Tom Villard

Tom Villard
Publicity photo circa 1991
Born	Thomas Louis Villard November 19, 1953(1953-11-19) Waipahu, Hawaii, United States
Died	November 14, 1994(1994-11-14) (aged 40) Los Angeles, California, United States

Thomas Louis Villard (November 19, 1953 in Waipahu, Hawaii – November 14, 1994 in Los Angeles, California) was an American actor. He is best known for his leading role in the 1980s series We Got it Made as Jay Bostwick, as well as roles in feature films One Crazy Summer, Heartbreak Ridge, My Girl, and Popcorn.

Biography

Early life

Tom Villard was born on November 19, 1953, in in Waipahu, Hawaii and grew up in Spencerport, New York. He attended Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania, before moving to New York City to attend the presitgious Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in the early 1970s. In 1980 Villard moved to Los Angeles and soon started landing roles on television and in movies. He also continued performing on stage until the end of his career.

Career

Although his name wasn't instantly recognizable, Tom Villard's face was, as he appeared throughout his career on television, in feature films, and on stage around the country. He was featured in situation comedies, episodic TV series, and had leading roles in lower and mid-range budgeted features. At the peak of his career Villard was given featured supporting roles in big-budget studio fare, such as Clint Eastwood's Heartbreak Ridge, and My Girl (with Dan Ackroyd and Jamie Lee Curtis). Toward the end of his life he had a recurring supporting role on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and portrayed multiple characters on the TV series The Golden Girls and Baywatch.

Sexual Identity, Career, and AIDS

Toward the end of his life, Tom Villard became one of the few actors in Hollywood in the early 1990s who chose to be open about his homosexuality, and the challenge of living with HIV and AIDS.

In February 1994 Villard made an unprecedented appearance on the CBS tabloid-style news show Entertainment Tonight, admitting to "...more than 13 million viewers that he was gay, that he had AIDS, and that he needed some help."

According to a POZ magazine profile in December of that year Villard said, "An awful lot of people suddenly wouldn't let me in the door for auditions. I started speaking a couple of months ago about living with AIDS and having hope." he said. "It feels a little more useful than things (I've done) in the past." He went on to explain that since his appearance on E.T., a whole other group of people had come forward to welcome him.

Bill Melamed, Villard's manager added: "I'm particularly proud of him. The reality is, acting is a lousy business... He made a decision that was courageous in any walk of life, but it doesn't surprise me. He has one of the most open spirits."

On November 14, 1994, Villard died of pneumonia and other complications of AIDS, five days short of his 41st birthday. He is survived by his parents, Ron and Diane Villard, twin brothers Timothy and Terry, sister Susan, and his partner Scott Chambliss.

As a tribute to him, a non-profit foundation was created by his partner Chambliss, close friend Karen Kaye, and his friend and chiropractor Cheryl Revkin. The Tom Villard Foundation was a Silver Lake community-based effort which engaged local businesses to provide free goods and services for community members living with AIDS. The beneficiaries were the client base of the former Silver Lake AIDS support organization, Being Alive. The Tom Villard Foundation no longer exists; Being Alive is now headquartered in West Hollywood.

Filmography

Year	Television	Movie	Episode	Character	Notes
1980	CHiPs		Sick Leave	Neil
1981	Revenge of the Gray Gang			Officer McGrady	TV Movie
	Sidney Shorr: A Girl's Best Friend			Eric	TV Movie
		Force Five		Disciple
1982		Parasite		Zeke
1982		Grease 2		Boy Greaser
1983	Taxi		A Grand Gesture	Cartoonist
	We Got It Made		All Episodes	Jay Bostwick	Main Character
	High School U.S.A.			Crazy Leo Bandini	TV Movie
1984	Attack on Fear			Actor
		Surf II		Jacko O'Finlay
1985	MacGruder and Loud		The Inside Man	Floyd	TV Movie
1986	The A-Team		Beneath the Surface	Barry Green
		One Crazy Summer		Clay Stork
		Weekend Warriors		Seblinsky
		Heartbreak Ridge		Profile
	The Golden Girls		Vacation	Rick
1987	Rags to Riches		Born to Ride	Actor
	We Got It Made		All Episodes	Jay Bostwick	Main Character
		The Trouble With Dick		Dick
1989	Swimsuit			Willard	TV Movie
	Who's the Boss?		First Date	Andy Drake
1990	Hunter		Second Sight	John Skouros
1991		Popcorn		Toby
		Whore		Hippie
		My Girl		Justin
		Shakes the Clown		Dirthead in the Car
1992	The Golden Girls		Rose: Portrait of a Woman	Randy Becker
	Baywatch		Reunion	Howie
1993	Baywatch		Strangers Among Us	Quinton
1994	Star Trek: Deep Space Nine		The Collaborator	Prylar Bek
	Midnight Run for Your Life		Voice Artist
		In The Army Now		Obnoxious Salesguy
1995	Op Center			Press Aide	TV Movie

External links

• Tom Villard NY Times obituary
• Tom Villard at the Internet Movie Database
• Tom Villard at Find a Grave
• Tom Villard at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)