Full name, Christopher Shannon Penn; born June 10, 1962 (some sources cite October 10, 1965), in Los Angeles, CA; died January 24, 2006, in Santa Monica,CA; buried in Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, CA. Actor and producer. A member of a family of entertainers that included actor Sean, musician Michael,and director Leo, Penn appeared in dozens of films, beginning in 1979 in Charlie and the Talking Buzzard. More a character actor than a leading man, Penn was in a number of prominent films, including Footlose, AtClose Range, which also starred his brother Sean and mother Eileen Ryan,the Quentin Tarantino film Reservoir Dogs, Jackie Chan's Rush Hour, and the comedy Starsky & Hutch. In 1999 he produced and actedin the film The Florentine. Penn worked primarily in films, but he also made noteworthy appearances in television. In addition to a recurring rolein the series The Brotherhood of Poland, New Hampshire in 2003, Pennhad roles in episodes of Seinfeld, Will & Grace, and CSI: Miami. The Darwin Awards, Penn's last film, premiered on the dayof his death.
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