Frankie Faison, born June 10, 1949 in Newport News, Virginia, USA, is an actor. He was born Frankie Russel Faison and is also sometimes credited as Frankie R. Faison. He stars as Ervin Burrell in first and second seasons. He has appeared in the Hannibal Lecter film franchise.
Biography[]
Career[]
Faison started his acting career in 1974 in the New York Shakespeare Festival production of King Lear, with James Earl Jones in the title role. Faison's next role came in TV, in the small series Hot Hero Sandwich in 1979. Faison did make it to the big screen in 1980, when he appeared in Permanent Vacation however he was credited in the film as 'Man in Lobby'. A string of small roles followed, until 1986 when he played the part of Lt. Fisk in Manhunter, also that year, he appeared in the Stephen King film Maximum Overdrive. In 1988 he starred alongside Eddie Murphy and again James Earl Jones in Coming to America, when he played the Landlord. Another big break came for Faison when he appeared as Barney in the classic thriller The Silence of the Lambs. The Silence of the Lambs would later bring more work Faisons way, as he later appears as Barney in the sequel (Hannibal) and the prequel (Red Dragon). In The Silence of the Lambs Faison gets the opportunity to work with legendary actors, such as Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster. During the 1990-1991 season, he starred in the Fox situation comedy,True Colors, with Stephanie Faracy and Nancy Walker, about an interracial couple. Following the first season he was replaced by Cleavon Little. In 1991 Faison again appears alongside Hopkins in the film Freejack, which also stars Mick Jagger and "Maximum Overdrive" co-star Emilio Estevez. In 1998, he was a regular on the science-fiction TV show Prey. Faison has a starring role as the Baltimore City Police Commissioner Ervin Burrell on the HBO drama The Wire.
Faison is the only actor to appear in the first four Hannibal Lecter films. He played Lt. Fisk in Manhunter, and Barney in The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, and Red Dragon.
Personal life[]
Faison was born in Newport News, Virginia to Carmena (née Gantt) and Edgar Faison.[1] He studied drama at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Illinois. He is married to Jane Mandel and they live in Montclair, New Jersey. He is not related to Scrubs and Clueless star Donald Faison.
Faison received an honorary Doctorate Degree from his alma mater, Illinois Wesleyan University, in 2002 and was the keynote speaker at the commencement ceremony.
Credits[]
Star[]
| Season 1 credits | ||||
| "The Target" | "The Detail" | "The Buys" | "Old Cases" | "The Pager" |
| "The Wire" | "One Arrest" | "Lessons" | "Game Day" | "The Cost" |
| "The Hunt" | "Cleaning Up" | "Sentencing" | ||
| Season 2 credits | ||||
| "Ebb Tide" | "Collateral Damage" | "Hot Shots" | "Hard Cases" | "Undertow" |
| "All Prologue" | "Backwash" | "Duck and Cover" | "Stray Rounds" | "Storm Warnings" |
| "Bad Dreams" | "Port in a Storm" | |||
| Season 3 credits | ||||
| "Time after Time" | "All Due Respect" | "Dead Soldiers" | "Amsterdam" | "Straight and True" |
| "Homecoming" | "Back Burners" | "Moral Midgetry" | "Slapstick" | "Reformation" |
| "Middle Ground" | "Mission Accomplished" | |||
| Season 4 credits | ||||
| "Boys of Summer" | "Soft Eyes" | "Home Rooms" | "Refugees" | "Alliances" |
| "Margin of Error" | "Unto Others" | "Corner Boys" | "Know Your Place" | "Misgivings" |
| "A New Day" | "That's Got His Own" | "Final Grades" | ||
| Season 5 credits | ||||
| "More with Less" | "Unconfirmed Reports" | "Not for Attribution" | "Transitions" | "React Quotes" |
| "The Dickensian Aspect" | "Took" | "Clarifications" | "Late Editions" | "-30-" |
Filmography[]
