Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Blast From The Past: Brian Wimmer


When I was working on my tribute to Battle of the Network Stars, there were a few participants, that I wanted to spotlight on their own.  One of those, is actor Brian Wimmer.  The very first Battle that I actually watched was the 1988 edition, and Brain was a part of the ABC team.  Although I had never seen a second of China Beach, I wasn't immune to the appeal of one of it's hottest cast members.


Raised in Provo, Utah, Brian began working as a ranch hand at Robert Redford's Sundance Resort.  Brian spent ten years working for the resort, and expected a career in the ski industry before making the move to Hollywood in the mid-eighties. Brian quickly began getting small roles in films including; Footloose, A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge and Less Than Zero.


It was in only a few years later in 1988 when Wimmer got his big break being cast as Cpl. Boonie Lanier in China Beach.  After China Beach was cancelled in 1991, Wimmer worked regularly in films (Late for Dinner and Tank Girl) and on television with roles on ER, Jericho and the short lived re-make of Flipper.


Wimmer's last IMDB credit is the film Haunt in 2014.  A quick glance at Wimmer's Instagram Page seems to indicate he returned to Utah, and The Sundance Resort, and looks like he's enjoying that life of mountains, snow and skiing after all.


Next 3 shots from Peter Duke

'I shot these pictures of Brian, the day after I met him, and a couple of days after he moved to L.A. He was a scrappy kid from Utah who was coming to Hollywood to be an actor. This beach, wound up being the set for his greatest success, "China Beach", 6 or 7 years later.'


With Peter Berg in Late for Dinner (1991)

Wimmer's only nude scene was in the 1995 film Tank Girl.  Early in the film, Wimmer is forced to strip at gunpoint (although it ends up being in fun) by Lori Petty.  Usually, it's frontals that get 'cut' when boxscreen films on VHS make the switch to HD and DVD. In the case of Tank Girl, the editors decided for some unknown reason to edit his butt scene.  In the old cap just below, you can see Brian's butt was in full few, but int he HD release, it is only partially shown.

Tank Girl (1995)

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