John Heard (actor)

Heard was born on March 7, 1946, in Washington, D.C.[2] He was the son of Helen (Sperling), who was involved in the arts and appeared in community theatre, and John Henry Heard, who worked for the office of the Secretary of Defense.[2][3][4] Heard was raised as a Catholic.[5]

Heard attended Gonzaga College High School, Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, and Catholic University of America, in Washington, D.C.[2] He grew up with two sisters, one of whom, Cordis, is also an actress, and a brother, Matthew, who died in 1975.[3]

In the 1970s, Heard appeared on the stage and in television and film. He appeared off-Broadway in 1974 in Mark Medoff's play The Wager and in 1975 as Guildenstern in Hamlet at the Delacorte Theatre in Central Park, where he also understudied Sam Waterston as Hamlet. That fall, the production moved to the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center. Heard appeared at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in 1977 in a series of new plays. Heard won Obie Awards for his performances in Othello and Split in 1979–80. He was the male lead in the 1979 film Head Over Heels (which was renamed and re-released as Chilly Scenes of Winter in 1982).

In 1981, he had the starring role of Alex Cutter in the film Cutter's Way. In 1982, he played the lover of Nastassja Kinski, one of the main characters, in the remake of Cat People. He co-starred as photographer George Cooper in C.H.U.D. (Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers, 1984) alongside future Home Alone co-star Daniel Stern and in The Trip to Bountiful (1985). In the comedy-drama film Heaven Help Us (aka, Catholic Boys, 1985), Heard played a monk named Brother Timothy. In After Hours (also 1985), Heard was bartender Tom Schorr.

He was seen in the film The Milagro Beanfield War and had a significant role playing Paul, Tom Hanks's adult corporate competitor and jilted boyfriend of Elizabeth Perkins, in Big (both 1988). He co-starred with Bette Midler in Beaches (also 1988). In 1990 Heard starred in the philosophical film Mindwalk, in which three characters from different socialitical and poetical backgrounds express their opinions on the human experience, and around the same time, he was in Awakenings alongside Robert De Niro and Robin Williams, starred in Deceived (1991), with Goldie Hawn, playing Jack Saunders, and had a supporting role in Gladiator (1992), with Cuba Gooding Jr.

He played Daugherty in the film Radio Flyer (1992) and FBI agent Gavin Vereek in The Pelican Brief (1993). He starred with Samuel L. Jackson in 1997's One Eight Seven and was featured in the 2000 miniseries Perfect Murder, Perfect Town.

Heard married actress Margot Kidder in 1979, but they separated after only six days.[8]

In 1987, he had a son, John Matthew Heard, with actress and former girlfriend Melissa Leo.[9] Heard was arrested in 1991 and charged with third-degree assault for allegedly slapping Leo.[10] In 1997, he was found guilty of trespassing at Leo's home but was acquitted of charges of trespassing at their son's school.[11]

He also married Sharon Heard. They had two children, Annika Rose and Maxwell John.[2]

On May 24, 2010, Heard married Lana Pritchard in Los Angeles. The couple divorced seven months later.[12]

He was a conspiracy theorist who disputed the events that occurred during the September 11 attacks in 2001.[13]

His estranged son Maxwell John Heard died on December 6, 2016, at age 22.[14]

Heard died of a heart attack on July 21, 2017, at the age of 71. His body was found by staff in a hotel in Palo Alto, California, where he was reportedly recovering after minor back surgery at Stanford University Hospital. The back surgery did not play a role in his death.[15][16] His death was confirmed by the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner's office. He was buried in South Side Cemetery in Ipswich, Massachusetts.[17][18][19][20]

Source unless otherwise noted:[2]

• 1977 Theatre World Award for his performance in G.R. Point
• 1976–77 Obie Award, Best Performance, G.R. Point
• 1979–80 Obie Award, Best Performance, Othello and Split
• 1999 Emmy Award nomination, Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series (1999)

In 2003, he was inducted into the Gonzaga College High School Theatre Hall of Fame.

• John Heard at IMDb
• John Heard at the TCM Movie Database
• John Heard at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• John Heard at the Internet Broadway Database
• John Heard at Find a Grave