The Great Santini

Background:

Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated actor Michael O'Keefe garnered broad rave reviews while portraying Ben Meechum, a basketball-playing kid who struggles to win the approval of his demanding, aggressively competitive, but frustrated marine pilot father (played by Robert Duvall), in film version of the novel by Pat Conroy, "The Great Santini" (1979). The actor who made his film debut in the disaster film "Gray Lady Down" (1978), has since played meatier roles in such films as "Caddyshack" (1980), "Ironweed" (1987), "The Pledge" (2001), "The Glass House" (2001), "The Hot Chick" (2002), and "Michael Clayton" (2007). He will next be seen in the upcoming films "Chasing 3000," "Frozen River," and "American Inquisition."

On the small screen, O'Keefe could be seen as gonzo attorney Simon MacHeath in the Fox drama series "Against the Law" (1990), as Jackie's (played by Laurie Metcalf) husband Fred (1993-1995) in the ABC sitcom ''Roseanne,'' as suburbanite Ron Steffey in the drama series ''Middle Ages'' (1992), and as basketball coach/househusband Kevin Hunter in the ABC sitcom "Life's Work" (1996). He most recently guest starred in "State of Mind," "Saving Grace," "Criminal Minds" and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."

As for his stage works, the player who began acting in his teens, had amassed an impressive theater resume including "Fifth of July," "Streamers," "Mass Appeal" and "Short Eyes" by the early 1980s. He is a co-founder of the Collanade Theatre Lab.

More personally, the 6' 1" slim actor was married to noted rock/blues singer Bonnie Raitt from 1991 to 2000. He has twins from his first marriage with Alma O'Keefe.

Raymond Peter

Childhood and Family:

In Mount Vernon, New York, Raymond Peter O'Keefe Jr. was born on April 24, 1955. The oldest of seven children, O'Keefe's siblings include James and Mary O'Keefe. His father was a law professor at Fordham University, as well as taught at St. Thomas of Villanova College.

Young O'Keefe was a baseball star for his parochial school team. After graduating from Mamaroneck (NY) High School, he was trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA), New York, New York, and New York University, New York, New York.

O'Keefe has been married twice, once to Alma O'Keefe, with whom he has twins, and once to noted rock/blues singer Bonnie Raitt (27 April 1991 – 2000), with whom he has co-written two songs, one of them the Grammy-nominated "Longing in Their Hearts."

Born into a devoutly Roman Catholic Irish American family, O'Keefe, who joined a sect called ''The Way'' when he was 15, is now a practicing Zen Buddhist and became an ordained Zen priest in 1996. He enjoys hiking in his free time.

Caddyshack

Career:

An NYU and AADA alumna, Michael O'Keefe made his acting debut in a 1970 Colgate toothpaste television commercial and at Joseph Papp's Public Theater in New York City. In 1974, he made his stage debut in New York Shakespeare Festival production of "Killdeer" (billed as Michael Raymond O'Keefe). In the following year, he appeared in his first made-for-TV movie in a remake of "Friendly Persuasion'' (1975; aka ''Except for Me and Thee").

In 1978, O'Keefe played a supporting role opposite Charlton Heston and David Carradine in his film debut, director David Greene's 1978 disaster film "Gray Lady Down," which was adapted from the 1971 novel "Event 1000" by David Lavallee.

His second film, Lewis John Carlino's film version of the novel by Pat Conroy, "The Great Santini" (1979), proved to be his breakthrough film work. For his outstanding turn as Ben Meechum (author Pat Conroy's alter ego), a basketball-playing kid who struggles to win the approval of his demanding alpha male father, an aggressively competitive, but frustrated marine pilot (played by Robert Duvall), earned him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar and Golden Globe's New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture nominations.

Meanwhile, O'Keefe's stage works received general positive reviews. O'Keefe, a co-founder of the Collanade Theatre Lab., took home a 1982 Theatre World Award for ''Mass Appeal.'' He also continued to add to his resume with roles in films like Harold Ramis' comedy "Caddyshack" (1980; with Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight and Bill Murray), in which he starred as Danny Noonan, a caddy who will do almost anything to raise money to go to college, the poor Neil Simon's ''The Slugger's Wife" (1985), in which he acted opposite Rebecca De Mornay, and Argentine-born Brazilian director Hector Babenco's well-received ''Ironweed'' (1987), which based on the novel by William Kennedy and stars Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep.

On the small screen, O'Keefe starred as gonzo attorney Simon MacHeath in the Fox drama series "Against the Law" (1990) and was briefly seen as Jackie's (played by Laurie Metcalf) husband Fred (1993-1995) in the ABC sitcom ''Roseanne.'' He then played suburbanite Ron Steffey in the drama series ''Middle Ages'' (1992) and co-starred with Lisa Ann Walter, playing basketball coach/househusband Kevin Hunter, in the ABC sitcom "Life's Work" (1996). He also returned to stage as the jazz musician father in the award-winning Broadway play "Side Man" (1999).

Entering the new millennium, O'Keefe was cast alongside Jack Nicholson in Sean Penn-directed thriller film "The Pledge" (2001), which was adapted from the 1958 novel by Swiss author Friedrich Dürrenmatt, played Leelee Sobieski's father who was killed in a car accident (Rita Wilson played his wife), in the action thriller "The Glass House" (2001), and portrayed Rachel McAdam's father in Tom Brady's comedy movie starring Rob Schneider, "The Hot Chick" (2002).

He also guest-starred in such TV shows as "Law & Order," "The West Wing," "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," "House M.D.," "The Closer" (as the Special Agent in charge of protecting Dayton Callie's witness character), and "Vanished." On stage, he could be seen as Rick Dwyne in "McReele" play by Stephen Belber at The Laura Pels Theatre, New York City, New York, in February 2005.

Recently, O'Keefe was cast in writer/director Tony Gilroy's dramatic law thriller film "Michael Clayton" (2007), starring George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson and Tilda Swinton. By this time, he has appeared in the pilot episode of "State of Mind" and guest-starred in an episode of "Saving Grace," "Criminal Minds" and two episodes of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."

Next, O'Keefe will appear in director Gregory J. Lanesey's baseball movie "Chasing 3000," starring Ray Liotta, Rory Culkin and Trevor Morgan, which is set to be released in April 2008. He has completed a dramatic feature film by writer/director Courtney Hunt that is scheduled to compete in the Dramatic Competition at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, "Frozen River," in which he plays a New York State Trooper who ultimately brings the justice, and will soon wrap "American Inquisition," an upcoming drama by director Tim Disney and is written by Bill Haney.

Awards:
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