What was Roy Scheider's Net Worth?
Roy Scheider was an American actor who had a net worth of $30 million at the time of his death in 2008. A little more than half of Roy's net worth at the time of his death was roughly $19 million received from Billy Joel in 2007 for a Hamptons mansion. Roy built the mansion in 1994 and sold it to Billy a year before his death on February 10, 2008 at the age of 75.
Roy Scheider was best known for his performances in such films as "Jaws," "The French Connection," "Marathon Man," and "All That Jazz." He also had notable starring roles in "Blue Thunder" and "2010: The Year We Make Contact," and a main role in the first two seasons of the television series "seaQuest DSV." Before becoming an actor, Scheider had a career as an amateur boxer.
Hamptons Estate
In 1994 Roy Scheider built a 5,500 square foot home on 1.5 acres of oceanfront property in the Hamptons town of Sagaponack. The five-bedroom home has two outdoor showers, 360-degree view, four fireplaces and much more. In April 2006 Roy listed the home for sale for $20 million. He sold the home a year later to singer Billy Joel for $18.75 million. Billy sold the house in 2014 for $19 million.
Early Life and Education
Roy Scheider was born on November 10, 1932 in Orange, New Jersey to Roy Sr. and Anna. Growing up, he was involved in baseball and boxing. Scheider was educated at Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey, graduating in 1950. During his time there, he boxed as an amateur and amassed an 8-1 record with six knockouts. Hanging the gloves up, Scheider went on to study drama at Rutgers University and Franklin & Marshall College. He subsequently served three years in the US Air Force as a first lieutenant.
Film Career, Part 1
In 1964, Scheider made his film debut with a starring role in the horror film "The Curse of the Living Corpse." His next credit was the 1969 crime film "Stiletto." The year after that, he appeared in "Loving" and "Puzzle of a Downfall Child." Scheider's breakthrough came in 1971 when he appeared in two highly acclaimed films: Alan J. Pakula's neo-noir "Klute" and William Friedkin's crime thriller "The French Connection." For his performance as New York City detective Cloudy Russo in the latter, he earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Scheider subsequently went to Europe to film the thrillers "The French Conspiracy" and "The Outside Man." Returning to the US, he starred in the action film "The Seven-Ups" and the black comedy "Sheila Levine is Dead and Living in New York."
Scheider had one of his most famous roles in 1975, starring as Chief Martin Brody in Steven Spielberg's blockbuster smash "Jaws." In the film, he delivered one of the most classic quotes in Hollywood cinema:
"You're gonna need a bigger boat."
Scheider subsequently starred in two more thrillers, John Schlesinger's "Marathon Man" and William Friedkin's "Sorcerer," and then reprised his role as Chief Martin Brody in "Jaws 2." Closing out the decade, he starred in Jonathan Demme's "Last Embrace" and Bob Fosse's "All That Jazz." Playing a fictionalized version of Fosse in the latter film, Scheider earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.
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Film Career, Part 2
Scheider's first role in the 80s was in Robert Benton's psychological thriller "Still of the Night," costarring Meryl Streep. He followed that with further starring roles in the action thriller "Blue Thunder" and the science-fiction sequel "2010: The Year We Make Contact." In 1985, Scheider did the narration for Paul Schrader's biographical drama "Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters." He returned to starring roles after that in "The Men's Club," "52 Pick-Up," "Cohen and Tate," "Listen to Me," and "Night Game." Kicking off the 90s, Scheider starred in John Frankenheimer's "The Fourth War" and Fred Schepisi's "The Russia House." Throughout the remainder of the decade, he appeared in such films as "Naked Lunch," "Romeo is Bleeding," "The Peacekeeper," "The Rainmaker," "The Myth of Fingerprints," "Better Living," and "The White Raven."
At the dawn of the new millennium, Scheider was in "Chain of Command," "Falling Through," "The Doorway," and "Daybreak." His subsequent credits included "The Good War," "Angels Don't Sleep Here," "Citizen Verdict," and "Dracula II: Ascension." In 2004, Scheider played the father of the main character in the Marvel Comics film "The Punisher." A few years later, he was in "The Poet" and "If I Didn't Care," and lent his voice to the animated documentary "Chicago 10." Scheider's final film role was a starring part in the British thriller "Iron Cross," which was released posthumously in 2009.
Television Career
On the small screen, Scheider had his first role in the anthology series "Camera Three" in 1964. After that, he appeared in numerous episodes of the CBS soap opera "Love of Life" and appeared in the television film "Lamp at Midnight." Scheider's credits during the remainder of the decade included episodes of "The Secret Storm," "Coronet Blue," and "N.Y.P.D." He mostly appeared in television films after that. In 1983, he starred in the television films "Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number" and "Tiger Town." His television film credits in the 90s were "Somebody Has to Shoot the Picture," "Wild Justice," "Money Play$," "Silver Wolf," and "RKO 281." Scheider did have one main role on a regular series, however, playing Captain Nathan Bridger in the first two seasons of the science-fiction series "seaQuest DSV."
Scheider's first credits in the 2000s were the television films "Diamond Hunters" and "King of Texas." He then had a recurring role on the crime drama series "Third Watch." Scheider didn't appear much on television after that; his only other credits were an episode of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" and two episodes of the adult animated sitcom "Family Guy."
Personal Life and Death
In 1962, Scheider wed his first wife, Cynthia Bebout. The couple had a daughter named Maximillia before divorcing in 1986. Three years after that, Scheider married actress Brenda Siemer, with whom he had a son named Christian and an adopted daughter named Molly.
Scheider was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2004, and the following year had a bone marrow transplant. He passed away in early 2008 at the age of 75.
