Franc Luz
Encyclopedia
Franc Luz is an American
actor of stage, film and television, seen in popular leading dramatic film roles in the 1980s and 1990s. These credits were supplemented with TV guest appearances and several regular roles in TV series. Luz is perhaps best known for his parts in The Nest
, Ghost Town, When Harry Met Sally...
, and, to Star Trek
fans, as the symbiont Odan in a 1991 episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation
, in the season 4 episode "The Host
".
, with the intention of studying and breaking into dramatic arts as a career. He studied both singing and theater arts to double his future prospects in show business. After graduation, Luz won parts in many local and regional theater productions. His first breakthrough arrived in the late 1970s, when he landed the major role of policeman Floyd in Fiorello
, which ran at the Equity Liberty Theater in New York
. In 1979, he received attention playing Wanenis, the noble North American savage in the period piece Whoopee!. Both of the latter led to his first movie role, which also arrived that year; he was cast in a supporting part in the film Voices
. On the heels of this film exposure, Luz made his first transition to television. He auditioned for and won the role of Dr. John Bennett on NBC
's daytime serial The Doctors. This role made him instantly noticed by daytime viewers, and he was nominated for a 1980 Daytime Emmy Award
for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Luz continued in the role for another year before leaving the show in 1981.
. For this, he was nominated for the 1983 Drama Desk Award
in the Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical category. The voices of Luz, Lee Wilkof, Jennifer Leigh Warren and others are featured in the 1992 CD release Little Shop of Horrors Soundtrack - Original Off-Broadway Cast.
Along the way, he joined other daytime soaps; in 1983, he played Tommy Lobo on One Life to Live
. Shortly after, he appeared on Ryan's Hope
for a particularly heated story arc in 1984; he played Steve Latham, lover of Delia Reid Ryan Coleridge (played at the time by Robin Mattson
), who held Delia captive while she was still committed to marry Matthew Crane (Harve Presnell
). Their affair was indirectly responsible for leading Crane to accuse Delia of attempted murder. Luz claimed in a 1985 interview that playing Steve Latham was particularly satisfying to him as an actor, since he got to play a sinister character who wasn't hapless or taken advantage of. His previous roles on The Doctors and One Life to Live were "nice guys" who had their lovers stolen away by more ruthless counterparts.
In 1985, Luz assumed a co-starring role on a primetime series, the CBS
dramedy Hometown
, a TV adaptation of the hit 1983 film The Big Chill
. Luz played the husband of Jane Kaczmarek
in the series, and another co-star was Daniel Stern
. The series did not fare well in the ratings, however, and was cancelled after two months. He appeared in a recurring role on another new CBS
series the following season, playing the ex-boyfriend of Patricia Kalember
in the medical drama Kay O'Brien. This series too was cancelled after two months.
Guest roles for Luz in 1987 included Dee Dee McCall's late police sergeant husband, in flashbacks, on Hunter and Professor Richard Katt, who was rumored to have had an extramarital affair with student Blair Warner, on The Facts of Life
.
Luz then assumed two leading roles in the popular 1988 horror films The Nest
, in which he led a team of scientists who battled man-eating cockroaches, and Ghost Town
, where he played a deputy bent on protecting his Western town from ghosts and the forces of evil. The following year, he played Julian in Rob Reiner
's romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally.... After production on that film was complete, Luz signed to co-star in the ABC
comedy Free Spirit
, which premiered in September 1989. He portrayed lawyer Thomas J. Harper, a widower with three children who hires a housekeeper/nanny named Winnie (Corinne Bohrer
), whom only the kids know is a witch. Luz's daughter on the show was played by a young Alyson Hannigan
. Free Spirit turned out to be another short-lived series for Luz, as ABC cancelled it mid-season.
, L.A. Law
, The Young Riders
, and Silk Stalkings
, while keeping up appearances in motion pictures. In 1991-92, he starred in the Broadway production of Larry Gelbart
's City of Angels
, alongside Richard Kline
and Michael Rupert
. His most notable role in 1990s cinema was that of Don Antonio in Jeremy Leven
's Don Juan DeMarco
(1995), which starred Johnny Depp
in the title role. Prior to that, Luz had appeared on daytime TV again, playing Seth Tanner on All My Children
in 1993. In 1999, Luz appeared in the independent film The Pornographer
and in Restraining Order
, co-starring with Eric Roberts
.
