Curiosidades

He took a sabbatical from acting in 2003 to study medicine. He graduated from medical school in 2010.

His real father, Robert, played his his dad on Good Times (1974).

A Shakespearean actor, he received a scholarship to study at Juilliard. He turned down the offer to care for his ailing mother.

In 1994 he was given a "Courageous Citizens Award" by L.A. District Attorney Gil Garcetti for saving the life of a shooting victim.

On November 20, 2007, he helped director/producer Penny Marshall, Reachback LA and the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation hand out five-star dinners to nearly 600 at-risk youth and their families in Watts, CA.

After filming the movie Colors - As Cores da Violência (1988), he and the film's director, Dennis Hopper, remained close friends for more than 20 years until Hopper's death.

Grand continues to mourn the passing of his best friend, writer/producer Nicholas Corea. Their relationship began with O Incrível Hulk (1977). Grand played a bad guy and still laughs at the memory of his mother, Essie, rooting for the Hulk as it ripped her son's character to shreds. Nick brought Grand along with him on quite a few projects, including The Renegades (1982), opposite Patrick Swayze; Águia de Fogo (1984) opposite Jan-Michael Vincent; Os Fora da Lei (1986) opposite Rod Taylor; and Renegado (1992) opposite Lorenzo Lamas. While Nick was dying of cancer in 1999, he wrote for Grand Brothers in Arms (1999), an installment that is still considered to be one of the best episodes of that series. Grand and his wife, Sharon Dahlonega, watched the broadcast privately with Nick's widow, Pheny.

He and Clarence Gilyard Jr. not only played brothers on Chuck Norris: O Homem da Lei (1993), they celebrate identical birthdates.

A student of theology, he remains spiritual and dedicated to the betterment of life.

The wheezing and beads of sweat on his forehead were real during filming of Pânico no Mar (2001). in Sofia, Bulgaria. He had contracted a potentially deadly staph infection after injuring himself during a stunt. Grand's wife, Sharon Dahlonega, along with a medical staff, monitored and nursed him as he battled a raging fever that spiked to 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius) at times during the shoot.

He was named after his grandfather, Lee Grand Bush.

To prepare for his role as Rev. Ross in the critically-acclaimed independent film, Favorite Son (1997), Grand committed to memory the entire chapter of the New Testaments's Luke 15. His performance was so impressive that many of the local extras thought he was a real minister and invited him to preach at their church.

He is an expert swimmer and certified sailboat skipper.

Todd Bridges personally asked him to portray his abusive father, Jim, in Bridges' independent biopic called Building Bridges (2000).

Producer Joel Silver personally phoned him at his home to ask that he make a cameo appearance in O Demolidor (1993), co-starring Sylvester Stallone and Wesley Snipes.

He was once a dancer in Las Vegas.

A University of Southern California alumnus.

He does not recognize holidays because of his religious beliefs.

As of March 2007 he was developing film projects with his wife and writing partner, Sharon Dahlonega.

For the premiere of 007 - Permissão para Matar (1989) he and the starring cast greeted King Charles III and the late Princess Diana. He said he found the prince to be quite "dashing" and "eloquent.".

Robert Davi and Grand co-starred in 007 - Permissão para Matar (1989), Duro de Matar (1988) and Maniac Cop 3: O Distintivo do Silêncio (1992).

Parodied his role in Raízes (1977) as a "Runaway Slave" in Confusões em Hollywood (1987).

Retired from acting in 2002.

Began his acting career at an early age. Of all the other fourth-graders at Vermont Elementary School in Los Angeles, his teacher quickly realized he was capable of memorizing large passages because of his father's propensity to have him commit to memory large chunks of the Bible. He was cast as "Prince Charming" in his first play, "Sleeping Beauty." It was not until high school that he realized one could make a living at acting. He was surrounded by drama students who were already earning an income acting in commercials, TV shows and film projects. During his junior year he placed his interest in journalism on hold and enrolled in drama at Fairfax High School in Los Angeles. He advanced to play production, performing in "The Merchant of Venice" at the Globe Theatre, and in the Garden Grove Shakespeare Festival's "A Midsummer Night's Dream." He attended the Theatre Academy at Los Angeles City College. Following graduation, he studied film and theatre at the University of Southern California and scene acting at the Strasberg Academy in Hollywood.

Plays two different characters in Máquina Mortífera (1987) ("Detective Boyette") and Máquina Mortífera 2 (1989) ("Detective Collins").

Between 1986-90 he played three different characters on the television series Tiro Certo (1984).

The 1994 production Street Fighter: Special Edition (1994) (VG)_ represented the world's first international ensemble of motion picture actors to be featured in a single video game. In addition to Grand in the role of "Balrog," the cast included Raul Julia ("Bison"), Ming-Na Wen ("Chun-Li"), Kylie Minogue ("Cammie"), Jean-Claude Van Damme ("Guile") and Wes Studi ("Sagat").

Grand and writer/producer Dean Devlin acted together in Hard Copy (1987), a short-lived TV series. Dean played a reporter and Grand was his streetwise connection. Although they became very good friends, their careers took them in different directions. Dean wanted to write and Grand wanted to act. After the success of Dean's movie, Independence Day (1996), he and Grand ran into each other on the lot of Twentieth Century-Fox. Devlin said he had a project he thought Grand might be interested in. Two weeks later, Grand was cast as Agent Douglas Wilcox in The Visitor (1997), opposite John Corbett and Steve Railsback.

To prepare for the role of "Balrog" in Street Fighter - A Última Batalha (1994), he trained with martial artist Benny Urquidez. In addition to adhering to a strict scientific diet, Grand ran each day through the polluted streets of Bangkok, Thailand, in 90-degree weather. He lost 15 pounds in a single month. The Street Fighter II': Champion Edition (1992) video game features the actual images of the entire cast in hand-to-hand combat.

In 2006 he and his wife, Sharon Dahlonega, renewed their wedding vows during a cruise of the Mexican Riviera.

He was invited to participate in the 2007 Celebrity Golf Classic hosted by Donald Trump. Others lending their celebrity to the Salvation Army benefit included Mark Wahlberg, Marcus Allen and Reggie Jackson.

Because he is fluent in Spanish, he often served as an interpreter for cast and crew during filming of 'Licence To Kill' in Mexico City, Mexico.

Grand's sabbatical from acting ended in 2020 when "Licorice Pizza" writer/producer/director Paul Thomas Anderson fashioned a character for him; Grand's wardrobe for the feature film was created by Academy Award-winning costume designer Mark Bridges.

His ancestral history is linked to the Mende ethnic group of Sierra Leone, West Africa.