In today’s world of cookie-cutter entertainers and careers launched via reality TV, it is very rare to find a true Hollywood original—someone who scratched and scraped their way out of obscurity the old-fashioned way, and brought their passion to the masses by sheer force of will. However, there can be no question that one such man is Lance Henriksen, and his story is now officially being told in his autobiography NOT BAD FOR A HUMAN: THE LIFE AND FILMS OF LANCE HENRIKSEN.

The unmistakable actor with the face carved from stone, who has become a beloved genre icon thanks to appearances in films like ALIENS, NEAR DARK and PUMPKINHEAD, and of course the cult-favorite TV series MILLENNIUM, recounts his personal saga in eminently readable fashion, drawing the reader in from the word go and never letting up. There can be no doubt that this man has led a compelling life, and as his 70th birthday approaches this Thursday, May 5 (also the date of the book’s publication by Bloody Pulp Books), this chronicle provides a fascinating look back on his amazing life and career. Joining Henriksen on writing duties is Joseph Maddrey, the documentarian behind NIGHTMARES IN RED, WHITE AND BLUE, an excellent film on the history of horror movies. That film was narrated by Henriksen, and it was during that time that the two men formed the bond that would lead to this book. And it’s a good thing for any fan of Henriksen and his work that that happened.

The story opens on the set of Sidney Lumet’s 1975 classic DOG DAY AFTERNOON, in which a then-unknown Henriksen had a small supporting role. Veteran character actor Charles Durning informs the disappointed young actor that he will have to wait about 10 years to become famous, because his looks are too unusual for him to be a leading man, and will only work for him as he gets a little older. And as upset as it made the inexperienced Henriksen, Durning turned out to be right, as it was Henriksen’s turn as the android Bishop (whose last line gives this tome its title) in James Cameron’s long-awaited 1986 sequel to ALIEN that made him a genre-household name.

From there, we flash back to a very difficult and harrowing early life indeed, as Henriksen makes his way from the streets of Brooklyn to Hollywood, spending time as a struggling artist in Greenwich Village, in prison and in the military, hitchhiking across America and wondering from whence his next meal will come. This was a man who entered the field of drama not out of a vain need to become famous or make a lot of money, but because he was hungry to connect with the world—to communicate something of himself and divert his enormous, restless passions into something constructive and beautiful.

An intense Method actor, Henriksen struggled through illiteracy and typecasting to become one of the most recognized genre faces of his generation, a throwback to the days of performers like Peter Cushing, Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney. And the journey and triumph is captured here via the voice of Maddrey, whose obvious respect and admiration for his subject comes through on every page. One of the most telling signs, as well as one of the book’s most enjoyable aspects, is Maddrey’s inclusion of large chunks of first-person narration, presumably taken directly from interviews with Henriksen.

Occasionally, in his tireless effort to take the reader through every twist and turn of Henriksen’s fascinating career, Maddrey falls victim to the monotonous trap of many biographers—that of, “This happened, then this happened, and then this happened…” But fortunately for him and us, Henriksen’s life story is simply so gripping that it makes up for any narrative rut the book may fall into here and there.

“I need to get to the next level, where I could use what I know from my real life,” Henriksen says in reference to the development of his acting style. “At the end of ALIENS, I realized: I do know how to do this. I didn’t want to work any other way after that. I don’t just want to serve the films—I want to build full characters. I want to personalize the characters, and become a living, breathing entity based on that personalization. That’s what makes good acting, as far as I’m concerned. Ever since then, that’s how I’ve done it. I live the part, and let the filmmakers worry about the narrative and the rest of it.”

This kind of keen insight, from the actor himself regarding his own work, is what helps make NOT BAD FOR A HUMAN one of the finest autobiographies of a genre actor to come along in quite some time. Hardcore Henriksen fans will certainly be pleased, as will fans of good acting in general. Lance Henriksen is one of a kind, and his story is well-represented here.

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