's short-lived The Book of Daniel.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor of stage, film and television, seen in popular leading dramatic film roles in the 1980s and 1990s. These credits were supplemented with TV guest appearances and several regular roles in TV series. Luz is perhaps best known for his parts in The Nest
The Nest (1988 film)
The Nest is a creature feature horror film, based on the novel by Eli Cantor , from Roger Corman's Concorde Pictures and producer Julie Corman. The tagline is "Roaches have never tasted flesh... until now." Flesh-eating roaches terrorize a peaceful island community presented as a New England...
, Ghost Town, When Harry Met Sally...
When Harry Met Sally...
When Harry Met Sally... is a 1989 American romantic comedy film written by Nora Ephron and directed by Rob Reiner. It stars Billy Crystal as Harry and Meg Ryan as Sally. The story follows the title characters from the time they meet just before sharing a cross-country drive, through twelve years or...
, and, to Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
fans, as the symbiont Odan in a 1991 episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
, in the season 4 episode "The Host
The Host (TNG episode)
"The Host" is the 97th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation.-Plot:The Enterprise brings aboard the charismatic negotiator Odan, a mediator chosen by Starfleet, to negotiate a peace treaty between two hostile races. Dr. Crusher is charmed by the man, and...
".
Beginnings
Luz attended New Mexico State UniversityNew Mexico State University
New Mexico State University at Las Cruces , is a major land-grant university in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States...
, with the intention of studying and breaking into dramatic arts as a career. He studied both singing and theater arts to double his future prospects in show business. After graduation, Luz won parts in many local and regional theater productions. His first breakthrough arrived in the late 1970s, when he landed the major role of policeman Floyd in Fiorello
Fiorello
Fiorello may refer to:*Fiorello!, a Broadway musical*Fiorello! , a 1960 album by Oscar Peterson*Rosario Fiorello, also known as simply Fiorello, Italian singer and TV host*Fiorello H. La Guardia, former mayor of New York City...
, which ran at the Equity Liberty Theater in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. In 1979, he received attention playing Wanenis, the noble North American savage in the period piece Whoopee!. Both of the latter led to his first movie role, which also arrived that year; he was cast in a supporting part in the film Voices
Voices
Voices is a 2006 translation of a 2003 crime novel by Icelandic author Arnaldur Indriðason, another entry in the multi award-winning Detective Erlendur series. It was first published in English in August, 2006. The Swedish translation of the novel won Sweden's Martin Beck Award for the best crime...
. On the heels of this film exposure, Luz made his first transition to television. He auditioned for and won the role of Dr. John Bennett on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's daytime serial The Doctors. This role made him instantly noticed by daytime viewers, and he was nominated for a 1980 Daytime Emmy Award
Daytime Emmy Award
The Daytime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Los Angeles-based Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American daytime television programming...
for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Luz continued in the role for another year before leaving the show in 1981.
1980s
After his departure from The Doctors, Luz returned to theatre work. He was often seen in the early 1980s playing the role of the sadistic dentist in the original off-Broadway production of Little Shop of HorrorsLittle Shop of Horrors (musical)
Little Shop of Horrors is a rock musical, by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman, about a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood. The musical is based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Roger Corman...
. For this, he was nominated for the 1983 Drama Desk Award
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
in the Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical category. The voices of Luz, Lee Wilkof, Jennifer Leigh Warren and others are featured in the 1992 CD release Little Shop of Horrors Soundtrack - Original Off-Broadway Cast.
Along the way, he joined other daytime soaps; in 1983, he played Tommy Lobo on One Life to Live
One Life to Live
One Life to Live is an American soap opera which debuted on July 15, 1968 and has been broadcast on the ABC television network. Created by Agnes Nixon, the series was the first daytime drama to primarily feature racially and socioeconomically diverse characters and consistently emphasize social...
. Shortly after, he appeared on Ryan's Hope
Ryan's Hope
Ryan's Hope is an American soap opera, revolving around 13 years of trials and tribulations within a large Irish American family in the Riverside district of New York City. It aired from July 7, 1975 to January 13, 1989 on ABC...
for a particularly heated story arc in 1984; he played Steve Latham, lover of Delia Reid Ryan Coleridge (played at the time by Robin Mattson
Robin Mattson
Robin Mattson is an American soap opera actress.Mattson was typically cast in supporting, "villainess" type roles, as in her roles in Santa Barbara and General Hospital, where she played an immoral goldigger and a psychopath, in the respective shows...
), who held Delia captive while she was still committed to marry Matthew Crane (Harve Presnell
Harve Presnell
Harve Presnell was an American actor and singer. He began his career in the mid 1950s as a classical baritone, singing with orchestras and opera companies throughout the United States...
