Spader was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of teachers Jean ( née Fraser ) and Stoddard Greenwood " Todd " Spader.

In March 2011, Spader was named to star in By Virtue Fall, a film written and to be directed by Sheldon Turner.

On June 27, 2011, Ricky Gervais ( an executive producer on the show ) announced Spader was to join the cast on a permanent basis.

Spader planned to stay only through the eighth season, and while the original plan was just to do the guest appearance, executive producer Paul Lieberstein said, " those two scenes became a season.

James Spader was intrigued by the script because he found it " awful ", but accepted the role that earned him money.

James Spader and Robert Downey, Jr. have also been considered members and appeared in several films alongside other Brat Packers, most notably together with Andrew McCarthy in Less Than Zero ( Downey was also in two eighties films with Anthony Michael Hall-Weird Science and Johnny Be Good, as well as The Pick-up Artist with Molly Ringwald ).

The film was also significant in that it featured James Spader playing the sympathetic protagonist, as in many of his past films he was best known for playing the role of the villain or the snobby preppy ( in particular, Pretty in Pink, and Less Than Zero ).

Fort Greene was known as The Hill and was home to a small commuter population, several large farms-the Post Farm, the Spader farm, the Ryerson Farm, and the Jackson farm-and a burial ground.

The opera singer Jessye Norman was listed ; many celebrities or their families were listed such as Chevy Chase, Glenn Close, Stockard Channing, Harry Hamlin, Kyra Sedgwick, James Spader, Julia Child, and Fox News ' Brit Hume and Tucker Carlson.

* James Spader as Alan Shore ( 2003 – 2004 ), a highly unethical friend of Ellenor's who was hired by the firm at the beginning of the show's final season.

James Spader was intrigued by the script because he found it " awful ".

Michael Shanks was chosen because he did " the perfect imitation of James Spader ", according to Brad Wright.

In 1993, it was made into a film ; Mandy Patinkin played Nashe and James Spader played Pozzi.

Tuff Turf starring James Spader was shot in Highland Park, as well as the cult classic Up in Smoke starring Cheech and Chong.

The pilot was originally produced with former The Practice stars James Spader and Rhona Mitra, The Practice guest stars William Shatner and Lake Bell, Mark Valley and an expanded storyline featuring Larry Miller as Edwin Poole and John Michael Higgins as senior partner Jerry Austin.

Wolf won a Saturn Award for Best Writing for Jim Harrison and Wesley Strick's screenplay, and it was nominated for a further 5 Saturn Awards, in the categories of Best Horror Film, Best Actor ( Jack Nicholson ), Best Actress ( Michelle Pfeiffer ), Best Supporting Actor ( James Spader ) and Best Make-up ( Rick Baker ).

Endless Love was the feature film debut for a number of actors, including Tom Cruise, Jami Gertz, and Jeff Marcus, and features very early appearances by James Spader, as the elder brother of Brooke Shields, and of a pre-Beverly Hills, 90210, Ian Ziering.

Daniel Jackson was played by James Spader in the movie and by Michael Shanks in the series.

With the 2005 Emmy Win, Spader became one of the few actors ( along with co-star William Shatner as Denny Crane ) to win an Emmy award while playing the same character in two different series.

It stars Dexter Fletcher and Ione Skye as the two main characters, and a number of famous names in supporting roles such as Jonathan Pryce, Bill Paterson, James Spader, Jared Harris, Claire Skinner, and Michael Gambon.

" Since then, it has been frequented by a number of famous visitors, including Tom Watson ( the 8 time major golf champion is a native of Kansas City and currently lives in Stilwell, Kansas ), Steven Spielberg, Bryant Gumbel, Jimmy Carter, Jack Nicholson, James Spader, and in 2008 by Republican presidential nominee John McCain and his running mate Sarah Palin, as well as barbecue aficionados.

In 1997, Spader guest starred in an episode of Seinfeld as an angry recovering alcoholic who refuses to apologize to George for making fun of him.

Directed by Roland Emmerich, the film stars Kurt Russell, James Spader, Jaye Davidson, Carlos Lauchu, Djimon Hounsou, Erick Avari, Alexis Cruz, Mili Avital, John Diehl, French Stewart, and Viveca Lindfors.

Alien Hunter is a 2003 science-fiction-thriller film, directed by Ron Krauss and stars James Spader, Carl Lewis and Leslie Stefanson.

The film's other stars include Jack Black, John Cusack, Giancarlo Esposito, Peter Gallagher, Helen Hunt, Jeremy Piven, Alan Rickman, James Spader, David Strathairn, Fred Ward, Ray Wise, and Gore Vidal.

The cast included John Cusack, James Spader and Richard Widmark in his final movie role.

In October 2006, Spader narrated China Revealed, the first episode of Discovery Channel's documentary series Discovery Atlas.

The addition of James Spader and Rhona Mitra to the cast for the eighth season somewhat revived the ratings ; Spader went on to win an Emmy for his appearance.

However, on March 11, 2004, ABC announced that The Practice would not return for a ninth season ; rather, Kelley would create a new spin-off series Boston Legal, starring Spader, Mitra, Lake Bell and William Shatner.

James Todd Spader ( born February 7, 1960 ) is an American actor best known for his eccentric roles in films such as Pretty in Pink ; Less Than Zero ; Sex, Lies, and Videotape ; Crash ; Stargate ; and Secretary.

* February 7 – James Spader, American actor

Spader later transferred to Phillips Academy, but dropped out of school in the eleventh grade to pursue acting at the Michael Chekhov School in New York City.

Before becoming a full-time actor, Spader held a variety of jobs including being a yoga instructor, busboy, truck driver, stable boy, and railroad-car loader.

From 2004 to 2008, Spader starred as the lead character Alan Shore in the television series Boston Legal, in which he reprised his role from the television series The Practice.

Spader won the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Emmy Award for his portrayal of Alan Shore in 2004, on The Practice and won it again in 2005 and 2007, for Boston Legal.

Even rarer, Shatner and Spader each won a second consecutive Emmy while playing the same character in two different series.

Spader also won the Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Series, Comedy or Musical for Boston Legal in 2006.

Spader starred as a lead character in Race, a play written and directed by David Mamet, alongside Richard Thomas, David Alan Grier and Kerry Washington.

Spader met his first wife, Victoria Kheel, a decorator, while working in a yoga studio, after he moved to New York in the 1980s.

Spader filed for divorce from Kheel in 2004 and,, has plans to marry his girlfriend ( and former Alien Hunter co-star ), Leslie Stefanson, with whom he had a child in August 2008.

* James Spader at Emmys. com

* James Spader as Dr. Daniel Jackson, a professor who finds little acceptance of his theory that the Pyramids of Giza were much older than they were thought to be.

In 1989, Sarandon co-starred with Marlon Brando in A Dry White Season, followed by White Palace ( 1990 ) with James Spader.