American actor, director, host, model Gary Sinise is a renowned personality who has been awarded an honorary doctorate in humane letters by Amherst College.
Gary Sinise was born to Robert L Sinise, a professional editor who works for film and television and Millie Sinise. He is the oldest of three children. Gary was born on March 17th 1955 at Blue Island, Illinois. He went to the Highland Park High School and Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois.
Gary took to acting early, in high school, in a production of “West Side Story”. He made his professional stage debut at the age of 17 in a production of “The Physicist”. Gary credits his love for theatre to Barbara Patterson, his drama teacher. As a teenager he was talented on the bass and he performed in a band called “Half Day Road”. When he was 19, two of his friends [Terry Kinney and Jeff Perry] together with Sinise founded the Steppenwolf theatre company.
Sinise worked on nearly 30 of the company’s production and this gave him the necessary experience in acting and directing. He directed and starred in Sam Shepard’s “True West” [1982].His feature film directorial debut, “Miles from Home” [1988] starred Richard Gere. He has acted in a number of films including “Forrest Gump” [1994], “Apollo 13” [1995], “The Green Mile” [1999], “Snake Eyes” [1998], “Mission to Mars” [2000], “Of Mice and Men”, which he directed as well [1992].
In 2004, Gary appeared in his first regular television series, CSI: New York. Sinise plays detective Mac Taylor in this long-running show. He has also hosted the video for the Epcot Space Museum Ride at Walt Disney World, Orland, Florida. Gary is also the brand ambassador for Baume and Mercier watches.
Gary Sinise has won a number of awards and acclaim for his contribution to cinema. He won the 1983 OBIE for “True West”. He has been nominated for Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Forrest Gump [1994] and Tony Award for Best Director for “Buried Child”. Sinise has won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries for his role in Truman. Gary has bagged the Joseph Jefferson award in 1985 and 1996 for “Orphans” and “Buried Child”. He has also been ranked at number 74 in the top 100 celebrity golfers.
Gary Sinise is married to actress Moira Harris who was an original member of the Steppenwolf theatre, since 1981. They have three children Sophie, Mc Canna and Ella.
Off screen, Sinise has co-founded “Operation Iraqi Children” in early 2004. He also travelled to Iraq in support of the troops and distributed school supplies and Arabic translations of Seabiscuit to Iraqi children. He performs for a number of NGO’s and charities including United Service Organization.
Popular as Lt. Dan in the military fraternity, more than a decade after the popular “Forrest Gump”, Gary Sinise has built a successful career both as an actor and a director.
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