Biography

As a child, he was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease (cancer of the lymph nodes). He had surgery that removed the cancer.

His family lineage extends back to the Kiowa tribe (Native North Americans).

When he was filming Star Trek: Enterprise, he had the distinct pleasure of having his make-up done by Academy & Emmy Award winner Michael Westmore, who created some of the most iconic make-up ever. Mr. Westmore came out of retirement for 5 weeks, often starting at 4am to work on Tilford's make-up, which included recreating the original concept of the Klingons, the hybrid half-Klingon, half-human, Marab.

Has a MFA from Rutgers University and a BA from the University of California at Berkeley

An advocate for social justice and human rights, he participated in various protests and marches alongside such iconic political figures as Cesar Chavez, Jesse Jackson & Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Nkrumah Ture) while a student at the University of California.