). Their affair was indirectly responsible for leading Crane to accuse Delia of attempted murder. Luz claimed in a 1985 interview that playing Steve Latham was particularly satisfying to him as an actor, since he got to play a sinister character who wasn't hapless or taken advantage of. His previous roles on The Doctors and One Life to Live were "nice guys" who had their lovers stolen away by more ruthless counterparts.
In 1985, Luz assumed a co-starring role on a primetime series, the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
dramedy Hometown
Hometown (TV series)
Hometown was an hour-long dramedy series than ran on CBS for 9 episodes, premiering on a head-start to the 1985-86 fall season on August 22, 1985, and running until October 15, 1985...
, a TV adaptation of the hit 1983 film The Big Chill
The Big Chill (film)
The Big Chill is a 1983 American comedy-drama film directed by Lawrence Kasdan, starring Tom Berenger, Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Mary Kay Place, Meg Tilly, and JoBeth Williams. It is about a group of baby boomer college friends who reunite briefly after 15 years due to...
. Luz played the husband of Jane Kaczmarek
Jane Kaczmarek
Jane Frances Kaczmarek is an American actress. She is best known for playing the character of Lois on the television series Malcolm in the Middle. Kaczmarek is a three-time Golden Globe and seven-time Emmy Award nominee...
in the series, and another co-star was Daniel Stern
Daniel Stern (actor)
Daniel Jacob Stern is an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles in the Hollywood films C.H.U.D., Diner, City Slickers and the first two Home Alone films, and as the narrator for the television series The Wonder Years.-Early life:Stern was born in Bethesda, Maryland to a...
. The series did not fare well in the ratings, however, and was cancelled after two months. He appeared in a recurring role on another new CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
series the following season, playing the ex-boyfriend of Patricia Kalember
Patricia Kalember
Patricia Kathryn Kalember is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Georgiana "Georgie" Reed Whitsig on the NBC drama Sisters , Susannah Hart Shepherd on the popular 1980s television show Thirtysomething and as Judge Karen Taten on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit .- Life and...
in the medical drama Kay O'Brien. This series too was cancelled after two months.
Guest roles for Luz in 1987 included Dee Dee McCall's late police sergeant husband, in flashbacks, on Hunter and Professor Richard Katt, who was rumored to have had an extramarital affair with student Blair Warner, on The Facts of Life
The Facts of Life (TV series)
The Facts of Life is an American sitcom that originally ran on the NBC television network from August 24, 1979 to May 7, 1988. A spin-off of the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, the series' premise focused on Edna Garrett as she becomes a housemother at the fictional Eastland School, a prestigious...
.
Luz then assumed two leading roles in the popular 1988 horror films The Nest
The Nest (1988 film)
The Nest is a creature feature horror film, based on the novel by Eli Cantor , from Roger Corman's Concorde Pictures and producer Julie Corman. The tagline is "Roaches have never tasted flesh... until now." Flesh-eating roaches terrorize a peaceful island community presented as a New England...
, in which he led a team of scientists who battled man-eating cockroaches, and Ghost Town
Ghost Town
"Ghost Town" is the title of a 1981 song by the British ska band, The Specials. The song spent three weeks at number one and ten weeks in the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart. Addressing themes of urban decay, deindustrialisation, unemployment and violence in inner cities, the song is remembered for...
, where he played a deputy bent on protecting his Western town from ghosts and the forces of evil. The following year, he played Julian in Rob Reiner
Rob Reiner
Robert "Rob" Reiner is an American actor, director, producer, writer, and political activist.As an actor, Reiner first came to national prominence as Archie and Edith Bunker's son-in-law, Michael "Meathead" Stivic, on All in the Family. That role earned him two Emmy Awards during the 1970s...
's romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally.... After production on that film was complete, Luz signed to co-star in the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
comedy Free Spirit
Free Spirit (TV series)
Free Spirit is an American fantasy sitcom series that ran on ABC during the 1989-1990 television season. The series was originally produced by ELP Communications. It ran from September 22, 1989 to January 14, 1990.-Overview:...
, which premiered in September 1989. He portrayed lawyer Thomas J. Harper, a widower with three children who hires a housekeeper/nanny named Winnie (Corinne Bohrer
Corinne Bohrer
Corinne Vilhelma Bohrer is an American movie and television actress.-Early life:She grew up in Arlington, Texas, a suburb of the Dallas – Fort Worth Metroplex area, where she attended Lamar High School. She was active in drama, band, and student government...
