Miller, Denny 1934-

PERSONAL:

Born April 25, 1934; son of Ben W. (a professor of kinesiology) and Martha Alice (a homemaker) Miller; married; wife's name Nancy. Education: University of California, Los Angeles, B.S., 1966.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Las Vegas, NV. Agent—H. David Moss and Associates, 733 Seward, Penthouse, Hollywood, CA 90038. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Professional actor. Appeared in more than twenty feature films, including Tarzan the Apeman, 1959, Some Came Running, V, Nick and Nora, Love in a Fish Bowl, Island at the Top of the World, Mystique, The Seal, and Armageddon. Appeared in dozens of television programs, including Northwest Passage; Have Gun, Will Travel; Magnum, P.I.; Love, American Style; Barnaby Jones; Murder, She Wrote; Charlie's Angels; Wagon Train; Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman; and Life of Riley. Appeared in dozens of commercials, including nearly fifteen years as the Gorton fisherman. Military service: Served in U.S. Army.

MEMBER:

Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

WRITINGS:

Didn't You Used to Be What's His Name? (autobiography), To Health with You Publishers (Las Vegas, NV), 2004.

Toxic Waist? Get to Know Sweat!, illustrated by Mike Royer, To Health with You Publishers (Las Vegas, NV), 2006.

SIDELIGHTS:

Denny Miller told CA: "I write to amuse and teach. My writing is influenced by James Thurber (especially his 13 Clocks) and Dave Barry, the book On Writing Well by Zinser, Coach John Wooden (I played basketball for him at UCLA), Benjamin Hoff, The Tao of Pooh, and all the books by Robert Fulghum and J.K. Rowling.

"I use emotions to get me started, carry me on the way, and help me finish. It is not always the same emotion. The process is to be able to see the hidden similarities in things, to see what has been there all the time and then write it down and let it set for a while. Then I read it and tweak it, cut large chunks out, and add a few.

"My advice to aspiring writers is: don't wait till you are seventy-one like I did. Get on with it. Treat critics as if they are food tasters to the king and queen. Don't pay any attention to them unless one dies after sampling your performance."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Miller, Denny, Didn't You Used to Be What's His Name?, To Health with You Publishers (Las Vegas, NV), 2004.

PERIODICALS

Bookwatch, August, 2004, review of Didn't You Used to Be What's His Name?, p. 5.

ONLINE

Official Denny Miller Web site,http://denny-miller.com (August 20, 2006).