By Bruce G Photo Image ( Pixbay )
Some people say that life is a race, not a sprint. In the acting business, this couldn’t be more true. Many famous actors who are well-known today didn’t become famous until years of hard work in small theaters or small roles in B movies. In their 20s and 30s, these artists were having a hard time, but then they got the part that made them famous. Do not give up! Making movies should be your life, and you have a long one. You still have a lot of time to become a successful actor.
Jane Lynch
Jane LynchIn the mockumentary “Best in Show,” which starred Jennifer Coolidge as a trophy wife, Jane Lynch got her big break when she was 43 years old. She played a butch gay personal dog handler. Christopher Guest knew Lynch from a “Frosted Flakes” commercial she did in the early 1990s, which is how she got the part in “Best in Show.” Lynch has since played the store manager in Judd Apatow’s “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” and Sue Sylvester, the mean high school teacher who blows the whistle on “Glee,” a part that won her an Emmy.
Daniel Burstei
Danny Burstein has been acting on and off-Broadway since the early 1990s. But it wasn’t until 2006, when he was in his early forties and playing the famous Latin love Aldolpho in “The Drowsy Chaperone,” that he became famous. After being nominated for his first Tony Award, he became one of the best character actors on Broadway. His role as Luther Billis in “South Pacific” won him another Tony nomination. After that, Burstein played Buddy Plummer in a revival of Follies, which proved he is more than just a supporting actor and earned him another Tony nod.
Joan Martindale Margo
Since the early 1990s, Margo Martindale has had small parts in movies. But it wasn’t until 2004 that she became famous when she played Big Mama in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” on Broadway. She was up for both a Drama Desk Award and a Tony Award. After that, she played more interesting guest stars on TV, like Nina Burns in “The Riches” and Mags Bennet in the second season of “Justified,” for which she got an Emmy Award at age 60.
Jon Hamm
While he was in his 20s and 30s, Jon Hamm spent most of his time in Los Angeles working as an actor. Before being hired in NBC’s drama “Providence,” Jon Hamm worked as a waiter. It wasn’t until 2007 that he became famous and praised for his role as the slick advertising executive Don Draper in “Mad Men.” Hamm was chosen from more than 80 players to play the part. For his work on “Mad Men” and “30 Rock,” he has won a Golden Globe and been nominated eight times for an Emmy.
Lisa Gray
Linda Gray was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award for her role as Sue Ellen Ewing on “Dallas.” Before that, she worked as a model and did more than 400 commercials. She got her start as an actress on “Dallas” when she was 38 years old. Ever since then, Gray has kept working steadily, making turns on a number of TV shows.
Norm Lewis
Norm Lewis has beautiful voice and great playing skills. He should have been a star years ago. He didn’t get his first leading part in a Broadway musical until 2011, when he played Porgy in Diane Paulus’s revival of “The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess.” He was nominated for his first Tony Award. Lewis rose to fame in the theater by regularly working Off-Broadway in well-known classics like “A New Brain” and in concert versions of “Dreamgirls,” “Chess,” and “Hair.” Lewis then joined the cast of the popular political thriller “Scandal” and played one of Olivia Pope’s love interests.
How Connie Britton
Although Connie Britton had small parts in TV shows like “Spin City” and “24,” the political thriller, she didn’t become famous, get praise from critics, and become loved by many people until she was cast in “Friday Night Lights.” Because of her work on the show, she was nominated for two Emmys and got a lot of fans during its five-season run as Tami Taylor. Since then, she has played Vivian Harmon in the first season of “American Horror Story” and Rayna James, a country western star on ABC’s “Nashville,” which got great reviews.
Joan Joosten Kathryn
Kathryn Joosten worked as a mental nurse in Chicago for most of her life. Her first role in a neighborhood theater was in 1982, when she was 42 years old. She became famous after just seventeen years when she got the part of Mrs. Landingham on “The West Wing.” Because of her work on the show, Joosten got more TV parts, like Karen McCluskey on “Desperate Housewives,” for which she won two Emmy Awards. It just so happened that she died twenty days after the death of her character on “Desperate Housewives.”
