Graham Greene
Written by Gail Whiteside
Published by 50plus.com
When
Graham Greene was growing up on the Six Nations Reserve in southwestern
Ontario, being an actor wasn't something he dreamed about doing one day.
In fact, years later when a friend kept at him to try out for a play,
Greene would have nothing to do with the idea. But persistance paid off.
Greene entered the spotlight and has never looked back. Greene spent the
seventies acting in England, and in between theatre jobs he moonlighted as
a draftsman and worked in construction. He moved back to Canada and landed
regular acting jobs on the TV series Spirit Bay and 9B. In 1989, the
aboriginal actor landed a key part in the play Dry Lips Oughta Move to
Kapuskasing by Cree playwright Tomson Highway. The award winning play was
presented by Toronto's Native Earth Performing Arts. Greene won a Dora
Mavor Moore Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Pierre St. Pierre.
He went on to star in this role for two years as the play toured Canada.
In the late 1980's, Kevin Costner met with Greene about an upcoming movie
project. Costner advised Greene not to cut his hair. The project evolved
into the Academy award winning "Dances With Wolves". Greene had
a key role in the movie as medicine man Kicking Bird. He won an Academy
Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role. Graham Greene's
latest role is as host of the TV series Exhibit A: Secrets of Forensic
Science. In a recent interview, the actor shook his head at how far he has
come. He said sometimes it's hard to believe he gets paid for putting on
costumes and acting like other people.
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