Timothy Hutton turns 56

Timothy Hutton (center) with Mary Tyler Moore (l.) and Donald Sutherland in Ordinary People (1980)

Today marks the birthday of Oscar-winning actor Timothy Hutton, who was born on this day in 1960. Hutton was the son af actor Jim Hutton, who died tragically young before getting to see his son's success. Timothy had appeared in a couple of TV movies as an adolescent before getting tapped to play the role of the son in 1980's Ordinary People. Hutton's role as the son who survived a boating mishap that killed his elder brother earned him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar, even though he's really the main character in the movie.



Hutton followed up Ordinary People with Taps, about a group of military-school cadets who want to save their school from going under, and are willing to go to fairly extreme measures to do so. And then... well, I suppose it's tough to start one's career with really big successes like that. Hutton has worked steadily since the 1980s, but has never really had the chance to do anything that brought him the plaudits that Ordinary People did. (Then again, even if he was destined to play supporting roles, the world needs supporting actors. You all know my love of character actors.)