Jeff Conaway
Bobby Wheeler in Taxi
Birth name : Jeff Conaway
Birth date : 1950/10/05 (75 years old)
Birth place : New York USA
Biography for Jeff Conaway
Married on January 9, 1980 with Rona Newton-John and divorced in 1985.
Remarried on August 17, 1990 with Kerry Young
Jeff Conaway was an American actor born October 5, 1950 in New York and died on May 27, 2011 in Los Angeles. He is known for his role as Kenickie in the musical film Grease in 1978, as well as for his appearances in the Taxi television series.
Conaway began his acting career in Broadway, where he played in productions such as Hair and Grease. He then made his cinema debut in the 1978 Grease film, in which he interpreted the character of Kenickie, one of the members of the Rock T-Birds group. The film was a commercial success and Conaway became famous for its role.
In 1980, Conaway joined the cast of the Taxi television series, in which he played the character of Bobby Wheeler, a failed actor who works as a taxi driver to pay his bills. The series was a success and Conaway played in several episodes until 1982.
In addition to his acting career, Conaway was also a talented singer and recorded several music albums. He also wrote a book entitled "Tumbling After" in which he was talking about his personal struggles with drugs and alcohol.
Unfortunately, Conaway has suffered from health problems throughout his life, including dependence on drugs and alcohol. In 2011, he died at the age of 60 from pneumonia. His death was largely covered by the media and he was cried by his fans and colleagues from the entertainment industry.
Photos
Filmography
| Title | Role |
|---|---|
| Elf Academy (2008) (in production) | FBI Director |
| Dark Games (2009) (post-production) | Tom Doyle |
| Sin-Jin Smyth (2008) (post-production) | |
| Wrestling (2008/I) | Franklin Conner |
| The Utah Murder Project (2006) | Sheriff Dan Patterson |
| The John Kerwin Show | Guest (1 episode, 2006) |
| Living the Dream (2006) | Dick |
| The Pool 2 (2006) | Agent Frank Gun |
| From Behind the Sunflower (2005) | Leo |
| The Corner Office (2004) | Dick |
| Pan Dulce (2004) | Gabriel Levine |
| Y.M.I. (2004) | Digger's Dad |
| She Spies | Zachary Mason (1 episode, 2004) |
| Curse of the Forty-Niner (2003) | Reverend Sutter |
| The Biz (2002) | Gavin Elliot |
| Do You Wanna Know a Secret? (2001) | Agent Owen Sacker |
| Dating Service (2001) | |
| L.A. 7 | Manager of Radio Station (1 episode, 2000) |
| Man on the Moon (1999) (uncredited) | Actor in Taxi Recreation |
| Jawbreaker (1999) | Marcie's Father |
| Babylon 5: A Call to Arms (1999) (TV) | Zack Allen |
| Babylon 5 | Zack Allan / ... (50 episodes, 1994-1998) |
| Babylon 5: The River of Souls (1998) (TV) | Zack Allen |
| Babylon 5: Thirdspace (1998) (TV) | Zack Allen |
| Shadow of Doubt (1998) | Bixby |
| George & Leo (1 episode, 1997) | |
| The Last Embrace (1997) | Jagger |
| Mr. & Mrs. Smith | Rich Edwards (1 episode, 1996) |
| Hope & Gloria | Bud Green (1 episode, 1995) |
| Burke's Law | Dr. Alex Kenyon (1 episode, 1995) |
| Murder, She Wrote | Howard Griffin / ... (4 episodes, 1984-1994) |
| 2002: The Rape of Eden (1994) | Reverend |
| Matlock | Daniel Ward / ... (2 episodes, 1986-1993) |
| L.A. Goddess (1993) | Sean |
| Sunset Strip (1993) | Tony |
| In a Moment of Passion (1993) | Werner Soehnen |
| Alien Intruder (1993) (V) | Borman |
| It's Showtime (1993) | |
| Eye of the Storm (1992) | Tom Edwards |
| Almost Pregnant (1992) (V) | Charlie Alderson |
| Mirror Images (1992) | Jeffrey Blair |
| Bikini Summer II (1992) | Stu Stocker |
| A Time to Die (1991) | Frank |
