Billy Wirth

American actor

Billy Wirth

Wirth in 1975

Born|

William E. Wirth

(1962-06-23) June 23, 1962 (age 63)
Occupations|

* Actor
* model

Years active| 1985–present
Height| 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)

Billy Wirth (born June 23, 1962) is an American Hollywood actor, film producer, and former fashion model, best known for his role as the vampire, Dwayne in the 1987 horror film, The Lost Boys.

## Life and career

[edit]

Nicknamed "Billy", he was born William E. Wirth on June 23, 1962 in New York City, in the United States. He was the son of Morris A. Wirth an American who was of Russian and Jewish background, who worked as a lawyer, while his mother Jean Wirth was a visual artist. His mother Jean, who was born in the state of Iowa, is of Anglo-American and Native American[1] heritage.

Wirth was a student at Collegiate School (New York), where he was a classmate of musician John Hermann,[2] and attended Brown University where he was discovered by fashion model photographer Bruce Weber, and soon began a modeling career. He modeled for American and European fashion magazines such as Seventeen, GQ, Interview, Teen magazines and took part in fashion show events in the 1980s. Wirth originally worked as a fashion model until he gave up on fashion and turned to Hollywood acting.

Wirth moved to Los Angeles, California in the mid 1980s to pursue an acting career, which began with a role in the 1985 feature film, Seven Minutes in Heaven. His performance as Dwayne in The Lost Boys followed, and he landed a starring role in the 1988 film War Party.

John Hermann (left), Wirth (bottom right) and a classmate in 1975

Wirth continued modeling combining it with acting, until he walked away from the fashion industry in the early 1990s, to dedicate his time to full-time acting. In the 1990s he appeared in both film and television, appearing in Abel Ferrara's 1993 film Body Snatchers as well as Sex and the City and CSI. He took part in the global-hit television game show American Gladiators, competing during the series' first season in 1989 and advancing to the first-half semi-finals before failing to win the title.[3]

He also appeared in the official Electric Crown music video by the American heavy metal band, Testament in 1992.

He also starred in Charmed as the witch, Matthew Tate. Since 1999, besides acting in films, he has been writing, directing, and producing independent films. His most notable film directing was MacArthur Park in 2001.

## Filmography

[edit]

### Film

[edit]

Billy Wirth film credits Year | Title | Role | Notes

|
|
|

1985  | Seven Minutes in Heaven | "Zoo" Knudsen  |
1987  | The Lost Boys | Dwayne  |
1988  | War Party | Sonny Crowkiller  |
1992  | Who Killed the Baby Jesus | Travis Adams  |
1993  | Body Snatchers | Tim Young  |
1994  | The Fence | Terry Griff  |
1994  | Judicial Consent | Martin  |
1994  | Final Mission | Tom "Outlaw" Waters  | Video
1995  | Venus Rising | Nick  |
1995  | Boys on the Side | Nick  |
1996  | Starlight | Kieran  |
1996  | Space Marines | Zack Delano  |
1997  | Last Lives | Malakai  |
1998  | Relax... It's Just Sex | Jared Bartoziak  |
1999  | Kismet | Fantasy Guy  | Short. Director
1999  | Me and Will | Charlie  |
2001  | American Reunion | Brad  |
2002  | Looking for Jimmy | Billy  |
2004  | The Talent Given Us | Billy  |
2004  | The Drone Virus | Stephen Roland  |
2006  | Seven Mummies | Travis  |
2006  | Running Out of Time in Hollywood | Billy  |
2009  | Powder Blue | David  |
2009  | Duress | The Detective  |
2012  | Being Flynn | Travis  |
2014  | Echoes | Joe  |
2015  | Cats Dancing on Jupiter | Oleg  |
2015  | Midlife | Brian  |
2015  | Alto | Ceasar Bellafusco  |
2018  | Betrayed | Mike Wolf  |
2019  | Hell to Pay | Killian  | Short film
2019  | Eternal Code | Mark Pellegrini  |

### Television

[edit]

Billy Wirth television credits Year | Title | Role | Notes

|
|
|

1985  | The Equalizer | Ralph  | Episode: "Mama's Boy"
1986  | The Ellen Burstyn Show | Johnny  | Episode: "Pilot"
1987  | Nothing in Common | Joey D.  |
1989  | American Gladiators | Contestant / Himself  | 3 episodes
1989  | Wiseguy | Eddie Tempest  | Episodes: "The Rip-Off Stick", "High Dollar Bop", "Hip Hop on the Gravy Train"
1990  | Parker Kane | Jesse  | TV movie
1991  | Tales from the Crypt | Ted Morgan  | Episode: "Split Second"
1992  | Crow's Nest | Tommy Crosetti  | TV movie
1992  | Red Shoe Diaries | Thomas K. Butler, The Workman  | TV movie
1995  | Children of the Dust | Corby / White Wolf  | TV movie
1998  | Martial Law | Kevin Seidel  | Episode: "Extreme Measures"
1998  | Charmed | Matthew Tate  | Episode: "The Witch Is Back"
2000  | Sex and the City | Dr. Mark Raskin  | Episode: "Drama Queens"
2004  | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Aaron Westonson  | Episode: "Eleven Angry Jurors"
2005  | Summerland | Garrett  | Episode: "The Wisdom to Know the Difference"
2011  | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Billy Gray  | Episode: "To the Boy in the Blue Knit Cap"
2014  | Chicago PD | Charlie Pugliese  | Season 1 Episode 13, 14, & 15
2015  | Scorpion | Mark Willis  | Episode: "Area 51"
2018  | Space Diner Tales | Souldbird  | Episode: "Pilot"
2019  | Godfather of Harlem | Detective Kramer  | Episode: "The Nitty Gritty"

## Awards

[edit]

Sundance Film Festival

Year | Award | Category/Recipient | Result

|
|
|

2001 | Grand Jury Prize | Dramatic for: MacArthur Park | Nominated

Taos Talking Picture Festival

Year | Award | Category/Recipient | Result

|
|
|

2001 | Taos Land Grant Award | for: MacArthur Park | Nominated

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "The Fight Over 'War Party'". L.A. Times. 7 October 1989. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
2. ^ The Dutchman (the Collegiate School yearbook), 1975 edition, page 33
3. ^ Murray, Noel (June 25, 2015). "American Gladiators gave misfit athletes a second chance to be champions". The A.V. Club.

## External links

[edit]

* Billy Wirth - Biography
* Billy Wirth at IMDb

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany
* United States
* France
* BnF data
* Spain
* Poland

Other|

* SNAC