Zach Galligan | |
|---|---|
 Galligan at the Chiller Theatre Expo in New Jersey in 2013 | |
| Born | Zachary Wolfe Galligan February 14, 1964 New York City, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Columbia University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Spouse | Ling-Ling Hu Ingerick (m. 2005;div. 2010) |
Zachary Wolfe Galligan (born February 14, 1964) [1] is an American actor. He is best known for starring as Billy Peltzer in the comedy-horror films Gremlins (1984) and Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990).
Galligan was born on February 14, 1964, in New York City, the son of Carol Jean (née Wolfe), a psychologist, and Arthur John Galligan, a lawyer who was a founding partner of the law firm of Dickstein Shapiro. He is mostly of Irish descent, and he has Jewish ancestry through his mother’s side. [2] [3] [4] [5] He has a sister, Jessica, and graduated from Columbia University. [6] [7]
Galligan's first major and most widely seen role was as Billy Peltzer in the 1984 film Gremlins . [8] [9] [10] Prior to being cast in Gremlins, he filmed Nothing Lasts Forever , which had its theatrical release cancelled and went unreleased in any form for years. [11] In 1988, he starred as Mark Loftmore in the horror comedy Waxwork . [12] He reprised his role as Billy in the 1990 sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch , and returned to the role of Mark for Waxwork II: Lost in Time. [9]
In 2016, UK progressive rock band Gandalf's Fist announced that Galligan would voice a character on their album The Clockwork Fable . [13]
In early 2021, Galligan appeared in a Mountain Dew commercial in which his Gremlins character, Billy, gives Gizmo a drink of his Mountain Dew. [14] Galligan returned to the Gremlins franchise again in the animated series Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai . [15]
Galligan married Ling-Ling Hu Ingerick at the Yale Club in New York on September 25, 2005; they divorced in 2010. [16]
 | This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(December 2021) |
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Gremlins | Billy Peltzer | |
| 1984 | Nothing Lasts Forever | Adam Beckett | |
| 1988 | Waxwork | Mark Loftmore | |
| 1990 | Gremlins 2: The New Batch | Billy Peltzer | |
| 1990 | Mortal Passions | Todd | |
| 1991 | Zandalee | Rog | |
| 1991 | Psychic | Patrick Costello | |
| 1992 | Round Trip To Heaven | Steve | |
| 1992 | Waxwork II: Lost in Time | Mark Loftmore | |
| 1993 | Warlock: The Armageddon | Douglas | |
| 1993 | All Tied Up | Brian Hartley | |
| 1994 | Caroline at Midnight | Jerry Hiatt | |
| 1994 | Ice | Rick Corbit | |
| 1995 | Cyborg 3: The Recycler | Evans | |
| 1997 | Cupid | Eric Rhodes | |
| 1997 | Prince Valiant | Sir Kay | |
| 1997 | The First to Go | Adam Curtis | |
| 1998 | Storm Trooper | Kreigal | |
| 1999 | The Storytellers | Greer Sandler | |
| 2000 | Little Insects | King Foptop | |
| 2000 | Raw Nerve | Ethan Lang | released in Japan as Random Shots[ citation needed ] |
| 2000 | G-Men from Hell | Dalton | |
| 2001 | The Tomorrow Man | Spence | |
| 2001 | Gabriela | Pat | |
| 2001 | Point Doom | Spider | |
| 2001 | What They Wanted, What They Got | Pete Drake | |
| 2002 | Infested | Warren | |
| 2003 | Momentum | Director Hammond | |
| 2005 | Legion of the Dead | Dr. Swatek | |
| 2007 | Let Them Chirp Awhile | Hart Carlton | |
| 2008 | Jewslim | Yoseph Caldwell | |
| 2009 | The Pack | Anson | |
| 2009 | Nightbeasts | Charles Thomas | |
| 2010 | Cut | Jack | |
| 2010 | Jack Falls | American Guy | |
| 2013 | Hatchet III | Sheriff Fowler | |
| 2016 | The Chair | Riley | |
| 2017 | Kampout | Detective Benson | |
| 2019 | Madness in the Method | Director/Zach |
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Jacobo Timerman: Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number | Héctor Timerman | Television movie (NBC) |
| 1985 | Surviving: A Family in Crisis | Rick Brogan | Television movie (ABC) |
| 1987–1989 | The Lawrenceville Stories | William "Hickey" Hicks | TV Mini-Series, All 3 Episodes |
| 1992 | Melrose Place | Rick Danworth | Episode: "For Love or Money" |
| 1992 | Tales from the Crypt | David and Rick | Episode: "Strung Along" |
| 1993 | For Love and Glory | Thomas Doyle | Unsold television pilot |
| 1995 | Extreme | Dan | Episode: Pilot |
| 1996 | Pacific Blue | Ron Jeffries | Episode: "Takedown" |
| 1997 | Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman | Chester Barnes | Episode: "Homecoming" |
| 1998 | Love Boat: The Next Wave | Bill Chase | Episode: "Reunion" |
| 1998 | Star Trek: Voyager | Ensign David Gentry | Episode: "In the Flesh" |
| 1998 | The Net | Aaron Mitchelson | Episode: "Diamonds Aren't Forever" |
| 1999 | Chicken Soup for the Soul | Young Man | Episode: "My Convertible" |
| 1999 | Arthur's Quest | King Pendragon | Television film |
| 2001 | 7th Heaven | Dr. Kent | Episode: "Worked" |
| 2003 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Eddie Malloy | Episode: "Happy Family" |
| 2018 | The Keith & Paddy Picture Show | as himself | Episode: "Gremlins" |
| 2023 | Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai | Henchman #2 | Recurring cast |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Chilling Tales for Dark Nights | Fitzroy / Narrator | Episode: "The End is Near" Segment: "Mr. Promises" | [17] |
| 2021 | The Irate Gamer | Himself | Episode: "Gremlins" | |
| 2022 | The Kill Count | Himself | Episode: Gremlins 2 (1990) KILL COUNT | [18] |
A gremlin is a mischievous fictional creature invented at the beginning of the 20th century to originally explain malfunctions in aircraft, and later in other machinery, processes, and their operators. Depictions of these creatures vary widely. Stories about them and references to them as the causes of especially inexplicable technical and mental problems of pilots were especially popular during and after World War II.