), whom only the kids know is a witch. Luz's daughter on the show was played by a young Alyson Hannigan
Alyson Hannigan
Alyson Lee Hannigan is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Willow Rosenberg in the cult classic television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Michelle Flaherty in three American Pie films, and Lily Aldrin on the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother.-Early life:Hannigan was born in...
. Free Spirit turned out to be another short-lived series for Luz, as ABC cancelled it mid-season.
1990s
In the 1990s, Luz continued his string of TV guest appearances on such shows as SistersSisters (TV series)
Sisters is a television drama which aired on NBC for six seasons, from 1991 to 1996. The series was created by Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman, who also created the Showtime series Queer as Folk and wrote the acclaimed Emmy and Peabody Award winning drama An Early Frost, also for NBC...
, L.A. Law
L.A. Law
L.A. Law is a US television legal drama that ran on NBC from September 15, 1986 to May 19, 1994. L.A. Law reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights,...
, The Young Riders
The Young Riders
The Young Riders is an American Western television series created by Ed Spielman that presents a fictionalized account of a group of young Pony Express riders based at the Sweetwater Station in the Nebraska Territory during the years leading up to the American Civil War...
, and Silk Stalkings
Silk Stalkings
Silk Stalkings is a TV crime drama originally shown on CBS in 1991 as part of the network's late-night Crimetime After Primetime programming package, and rebroadcast on the USA Network. After CBS ended the Crimetime experiment in 1993, the series ran exclusively on USA until its finale in the...
, while keeping up appearances in motion pictures. In 1991-92, he starred in the Broadway production of Larry Gelbart
Larry Gelbart
Larry Simon Gelbart was an American television writer, playwright, screenwriter and author.-Early life:...
's City of Angels
City of Angels (musical)
City of Angels is a musical comedy with music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by David Zippel, and book by Larry Gelbart. The musical weaves together two plots, the "real" world of a writer trying to turn his book into a screenplay, and the "reel" world of the fictional film.-Productions:City of Angels...
, alongside Richard Kline
Richard Kline
Richard Kline is an American actor and television director. He is best known for playing the sleazy neighbor and used car salesman, Larry Dallas, on the sitcom, Three's Company.-Early life:...
and Michael Rupert
Michael Rupert
Michael John Rupert is an American actor, singer, director and composer.Rupert made his Broadway debut in 1968 in Kander and Ebb's The Happy Time where he received his first Tony nomination...
. His most notable role in 1990s cinema was that of Don Antonio in Jeremy Leven
Jeremy Leven
Jeremy Leven is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and novelist. Born in South Bend, Indiana, Leven lives in Woodbridge, Connecticut, Nantucket, and Paris....
's Don Juan DeMarco
Don Juan DeMarco
Don Juan DeMarco is a 1995 American romantic comedy-drama film starring Johnny Depp as John Arnold DeMarco, a man who believes himself to be Don Juan, the greatest lover in the world. Clad in a cape and domino mask, DeMarco undergoes psychiatric treatment with Marlon Brando's character, Dr. Jack...
(1995), which starred Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp
John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
in the title role. Prior to that, Luz had appeared on daytime TV again, playing Seth Tanner on All My Children
All My Children
All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
in 1993. In 1999, Luz appeared in the independent film The Pornographer
The Pornographer
The Pornographer is a 2001 French drama film directed and written by Bertrand Bonello who co-wrote music score with Laurie Markovitch. The film features explicit sexual scenes by pornographic actress Ovidie...
and in Restraining Order
Restraining order
A restraining order or order of protection is a form of legal injunction that requires a party to do, or to refrain from doing, certain acts. A party that refuses to comply with an order faces criminal or civil penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions...
, co-starring with Eric Roberts
Eric Roberts
Eric Anthony Roberts is an American actor. His career began with King of the Gypsies , earning a Golden Globe nomination for best actor debut. He starred as the protagonist in the 1980 dramatisation of Willa Cather's 1905 short story, Paul's Case...
.
Beyond
Restraining Order has been Luz's last on-screen acting role to date, since after that project he decided on a career change. A longtime enthusiast of the fine arts, Franc became involved in many New York area museums and exhibition halls. He has become a trustee for several of them, and also works as a tour guide.Personal life
Luz has been married to fellow actor Barbara Marineau since 1978. Although much of her work has been exclusively in theater, she has had film and TV roles from time to time. Her most recent guest work was on NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's short-lived The Book of Daniel.