Michael Chiklis
Michael Chiklis, May 2007
Born	Michael Charles Chiklis August 30, 1963 (1963-08-30) (age 44) Lowell, Massachusetts, U.S.
Spouse(s)	Michelle Morán (1992–present)
Awards won Emmy Awards Lead Actor In A Drama Series 2002 The Shield Golden Globe Awards Best Actor in a Television Drama Series 2003 The Shield

Michael Charles Chiklis (born August 30, 1963) is an Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning American actor. He is known for starring in two popular police dramas: The Commish (1991–1995) and The Shield (2002–) and as Ben Grimm/The Thing in the live-action Fantastic Four films. is the 242nd day of the year (243rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1963 (disambiguation). ... Nickname: Motto: Art is the Handmaid of Human Good Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts Coordinates: , Country State County Middlesex Settled 1653 Incorporated 1826 A city 1836 Government  - Type Manager-City council  - Mayor William F. Martin, Jr. ... For other uses, see United States (disambiguation) and US (disambiguation). ... An Emmy Award. ... This is a list of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series winners: 1974: Telly Savalas - Kojak 1975: Robert Blake - Baretta 1976: Peter Falk - Columbo 1977: James Garner - The Rockford Files 1978: Edward Asner - Lou Grant 1979: Ron Leibman - Kaz 1980: Edward Asner - Lou Grant... This article is about the TV series. ... The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. ... This article is about the TV series. ... is the 242nd day of the year (243rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1963 (disambiguation). ... An Emmy Award. ... The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. ... For other uses, see Actor (disambiguation). ... The police procedural is a sub-genre of the mystery story which tries to demonstrate accurately the activities of a police force as they investigate crimes. ... The Commish 2nd Season DVD release The Commish was a television series that aired on ABC in the United States from 1991 to 1995. ... The year 1991 in television involved some significant events. ... This is a list of television-related events in 1995. ... This article is about the TV series. ... The year 2002 in television involved some significant events. ... thing, see Thing (disambiguation). ... Fantastic Four is a 2005 movie based on the Marvel Comics comic Fantastic Four, directed by Tim Story and released by 20th Century Fox. ...

Biography

Early life

Chiklis was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, to Charlie Chiklis, a second-generation Greek American who runs a hair salon, and Kate, a hospital administrative aide^[1] from whom Chiklis has been described as inheriting his acting ability.^[2] Chiklis' paternal ancestors came from Lesbos Island.^[3] Chiklis grew up in Andover, Massachusetts and began entertaining his family with celebrity imitations when he was just five years old. As a child, Chiklis appeared in regional theater productions and earned his Actor's Equity card at age thirteen. He later attended Boston University College of Fine Arts, where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts. Nickname: Motto: Art is the Handmaid of Human Good Location in Middlesex County in Massachusetts Coordinates: , Country State County Middlesex Settled 1653 Incorporated 1826 A city 1836 Government  - Type Manager-City council  - Mayor William F. Martin, Jr. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... A Greek-American is a citizen of the United States who has significant Greek heritage. ... Lesbos (Modern Greek: Lesvos (Λέσβος), Turkish: Midilli), is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. ... This article is about the Massachusetts town. ... The Boston University College of Fine Arts (CFA) is a conservatory-like school that operates under the Boston University system. ...

At age 20, Chiklis shaved his head to look like male-pattern baldness for the part of a 65-year-old man in You Can't Take It With You. Instead of using powder on his head (as he did on his face), he used greasepaint, and he failed to remove it properly at the end of each day. This killed the hair follicles on his head, essentially shaping his career in many ways. Chiklis has said in an interview that this was a very traumatic experience as a young actor, and is the reason he wore a hairpiece in Wired. You Cant Take It with You is a Pulitzer Prize winning comedic play in three acts by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, and was the basis for the 1938 Academy Award winning film directed by Frank Capra. ... Wired was a 1989 film biography of John Belushi directed by Larry Peerce, and adapted from the book Wired: The Short Life and Fast Times of John Belushi. ...

Career

After graduation, Chiklis moved to New York City with high ambitions, but he struggled for several years before being cast the role of John Belushi in the controversial biopic Wired in 1989. The film was panned in general and flopped at the box office, but Chiklis received good reviews for his performance. He also guest starred in several popular television series such as Miami Vice, L.A. Law, Murphy Brown, and Seinfeld alongside bit parts in films like Nixon. John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an Emmy Award-winning American comedian, actor and musician, notable for his work on Saturday Night Live, National Lampoons Animal House and The Blues Brothers. ... Wired was a 1989 film biography of John Belushi directed by Larry Peerce, and adapted from the book Wired: The Short Life and Fast Times of John Belushi. ... For the 2006 movie, see Miami Vice (film). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Murphy Brown was an Emmy Award-winning American situation comedy which aired on CBS from November 14, 1988 to May 18, 1998, for a total of 247 episodes. ... Seinfeld is an Emmy Award-winning American sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989 to May 14, 1998, running a total of 9 seasons. ... Nixon is a 1995 film directed by Oliver Stone for Cinergi Pictures that tells the story of the political and personal life of former President Richard Nixon. ...

