Duane Whitaker, a native of Lubbock Texas, has spent the last 30 years as one of Hollywood’s most entertaining hyphenates. As an actor, Whitaker is most recognized as Maynard, the sadistic pawn shop owner, in Pulp Fiction. Of course, you don’t walk onto the set of a ground breaking film like Pulp Fiction without paying your dues. From the time he arrived in Hollywood, Duane’s face was seen frequently on the stage and small screen. Some of his very early television credits include, Sledge Hammer, Murder She Wrote, Highway to Heaven, L.A. Law, Rosanne and Quantum Leap. More recent appearances include Rush Hour, Instant Mom, Justified, Medical Investigation, I’m With Her, The Ex List, The Bridge and a haunting portrayal of a former child abuse victim on an episode of Cold Case. Duane has appeared in over sixty feature films. Among his favorites are Edge of Town, Natasha Hall, Broke Sky, Lionhead, Dead Letters, Sam Borowski’s Night Club and of course, Pulp Fiction. It is in the Horror genre, however, that Whitaker has anchored a large part of his work. He has been a part of no less than eight Horror Franchises, including From Dusk Til Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money (which he also co-wrote), Feast, Tales From The Hood, Rob Zombie’s Devil’s Rejects and Halloween 2, Children of the Corn: Genesis, Puppetmaster 5 and Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3. Other Horror appearances include, American Nightmares, Albino Farm, Trailer Park of Terror, The Haunted Sea and Deadly Dreams. He has written, directed or produced, Together & Alone, Stripteaser, Camp Utopia, Backroad Motel and Eddie Presley. The latter stars Duane in a masterful turn as a despondent Elvis Presley impersonator teetering on the fine line between a triumphant comeback or a nervous breakdown. It was adapted from Whitaker’s successful stage play of the same title. He has recently branched out into Faith-Based Films, appearing in Daniel Roebuck’s Getting Grace, Lucky Louie, The Hail Mary and My Brother’s Crossing. Duane received the honor of the American Cinematheque hosting a screening of his two most personal films, Eddie Presley and Together and Alone at The Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood. Together and Alone was screened for a second time by the American Cinematheque along with Garrett Clancy’s Dead Letters. Duane Whitaker is also a playwright. His plays have been produced in Los Angeles and New York and he has been teaching a popular Film Acting class in Los Angeles for almost 20 years.
