He is most known for his role in the 1987 Stanley Kubrick film Full Metal Jacket, where he played the door gunner who uttered the much-quoted lines "Get some!"

He was originally cast to play Gunnery Sergeant Hartman but was removed from the role in favor of R. Lee Ermey.

At age 18, Tim enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and spent 13 months in Da Nang, Vietnam.

[citation needed] He was discharged on his twentieth birthday, and immediately enrolled at Arizona State University, majoring in physical education with his goal of being a wrestling coach.

He worked at the Victoria Station Restaurant near the Miami airport for three years, then got a job with Braniff Airlines as a flight attendant.