Gremlins is a 1984 American fantasy comedy horror film directed by Joe Dante, written by Chris Columbus and starring Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton, Polly Holliday and Frances Lee McCain, with Howie Mandel providing the voice of Gizmo, the main mogwai character. It draws on legends of folkloric mischievous creatures that cause malfunctions—"gremlins"—in the British Royal Air Force going back to World War II. The story follows young man Billy Peltzer, who receives a strange creature as a pet, which then spawns other creatures that transform into aggressive imp-like monsters that wreak havoc on Billy's town during Christmas Eve.
Howard Michael Mandel is a Canadian comedian, television personality, actor, and producer. Mandel is known for voicing Gizmo in the 1984 film Gremlins and the 1990 sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch, playing rowdy ER resident Dr. Wayne Fiscus on the NBC medical drama St. Elsewhere, and creating and starring in the Fox children's cartoon Bobby's World. He has also been a judge on NBC's America's Got Talent since 2010, and Citytv's Canada's Got Talent since 2022. He hosted the American NBC and later CNBC game show Deal or No Deal, as well as the show's daytime and Canadian-English counterparts.
John Glover is an American actor, known for a range of villainous roles in films and television, including Daniel Clamp in Gremlins 2: The New Batch and Lionel Luthor in Smallville. He is also the voice of Riddler in the DC Animated Universe.
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Gremlins 2: The New Batch is a 1990 American fantasy comedy horror film and the sequel to the 1984 film Gremlins. It was directed by Joe Dante and written by Charles S. Haas, with creature designs by Rick Baker. Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Dick Miller, Jackie Joseph and Keye Luke reprise their roles from the first film; Belinda Balaski also returns, this time playing a different character. New cast members include John Glover, Robert Prosky, Haviland Morris, Robert Picardo and Christopher Lee; additionally, the film features Tony Randall providing the voice for one of the gremlins. The story continues the adventures of the creature Gizmo, who spawns numerous small monsters when wet. In the first film, Gizmo's offspring rampaged through a small fictional town. In Gremlins 2: The New Batch, Gizmo multiplies within a skyscraper in New York City after his owner dies. The new creatures thus pose a serious threat to the city should they be able to leave the building and the story revolves around the human characters' efforts to prevent this disaster.
Joseph James Dante Jr. is an American film director, producer, editor and actor. His films—notably Gremlins (1984) alongside its sequel, Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)—often mix the 1950s-style B movie genre with 1960s radicalism and cartoon comedy.
Ernst Amandus Theodor Litfaß was a German printer and publisher. He invented the free-standing cylindrical advertising column which bears his name in German (Litfaßsäule).
An advertising column or Morris column is a cylindrical outdoor sidewalk structure with a characteristic style that is used for advertising and other purposes. They are common throughout Germany including its capital Berlin, where the first 100 columns were installed in 1855. Advertising columns were invented by the German printer Ernst Litfaß in 1854. Therefore, they are known as Litfaßsäulen.
Frances Lee McCain is an American actress.
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Waxwork II: Lost in Time is a 1992 American dark fantasy comedy film written and directed by Anthony Hickox. It is a sequel to the 1988 film Waxwork. The film premiered in the Philippines on March 26, 1992, while it was given a direct-to-video release in the United States on June 16, 1992.
Warner Bros. Classics and The Great Gremlin Adventure was a dark ride located at Warner Bros. Movie World on the Gold Coast, Australia, and Warner Bros. Movie World in Bottrop, Germany. The ride has been replaced with the Scooby-Doo Spooky Coaster and Van Helsing's Factory in the two parks respectively.
Arjen Lucassen is a Dutch multi-instrumentalist musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is most known as the creator of progressive metal/rock opera Ayreon.
Gandalf's Fist is an English band originally from Maryport, Cumbria. The band operates and records their own material from their headquarters currently located in South Norfolk. Their music is influenced by 1970s progressive/psychedelic rock. The group formed in 2005, and built their reputation through various airplay by national radio with the help of several interviews in the "Classic Rock presents Prog"-Magazine, they cemented their reputation by playing at the "Second Stage" of Planet Rockstock in Great Yarmouth in December 2013, despite being a "initially studio only" project. They were featured in the TOP20 of Geoff Barton's 2013 Critic's choice in PROG Magazine Issue #41.
Billy is a given name and a common nickname for William. Notable people with the name include:
The Clockwork Fable is the sixth studio album by the English progressive rock band Gandalf's Fist. Released on 1 May 2016, it is a three disc spanning rock-opera interspersed with a professionally acted radio play between the actual songs. Each disc of the record serves as an individual element of a traditional three-act structure.
Gremlins is an American animated fantasy adventure horror comedy television series. Serving as a prequel to the eponymous 1984 film of the same name and its 1990 sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch, the series is set in 1920s Shanghai, East China, and tells the story of how 10-year-old Sam Wing met Gizmo, a young Mogwai. It was written and executive produced by Tze Chun. Steven Spielberg, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey, Sam Register, and Brendan Hay also serve as executive producers, with Joe Dante as consulting producer. In February 2021, ahead of the series premiere, the series was renewed for a second season.
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Mark Dodson was an American voice actor.
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