| Total Exposure (1991) | Peter Keynes |
| Shades of LA | Richard (1 episode, 1990) |
| Good Grief | Winston Payne (1 episode, 1990) |
| The Bold and the Beautiful (1987) TV series | Mick Savage (unknown episodes, 1989-1990) |
| Freddy's Nightmares | Buddy Powers (1 episode, 1989) |
| Monsters | Phil (1 episode, 1989) |
| The Sleeping Car (1989) | Bud Sorenson |
| Tale of Two Sisters (1989) | Taxi driver |
| Ghost Writer (1989) (TV) | Tom Farrell |
| The Banker (1989) | Cowboy |
| Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (1988) | Travis |
| The Dirty Dozen: The Fatal Mission (1988) (TV) | Sgt. Holt |
| Bay Coven (1987) (TV) | Josh McGwin |
| Stingray | Ty Gardner (1 episode, 1987) |
| Hotel | Eric Madison (1 episode, 1987) |
| Tales from the Darkside | Peter (1 episode, 1987) |
| Mike Hammer | Harry Farris / ... (2 episodes, 1984-1987) |
| The Patriot (1986) | Mitchell |
| Berrenger's (1985) TV series | John Higgins (unknown episodes, 1985) |
| Who's the Boss? | Jeff (1 episode, 1985) |
| Covergirls (1985) | |
| The Ghost Writer (1984) (TV) | |
| Covergirl (1984) | T.C. Sloane |
| Making of a Male Model (1983) (TV) | Chuck Lanyard |
| Wizards and Warriors | Prince Erik Greystone (2 episodes, 1983) |
| Taxi | Robert L. 'Bobby' Wheeler / ... (17 episodes, 1978-1982) |
| The Nashville Grab (1981) (TV) | Buddy Walker |
| For the Love of It (1980) (TV) | Russ |
| Breaking Up Is Hard to Do (1979) (TV) | Roy Fletcher |
| Grease (1978) | Kenickie |
| Kojak | Bert Gaines (1 episode, 1978) |
| Pete's Dragon (1977) | Willie |
| I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1977) | Lactamaeon |
| Delta County, U.S.A. (1977) (TV) | Terry Nicholas |
| Barnaby Jones | Jeff Saunders / ... (2 episodes, 1976-1977) |
| The Eagle Has Landed (1976) | Frazier |
| Mary Tyler Moore | Kenny Stevens (1 episode, 1976) |
| Happy Days | Rocko (2 episodes, 1975-1976) |
| Joe Forrester (1 episode, 1975) |
Trivia
- His ex-wife, Rona Newton-John, is Olivia Newton-John's sister.
- Is a grandfather (grandson born January 1997). (Admitted this on NBC's "Later with Greg Kinnear" (1994), July 6/98, with guest host Rita Sever).
- Wanted to be an astronaut when he was little.
- While filming Grease (1978), had to walk slightly stooped so John Travolta would appear taller.
- In an episode of "Taxi" (1978), the song 'Summer Nights' from the movie Grease (1978) is playing on a jukebox, but instead of John Travolta singing the lead, it's Jeff Conaway. When _Grease (1978)_ was on Broadway, Jeff Conway played the role of Danny, so this soundtrack is the Original Broadway Cast recording, not the movie soundtrack.
- Though he played Kenickie in the movie version of Grease (1978), he appeared in the Broadway production as Danny Zuko.
- Appeared in an episode of "Murder, She Wrote" (1984) ("Birds of a Feather") as an Off-Broadway actor from New York who had been "mostly a cab driver" - a reference to his role in the TV series, "Taxi" (1978).
- Saw an episode of Babylon 5 on TV and liked it so much he went down to the production studio to see the show being filmed. He was spotted and used for a bit part, which grew into a recurring character, and eventually a full-time role in the series.
- Is an acting teacher and coach, with his students including James Evans and Joey Sylvester.
Family
- Spouse : Kerri Young (17 August 1990 - present), Rona Newton-John (9 January 1980 - 1985) (divorced)
- Brother of Michele Conaway.
- He has no children of his own. He has a step son with Rona.
- Youngest of three kids.
Author of the card
- Creation date: 08/09/2008 by villain