Born in
Noranda, Quebec in 1953, he grew up in
Toronto, Ontario. He attended the
Carleton School of Journalism at
Carleton University in
Ottawa,
Ontario, Canada, where he became the editor of
The Charlatan student newspaper during the 1973–1974 term. Orr then went to the undergraduate film school at
York University in Toronto, and in 1977 he became the first Canadian to be accepted as a Director Fellow in the
AFI Conservatory of the
American Film Institute in
Los Angeles. In the mid-1980s, Orr had a relationship with actress
Jamie Rose. From 1997 to 1998, Orr had a relationship with actress
Farrah Fawcett, who had co-starred with
Chevy Chase and
Jonathan Taylor Thomas in
Man of the House, a film that he wrote and directed. The relationship ended when Orr was arrested, charged, and later convicted of beating Fawcett during a 1998 fight. Since the 1980s, Orr has been an avid
wine collector and has participated in several wine auctions. This interest proved useful when, in September 2010, wine critic
James Suckling announced the launch of his new video-based website featuring content taped in locations across the world, created in collaboration with Orr. Orr has also indulged his passion for
cigars by writing and directing the low-budget feature
Blowing Smoke, as well as making a documentary on the Fuente Family called
The Fuente Family: An American Dream, and a documentary on Cuban cigars called
Cigars: The Heart and Soul of Cuba. ==Filmography==