Reggie Bannister

Reggie Bannister
Bannister in 2015
Born	Reginald Horace Bannister (1945-09-29) September 29, 1945 (age 80) Long Beach, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Actor, musician, screenwriter, activist, film producer, make-up artist, composer
Spouses	Susan McDonald Akalski ​ ​ (m. 1981;div. 1987)​ Gayle Bannister ​ ​ (m. 1988;div. 1997)​ Gigi Fast Elk Porter ​ ​ (m. 2001)​
Website	reggiebannister.com

Reginald Horace Bannister ^[1] (born September 29, 1945) is an American musician, actor, producer, writer, and activist. He is known for his role as Reggie in the Phantasm film series.

Career

Bannister is known for playing the gun-toting, ex-ice cream man Reggie in the Phantasm film series directed by Don Coscarelli. Bannister co-starred in the films alongside A. Michael Baldwin, Bill Thornbury, and Angus Scrimm. ^{[2] [3]}

Bannister has appeared in several films and worked with such notables as Ossie Davis, Bruce Campbell, Ella Joyce, Daniel Roebuck, Andy Griffith, Joe Estevez and Andrew Divoff, and many others.

Bannister played Herb Tooklander in the adaption of One for the Road, a short film sequel to Stephen King’s Salem's Lot , which he co-produced with director Tim Sullivan and writer/director Paul Ward. The film also stars Adam Robitel and Audrey Walters.

In 2012, Bannister and his wife, Gigi, collaborated with co-writer Shelby McIntyre and co-writer/director Vito Trabucco on the comedy horror film Bloody Bloody Bible Camp . Bannister asked Tim Sullivan to co-produce and star in the film as the main villain, Sister Mary Chopper, and Sullivan accepted.

Bannister composed the song "Have You Seen It" for Phantasm IV: Oblivion, and arranged "Sittin' Here at Midnight" with Bill Thornbury for Phantasm.

Personal life

Reggie Bannister is a U.S. military veteran who served in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. In an article, Bannister stated: "Getting back to the Vietnam thing. I was not for that war, I was against it, but there was this thing called the draft. I had friends who were going to Canada and I wasn't going to do that, I stand up to what's in front of me, and so just like anything else, I just thought, 'Soldier? Really? You're gonna be a soldier? Okay, well then you're going to be the baddest-ass soldier that ever put on a uniform.' So I just took that attitude, Landon, and just went for it. I was a head radio operator for an automatic weapons specialty group." He was often around .40 and .50 caliber weapons, ultimately resulting in some hearing loss. Because of this, he is a service-connected disabled veteran, on top of which he was exposed to Agent Orange. Bannister took his GI bill from the military and used it to study acting.

Bannister currently resides in Crestline, California, where he lives with his wife. In 2016 he was diagnosed with dementia and Parkinson's disease.

On February 21, 2025, it was announced that his health was deteriorating and that he was going to begin receiving hospice care at his home in Crestline. ^[4]

Filmography

• Kenny & Company (1976) – Donovan
• Jim the World's Greatest (1976) – O.D. Silengsly
• Phantasm (1979) – Reggie
• Phantasm II (1988) – Reggie
• Survival Quest (1989) – Pilot
• Silent Night, Deadly Night 4: Initiation (1990) – Eli
• That Little Monster (1994) – Twelvetrees
• Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead (1993) – Reggie
• The Demolitionist (1995) - Warden Thomas
• Wishmaster (1997) – Pharmacist
• Phantasm IV: Oblivion (1998) – Reggie
• Up Against Amanda (2000) – Lead Guitar Ted
• Bubba Ho-Tep (2002) – Care Home Administrator
• Cemetery Gates (2004) – Belmont
• Journeyman (2005) – McFearson
• The Mangler Reborn (2005) – Rick
• Last Rites (2006) – Mitchell
• Fallen Angels (2006) – Radar
• The Final Curtain (2007) – Gus ^[5]
• The Rage (2007) – Uncle Ben
• Text (2008) – Reggie
• Metal Man (2008) - Dr. Arthur Blake
• The Quiet Ones (2008) – Mr. Martino
• Small Town Saturday Night (2008) – Victor
• Satan Hates You (2009) – Mickey
• Walking Distance (2009) – Webber
• Carnies (2009) – Detective Conrad Ellison
• Sawblade (2010)
• One for the Road (2011) – Herb Tooklander
• Primitive (2011) – Dr. Stein
• Not Another B Movie (2011) – Umpire
• The Ghastly Love of Johnny X (2012) – King Clayton
• Bloody Bloody Bible Camp (2012) – Father Richard Cummings
• Phantasm: Ravager (2016) – Reggie
• The Obsidian Curse (2016) – Professor Reginald M. Sydow
• Bonejangles (2017) – Edgar Sr.

Other work

• Making of 'Bubba Ho-tep' (2004)
• Phantasmagoria (2005) Documentary on Phantasm (V)
• Phantasmagorical Mystery Tour (2005) (V)
• Working with a Master: Don Coscarelli (2006)
• POV: An Actor's Insight (2009)

References

1. According to the State of California's "Birth Index, 1905–1995". Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, California
2. McIntyre, Gina (October 16, 2009). "Happy Birthday, Tall Man! 'Phantasm' Turns 30". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved August 10, 2013.
3. Savlov, Marc (March 31, 2000). "Spheres of Influence". Austin Chronicle . Retrieved August 12, 2013.
4. DiVincenzo, Alex (February 21, 2025). "'Phantasm' Star Reggie Bannister Enters Hospice Care; Fans Can Send Cards & Letters to This Address". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved February 21, 2025.
5. André Loiselle and Jeremy Maron Stages of Reality: Theatricality in Cinema , p. 105, at Google Books

External links

• Official website (archived)
• Reggie Bannister at IMDb