Edward Ernest "Judge" Reinhold Jr. is an American actor, voice actor, singer and filmmaker who has starred in several Hollywood movies, such as Ruthless People, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Gremlins, and , and both trilogies for Beverly Hills Cop and The Santa Clause.
His first appearance on screen was in the Wonder Woman episode "Amazon Hot Wax", in which he played Jeff Gordon, a singer who gets caught up in an extortion ring in the music business. He had a lead role in the movie Running Scared and a support part in the comedyStripes which was a big hit. He was one of many names in the flop comedy Pandemonium. Reinhold's first major film role was as high school senior Brad Hamilton in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, along with then-unknown actors Sean Penn, Phoebe Cates, Forest Whitaker, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Nicolas Cage. "I thought my career would really take off after that role," Reinhold said later. "Instead, Sean's career took off." Reinhold had small roles in The Lords of Discipline and Gremlins, and he appeared in an uncredited role in Pat Benatar's music video for "Shadows of the Night".
''Beverly Hills Cop'' and stardom
Reinhold's career really started to gain momentum when he played Detective Billy Rosewood, the junior police detective sent to trail Eddie Murphy's character, in Beverly Hills Cop. The film's huge success led to Reinhold being given starring roles in Roadhouse 66, Head Office and Off Beat, but none of those were particularly successful. However, Ruthless People, where he had a support role, was a big hit. That year he said in an interview, "In my movies I portray this 'Everyman' persona, someone everybody can empathize with. People can identify with a guy like me." Reinhold tried to get financing for a film based on Carl Hiaasen's best-selling novel Tourist Season, but it was never made. Instead, he appeared in Beverly Hills Cop II, which was another large success. Reinhold was given the lead in Vice Versa. Vice Versa flopped. "That was really the end of my highfalutin Hollywood career," Reinhold said later. "That's when the phone stopped ringing." He also developed a reputation for being difficult on set. "I was spoiled, and I was arrogant," said Reinhold of this period later. "I was very demanding, had an overblown image of who I was and got a reputation for being difficult. And rightfully so."
Return to supporting roles
Reinhold moved to Santa Fe. "It was a very difficult time," he said. "I don't know if you've ever had this experience where all of your friends know something about you, but it comes as a total and complete shock to you. And you have to face it. It was an extremely painful thing for me—to recognize and take responsibility for the damage that I'd done... It's been a profound change for me, and I'm grateful for it," he said. "If Vice Versa had become a success, I might not have dealt with any of this, and I'm not sure where I would be now." He had supporting roles in Rosalie Goes Shopping and and the lead in Enid Is Sleeping and Zandalee. Reinhold starred in the Canadian hard rock band Harem Scarem's 1992 music video "Honestly" as the male love interest. In 1992, he said, "I've learned a lot in the past three years. It's been pretty painful, but I'm grateful for all of it, 'cause I've grown up more in the past three years than I have in my whole life." In 1994, Reinhold appeared in Beverly Hills Cop III and The Santa Clause. He reprised the role of Dr. Neal Miller for the Santa Clause sequels.
Later career
Reinhold was nominated for an Emmy for a role on Seinfeld in which he played the "close talker" who develops an obsession with Jerry's parents. He can also be seen in Steven Spielberg's epic miniseries Into the West and replaced Charles Grodin in two direct-to-video movies in the Beethoven film series. Reinhold appeared in the 2008 political satireSwing Vote.
In popular culture
Reinhold has occasionally been referred to in film and television, largely in reference to his first name. In the film Fanboys, Billy Dee Williams appears as a courtroom judge named "Judge Reinhold". In the Becker episode "Trials and Defibrillations", the presiding judge is called Judge Reinhold. In Arrested Development, Reinhold, playing himself, appears as the judge of a fictional court show, a parody of such series as The People's Court, Lauren Lake's Paternity Court, Judge Judy and Judge Mathis. Reinhold similarly voiced his own portrayal in , in which he was also portrayed as a courtroom judge. He was also referenced in a Season 5 episode of The Simpsons, Marge tells her mother that, compared to Mr. Burns, Abe Simpson is like Judge Reinhold, to which her mother replies: "I don't know who that is."
Filmography
Awards and nominations
Personal life
Reinhold was arrested at Dallas Love Field airport on December 8, 2016, for disorderly conduct after objecting to a patdown from security shortly after he was released from the hospital following an adverse reaction to a medication. He spent ten hours in jail and accepted a deferred adjudication agreement under which charges would be dismissed in 90 days.
