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Robert Tessier

Highest Rated: 94% Hard Times (1975)

Lowest Rated: 0% The Villain (1979)

Birthday: Jun 2, 1934

Birthplace: Lowell, Massachusetts, USA

Beefy and imposing at over six feet tall, the actor (and stuntman) Robert Tessier was a perfect physical specimen for specializing in heavies. He made his acting debut in "Born Losers," a low-budget American International biker pic directed by Tom Laughlin--the first film to feature the "half-breed" cult hero Billy Jack, a Western-style vigilante who fought against prejudice. It probably wasn't coincidental that Tessier was of Algonquin descent. Most of the actor's early work was done on a shoestring budget; he rode out the biker-movie cycle (propagated by movies like "Born Losers" and "Easy Rider") of the late 1960s and early '70s before he struck a big Hollywood hit: "The Longest Yard," in which he played a karate-chopping convict who played football with Burt Reynolds. He was a fighter again in Walter Hill's brutal period piece "Hard Times," which starred Charles Bronson in one of his seminal roles: a rugged, bare-fisted boxer. Tessier had guest spots on popular TV shows of the time, like "The Dukes of Hazzard," "CHiPs," "The A-Team," and "Fantasy Island," and appeared in major-studio productions like "The Deep" and "Cannonball Run." Tessier's 20-year-long movie career was cut short by cancer; his last film, "Fists of Steel," was released posthumously.

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Highest rated movies

94% 81% Hard Times
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71% 24% The Velvet Vampire
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60% 63% Born Losers
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42% 39% The Deep
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33% 36% Starcrash
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0% 39% The Villain
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38% The Glory Stompers
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The Fix
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No Safe Haven
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14% Future Force
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Filmography

Movies

Credit
No Score Yet No Score Yet No Safe Haven Randy (Character) - 1989
No Score Yet 14% Future Force Becker (Character) - 1989
No Score Yet No Score Yet Fists of Steel Saylor (Character) - 1989
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Fix Spook (Character) - 1985
No Score Yet 28% The Lost Empire Koro (Character) - 1984
No Score Yet 4% Double Exposure Bartender (Character) - 1982
33% 36% Starcrash Thor (Character) - 1979
0% 39% The Villain Mashing Finger (Character) - 1979
No Score Yet 17% Steel Cherokee (Character) - 1979
No Score Yet 71% The Last of the Mohicans Magua (Character) - 1977
42% 39% The Deep Kevin (Character) - 1977
94% 81% Hard Times Jim Henry (Character) - 1975
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Jesus Trip Duncan (Character) - 1971
71% 24% The Velvet Vampire Biker (Character) - 1971
No Score Yet 11% Cry Blood, Apache Two Card Charlie (Character) - 1970
No Score Yet No Score Yet Machismo Two Card Charlie (Character) - 1970
No Score Yet 62% The Babysitter Unknown (Character) - 1969
No Score Yet 38% The Glory Stompers Magoo (Character) - 1968
60% 63% Born Losers Cueball (Character) - 1967

TV

Credit
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Fall Guy Unknown (Guest Star) 1981 1984-1985
No Score Yet 71% The A-Team Scully (Guest Star) 1983
No Score Yet No Score Yet CHiPs Unknown (Guest Star) 1982
No Score Yet No Score Yet Fantasy Island Unknown (Guest Star) 1981
No Score Yet 74% Incredible Hulk Unknown (Guest Star) 1980
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Dukes of Hazzard Mitch Henderson (Guest Star) 1980
No Score Yet No Score Yet Hart to Hart Unknown (Guest Star) 1979
No Score Yet No Score Yet Starsky and Hutch Unknown (Guest Star) 1979
No Score Yet No Score Yet Little House on the Prairie Chief Jack Lame Horse (Guest Star) 1975
No Score Yet 100% Kung Fu Unknown (Guest Star) 1974