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Actor Michael Madsen died on Thursday, July 3, due to a reported cardiac arrest. He was 67 years old and left behind a legacy of excellent body of work over the years.
Madsen was born in Chicago on September 25, 1957, to Calvin, a firefighter, and Elaine, an author turned filmmaker. Elaine had also won an Emmy award for a documentary named Better Than It Has to Be in 1983. Calvin and Elaine split when Madsen was 11.
Madsen is known for portraying tough guys, villains, or antagonists. One of his most iconic roles came as Mr. Blonde in the 1992 iconic movie, Reservoir Dogs.
He also played Rudd in Kill Bill Vol. 1 and a strip club bouncer in Kill Bill Vol. 2.
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In an interview in 2017, he explained that he only gets these kinds of roles and that he would want to play a leading man instead.
“I would prefer to be a leading man. I’m a leading man trapped in a bad guy’s body, basically,” he said (h/t Screen Daily).
Michael Madsen was married three times. He married Georganne LaPiere (1984-88), Jeannine Bisignano (1991-95), and DeAnna Madsen (1996). He had five kids: Hudson, Christian, Max, Kal, and Luke.
However, Hudson died by suicide at 26 in 2022.
Madsen is also survived by his two sisters, Virginia Madsen and Cheryl, and his mother.
Also Read: What did Michael Madsen play in Reservoir Dogs? Actor's career explored in wake of his death at 67
Michael Madsen starred in movies such as WarGames (1983), The Natural (1984), Thelma & Louise (1991), The Doors (1991), Free Willy (1993), Species (1995), Mulholland Falls (1996), Donnie Brasco (1997), Die Another Day (2002), Sin City (2005) and Scary Movie 4 (2006). He has 346 acting credits on IMDb.
Madsen also starred in multiple television shows like CSI: Miami, Beyond the Law, Big Apple, and Real Detective. He won the Best Actor Award at the Boston Film Festival in 2007 for Strength and Honour.
When Michael Madsen heaped praise on Quentin Tarantino
Madsen starred in numerous movies made by Quentin Tarantino like Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill: Vol. 1 & 2, The Hateful Eight, and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
He gained huge popularity from these movies, while Tarantino also received immense praise.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in 2018, he heaped praise on the acclaimed director, saying:
“Quentin is, in my estimation, the best director of my generation. He’s up there with George Stevens and Alfred Hitchcock, Elia Kazan. Because of that, because of my relationship with him, it became bigger than anything I ever did. And then Kill Bill put the final stamp on that one.
"It’s a great blessing to have that and at the same time, it is really hard to get out of it. And people don’t want you to get out of it."
Madsen was also a writer and a poet. He recently wrote a book named Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts and Poems, which is due to be released next year. The book also has a foreword written by Tarantino.
Also Read: Was Michael Madsen a smoker? Health issues explored in the wake of Reservoir Dogs star's death at 67
