Topic: Anthony Edwards

Anthony Charles Edwards (born July 19, 1962) is an American actor and director. He has appeared in various movies and television shows, including Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Top Gun, Zodiac, Revenge of the Nerds, Northern Exposure and ER.

Edwards was born in Santa Barbara, California, the son of Erika Planck (née Weber), an artist/landscape painter, and Peter Edwards, an architect. He has two older sisters, Heidi and Ann-Marie, and two older brothers, Peter and Jeffrey. Edwards was encouraged by his parents to attend college before pursuing his interest in acting. He received a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in England and studied theatre at University of Southern California but by the age of nineteen was being offered enough acting work to enable him to leave college.

Edwards' early work includes a co-starring role in the TV series It Takes Two with Richard Crenna and Patty Duke Astin as his parents and Helen Hunt as his sister. His first starring role was in the 1984 comedy Revenge of the Nerds as Gilbert Lowe, though he had a tiny part in the 1982 film Fast Times at Ridgemont High, credited as "stoner Bud". It was his role as LTJG Nick "Goose" Bradshaw alongside Tom Cruise in the 1986 film Top Gun that brought his first widespread public acknowledgement. His character, who died in an aviation accident, was among the most prominent and popular in the film. He also appeared as a terminally ill patient in Hawks (1988) alongside Timothy Dalton, another role which brought him worldwide fame. He also starred in the 1990 movie Downtown with Penelope Ann Miller and Forest Whitaker. In 1992 and 1993 he played Mike Monroe in ten episodes of Northern Exposure.