Nathan Bridger on SeaQuest 2032 (1993).

Had two grandchildren, granddaughter Sascha and and grandson Tanner Orion Emile Connelly. Tanner died on February 8, 2017 at age 25.