Philip Baker Hall Appreciation: Legendary Character Actor Brought Gravitas to a Variety of Projects
Philip Baker Hall didn’t make his first film appearance until he was pushing 40, which seems appropriate somehow: The growling gravitas he brought to dramas and comedies alike speaks to a full life lived, and experiences cultivated, before ever stepping onto a set.In Hall’s case, that life involved being born in Ohio, spending time in Germany as a translator for the U.S. Army, and then pursuing the craft of acting onstage in New York and later Los Angeles.