Gary Busey – Bio, Net Worth, Age, Wife, Family, Facts, Career, Height

Gary Busey is an American actor who is best known for portraying the role of Buddy Holly in “The Buddy Holly Story” (1978), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and won the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor. He began his professional career as a drummer playing under the name Teddy Jack Eddy before gradually moving on to acting. His film career began with the biker movie titled “Angels Hard as They Come” (1971) which led to roles in films like The Magnificent Seven Ride! (1972), Dirty Little Billy (1972), The Last American Hero (1973), Hex (1973), Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974), The Gumball Rally (1976), A Star Is Born (1976), Insignificance (1985), Lethal Weapon (1987), The Firm (1993), Piranha 3DD (2012), Entourage (2015), Camp Manna (2018), and more. 

What is Gary Busey Famous For?

• Being an American Actor. 
• For his role as Buddy Holly in “The Buddy Holly Story” (1978).

Where is Gary Busey From?

Gary Busey was born with the birth name of William Gary Busey on 29th June 1944 in Goose Creek, Texas, the USA to a Native American father, Delmer Lloyd Busey, and an Irish mother Sadie Virginia. His father was a construction design manager. His nationality is American and his ethnicity is Mixed. In 1996, Busey publicly announced that he was a Christian, saying: “I am proud to tell Hollywood I am a Christian. For the first time, I am now free to be myself.” While he was in fourth grade, Busey moved from Goose Creek to Tulsa, where he later attended Bell Junior High School, then attended Nathan Hale High School in Tulsa and graduated in 1962. He then attended Coffeyville Community College before attending Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas, on a football scholarship, where he became interested in acting. After a knee injury, he then transferred to Oklahoma State University. But he quit before graduating. He used to play percussion with the musicians Leon Russell and Willie Nelson while at college. His present age is 78 as of 2022. 

Gary Busey Career Timeline

• Gary started his career as a drummer in a band called The Rubber Band. He also played drums on many of Leon Russell’s recordings under the name Teddy Jack Eddy.
• He played the role of Sprunk in a local television comedy show called “The Uncanny Film Festival and Camp Meeting” while in Tulsa.
• He played in a band called Carp, which released one album on Epic Records in 1969.
• He continued to play several small roles in both film and television during the 1970s. 
• In 1975, as the character “Harvey Daley”, he was the last person killed in the series Gunsmoke (in the third-to-last episode, No. 633 – “The Busters”). 
• He made his major film debut with a supporting role in Michael Cimino’s buddy action caper “Thunderbolt and Lightfoot” in 1974. 
• In 1976, he appeared in the remake film “A Star is Born”. 
• In 1978, he starred as rock legend Buddy Holly in “The Buddy Holly Story”.
• He also starred in the small yet acclaimed drama Straight Time and the surfing movie Big Wednesday. 
• In the 1980s, his films included the critically acclaimed western Barbarosa, the comedies D.C. Cab and Insignificance, and the Stephen King adaptation Silver Bullet. 
• He also played one of the primary antagonists opposite Mel Gibson and Danny Glover in the action comedy Lethal Weapon.
• He had prominent supporting roles in successful action films such as Predator 2, Point Break, and Under Siege. He also appeared in Rookie of the Year, The Firm, Black Sheep, Lost Highway, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas during his 1990s.
• He sang the song “Stay All Night” on Saturday Night Live in March 1979 (season 4, episode 14), and on the Late Show with David Letterman in the 1990s. 
• He voiced the character Phil Cassidy in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City in 2002 and later reprised the role in the prequel Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories in 2006.
• In 2003, Busey starred in a Comedy Central reality show, I’m with Busey.
• He also voiced himself in an episode of The Simpsons in 2005 and also he was seen in the popular miniseries Into the West.
• Next, he appeared in the 2006 Turkish nationalist film Valley of the Wolves: Iraq (Turkish: Kurtlar Vadisi: Irak), which was accused of fascism, anti-Americanism, and antisemitism.
• In 2005, he was seen in the horror film The Gingerdead Man as the titular character.
• In 2007, he appeared as himself in a prominent recurring role on HBO’s “Entourage”.
• He joined the second season of the reality show “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” in 2008. 
• He returned to reality television in Celebrity Apprentice 4, which premiered in March 2011, and appeared again in Celebrity Apprentice 6. 
• In 2014, he became a celebrity spokesperson for Amazon Fire TV. 
• He became the first American winner of the fourteenth series of the UK version of Celebrity Big Brother in August 2014. 
• He also took part in the 21st season of Dancing with the Stars pairing with Anna Trebunskaya. They finished in 10th place. 
• On June 17, 2019, he was announced to star as God in the Off-Broadway musical Only Human at the Theatre at St. Clements in New York.
• In May 2020, the first season of Gary Busey Pet Judge was released in which Busey presides as a pet court show judge to help resolve problems.

Awards and Achievements

• Won the National Society of Film Critics Award for the Best Actor for his portrayal of Buddy Holly in “The Buddy Holly Story” in 1979
• Won the BAFTA Film Award for the Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Role in 1980 for the film “The Buddy Holly Story”
• Won CableACE Awards in 1987 for his work in “The Hitchhiker”

Who is Gary Busey married to?

Gary Busey is a married man. In 1971, he tied a knot with his first wife, Judy Helkenberg with whom he has a son, William Jacob “Jake” Busey. Busey and Helkenberg divorced when Jake was 19 years old. Gary also has a daughter named Alectra, born in 1994, from a relationship with stunt coordinator Tracy Hutchinson. In the year 1996, he married his second wife, Tiani Warden, an actress who was in three movies with Gary – The Chain, The Rage, and Plato’s Run. They divorced in the year 2001. In February 2010, Busey’s fiancée, Steffanie Sampson, gave birth to their son. Gary is living a happy life with Steffanie. His sexual orientation is straight. 

On 19th August 2022, he was arrested and charged with two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact at Monster-Mania Con in New Jersey, where he was a guest. The police did not identify the suspect as Gary Busey, however, the age and the hometown of the suspect matched those of Gary. 

How much is Gary Busey’s Net Worth?

Gary Busey is a talented actor who has appeared in several movies and TV shows. The net worth of Gary Busey is estimated to have $500K as of 2022. His main source of wealth is said to from his career in acting. He also earns income from brand endorsements and sponsorships. He is making his salary in thousands of dollars from his professional work. He is living a lavish lifestyle at present. 

How tall is Gary Busey?

Gary Busey is a handsome actor standing at the height of 1.83 m or 6 feet. His body weight is 75 KG. His hair color is grey and his eye color is blue. His body type is average. In 1997, Busey underwent successful surgery to remove a cancerous, plum-sized tumor from his sinus cavity. The growth was found after Busey began suffering nose bleeds. On December 4, 1988, he was severely injured in a motorcycle accident in which he was not wearing a helmet. His skull was fractured, and he suffered permanent brain damage. He cites the motorcycle accident and a 1995 cocaine overdose as events that strengthened his Christian faith. During the filming of the second season of Celebrity Rehab in 2008, he was referred to psychiatrist Charles Sophy. Sophy suspected that Busey’s brain injury has had a greater effect on him than was realized. He described it as essentially weakening his mental “filters” and causing him to speak and act impulsively. Sophy recommended Busey take valproic acid (Depakote), with which Busey agreed.