Franklin Ford
Harrison Ford was hired by director George Lucas to build cabinets, which led to him being cast as the lead in “Star Wars” when he was 33 years old. Lucas tasked Ford with reading lines for Han Solo. He liked how he did so much that he offered Ford the part. After that, Ford was cast as the lead in the “Indiana Jones” series, which made him a better main man.
John F. Murray Abraham
People first knew F. Murray Abraham as the scary Antonio Salieri in “Amadeus,” for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor at the age of 45. However, most people knew him as the talking grape in a run of “Fruit of the Looms” commercials.
Jack Sylvester Stallone
As an adult, it’s hard to picture Sylvester Stallone as an actor who was having trouble making it. But early in his career, he was. When he moved to New York, he only had $50 on him. He slept in the New York Port Authority because he couldn’t pay rent. It got so bad for Stallone that he even started filming pornography. When he was 30, he got the part in “Rocky,” and everything changed. Stallone became famous very quickly after playing Rocky Balboa and was nominated for an Academy Award. He went on to play famous parts like John Rambo in “Rambo.”
Dr. Phylicia Rashad
Though Phylicia Rashad was well-known for her work on and off-Broadway, she really became famous when she was 35 and got the iconic part of Claire Huxtable on the long-running sitcom “The Cosby Show.” Rashad went on to become the first African American actor to win the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading actor in a Play for her work in the revival of “A Raisin in the Sun.” She was nominated for two Emmy Awards for her work on the show.
Jim Rickman Alan
It wasn’t long ago that everyone knew Alan Rickman as a famous actor. He used to run his own graphic design business with his friends before he chose to become an actor. He started working with different British theater groups. In 1985, he was cast as the Vicomte de Valmont in “Les Liaisons Dangereuses,” a role that got him nominated for a Tony Award. After playing Hans Gruber in “Die Hard,” his career really took off. This led to a wide range of roles on stage and in movies, such as Severus Snape, the poisonous potions master in “Harry Potter,” and on Broadway in Theresa Rhebeck’s “Seminar.”
Jayne Houdyshell
Jayne Houdyshell performed in small stages all over the United States for more than 25 years. The first time people heard of Houdyshell was in Lisa Kron’s “Well” on Broadway in 2006, when she was getting close to her mid-fifties. She has become a well-known name in New York since then, and has been nominated for two Tony Awards for her roles in “Well” and as the famous Broadway baby Hattie in the most recent production of “Dolls.”
The Hackman Gene
At age 37, Gene Hackman got his big break when he played the real Buck Barrow in “Bonnie and Clyde.” He had been a field radio operator in the US Marine Corps for almost five years before that. After that, he moved back to New York City. Hackman later won an Oscar for his role in “Bonnie and Clyde.” This led to other movie roles, including “The French Connection,” for which he won another Oscar.
Hey Kristin Wiig
While she was trying to get work as an actor, Kristin Wiig did strange jobs here and there to make money. In 2005, she became famous. She made it through a budget cut to “Saturday Night Live” and became a full member of the repertory group in 2006. She created hilarious characters like “The Target Lady,” “The Neurotic Penelope,” “The TV Game Show Cheryl Bryant,” and famous impersonations of Nancy Pelosi, Suze Orman, Liza Minnelli, and Michele Bachmann. She has been nominated for an Emmy Award for her work on the live comedy show. Since then, Wiig has been in movies like “Bridesmaid” and “Knocked Up,” which got her nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Wiig also played the famous young Lucille Bluth in the Netflix revival of “Arrested Development.”
Big John Mahoney
Before he chose to become an actor, John Mahoney worked as editor of a medical journal. He then joined the Steppenwolf Theater Company in Chicago. His work in John Guare’s “The House of Blue Leaves” won him a Tony Award. At age 53, he got his big break as Martin Crane on “Frasier.” For his work on the long-running show, he was nominated for many Golden Globe and Emmy Awards. Since then, Mahoney has been in a lot of movies and voice parts, and she has been a guest star on TV shows like “Burn Notice” and “Hot in Cleaveland.”
Tim Allen
Tim Allen became famous on the hit TV show “Home Improvement.” He got that job after years of struggling as a comedian doing stand-up on the late-night tour. Allen then starred in “The Santa Clause,” voiced Buzz Lightyear in “Toy Story,” and was on the ABC comedy “Last Man Standing.”
