Reply With QuoteRed is still acting in films.He did operate an acting school fairly recently.I saw he and his wife relocated not long ago so Im not sure if he is still teaching acting now.
Jak
Hello Everyone. Just wondering you dont here anything about Red West anymore is he still alive and what is he up to if he is.
Red is still acting in films.He did operate an acting school fairly recently.I saw he and his wife relocated not long ago so Im not sure if he is still teaching acting now.
Jak
Actor Red West and wife Pat are planning to sell their Bartlett residence and move to Biloxi, Miss., closer to family and more plentiful acting opportunities.
The Wests met when Red was among Elvis Presley's entourage and Pat was the singer's secretary during filming of "Follow that Dream."
In 2005 West -- also known as a songwriter and friend of Elvis Presley -- was in "Forty Shades of Blue" that won the grand jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival.
In 2006 he nailed a juicy role in the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced sports flick "Glory Road."
And less than two weeks ago he showed up in the pilot of the new FX channel hit "The Riches" in a recurring role.
The critically acclaimed series stars Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver as a family of Irish Travelers who take over the identities of a couple killed in a car crash.
Irish Travelers are nomadic clans often viewed as thieves and troublemakers -- and they certainly are in "The Riches." The nuclear family headed by Izzard and Driver's characters have split from the larger clan, taking more than their share of the treasury and shattering the usually tight-knit tribe.
West's character is the clan patriarch but has been incapacitated. He can communicate only by ringing a bell and staring with eyes that are sometimes baleful, sometimes angry.
West said filming the show was great fun and he hopes -- as all actors do -- that it will lead to more work. The director of one of the episodes told him that "sooner or later" he'd use West in another project. "I said, make it sooner, son."
Wherever he goes, his wife Pat West is always with him. Back in the early Sixties, he was hanging around with Elvis and she was the singer's secretary.
They met, and in three weeks were married. Their honeymoon was spent in Florida where Elvis was filming "Follow that Dream" and director Gordon Douglas gave Red plenty of work -- sometimes as an extra, sometimes doing stunt work, sometimes as a double.
"They made him up all different ways," Pat says, "so we had some money for our honeymoon."
Pat is an agent for members of the Screen Actors Guild. She's as involved in the film business as Red is, but the Mid-South will soon lose both when they settle in Biloxi, Miss. There they'll be much nearer to New Orleans where film and TV shows are constantly in production. They'll also be nearer to their son, actor John Boyd West, and their grandchildren.
They are departing with mixed feelings. Red bemoans Tennessee's lateness in responding to the film incentives that have been offered since 2002 in Louisiana. Substantial tax breaks have lured a steady stream of productions to the state.
Tennessee's General Assembly approved an incentive package last year. It still has not been implemented although an announcement is expected soon from the Tennessee Film, Entertainment and Music Commission, possibly in a few days.
The Wests say, however, that local film boosters have gone all out. Pat pointed out that Memphis and Shelby County Film & Television Commission head Linn Sitler and board chairman Herbie O'Mell have worked tirelessly to bring productions to Memphis.
For Red, though, the action keeps pulling him back to the Crescent City. His first movie was "King Creole," starring Elvis and filmed in New Orleans. Since then he's been in dozens of movies and dozens more TV shows.
Another reason that leaving town is so bittersweet is that the Wests are leaving their house in Bartlett with a large pond and stables on the acreage.
It certainly has acres of memories. A number of celebrities have been by, many speaking to the acting classes Red held from shortly after he moved here from California in 1991 until last year.
They include Benicio del Toro, Billy Bob Thornton, Joe Don Baker, Robert Conrad, T.G. Sheppard, Bo Hopkins and Gene Evans.
When "Forty Shades of Blue" began shooting, director Ira Sachs brought Rip Torn, the film's marquee name, over to Red's house. In part it was so the actors could get to know each other, but mainly it was because Torn is a passionate fisherman.
"He stayed out on the pond all day," Red said. "In his dressing room on the set he put lures together. That was his whole life."
Soon the Wests will pack those 8-by-10 celebrity photos and a houseful of memories. The relocation to Biloxi will cut back on those fuel bills, amped up by frequent Memphis-New Orleans runs. But they'll still take frequent jaunts to Atlanta where Red has a stake in Red's Bar and Restaurant, an eatery where the walls are covered with Red West memorabilia.
But if those walls illustrate his colorful past, he's also an actor still cultivating his career. And for his future, he's got to go where the action is.
The CommercialAppeal
This is a nice write-up on Red. He seems to know how to keep busy. Hope they will both be happy in their move.
Diane
I thought he was great in "Glory Road" but I think I liked him best as the mechanic in that TV Series "Black Sheep" ( I think that's the name) with William Conrad.
Got my family, my kids, my books and my music, I'm good, yeah, I'm good.....
I think the full name was Baa Baa Black Sheep.It starred Robert Conrad.William Conrad played Cannon.A detective series.Originally Posted by Menwithbrokenhearts
Jak
two pictures from Red West as a trainer in the movie Glory Road
"A year from now, you'll wish you had started today"
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thanks for sharing those photos
i didn't know how he looked today...a little bit older...
I'd like to go to Graceland
Memphis,Tennessee
Wow, thanksn for the pics and info. Still going, no matter his age !!!
Thanks so much for the info and pics. Unlike some of the so-called "body guards" of Elvis, I've always liked Red. He seemed to truly care for Elvis and have Elvis' best interest at heart. I wish him continued success.
IM
It is hard for me to like a man who will secretly record a conversation with a friend....and lie straight out to the friend (ELVIS) during the taped conversation... telling ELVIS the book will only be about the good things.
I will never forget you Rosanne.
R.I.P. 4-27-59~7-22-09
Yeah!! he really cared for Elvis.That's why he co-wrote such a great book about him.With friends like that you don't need enemys.
Red wrote a very bad book and he did lie to Elvis when he said it wasn't going to be bad. The only thing I feel he's had going for him is that he found his own way into the world without poaching on Elvis' name unlike the rest of the MM.
I have felt that he regretted what he'd done after Elvis died. I thought Sonny had the same feelings but what I've read about his latest book that isn't the case. Red so far hasn't written a book on his own. If he does and it's no better than Sonny's, I'll dump him in with the rest of the lot.
Diane
red
Diane, you articulated what I was trying to say in my stumbling, bumbling way. I agree 100% with you that Red "regretted" the infamous book of 1977. There have been no signs of that with the other co-authors. Thanks for saying it well.
IM
I have high doubts, Red, would be employed in the acting world today... if not for his friendship with ELVIS and the connections with the Hollywood set that gave Red access to.
I will never forget you Rosanne.
R.I.P. 4-27-59~7-22-09
You are absolutely right. Brain fart on my partThanks
I have no doubt what you said is true.However Red has had a nice career due to the fact he actually is talented and diverse.Dont forget he even wrote a few songs for Elvis.In spite of the way it ended I will always say Red was Elvis' true friend.
Jak
Me too Jak, i agree. He was very talented and still is.
Sonny does regret writing the book...there is a chapter devoted to his reaction upon hearing of Elvis's death and his remorse for writing the book.....
*keeps mouth shut before getting into trouble*
I feel that Sonny and Red wrote the book to make Elvis see sense as at the time he was literally killing himself with prescribed drugs, etc., and was in a very bad shape... they hoped that it would make him change. It did'nt unfortunately
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