Bill Bolender is an American character actor and artist, mainly known for small appearances in RoboCop 2, JFK, Reality Bites, The Shawshank Redemption, Nixon and Dante's Peak.
Bill Bolender | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 14, 1940 Chicago |
| Years active | 1986–present |
His guest starring appearances include roles in The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.; Walker, Texas Ranger; Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (as an Albino alien in the episode "Blood Oath"); NYPD Blue; Alias; Deadwood; and in the Desperate Housewives episode "No One Is Alone". He also had a recurring role as Captain Ross in JAG.
Career
Bolender played a small but important role in The Shawshank Redemption as Elmo Blatch, the violent convict who Andy Dufresne (played by Tim Robbins) discovers may actually be to blame for the murders of which he was convicted.[1]
Bolender has continued to work as an actor over the past few decades, appearing in the 2018 Nicolas Cage thriller Looking Glass, and in the recurring role of Dean in the Prime Video crime series Bosch (sharing credits with Shawshank co-star Mark Rolston). He appeared in a 2015 episode of the MTV series Faking It and was also a guest-star on an episode of Nickelodeon's Avatar: The Last Airbender as Sha-Mo.[1][2]
Personal life
Bolender is also a visual artist, having trained at both the Art Institute of Chicago and the San Francisco School of Fine Arts.[3] Samples of his work can be seen on his website, and on his Instagram.[1]
Filmography
Motion picture credits
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | D.O.A. | Nick Lang Sr. | |
| 1988 | Paramedics | Dying Man | |
| 1988 | It Takes Two | Judd Rogers | |
| 1988 | Il nido del ragno | Chancellor Hubbard | |
| 1989 | Ninth Life | Ray | |
| 1990 | Black Snow | Grimes | |
| 1990 | RoboCop 2 | Cabbie | |
| 1991 | JFK | Prisoner Powell | |
| 1992 | Bonnie & Clyde: The True Story | Farmer Jones | |
| 1994 | Reality Bites | Truck Driver | |
| 1994 | Plughead Rewired: Circuitry Man II | Pvt. Richards | |
| 1994 | The Shawshank Redemption | Elmo Blatch | |
| 1995 | Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead | Stevie's Dad | |
| 1995 | Midnight Man | Randy | |
| 1995 | Wild Bill | Bartender at Way Station | |
| 1995 | Nixon | Bethesda Doctor | |
| 1996 | Infinity | Isadore Rabi | |
| 1997 | Dante's Peak | Sheriff Turner | |
| 1998 | The Commissioner | Arthur Groom | |
| 1998 | Overdrive | Jim Bryant | |
| 1999 | The Settlement | Shamansky | |
| 2003 | Rose's (aka Confessions of a Florist) | Mr. Matinez | |
| 2018 | Looking Glass | Ben |
Television credits
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Dallas: The Early Years | 4th Player | TV movie, Uncredited |
| 1987 | Uncle Tom's Cabin | Trader | TV movie |
| 1987 | The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains | Rayford | TV movie |
| 1988 | Pancho Barnes | Col. Rand | TV movie |
| 1989 | Dream Date | Billie Ray | TV movie |
| 1990 | Challenger | Horace Lamberth | TV movie |
| 1991 | In Broad Daylight | Frank Snow | TV movie |
| 1991 | Final Verdict | Jim Davin | TV movie |
| 1992 | Ned Blessing: The True Story of My Life | Twister Taylor | TV movie |
| 1992 | Trial: The Price of Passion | TV movie | |
| 1993 | Jack Reed: Badge of Honor | Stan Howell | TV movie |
| 1993 | Fatal Deception: Mrs. Lee Harvey Oswald | George de Mohrenschildt | TV movie |
| 1994 | Star Trek: Deep Space Nine | The Albino | 1 episode |
| 1995 | Suspect Device | Hank | TV movie |
| 1995–1998 | JAG | Captain 'Skipper' Ross | 5 episodes |
| 1996 | Smoke Jumpers | Cranshaw | TV movie |
| 1996 | Crime of the Century | English-speaking Pastor | TV movie |
| 1997 | Quicksilver Highway | Scooter | TV movie |
| 1997 | A Thousand Men and a Baby | Gen. Maxwell Taylor | TV movie |
| 1998 | Still Holding On: The Legend of Cadillac Jack | Lenny | TV movie |
| 1999 | Hefner: Unauthorized | Glenn Hefner | TV movie |
| 2000 | The West Wing | Man #1 | 1 episode |
| 2001 | That's Life | Customer | 1 episode |
| 2002 | First Monday | Mr. Harley | 1 episode |
| 2003–2004 | Alias | Oleg Madrczyk | 2 episodes |
| 2004 | Deadwood | Artie Simpson | 1 episode |
| 2005 | CSI: Miami | Ralph Windham | 1 episode |
| 2005 | Surface | Old Man | 1 episode |
| 2006 | Desperate Housewives | Property Manager | 1 episode |
| 2006 | Avatar: The Last Airbender | Sha-Mo | 1 episode |
| 2007–2008 | ER | Hank Riley | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | Cold Case | Mike 'Monkey' Mack '09 | 1 episode |
| 2010 | Pair of Kings | 1 episode | |
| 2011 | Greek | Televangelist | 1 episode |
| 2015 | Faking It | 1 episode | |
| 2016–2017 | Bosch | Dean | 2 episodes |