James Stewart Tolkan (born June 20, 1931 in Calumet, Michigan) is an American character actor.
Recognizable with his bald head with no eyebrows, beady and intense eyes as well as a wiry, compact, muscular build and a gruff, jarring, high-decibel voice, he has been regularly cast as rugged, cynical and no-nonsense cops, mean and domineering authority figures and various ruthless criminals, complete with an aggressive, confrontational, blunt-as-a-battleaxe, rough-around-the-edges demeanor. He's been particularly prominent in such roles in The '80s. He has also frequently collaborated with Sidney Lumet.
Some of his most memorable film roles include Napoléon Bonaparte in Love and Death, Principal Strickland in Back to the Future, Commander Tom "Stinger" Jardian in Top Gun, Detective Hugh Lubic in Masters of the Universe and Numbers in Dick Tracy.