| Year | Film | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | The Wire season 5 | Ervin Burrell | Guest star Episodes: |
| Law & Order: Special Victims Unit season 9 | FBI Agent Tom Nickerson | Guest star Episode: "Signature" | |
| 2007 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit season 8 | FBI Agent Tom Nickerson | Guest star Episode: "Florida" |
| My Blueberry Nights | Travis | ||
| 2006 | Premium | Phil | |
| The Wire season 4 | Ervin Burrell | Star Episodes:
| |
| 2004 | In Good Company | Corwin | |
| Crutch | Jerry | ||
| The Cookout | Jojo Anderson | ||
| Messengers | Tom Mabry | ||
| White Chicks | Section Chief Elliott Gordon | ||
| The Jury | Nick Van Lier | Guest Star Episode: "Bangers" | |
| America Brown | Coach Bryant | ||
| The Wire season 3 | Ervin Burrell | Star Episodes: | |
| 2003 | The Wire season 2 | Ervin Burrell | Star Episodes:
|
| Gods and Generals | Jim Lewis | ||
| Highwaymen | Will Macklin | ||
| 2002 | Showtime | Lieutenant Winship | |
| Red Dragon | Barney Matthews | ||
| The Wire season 1 | Ervin Burrell | Star Episodes:
| |
| 2001 | Call Me Clause | Dwayne | TV movie |
| Thirteen Conversations About One Thing | Richard "Dick" Lacey | ||
| Down to Earth | Whitney Daniels | ||
| Hannibal | Nurse Barney | ||
| The Sleepy Time Gal | Jimmy Dupree | ||
| Gina, An Actress, Age 29 | Albert | ||
| 2000 | Where the Money is | Security Guard | |
| 1999 | A Little Inside | Tom Donner | |
| The Thomas Crown Affair | Detective Paretti | ||
| Oxygen | FBI Agent Phil Kline | ||
| All My Children | Frank Dawson | Guest Star Episode: 27 January 1999 | |
| Orson Welles Sells His Soul to the Devil | Carter | ||
| 1998 | Prey | Ray Peterson | Star Episodes:
|
| Cosby season 2 | Ron | Guest Star Episode: "On the Rocks" | |
| 1997 | Cosby season 1 | Ron | Guest Star Episode: "I'm OK Your're Hilton" |
| Julian Po | Sherrif Leon | ||
| Oz season 1 | Cornelius Keane | Guest Star Episode: "Capital P" | |
| 1996 | The Rich Man's Life | Detective Ron Lewis | |
| Albino Aligator | Agent Marv Rose | ||
| Mother Night | Robert Sterling Wilson | ||
| The Stupids | The Lloyd | ||
| New York Undercover season 1 | Captain Wilton | Guest Star Episode: "Fire Show" | |
| Jaded | Henry Broker | ||
| 1995 | The Langoliers | Don Gaffney | TV Movie |
| Roommates | Professor Martin | ||
| Heading Home | Unknown | ||
| 1994 | I Love Trouble | Police Chief | |
| The Spider and the Fly | Lieutenant Turner | TV Movie | |
| 1993 | Money For Nothing | Madigan | |
| Sommersby | Joseph | ||
| 1992 | Freejack | Eagle Man | |
| 1991 | The City of Hope | Levonne | |
| The Silence of the Lambs | Barney Matthews | ||
| 1990 | Law & Order season 1 | Lester Crawford | Guest Star Episode: "Out of the Half-Light" |
| True Colours season 1 | Ron Freeman | Star Episodes: Unknown | |
| Betsy's Wedding | Zack Monroe | ||
| Common Ground | Unknown | TV Movie | |
| 1989 | Monsters season 2 | Unknown | Guest Star Episode: "The Mandrake Root" |
| Do the Right Thing | Coconut Sid | ||
| A Man Called Hawk season 1 | Mr. Carver | Guest Star Episode: "Choice of Chance" | |
| 1988 | Mississippi Burning | Eulogist | |
| Coming to America | Landlord | ||
| 1987 | The Equalizer season 3 | Zudo | Guest Star Episode: "Mission: McCall: Part 1" |
| 1986 | Manhunter | Lieutenant Fisk | |
| Maximum Overdrive | Handy | ||
| The Money Pit | James | ||
| 1985 | Kate & Allie season 2 | Detective | Guest Star Episode: "The Bad Seed" |
| 1984 | Exterminator 2 | Be Gee | |
| C.H.U.D. | Sergeant Parker | ||
| 1983 | Sessions | Intern | TV Movie |
| 1982 | Hanky Panky | Cop Driver | |
| A Little Sex | Electrician | ||
| Cat People | Detective Brandt | ||
| 1981 | Ragtime | Gang Member #1 | |
| 1980 | Permanent Vacation | Man in Lobby | |
| 1979 | Hot Hero Sandwich Season 1 | Unknown | Star |
| 1974 | King Lear | Captain | TV Movie |
References[]