A native New Yorker, Eugene Robert "Gene" Glazer was born and raised in Brooklyn with his older brother. His adolescence was molded more by a normal love of football and women than any interest in the performing arts. Acting was something he thought of from time to time but never as a career he had any intention of pursuing...until one very hot New York summer day when he was getting ready for work on Wall Street and looked out his window to see a long line down the block of frustrated, hot people waiting to get to the even hotter subway. Gene took off his tie, turned to his girlfriend and told her he was quitting his job. His father helped him land his first acting job, pointing out an ad for a dinner theater audition. Acting ever since, he credits his father with jump-starting his career.
Gene worked many odd jobs, including driving a taxi, waiting tables and construction work before moving to Los Angeles in the early 70s. He started getting roles in theater and has appeared in productions of Dylan (as Dylan Thomas), The Crucible, Lunchtime and Staccato, directed by Ron Link. His early television credits included recurring roles in the Lifetime series E.N.G., on General Hospital, and in numerous movies of the week. On the big screen, Gene was featured in Eddie Murphy's directorial debut, Harlem Nights, Stepping Out with Liza Minnelli and Shelley Winters, Hollywood Shuffle with Keenan Ivory Wayans and Damon Wayans and Robert Townsend's The Five Heartbeats, among others.
In 1996, Gene began filming USA Network's original adaptation of the French film La Femme Nikita, playing "Operations," the ruthless leader of a top secret intelligence organization, alongside Peta Wilson, Roy Dupuis and Alberta Watson. The show quickly became a cult hit and ran for five very successful seasons. Although LFN aired its last episode in 2001, its devoted fan base has not forgotten it, and even held a 20th anniversary convention in Toronto in 2017!
More recently, Gene played the recurring role of Alexander Trepkos on the hit Kiefer Sutherland series "24" and guest starred on shows like CSI:NY, Charmed and Cold Case. He took a break from acting to focus on caring for his wife, Xenia Gratsos (stage name Brioni Farrell), who suffered from Alzheimers for many years before her untimely death in 2018. But watch this space - it's 2019, Gene has returned to acting and the best is yet to come!
