Michael Sharrett

Last updated
Michael Sharrett
Born
Stuart Michael Sharrett [1]

(1965-07-18) July 18, 1965 (age 59)
OccupationActor
Years active1977 ─ present
Awards Young Artist Award nominee
1986 Deadly Friend – Tom 'Slime' Toomey

Stuart Michael Sharrett (born July 18, 1965) is an American actor. Best known for his role in the 1978 family movie The Magic of Lassie with James Stewart, Sharrett additionally co-starred in the 1985 action film Savage Dawn and in the 1986 Wes Craven horror film Deadly Friend , for which he received a Young Artist Award nomination as the "Best Young Actor in a Horror Motion Picture".

Contents

Biography and career

Sharrett was born in Ventura, California. Sharrett began his career at the age of 12 in the Emmy Award-winning Our Town , a 1977 television adaptation of the classic play Our Town . On February 20, 1978, Sharrett guest starred on Little House on the Prairie on the episode entitled "The Stranger" about young Peter Lundstrom, who is expelled from his private school for petty theft, so his wealthy father sends the boy to stay with Uncle Nels Oleson in Walnut Grove for a long-overdue lesson in values. At first he rebels but later on learns the pride of hard work and in time his father later realizes that his time with his son is much more important than making any more money as he is already quite wealthy already. After some additional television roles and a part in the 1978 Walt Disney comedy western film Hot Lead and Cold Feet , Sharrett landed the role of Chris, the grandson of Clovis, played by Academy Award winner Jimmy Stewart in the 1978 musical film The Magic of Lassie . [2] In The Magic of Lassie, Lassie is a dog owned by Sharrett's freckled-faced character Chris. [3] Lassie is taken away from Chris, who then is put under pressure when his grandpa has to decide whether to sell the valuable family vineyard in return for the dog. [3]

In 1986, Sharrett played Tom in the witty sci-fi/horror movie Deadly Friend. [4] In the teenage friendship story, Tom and his friend Paul bring friend Samantha back to life using a computer chip designed by Paul. [4] Reviews of Sharrett's performance were positive, [5] [6] with a New York Times reviewer writing, "As Tom, Michael Sharrett is a wonderful foil, fainting away at the first kick of Sam's supposedly dead leg." [4] For his performance as Tom, Sharrett received a Young Artist Award nomination in 1986 as the Best Young Actor in a Horror Motion Picture. [7]

In 1988, Sharrett appeared in the short-lived TV series Supercarrier . Two years later, in October 1990, Sharrett served as a main character in an episode of the American television drama The Trials of Rosie O'Neill. [8] In that episode, Sharrett played a seemingly all-American boy accused of desecrating a Jewish cemetery. [8] Rosie, a Los Angeles public defender character played by Sharon Gless in the series, defends Sharrett's character. [8] The episode first aired on Monday, October 22 on CBS. [8]

Selected filmography

Films

YearFilmRoleOther notes
1978 Hot Lead and Cold Feet Marcus
1978 The Magic of Lassie Chris Mitchell
1984SnowballingDanaka Smooth Moves
1985Savage DawnDanny Rand
1986 Deadly Friend Tom 'Slime' ToomeyReceived Young Artist Award nomination as the Best Young Actor in a Horror Motion Picture
1989 Kill Me Again Tim the Motel Clerk
1995 Theodore Rex New Eden Volunteeraka T. Rex

Television

YearShowRoleOther notes
1977 Our Town Si CrowellPlay filmed for TV
1978Strange CompanionsDavid
Little House on the Prairie Peter LundstromEpisode: The Stranger
1979The Night RiderChock Hollister-Young Thomas
Hanging by a Thread Tommy CraigTV movie
A Shining SeasonChuck Lander
Joe's World Jimmy WabashTV series
1981 Diff'rent Strokes HenryEpisode: First Day Blues
1984 Newhart Episode: Send Her Ella
Charles in Charge Alexander MorganEpisode: Pilot
1985 Magnum, P.I. Kenny HarbisonEpisode: Paniolo
Otherworld Stock ClerkEpisode: Rules of Attraction
1986 Our House Episode: Choices
St. Elsewhere Donald WestphallEpisode: Time Heals: Part 2
1988 TV 101 Craig BlumenEpisodes: Everything You've Always Wanted to Know About Teenagers (But Were Afraid to Ask) and The Unbearable Rightness of Penny
Supercarrier Donald Willough, Ocean Specialist 1st ClassSeries character
1989 TV 101 Craig BlumenEpisodes: Kangaroo Gate and Clicks
1990 Baywatch BenEpisode: Home Cort, Original Air Date:12 January 1990
200350 Greatest TV AnimalsChris Mitchell (self)Uncredited archive footage

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References

  1. "Stuart M Sharrett, Born 07/18/1965 in California | CaliforniaBirthIndex.org".
  2. Levesque, John. (March 1, 1997) Seattle Post-Intelligencer Venerable collie series bland but its safe for the masses. Doggone! Lassie's back. Section: Entertainment; Page B1.
  3. 1 2 Canada Newswire (August 9, 2007) TV Land Canada Reveals Fall 2007 Premiere Dates. Archived 2011-06-06 at the Wayback Machine
  4. 1 2 3 James, Caryn. (October 11, 1986) The New York Times Screen: Wes Craven's 'Deadly Friend'. Section: 1; Page 114.
  5. See, for example, Billington, Linda. (October 23, 1986) Anchorage Daily News The cutting room floor. Peggy Sue charms, Deadly Friend doesn't. Section: Lifestyles; Page 3 (writing, "Wes Craven's at it again. Unfortunately, "it" isn't quite enough. Too bad. Craven's latest directorial outing, "Deadly Friend," has several things going for it, not the least of which are its three young leads: Matthew Laborteaux, Kristy Swanson and Michael Sharrett.")
  6. See also, Muir, John Kenneth. (2004) Wes Craven: The Art of Horror. Page 127; Publisher: McFarland. ISBN   0-7864-1923-7 (writing, "Bruce Joel Rubin's screenplay hits some nice notes and his droll dialogue is well delivered by the three primary youngsters, Matthew Laborteaux, Kristy Swanson and Michael Sharrett.")
  7. Internet Movie Database (2008) Awards for Michael Sharrett. Accessed July 3, 2008.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Entertainment Weekly (October 19, 1990) "The week at a glance. A guide to notable shows, Oct. 19 to 25." Section: Television Listings; Page 10.

Bibliography