S. A. Griffin
Encyclopedia
S.A. Griffin is an American
poet
and actor
from the East Bay
in San Francisco, California
.
and raised primarily in Richmond, California
in what was once Easter Hill, Griffin lived in many small cities in the East Bay during his childhood. Graduated from Castro Valley High school in 1972. After a volunatry tour of duty in the United States Air Force
, he lived in the Haight-Ashbury
district of San Francisco before moving to Los Angeles
in 1978 to pursue a successful career as an actor.
A Los Angeles
-based poet
, DJ for killradio.org and co-editor
of The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry
, awarded The Firecracker Award as best in alternative press, and named Best Performance Poet by Wanda Coleman
for the LA Weekly
in 1989, Griffin has traveled extensively throughout the Western United States
and Canada
with Los Angeles based poetry/performance ensemble, The Carma Bums.
Widely published and anthologized as a poet, he has also written for the LA Weekly and is a contributing writer for The Underground Guide To Los Angeles, which remained on The Los Angeles Times bestseller's list for nine weeks.
Griffin served honorably as a clerk typist in the United States Air Force from 1972–1976, and was stationed at Warner Robins Air Force Base in Georgia
and Eielson Air Force Base
in Alaska
. He performed as the lead singer in local rock cover/folk bands while serving in Alaska.
Griffin is also a Dramalogue Award recipient, having played roles in films by several notable film director
s, including Oliver Stone's
World Trade Center
(2006), Clint Eastwood's
Pale Rider
(1985), and Ivan Reitman's
Twins (1988). Notable television guest star credits include Perry Mason
, Matlock
, Alien Nation
, Designing Women
, Melrose Place, Las Vegas
, Dexter
, Days of our Lives
and appears as Dr. Osiris in the ride film In Search of The Obelisk directed by Douglas Trumbull
at the Luxor Hotel
in Las Vegas, Nevada
since 1992.
Has appeared in over 150 commercials and was awarded the Kari Award Canada, as Best Actor in commercials.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
from the East Bay
East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area)
The East Bay is a commonly used, informal term for the lands on the eastern side of the San Francisco Bay, in the San Francisco Bay Area, in California, United States...
in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
.
Biography
Born in San Antonio, TexasSan Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
and raised primarily in Richmond, California
Richmond, California
Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was incorporated on August 7, 1905. It is located in the East Bay, part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It is a residential inner suburb of San Francisco, as well as the site of heavy industry, which has been...
in what was once Easter Hill, Griffin lived in many small cities in the East Bay during his childhood. Graduated from Castro Valley High school in 1972. After a volunatry tour of duty in the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
, he lived in the Haight-Ashbury
Haight-Ashbury, San Francisco, California
Haight-Ashbury is a district of San Francisco, California, named for the intersection of Haight and Ashbury streets. It is also called The Haight and The Upper Haight.-Location:...
district of San Francisco before moving to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in 1978 to pursue a successful career as an actor.
A Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, DJ for killradio.org and co-editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
of The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry
The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry
The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry is a collection of poems from an assorted list of poets. First published in 1999, the collection features work from several notable poets, including Jack Micheline, Harold Norse, A.D. Winans, David Trinidad, Jim Chandler, Tuli Kupferberg, D.A. Levy, Bob Kaufman,...
, awarded The Firecracker Award as best in alternative press, and named Best Performance Poet by Wanda Coleman
Wanda Coleman
Wanda Coleman is an American poet. She is known as "the L.A. Blueswoman," and "the unofficial poet laureate of Los Angeles."-Biography:...
for the LA Weekly
LA Weekly
LA Weekly is a free weekly tabloid-sized "alternative weekly" in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Editor/Publisher Jay Levin and a board of directors that included actor-producer Michael Douglas...
in 1989, Griffin has traveled extensively throughout the Western United States
Western United States
.The Western United States, commonly referred to as the American West or simply "the West," traditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. Because the U.S. expanded westward after its founding, the meaning of the West has evolved over time...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
with Los Angeles based poetry/performance ensemble, The Carma Bums.