John Michael Emerson
Michael Emerson worked in stores and as an independent illustrator in New York City before he became a star who won an Emmy. Emerson and his wife gave up and went to Florida, where he performed in plays all over the state. Emerson became famous for his amazing role as a serial killer on “The Practice.” That role won him his first Emmy Award. Even more Emmys have been given to Emerson for his work on the hit movie “Lost.”
Jack L. Samuel
Before he played Jules Winnfield in “Pulp Fiction,” Samuel L. Jackson worked as a social worker of sorts. He got small parts in movies like “Goodfellas” and “True Romance” after choosing to become an actor. He didn’t become famous until “Pulp Fiction,” which came out when he was 45 years old. Jackson was praised by critics and was nominated for an Academy Award. After that, he was in “A Time to Kill,” “Jackie Brown,” and most recently, “Django Unchained.” Jackson is still a big name with a lot of box office power, and he keeps working steadily.
Joy Ball Lucille
Though Lucille Ball is loved by many, she wasn’t always so famous and popular. In her early years, she worked as a model, used a stage name to act on Broadway, and played a lot of small parts in B movies. In 1951, when she was 40 years old, Lucille Ball finally hit it big when she created the TV show “I Love Lucy.” The show made her famous overnight and earned her four Emmy Awards and thirteen votes. Once “I Love Lucy” was over, she kept working in movies and on stage.
Kathy Bates
Early in her career, Kathy Bates steadily worked on stage and in movies. But it wasn’t until she was hired in the thriller “Misery” at age 42 that she became known as one of the best actors of her time. After Bates won the Academy Award for Best Actress, her career took off. She played Molly Brown in “Titanic,” Libby Holden in “Primary Colors,” and Miss Hannigan in Disney’s remake of “Annie.” She also had great roles on the TV shows “Six Feet Under,” “Two and a Half Men,” and “Harry’s Law.” Bates was also hired to be a co-star on the third season of “American Horror Story.”
Melanie McCarthy
Melissa McCarthy played the likeable Sookie St. James on “Gilmore Girls” for seven years and had many other small parts on hit TV shows like “Samantha Who” and “Private Practice.” But it wasn’t until “Bridesmaid,” a huge hit in 2011, that McCarthy’s star really took off, just as she turned forty. McCarthy has since gone on to play more lead parts in movies, like in “Identity Thief” with Jason Bateman and “The Heat” with Sandra Bullock.
Bea Arthur
Bea Arthur didn’t show up on the map until she was forty years old. She got a Tony Award for her role as the sassy Vera Charles opposite Angela Lansbury in the original Broadway production of “Mame.” As she got older, she had more success. Her role as Maude Findlay on “All in the Family” and later on “Maude” won her praise. Arthur also got nominated for a lot of Emmy Awards for her work on “The Golden Girls.”
Chris Hemsworth
To make ends meet, Jeremy Renner worked as a part-time makeup artist while playing small parts in movies. In 2009, Renner got his big break as Sergeant William James in Kathyrn Bigelow’s “The Hurt Locker.” He was 38 years old at the time. Renner went on to star in big hits like “The Avengers” and “The Bourne Legacy” after that.
Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is one of the biggest movie stars in the world right now. Freeman has been playing since he was nine years old, but he didn’t become famous until the mid-1970s and early 1980s, when he was getting close to forty years old. People knew Freeman’s face from his roles on the famous soap opera “Another World” and the PBS kids’ show “The Electric Company.” We went on to play a number of important supporting parts in many movies after that, including Hoke in “Driving Miss Daisy,” a role he created on stage. His first Oscar was for “Million Dollar Baby,” which came out in 2004.
John James Gandolfini
The famous actor, who died quickly in 2013, is the perfect example of an actor who became famous after a while. In 1992, he made his Broadway start in “A Streetcar Named Desire” with Jessica Lange and Alec Baldwin. But it wasn’t until he was 38 that he got his big break as mob boss Tony Soprano in the hit HBO show “The Sopranos.” He then played the lead role in “God of Carnage” on Broadway and in movies like “Where the Wild Things Are,” “Welcome to the Rileys,” and “Zero Dark Thirty.”