The great character actor Richard Edson's first feature film role came in Jim Jarmusch's 1983 cult hit, Estranhos no Paraíso (1984), where he played "Eddie", one of the main characters. Edson then had small, but memorable, roles in other big hits such as Procura-se Susan Desesperadamente (1985), John Hughes' Curtindo a Vida Adoidado (1986), Oliver Stone's great Vietnam-movie Platoon (1986), Barry Levinson's Bom Dia, Vietnã (1987) and, in 1989, Edson starred in Spike Lee's Faça a Coisa Certa (1989). In 1993, he played "Spike", one of the evil King Koopa's henchmen, in Super Mario Bros. (1993) and, in 1995, he had a part in the engaging sci-fi thriller, Estranhos Prazeres (1995). More recently, he has appeared in the remake of Starsky & Hutch, Justiça em Dobro (2004), the dubious horror-flick, Frankenfish: Criatura Assassina (2004) and is currently starring with Tom Arnold in O Garoto & Eu (2005).In addition to his film success, Edson has had a fascinating career in music, being the original drummer in the New York post-punk band, Sonic Youth, and spending three years as drummer for the rhythmic dance band, Konk. (Actually, he was a trumpet player in Konk, not the drummer) It was his involvement in Konk and the New York art scene that caught Jim Jarmusch's eye and led to his being cast in Estranhos no Paraíso (1984).Edson currently lives in Los Angeles where, in addition to acting, he is very active in music, writing and photography.