Widely published and anthologized as a poet, he has also written for the LA Weekly and is a contributing writer for The Underground Guide To Los Angeles, which remained on The Los Angeles Times bestseller's list for nine weeks.
Griffin served honorably as a clerk typist in the United States Air Force from 1972–1976, and was stationed at Warner Robins Air Force Base in Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
and Eielson Air Force Base
Eielson Air Force Base
Eielson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately southeast of Fairbanks, Alaska and just southeast of Moose Creek, Alaska....
in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. He performed as the lead singer in local rock cover/folk bands while serving in Alaska.
Griffin is also a Dramalogue Award recipient, having played roles in films by several notable film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
s, including Oliver Stone's
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
World Trade Center
World Trade Center (film)
World Trade Center is a 2006 American disaster-drama film directed by Oliver Stone and based on the September 11 attacks at the World Trade Center. It stars Nicolas Cage, Maria Bello, Michael Peña, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Michael Shannon. The film was shot from October 19, 2005 - February 10, 2006...
(2006), Clint Eastwood's
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
Pale Rider
Pale Rider
Pale Rider is a 1985 American western film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood, who also stars in the lead role. This movie has plot similarities to the classic Western Shane , including in its final scene, as well as previous Eastwood films featuring his Man with No Name character and his 1973...
(1985), and Ivan Reitman's
Ivan Reitman
Ivan Reitman, OC is a Canadian film producer and director. He is known for the comedies he has directed and produced, especially in the 1980s and 1990s.He is the owner of The Montecito Picture Company, founded in 2000.-Early life:...
Twins (1988). Notable television guest star credits include Perry Mason
Perry Mason (TV series)
Perry Mason is an American legal drama produced by Paisano Productions that ran from September 1957 to May 1966 on CBS. The title character, portrayed by Raymond Burr, is a fictional Los Angeles defense attorney who originally appeared in detective fiction by Erle Stanley Gardner...
, Matlock
Matlock (TV series)
Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of attorney Ben Matlock. The show originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC, where it replaced The A-Team, then from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC.The show's format was similar...
, Alien Nation
Alien Nation
Alien Nation may refer to:* Alien Nation , the 1988 motion picture, and several spin-off properties:** Alien Nation , the 1989–1990 television series, and five made-for-TV movies that continue its story:...
, Designing Women
Designing Women
Designing Women is an American television sitcom that centered on the working and personal lives of four Southern women and one man in an interior design firm in Atlanta, Georgia. It aired on the CBS television network from September 29, 1986 until May 24, 1993. The show was created by head writer...
, Melrose Place, Las Vegas
Las Vegas (TV series)
Las Vegas was an American television series broadcast by NBC from September 22, 2003 to February 15, 2008. The show focuses on a team of people working at the ficticional Montecito Resort & Casino dealing with issues that arise within the working environment, ranging from valet parking and...
, Dexter
Dexter (TV series)
Dexter is an American television drama series, which debuted on Showtime on October 1, 2006. The sixth season premiered on October 2, 2011. The series centers on Dexter Morgan , a bloodstain pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer...
, Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...
and appears as Dr. Osiris in the ride film In Search of The Obelisk directed by Douglas Trumbull
Douglas Trumbull
Douglas Huntley Trumbull is an American film director, special effects supervisor, and inventor. He contributed to, or was responsible for, the special photographic effects of 2001: A Space Odyssey, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Blade Runner and The Tree of...
at the Luxor Hotel
Luxor Hotel
Luxor Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The 30-story hotel, which is operated by MGM Resorts International, features a casino floor that includes over 2,000 slot machines and 87 table games....
in Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
since 1992.
Has appeared in over 150 commercials and was awarded the Kari Award Canada, as Best Actor in commercials.
External links
- The Open Ended It official site.
- http://poetry.la/page37.html - Video of S.A. Griffin's reading at The World Stage in Leimert Park, CA, 3/28/07 - as featured on Poetry.LA