R. Lee Ermey Biography

(American actor)

Birthday: March 24, 1944 (Aries)

Born In: Emporia, Kansas, U.S.

Very few actors have left such a long lasting impression with a single role as Ronal Lee Ermey did with his portrayal of Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in the film, Full Metal Jacket. An immensely talented actor, he was a soldier working for the United States Marine Corps where he rose to the rank of a staff Sergeant. He was also bestowed with the honorary rank of Gunnery Sergeant by the Marine Corps for his outstanding services. After being discharged from military services, he started acting in films and soon rose to fame and received numerous awards and critical acclaim. His portrayal of Gunnery Sergeant Hartman was immensely appreciated and he soon became a household name. Though he could never match the success of this role in his later films, he ensured a permanent place in the hearts of the filmgoers. Alongside the success on the big screen, he also made guest appearances and hosted several television shows which made him a household name. He also lent his voice to several animated films and video games. With his scintillating performances and distinctive voice, he etched his name in the hearts of movie lovers.

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Quick Facts

Also Known As: Ronald Lee Ermey, The Gunny

Died At Age: 74

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Nila Ermey (m. 1975)

Born Country: United States

Actors American Men

Height: 6'0" (183 cm), 6'0" Males

Died on: April 15, 2018

place of death: Santa Monica, California, U.S.

U.S. State: Kansas

More Facts

education: University of Manila

Early Life & Childhood
Born in Kansas in Emporia, he enlisted himself in the United States Marine Corps in 1961.
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Career
He served as a drill instructor at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego, Californian and Parris Island, South Carolina for two years from 1965 to 1967.
In the following year, he moved to Vietnam where he worked for almost 14 months with the Marine Wing Support Group 17.
He also served in Okinawa in Japan after which he rose to the rank of Staff sergeant.
He was discharged of his duties in 1972 due to the injuries he sustained during his various duty tours.
Following this, he moved to Philippines where he joined the University of Manila and studied criminology and drama.

Around this time, he played the character of a Marine Drill instructor in 1987 film, The Boys in Company "C", which brought him into the limelight.

In the following years, he played a few minor roles including the role of a tough drill instructor in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket. The role won him great critical acclaim and a nomination for Golden Globe Award as Best Supporting Actor.

He acted in numerous films, including Purple Hearts, Mississippi Burning, The Siege of Firebase Gloria and Dead Man Walking.

He also became a part of shows such as Kim Possible, The Simpsons, and Family Guy and hosted a documentary series Mail Call and Lock N' Load. On the show, he discussed a variety of issues including weaponry, tactical matters, and military history.

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He made a guest appearance in the super hit TV drama, House. He further worked as a voice actor in plenty of episodes of Batman: The Brave and the Bold. In an episode of The Simpsons titled "Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming", he gave his voice to Colonel Leslie’s character.

In an episode (Inmates of Summer) of SpongeBob SquarePants, he contributed as a voice actor.

He also gave his voice to various video games, including Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel, Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex and more.

In 2009, he hosted the second History Channel show titled Lock N' Load with R. Lee Ermey, which discussed in detail, the history of various weapons used in the military.

In 2010, he starred in a GEICO commercial and featured in ESPN's College GameDay every week.
In 2011, he donned the role of a drill instructor on the X-Play special of Bulletstorm.
Major Works
In the 1987 Stanley Kubrick film, ‘Full Metal Jacket’, he won the Boston Society Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor and was also nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture. The film grossed $46,357,676, making it the 23rd highest grossing film of 1987.
He donned the role of General Platt in ‘The Body Snatchers’ (1993). It is a science fiction horror film loosely based on the 1955 novel The Body Snatchers.
Awards & Achievements
He received the Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor and also earned a nomination for Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture for his performance in the film, ‘Full Metal Jacket’ by Stanley Kubrick.
On May 17, 2002, an honorary post-service promotion to Gunnery Sergeant (E-7) was bestowed upon him in acknowledgement of his continued support to American military service.
Personal Life, Legacy & Death

He married Nila in 1975 with whom he had four children. They remained married until his death. He had two daughters from his previous marriage.

Death

R. Lee Ermey died on April 15, 2018, from complications related to pneumonia, at a hospital in Santa Monica, California. He was 74.


 

Trivia
Initially, he was cast as a technical advisor to the actor playing the role of the drill instructor in Stanley Kubrick film, ‘Full Metal Jacket’. However, he impressed the director so much that he himself was hired for the role.
This actor used the same dialogue, "You're not afraid of a little blood, are you?" in his two consecutive movies.

See the events in life of R. Lee Ermey in Chronological Order

How To Cite

Article Title
- R. Lee Ermey Biography
Author
- Editors, TheFamousPeople.com
Website
- TheFamousPeople.com
URL
https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/r-lee-ermey-3436.php

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