His breakthrough role as Otis in Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986) earned him an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Supporting Male.

[4][5] In 1971, Towles began his acting career in Chicago where he performed as a member of the Organic Theater Company.

[6] He made his film debut portraying a minor role as a cop in Dog Day Afternoon (1975).

[12][13][14][15] Towles frequently collaborated with filmmaker Rob Zombie, appearing in House of 1000 Corpses (2003), The Devil's Rejects (2005), Halloween (2007) and Grindhouse (2007).

[16] Towles died on April 2, 2015, at the age of 65,[17][18] in a hospital in Pinellas, Florida of complications following a stroke.