If you’ve ever watched The Warriors then you know who Michael Beck is, but if you don’t remember much of his career after that it’s not worth feeling that bad since while he did go on to continue his career for a while, he took a final bow in 2015 and has apparently retired or has at least kept his distance from the camera for the last five years. He did step away back in 2005 but came back for a short time in 2015 before bowing out again. Considering that his career started back in the 70s it’s definitely understandable that he would want to back off and enjoy his time as a former star and pursue other ideas and goals. It’s also worth mentioning that the guy is in his 70s at this point and might not be up to doing a lot of intensive film work, but it is interesting to note that he did a bit of voice work as an audiobook narrator at one point. He’s definitely one of the many actors that appeared to be going places when he first started out, only to appear in a number of movies that didn’t really do much for his career, but kept him within the public eye for just long enough to be remembered. To say that he was someone best left forgotten wouldn’t be accurate really since he did play such an important figure in The Warriors, but saying that things didn’t exactly improve that much in the years following might be closer to the truth. The one thing that can be said is that he didn’t just slip into obscurity without attempting to keep a career that meant something.
To this day a lot of people still remember The Warriors, and while it might only be for a few scenes here and there, the idea is that it still remains a movie that helped to contribute to pop culture in a way that created many fond memories for many and still counted as one of the more interesting movies today. It’s very possible that in another generation or two that The Warriors won’t be as remembered, meaning that Michael might not be much more than a footnote in pop culture history, but at the very least he did make an impact and one can say that he did set foot in the big leagues for a while. Anything after that is just extraneous and a lot of exposition that can usually be tossed aside in favor of finding out who Michael really was and what he was all about.
After all, Michael was nominated for two Razzie awards in 1981, not exactly something that a person would want to be known for, but it’s something. Plus, in college, he was definitely a big man on campus as he was a quarterback on his football team and a rather prominent stage actor as he played in Of Mice and Men, Romeo & Juliet, Camelot, and Cat On a Hot Tin Roof. That alone makes it possible for people to think that he definitely had the skill and the talent, but that perhaps he simply didn’t find the right movies that could help to cultivate that talent a little more. The business is a tough one though, as many actors could likely attest to that have been through it for a number of years. A person might have every quality that people want for one movie and then be on the way out the door for the next one since the people want something new and exciting. What’s popular one day might not be so popular the next since Hollywood is known for moving on from one trend to the next in a hurry when it feels the need. It’s not always a negative since this is how talent is discovered and cultivated, but there are those times when finding new talent comes at the expense of those that have already been there and are willing to learn and continue to advance in their skill set. Michael Beck and everyone else that had something to do with The Warriors had a lot of promise back in the day, and like several others, he kept moving forward with his career. Unlike a few others that he starred with though, Michael’s career stalled out a bit and didn’t quite reach the same heights.
That’s not a bad thing though, and it’s definitely not something that’s going to make people forget that he was a part of the movie. Those of us that watched the movie and enjoyed it or at least can say that we remember it are bound to remember him and will continue to keep the memory of the movie and his character alive as long as we can. Celebrated or not, every actor deserves their moment in the sun.
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