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Michael Jeter (August 26, 1952 – March 30, 2003) was an American actor. Michael Jeter was born in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. His mother, Virginia (née Raines), was a housewife. His father, William Claud Jeter (March 10, 1922 – March 1, 2010), was an optometrist. Jeter had one brother, William, and four sisters, Virginia, Amanda, Emily, and Larie. Jeter was a student at Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis) when his interests changed from medicine to acting. He performed in several plays and musicals at the Circuit Theatre and its sister theatre, the Playhouse on the... MORE

Michael Jeter (August 26, 1952 – March 30, 2003) was an American actor. Michael Jeter was born in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. His mother, Virginia (née Raines), was a housewife. His father, William Claud Jeter (March 10, 1922 – March 1, 2010), was an optometrist. Jeter had one brother, William, and four sisters, Virginia, Amanda, Emily, and Larie. Jeter was a student at Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis) when his interests changed from medicine to acting. He performed in several plays and musicals at the Circuit Theatre and its sister theatre, the Playhouse on the Square, in mid-town Memphis. He left Memphis to further pursue his stage career in Baltimore, Maryland. His woebegone look, extreme flexibility, and high energy led Tommy Tune to cast him in the off-Broadway play, Cloud 9, and again on Broadway in a memorable role in the musical Grand Hotel, for which he won a Tony Award in 1990. Much of his work specialized in playing eccentric, pretentious, or wimpy characters, as in The Fisher King, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and Drop Zone. Occasionally, Jeter was able to stay away from these types of roles for more diverse characters like those he portrayed in LESS