Rainier Wolfcastle
222px Rainier Wolfcastle (Voiced by Harry Shearer) is an Austrian actor who has appeared in the McBain series. He began his career at a young age appearing in a bratwurst commercial for Fritz Schnackenpfefferhausen. When he became famous he started a Restraunt called Planet Hype with Chuck Norris, Johnny Carson's third wife and the Russian Mafia.
Profile
An Austrian-accented, musclebound actor, Wolfcastle is obviously based on Arnold Schwarzenegger. This is due not only to his physique, nationality and action-hero persona, but also to the facts that he is a Republican, that his ex-wife, who appeared in one episode, is named Maria (as in Schwarzenegger's wife, Maria Shriver), and that he was seen at a gathering of members of the Quimby family, who are obviously modeled after the Kennedy family.
Wolfcastle is a veteran of many violent action movies, most notably the McBain series which does not correspond to a 1991 action movie of poor reviews by the same name which, however, did not feature Schwarzenegger. It is frequently suggested that his career is on the decline since a movie featuring a "magic ticket" similar to Last Action Hero. He seems to battle frequently with weight problems, though tries to pass it off as something he is doing for a role (referencing Robert DeNiro's acting method, as in Raging Bull, in which he packed on the pounds to play a boxer on the skids). His films seem to be critical failures, as Jay Sherman introduced Wolfcastle in an interview on his TV show as "star of the reprehensible McBain movies".According to various Simpsons episodes, Wolfcastle began his acting career as a child in Austria, appearing on painfully long television commercials advertising bratwurst. At roughly the same time, he began experimenting with bodybuilding, and his physique earned him a starring role in several gay pornography films, shelves of which were seen by Homer during one of Wolfcastle's debt-induced jumble sales. He was also at one point the primary actor on advertisements for "PowerSauce Bars"; bars claiming to boost muscle growth, but which were in fact a mash of apple cores and Chinese newspapers.
The character was originally referred to both within the show and by the production team as McBain, taken from the fictional franchise of action films the character appeared in of the same name. However, for a short time The Simpsons could not use the McBain name due to the fact that a McBain film of the same name (unrelated to The Simpsons character) was released in 1991. During this time, the movie's film producers refused to give Twentieth Century Fox and Matt Groening's production company clearance to use the "McBain" name, so the name of Rainier Wolfcastle was used to sidestep this. Later, the use of "McBain" as both Wolfcastle's alter-ego and continuing series of films returned to the show.
The name "Wolfcastle" probably refers to the Castle Wolfenstein series of computer games (which are set in Nazism Germany). It may also relate to the German town Wolfsburg (which means Wolf's castle), or even Wolfsschanze- (wolf's lair), Adolf Hitler's Eastern Front headquarters. "Rainier" is a spelling variant of Rainer, a common German given name. Also, "Rainier" is a common reference to Mt. Rainier, a large volcano approximately halfway between Portland, Oregon and Seattle, Washington. Most Simpsons character names come from streets and landmarks near Portland, the hometown of Simpsons creator Matt Groening.
Rainier Wolfcastle has, in different Simpsons episodes, been a presenter at the Academy Awards, a spokesperson for the Powersauce energy bar, a celebrity judge in radio station KBBL's contest "How Low Will You Go" (along with Krusty the Klown and Madeleine Albright), hosted a short-lived talk show, and appeared on Inside the Actors Studio with James Lipton (in which he kills Lipton after getting into character as McBain). He was married to Maria Quimby in the past (a reference to Arnold Schwarzenegger's marriage to Maria Shriver, a Kennedy), and his daughter Greta dated Bart in one episode. Wolfcastle has also been seen attending meetings at Republican Party headquarters. As mentioned before he began his acting career as a child in a commercial for Fritz Schnackenpfefferhausen-brand bratwurst in Austria. He also was co-owner of a Planet Hollywood spoof, along with "Chuck Norris, Johnny Carson's third wife, and the Russian mafia".
Apart from the McBain series, Wolfcastle also played Radioactive Man in an ill-fated live-action movie version of that comic book series. This episode aired years before Schwarzenegger himself starred in Batman & Robin, a critical and commercial failure.
Although Rainier Wolfcastle appears to have political ambitions, as noted by his candidacy for mayor in the recall election of Mayor Diamond Joe Quimby, he has not yet attempted to run for the governor's seat currently held by 15-season incumbent Mary Bailey. This may have to do with his immigrant status, or his possibly scandal-ridden past.
There was also a hint that he may have anti-semitic or Neo-Nazi views, when Krusty the Clown said "I thought I was a self-hating, but it turns out that I'm just an anti-semite" and Wolfcastle responds "We have so much to discuss". Rainier may also be homophobic, as evidenced by his accusing an entire audience of being homosexuals after they booed him for describing someone's outfit as making them "look like a homosexual". Wolfcastle has twice been seen campaigning for Mayor or campaigning for Sideshow Bob for Mayor.
In the episode, Homerazzi, it is revealed that his middle name is Luftwaffe.
Filmography
- Bloodletter I
- Bloodletter II
- Bloodletter III
- Bloodletter IV
- License to Detonate
- On the Fatherland's Secret Police
- View to a Corpse
- You Have the Right to Remain Dead
- Saving Irene Ryan
- Help, My Son Is A Nerd!
- My Baby Is an Ugly Man
- The Incredible Shrinking McBain
- Nudist Camp Commandant
- McBain I
- McBain II
- McBain III
- McBain IV: Fatal Discharge
- McBain: Let's Get Silly -Comedy
- Under Cover Nerd
- 'Up Late with McBain'- Talk-Show
- Radioactive Man (film cancelled)
Real Life
Rainier Wolfcastle is based on Austrian actor and governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who also started Planet Hollywood with Sylvester Stalone and Bruce Willis. Originally the characters real name was, McBain, until they found out that there was a movie by the same name.
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