To look at Donald Sutherland is to see a living caricature rather than a movie star. Standing 6'5" with a lanky frame, absurdly large ears, limp blond hair, a craggy thin face and a distinctively accented voice that possesses the hint of a lisp. But while he is not the most handsome leading and supporting player in Hollywood, he was a favorite star in the late '60s and early '70s and has since developed into a fine character actor. Born in St. John, New Brunswick, Canada, He discovered a love for acting while studying engineering at the University of Toronto. Sutherland worked as a disc jockey in Nova Scotia before attempting to enrol in the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, but because of his size and non-traditional looks, they rejected him. Sutherland did not give up an began working with the Perth Repertory Theater. He also found roles on such British television series as The Saint. Sutherland made his feature film debut in the Italian horror film, The Castle of the Living Dead (1964). It was producer Warren Kiefer who gave Sutherland the role, and though it was a far from auspicious debut, the grateful actor honored him by name his first-born son Kiefer. Sutherland's big break came when Robert Aldrich, who Sutherland's large ears, cast him in The Dirty Dozen (1967), but it was not until he played Army surgeon Hawkeye Pierce opposite Elliot Gould's Trapper John in Robert Altman's M*A*S*H (1971), that Sutherland became a star, especially amongst younger, counter culture audiences. In keeping with the times. Sutherland was a political activist who spent much time protesting the war with fellow radical Jane Fonda. The two met during the production of one of Sutherland's most famous films, Klute (1971). In 1972, the two collaborated on an anti-war film, F.T.A. Many critics and fans consider the early '70s with films such as Johnny Got his Gun (1971)and Don't Look Now (1973), to be Sutherland's finest period. During the '80s, Sutherland became less prominent, but still found steady work.

For one who appeared as frequently in films as has Sutherland, it is not surprising that not all his film roles were of the highest quality. Still there have been notable highlights, including Ordinary People (1980), and A Dry White Season (1989). Through the '90s, Sutherland has primarily been cast as a villain in such films as Ron Howard's Backdraft (1991). His most memorable turn of the decade can be found in portrayal of the informant who cried conspiracy in Oliver Stone's JFK (1991). Sutherland's son Kiefer Sutherland is himself a major star.