To me some of the best performances are from "character actors". Because they don't look like Brad Pitt or have never had that leading roll to vaulted them into the spot light they have to actually get by on their acting ability. They are actors who when you see them you immediately recognize them from the dozens of films and television rolls you seen them in but you can't name them. Some of my all-time favorites are Yaphet Kotto, Charles Martin Smith, and Kenneth Tigar just to name a few.