Grand L. Bush
Bush in 2012
Born (1955-12-24) December 24, 1955
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1976–2002
Spouse
(m. 1994)

Grand Lee Bush (born December 24, 1955) is an American former actor of stage, television and film.

Early life and education

Bush was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of actor Robert Bush and his wife Essie Bush.[1] Shakespearean-trained, Bush studied film and theatre at the Los Angeles City College Theatre Academy, University of Southern California and the Strasberg Academy in Hollywood. He continued his education by performing at the historic Globe Theatre,[1] the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, and the annual Shakespeare Festival in Garden Grove, California.[2]

Career

In 1977, he landed a recurring role on the CBS sitcom Good Times. Bush later acted in other television episodics and miniseries, including Roots, before joining the cast of the rock musical Hair in 1979, in which he performed a solo. Bush also performed in other musical dramas, including the TV series Fame and the feature film Streets of Fire.

In 1983, Bush won a nomination for a Canadian Genie Award in the category of "Best Performance by a Foreign Actor" for his role in the feature film Hard Feelings.

Bush appeared in such blockbusters as Lethal Weapon, Hollywood Shuffle, Die Hard, and Colors, the latter of which sparked a friendship between Bush and director Dennis Hopper and Hopper directed Bush in a total of three feature films: Colors, Chasers, and Catchfire. Bush was cast in the 1989 James Bond feature film Licence to Kill. He portrayed a lieutenant in the horror film The Exorcist III and had a small role in Demolition Man. Bush also played actor Todd Bridges' father in Building Bridges, an autobiographical short film about the rise and fall of the child star of Diff'rent Strokes.

In 1994, Bush was cast in the role of Balrog in the action/comedy Street Fighter, directed by Steven E. de Souza. The ensemble cast also included Jean-Claude Van Damme, Kylie Minogue, Ming-Na and Raúl Juliá. To prepare for his role, Bush trained with kickboxing champion Benny Urquidez in Bangkok, Thailand, and Brisbane, Australia.

More than 35 feature films in which Bush has appeared have been archived as Turner Classic Movies.[3]

Personal life

In 1991, Bush met his future wife, Sharon Crews, on the set of Freejack, a science fiction feature that stars Emilio Estevez, Rene Russo and Mick Jagger. Crews was on assignment for Black Entertainment Television (BET) to interview Bush, et al., during the Atlanta, Georgia, location filming. They married in 1994.[2]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1979HairEnsemble Dancer / Solo Artist: Flesh Failures
1979SunnysideTeddy
1980Stir CrazySlowpoke
1980The Night the City ScreamedHerbert Lee
1982Vice SquadBlack Pimp
1982Night ShiftMustafa(as Grand Bush)
1982Hard FeelingsLatham Lockhart
1984Weekend PassBertram
1984Streets of FireReggie / The Sorels
1985Brewster's MillionsRudy
1985The Color PurpleRandy
1987Lethal WeaponDetective Dan Boyette
1987Hollywood ShuffleMandingo / Ricky Taylor / Hood #5
1988ColorsLarry "Looney Tunes" Sylvester
1988Die HardFBI Agent Johnson
1989Licence to KillDEA Agent Hawkins
1989Lethal Weapon 2Detective Jerry Collins
1990Bad InfluenceClub Bartender
1990CatchfireBank Teller
1990The First PowerReservoir Worker
1990The Exorcist IIISergeant Mel Atkins
1990Secret Agent 00 SoulBen Douglas
1991WedlockJasper
1992FreejackBoone
1993Maniac Cop III: Badge of SilenceWillie
1993Demolition ManYoung Officer Zachary Lamb
1994ChasersVance Dooley
1994Street FighterBalrog
1994Forrest GumpBlack Panther Leader
1997TurbulenceUS Marshal Al Arquette
1997Favorite SonReverend Ross
2000Building BridgesTodd Bridges' Dad / Jim
2001Shark HunterRob Harrington
2002New AlcatrazSergeant Quinn

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1976Good TimesLeon2 episodes
1977Barnaby JonesDoc EvansEpisode: "Gang War"
1978Lou GrantHenry SpenceEpisode: "Sports"
1978The Incredible HulkMikeEpisode: "Never Give a Trucker an Even Break"
1978CHiPSPaulEpisode: "High Flyer"
1980B.J. and the BearCameramanEpisode: "Siege"
1981Trapper John, M.D.TreetopEpisode: "Finders Keepers"
1982Police SquadThe ChampEpisode: "Ring of Fear (A Dangerous Assignment)"
1982The JeffersonsGeorge NylundEpisode: "Appointment in 8B"
1983The RenegadesJewelEpisode: "Back to School"
1984AirwolfGeneral Ali ButamiEpisode: "And They Are Us"
1986–1993HunterOfficer Meyers/Billy/Blade5 episodes
1986OutlawsLt. Albert Ross2 episodes
1987Hard CopyCash Conover2 episodes
1987Simon & SimonDoug RaneyEpisode: "Deep Water Death"
1987WerewolfSeamanEpisode: "Nightwatch"
1989China BeachMacEpisode: "The World: Part 2"
1989Murder, She WroteGeorge Gordon"Night of the Tarantula"
1992–1993RenegadeHarry Wells3 episodes
1996Nash BridgesAlex PeytonEpisode: "Til Death Do Us Part"
1997–1998The VisitorFBI Agent Douglas Wilcox
1998–1999Walker, Texas RangerAndros/Simon Trivette2 episodes
1999The PretenderDetective RuskEpisode: "Murder 101"
1999Chicago HopeColonel Oswald MortonEpisode: "White Rabbit"
2000Any Day NowOfficer RoyceEpisode: "It's A Good Thing I'm Not Black"
200018 Wheels of JusticeEric HodgesEpisode: "Con Truck"
2001SheenaKiptalami ChiefEpisode: "Between a Rock and a Hard Place"

Video games

YearTitleRoleNotes
1995Street Fighter: The MovieBalrog
1995Street Fighter: The MovieBalrog

References

  1. 1 2 "Grand L. Bush Biography (1955–)". FilmReference.com. Retrieved February 15, 2008.
  2. 1 2 Biography for Grand L. Bush at IMDb
  3. "Filmography for Grand L Bush". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
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