Randy Quaid
Randy Quaid is an American actor, born on October 1, 1950, in Houston, Texas. He is widely recognized for his role as Cousin Eddie in the National Lampoon's Vacation film series, which solidified his status in comedic acting. Quaid, younger brother to actor Dennis Quaid, began his career after being discovered by director Peter Bogdanovich while studying at the University of Houston. His filmography includes significant roles in both television and movies, with notable performances in films like The Last Picture Show, LBJ: The Early Years, and the critically acclaimed Brokeback Mountain. Despite his comedic fame, Quaid has also tackled dramatic roles throughout his career, earning a Golden Globe Award for his portrayal of Lyndon B. Johnson. In recent years, his life has been marked by legal and financial issues, leading him to seek asylum in Canada, although he later faced deportation challenges. As of 2024, he is set to star in The Christmas Letter, marking his return to film after a six-year hiatus. Quaid's personal life includes a daughter from a previous marriage and a long-term marriage to model Evi Quaid.
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Randy Quaid
Actor
- Born: October 1, 1950
- Place of Birth: Houston, Texas
Contribution: Actor Randy Quaid has had a long and storied career, appearing in numerous films over the years. He is best known for playing Cousin Eddie in the comedic National Lampoon’s Vacation films.
Background
Randy Quaid was born Randall Rudy Quaid on October 1, 1950, in Houston, Texas, son of William and Juanita Quaid. His younger brother, Dennis Quaid, is also an actor. While Dennis became known for dramatic and romantic roles, Randy landed more comedic roles.
Quaid attended the University of Houston, where he was discovered by director Peter Bogdanovich while still a drama student. Quaid was given a small, uncredited part in the first film Bogdanovich directed, Targets (1968). Three years later, Bogdanovich gave Quaid a more prominent role in his next film The Last Picture Show (1971), and Quaid found himself on the path to a successful acting career.
Career
Having previously worked successfully with Quaid, Bogdanovich tapped Quaid for his 1972 film What’s Up, Doc? in a role as a Texan professor. Afterward, Bogdanovich gave Quaid a small role in his film Paper Moon (1973). Quaid’s first starring role came with Hal Ashby’s Oscar-nominated 1973 film The Last Detail, alongside Jack Nicholson and Otis Young. After this performance, the burgeoning actor found steady work throughout the decade.
Quaid starred in the 1974 television movie The Great Niagara as a son manipulated into dangerously pursuing his father’s broken dream of surviving a trip over Niagara Falls in a barrel. The stunt had left his father crippled as a young man. Quaid then starred alongside Marlon Brando and Nicholson in the ill-fated Western The Missouri Breaks (1976). Quaid followed this by starring in another Western, the 1979 television movie The Last Ride of the Dalton Gang.
Quaid’s next starring role was in the 1980 television film To Race the Wind, which told the story of a blind man attending college and becoming a lawyer. Soon after, he took a major role in the award-winning television movie Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones (1980), which was based on the story of the Peoples Temple cult and their leader Jim Jones. That same year, Quaid and his brother acted in the same film for the first time, playing brothers in the Western The Long Riders, which told the story of the Jesse James gang.
The next major role for Quaid would become one of his best known. He landed the role of Cousin Eddie, a bumbling but good-natured fool, first seen in National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983), which featured the adventures of the Griswold family. He reprised his role in Christmas Vacation (1988), Vegas Vacation (1997), and Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie’s Island Adventure (2003).
In addition, Quaid had a string of successful starring roles, including parts in A Streetcar Named Desire (1984) and Fool for Love (1985). His next leading role came in the award-winning television movie LBJ: The Early Years (1987) as Lyndon B. Johnson. For his work in the film, Quaid won a Golden Globe Award for best performance by an actor in a miniseries or a motion picture made for television. Quaid then took a role in Caddyshack II (1988), the ill-fated sequel to the famous comedy Caddyshack. He then had starring roles in the television movie Dead Solid Perfect (1988), a golf-focused drama, and films such as Frankenstein (1992), Next Door (1994), Bye Bye Love (1995), and Kingpin (1996).
Around this time, Quaid began to fear that he was being typecast as a comedian only. Thus, he forayed into the action genre, landing a starring role in the crime thriller Hard Rain (1998), alongside Morgan Freeman. In 2001, he took the lead in the sci-fi film The Day the World Ended. He then returned to comedic roles, with the exception of a dramatic role in the critically acclaimed 2005 film Brokeback Mountain, after which Quaid sued Focus Features for additional pay.
The actor then attempted to appear on Broadway in 2007 in the production Lone Star Love, but the effort fell through because of creative difficulties between Quaid and his wife, on one hand, and the rest of the cast in the production, on the other. He returned to film, starring in the comedies Real Time (2008) and Balls Out: Gary the Tennis Coach (2009). At the end of the 2000s and into the 2010s, Quaid ran into financial and legal troubles and eventually left the country to seek asylum in Canada.
While Quaid attempted to remain in Canada, he was not granted permanent residency and was facing deportation. Shortly after, in 2015, he was discovered across the border in Vermont and was arrested. However, a local Vermont judge ruled to dismiss the charges, allowing him to live freely in the state. Quaid then made an appearance in the 2018 Rob Margolies comedy Weight. In 2024, it was announced that Quaid would be appearing alongside Chevy Chase and Brian Doyle-Murray in The Christmas Letter, his first film in six years.
Impact
Although Quaid became best known as a comedic actor, shooting to fame for his role in the National Lampoon films, he also played serious dramatic roles. His versatility was evidenced in the 1987 television movie LBJ: The Early Years, for which he won a Golden Globe Award. Over the years, Quaid became one of the most recognizable faces in Hollywood.
Personal Life
Quaid had a daughter, Amanda Quaid, also an actor, from his previous marriage to Ella Jolly. He married model Evi Quaid in 1989. The couple resides in Vermont.
Bibliography
Berson, Misha. “Lone Star Ends with Quaid, Director Telling Different Stories.” Seattle Times. Seattle Times, 3 Oct. 2007. Web. 1 Aug. 2013.
Collin, Robbie. "The Sad, Strange Saga of Independence Day Hero Randy Quaid." The Telegraph, 4 July 2017, www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/06/24/the-sad-strange-saga-of-independence-day-hero-randy-quaid/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.
Otis, Ginger Adams. “What the Hell Happened to Randy Quaid?” New York Post. NYP Holdings, 24 Oct. 2010. Web. 22 Aug. 2013.
“Randy Quaid.” Biography.com. A&E Television Networks. Web. 22 Aug. 2013.
“Randy Quaid.” Turner Classic Movies. Turner Entertainment Networks, n.d. Web. 22 July 2013.
“Randy Quaid Drops Lawsuit over Brokeback Mountain.” USA Today. Gannett, 4 May 2006. Web. 23 July 2013.
"Randy Quaid's Fist Movie in 6 Years Is Central NY-Based Christmas Film." Syracuse.com, 25 Jan. 2024, www.syracuse.com/entertainment/2024/01/randy-quaids-first-movie-in-6-years-is-central-ny-based-christmas-film-photos.html. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.
Webster, Dan. “Comic Ability Leads Randy Quaid to Fears about Career Typecasting.” Spokesman-Review. Spokesman-Review. 10 Jan. 1997. Web. 23 July 2013.