The Commish was Chiklis's first acclaimed and successful role. In the family-friendly police comedy/drama, Chiklis played Anthony "Tony" J. Scali, a police commissioner in a small city in upstate New York. A stern but lovable father figure, Chiklis's character had an easygoing style, smart wit, and an unorthodox approach to parenthood and police work. After The Commish, Chiklis starred in the short-lived and critically-panned NBC sitcom Daddio. After playing Curly Howard in a television movie about the Three Stooges, Chiklis decided to reinvent his image. With his wife's help, he spent six months on an extensive workout regimen and shaved his head. He turned up to audition for The Shield looking nothing like the pudgy, friendly character of The Commish. The Commish 2nd Season DVD release The Commish was a television series that aired on ABC in the United States from 1991 to 1995. ... This article is about the state. ... This article is about the television network. ... Daddio was a short-lived comedy television series about a dysfunctional family. ... Curly Howard (born Jerome Lester Horwitz) (October 22, 1903 – January 18, 1952), was one of the Three Stooges, along with brothers Moe Howard and Shemp Howard, and their friend Larry Fine, although Curly was more or less the breakout character. ... The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the mid 20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. ... This article is about the TV series. ...

Winning over the creator Shawn Ryan, Chiklis nabbed the leading role of the show's tough, edgy, detective Vic Mackey. Although The Shield has been controversial because of its violent content, Chiklis's acting has been highly praised, and he has won several awards for his role. Playing the role of the bulked up and brutal cop has also helped Chiklis break out from typecasting, shedding the overweight and friendly image that had defined his career in the past. It was noted by Charlie Brooker that in many shots he bore a strong resemblance to Ross Kemp. Since 2000, he is also taken up a number of voice roles, voicing Chihiro's father, Akio, in the English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away and Roman/King Webster in the direct-to-video feature The Adventures of Tom Thumb & Thumbelina. He has also performed in several episodes of Family Guy and had a voice role in Heavy Gear: The Animated Series. Shawn Ryan is the creator of the television series The Shield, and the upcoming CBS drama, The Unit. ... Detective Vic Mackey, portrayed by Michael Chiklis, is a fictional Los Angeles Police Department detective and leader of the Strike Team, a four-man anti-gang unit in the FX crime drama series The Shield. ... For other meanings, see typecasting. ... Charlie (Charlton) Brooker (born 3 March 1971) is a British comedy writer, cartoonist, reviewer and television presenter. ... Ross Kemp (born 21 July 1964) is a BAFTA award-winning English actor and journalist who rose to prominence in the role of Grant Mitchell in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Hayao Miyazaki ) (born January 5, 1941 in Tokyo, Japan) is the prominent director of many popular animated feature films. ... Spirited Away , lit. ... A film that is released direct-to-video (also straight-to-video) is one which has been released to the public on home video formats first rather than first being released in movie theaters. ... Family Guy is an Emmy Award-winning American animated television series about a dysfunctional family in the fictional town of Quahog, Rhode Island. ...

In 2005, he starred in Fantastic Four as The Thing and for its sequel, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. A fan of the comic series, Chiklis was often praised for his performance in a film that otherwise earned mixed reviews. Chiklis's first major recognition came in 2003, as he won the 2002 Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series for his role as Detective Vic Mackey on The Shield. He received a Golden Globe that same year for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series-Drama as well. Between 2004 and 2005, he was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama Series but did not win. Fantastic Four is a 2005 movie based on the Marvel Comics comic Fantastic Four, directed by Tim Story and released by 20th Century Fox. ... thing, see Thing (disambiguation). ...

Personal life

A lifelong comic book fan, he rarely (if ever) turns down an autograph request from children. In fact, according to the DVD commentary for the Fantastic Four film, his voice has been going hoarse from doing so many requests as Thing; in Chiklis's own words "How do you say no to an 8 year old?" thing, see Thing (disambiguation). ...

Chiklis married Michelle Morán on 21 June 1992 and they have 2 daughters, Autumn, born on October 9, 1993, and Odessa, born in 1999.^[4] Autumn plays Vic Mackey's daughter Cassidy on The Shield. is the 172nd day of the year (173rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 282nd day of the year (283rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ...

He attended the same high school as his good friend Jay Leno. James Douglas Muir Jay Leno (April 28, 1950) is an Emmy Award-winning American comedian and television host, who succeeded Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show in 1992. ...

References

External links

• Michael Chiklis at the Internet Movie Database
• Exclusive interview from Maxim.com