Assyrian Information Medium Exchange
Arts Page
If the face looks familiar, it probably is. It belongs to Alex Ross, better known
to his Assyrian friends as Ross Alexander, an actor who has appeared in many television
commercials, motion pictures and on theater stages in Chicago and Florida.
Ross, who spent 10 years as a salesman, first for a pharmaceutical company and then for a major liquor manufacturer, began his bartending career by buying out a failing Chicago bar. Ross says, "It was in a German neighborhood. I remember the man who owned a nearby bar coming in and saying, 'Ross, please. This music on the jukebox. You ought to be playing waltzes. Despite the dissonant comments on his musical taste from his old-world neighbors, Ross thoroughly enjoyed his first bar ownership and decided to stay in the business. He has owned and operated an assortment of small bars, most in and around the Chicago area, for the past 20 years. The most recent shoot included working with Robert Conrad and George Hamilton on an NBC-TV movie called "Two Fathers' justice". Ross not only had a cameo role as an out-of-work steelworker who was forced to take a job as a busboy in a French restaurant, but he also narrated the opening of the movie. Alex' most visible role was that of a bartender in the "Color of Money" with Paul Newman and Tom Cruise . "I usually play a goofy character type and I also do a lot of westerns. In fact, I just did a western scene for the television series 'Lady Blue' I've got a one-line part in a barber-shop scene." Ross has also done a number of television commercials. One of his favorites is the commercial he did for the Illinois state lottery. He describes it as "a western that was like a classic film." As with most of the commercials he has appeared in, this one was directed by Josef Stedimaier, a big name in the commercial-making business, perhaps best known for his Wendy's "Where's the Beef?" ads. Ross' most recent commercial is one for Brown's Chicken. The long list of products whose commercials Ross has appeared in include Toyota, Yellow Pages, Federal Express and Lyons Restaurant . Ross' favorite outlet for his acting talents is the theater, despite its pressures. "I once did a little skit as part of a larger New York play. I had five character roles in this play and at one point I just blanked on my lines. In those few seconds, I must have lost five pounds," he remembers. Does this mean that some day we will see Alex Ross' name splashed across billboards around America? Probably not. "I would like to pursue some leading-man roles, but I don't think there are that many good parts for a man my age, says Ross. But that does not seem to bother him.
 Return Arts Page
 Return to Home Page |