Film & TV / Theatre & dance / Music
David Patrick Kelly
born 1951 · actor, musician, lyricist
Detroit-born character actor, forever Luther of The Warriors, who began writing musicals while studying at the University of Detroit.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan
age 75- Detroit years
- 1951–1970s
- Field
- Film & TV, Theatre & dance, Music
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
David Patrick Kelly was born in Detroit, the son of an accountant, and grew up in the city. He studied at the University of Detroit, where as an undergraduate he wrote the music and lyrics for four musicals staged in Detroit, and he graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. He also trained in mime with Marcel Marceau and in acting with Mira Rostova before moving to New York. His breakthrough came in 1979 as Luther, the unhinged gang leader in Walter Hill's The Warriors, whose taunt “Warriors, come out to play” became one of cinema's most quoted lines. He built a long career as a distinctive character actor, working repeatedly with Spike Lee and David Lynch, and he has continued to write and perform music alongside his screen and stage work.
Highlights
- Luther in The Warriors (1979)
- Jerry Horne in Twin Peaks (1990–91, 2017)
- Roles in 48 Hrs., Commando and The Crow
- Played Harry S. Truman in Flags of Our Fathers (2006)
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Studied here · late 1960s–early 1970s
University of Detroit (now University of Detroit Mercy)
He earned a BFA cum laude here and wrote four student musicals that were produced in Detroit.