Michael Heinrich Horse is an American actor, jeweler, and ledger painter

Ledger Art

Ledger Art is a term for Plains Indian narrative drawing or painting on paper or cloth. Ledger art was primarily from the 1860s to about 1900, although some of the old style drawing continues to the 1930s. There is also a contemporary group of accomplished Native American artists who work in the...

.

Early life

Michael Horse was born in a Yaqui Native American reserve near Tucson, Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...

, and is of Yaqui, Mescalero Apache, Zuni, European and Latino descent. His birth name was Michael Heinrich, and he lived twenty years in a town Sun Valley, California on a street called Sancola.

Acting career

His film debut came in the role of Tonto

Tonto

Tonto may mean:* Tonto, a band of Apache native Americans.* Tonto, the fictional sidekick to the Lone Ranger.* "Tonto", a song by the American math rock band Battles, from their album Mirrored.** "Tonto+", the EP centered around said song....

 in the ill-fated 1981 film, The Legend of the Lone Ranger

The Legend of the Lone Ranger

The Legend of the Lone Ranger is a 1981 British-American western film directed by William A. Fraker and starring Klinton Spilsbury, Michael Horse and Christopher Lloyd....

. Horse portrayed Deputy Hawk, a Native American policeman, in the TV series Twin Peaks

Twin Peaks

Twin Peaks is an American television serial drama created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. The series follows the investigation headed by FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper , of the murder of a popular teenager and homecoming queen, Laura Palmer...

(1990–91) and also acted in Passenger 57

Passenger 57

Passenger 57 is a 1992 American action film starring Wesley Snipes and Bruce Payne. The film's success made Snipes a popular action hero icon.-Plot:...

(1992), House of Cards

House of Cards (1993 film)

House of Cards is a 1993 drama film directed by Michael Lessac and starring Kathleen Turner and Tommy Lee Jones. It follows the struggle of a mother to reconnect with her daughter who has been traumatized by the death of her father. The film premiered at the 1993 Sundance Film Festival before being...

(1993), the 1990s version of the television series The Untouchables

The Untouchables (1993 TV series)

The Untouchables is an American crime drama series that aired for two seasons in syndication, from January 1993 to May 1994. The series portrayed work of the real life Untouchables federal investigative squad in Prohibition-era Chicago and its efforts against Al Capone's attempts to profit from the...

(1993), and North of 60

North of 60

North of 60 is a mid-1990s Canadian television series depicting life in the sub-Arctic northern boreal forest . It first aired on CBC Television in 1992 and was syndicated around the world. It is set in the fictional community of Lynx River, a primarily Native-run town depicted as being in the...

(1995–97). He also appeared in the Thanks

Thanks (TV series)

Thanks was a comedic U.S. television sitcom that debuted on CBS television network and ran for six episodes. The program explored the trials and tribulations of the Winthrops, a 17th century Puritan family, in Plymouth, Massachusetts.- Cast :...

episode "Thanksgiving" in 1999, portraying Squanto

Squanto

Tisquantum was a Patuxet. He was the Native American who assisted the Pilgrims after their first winter in the New World and was integral to their survival. The Patuxet tribe was a tributary of the Wampanoag Confederacy.-Biography:Squanto's exact date of birth is unknown but many historians...

. Horse also appeared as Sheriff Tskany in The X-Files

The X-Files

The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...

episode "Shapes" in 1994. Eight years later, he lent his voice to Little Creek's Friend in DreamWorks Animation

DreamWorks Animation

DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. is an American animation studio based in Glendale, California that creates animated feature films, television program and online virtual worlds...

's Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron is a 2002 American animated film that was released by DreamWorks. It follows the adventures of a young Kiger mustang stallion living in the 19th century wild west. The film, written by John Fusco and directed by Kelly Asbury and Lorna Cook, was nominated for the...

. He recently portrayed Mike Proudfoot on Sons of Tucson

Sons of Tucson

Sons of Tucson is a comedy television series starring Tyler Labine, Frank Dolce, Matthew Levy and Benjamin Stockham. It premiered on Fox on March 11, 2010...

.

External links

• Michael Horse's official website
• 45-minute audio interview of Michael Horse Wide-ranging discussion on Pacifica Radio
  Pacifica Radio
  Pacifica Radio is the oldest public radio network in the United States. It is a group of five independently operated, non-commercial, listener-supported radio stations that is known for its progressive/liberal political orientation. It is also a program service supplying over 100 affiliated...
  
   station KPFA
  KPFA
  KPFA is a listener-funded progressive talk radio and music radio station located in Berkeley, California, broadcasting to the San Francisco Bay Area. KPFA airs public news, public affairs, talk, and music programming. The station signed on-the-air April 15 1949, as the first Pacifica Station...
  
  's weekly program, Bay Native Circle (May 7, 2008)