Best known as brash attorney Bobby Donnell on ABC-TV's, The Practice, Dylan McDermott became interested in acting when his stepmother, Eve Ensler, encouraged him to give it a try. Born Mark McDermott on October 26, 1961, in Waterbury, CT, his life took a turn for the worse when his mother was killed when he was five years old. McDermott and his sister were raised for several years by their grandmother. Ensler, a talented playwright and actress became his father's third wife; she adopted McDermott when he was 16, and helped him turn his life around. At Ensler's prodding, McDermott went to Fordham University and studied acting.
McDermott has had roles on the stage and his film credits include: Hamburger Hill, In the Line of Fire, Steel Magnolias, Three to Tango, the remake of Miracle on 34th Street, The Tenants and The Mistress of Spices. McDermott was tapped for his role in The Practice in 1997, and won a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy nomination for the part. He also starred in the short-lived series Big Shots.
"I've tried like hell to make bad movies good, and I can't. Maybe Marlon Brando has been able to do that at times. But even he has a hard time making The Appaloosa a good movie."
Career Highlights: In the Line of Fire, Miracle on 34th Street, Twister
First Major Screen Credit: The Blue Iguana (1988)
Biography
Proving that there is a reason for the existence of the cliché "tall, dark, and handsome," Dylan McDermott has won many a heart, as well as many a critical nod, for his role on the Emmy-winning television series The Practice. The actor struggled for years before landing his part as a lawyer on the show in 1997. Since then, the critical appreciation he has garnered has been complemented by his regular appearances in the style sections of a number of magazines, making him one of the most visible actors in Hollywood.
Born October 26, 1962, in Waterbury, CT, McDermott had a tumultuous childhood. After his parents' divorce, his mother died when the actor was very young. Following her death, McDermott was raised by his father in New York's Greenwich Village. McDermott was, by his own account, something of a delinquent, but his life began to turn around when he discovered acting as a teenager. His interest in the theater was given an additional boost by his stepmother, the playwright Eve Ensler. Ensler encouraged the actor, whom she formally adopted when he was 19, and he began training for his career at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse.
After acting in stage productions such as Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues, McDermott made his film debut as platoon leader Sgt. Franz in 1987's Hamburger Hill. His next notable role was as Julia Roberts' husband in Steel Magnolias. Despite being part of one of the biggest hits of 1989, real fame eluded McDermott, who secured limited recognition for his reported real-life role as Roberts' boyfriend rather than for his acting in the film.
After appearing in leading man roles in a string of disappointing films, including Jersey Girl with Jami Gertz, McDermott's luck began to change, with a part in Clint Eastwood's 1993 smash In the Line of Fire. The following year, he got a lead role as Elizabeth Perkins' lawyer love interest in Miracle on 34th Street. The relative success of that film was inversely proportional to McDermott's next, the ill-received Woody Harrelson vehicle The Cowboy Way (1994). McDermott rebounded somewhat with his leading role as Holly Hunter's love interest in the following year's Home for the Holidays, but it wasn't until two years later, when he appeared in a few episodes of Ally McBeal and landed his role on The Practice, that McDermott began to find true success. Winning a 1999 Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe award for his work on the show, the actor (who by this point was also the subject of numerous articles and Best Dressed photos with his wife, stage actress Shiva Ashfar) found previously closed doors being opened, most notably in the form of a big-screen starring role in the 1999 romantic comedy Three to Tango, co-starring Matthew Perry and Neve Campbell. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
Dylan McDermott (born Mark Anthony McDermott[1] on October 26, 1961) is an American actor, known for his role as lawyer and law firm head Bobby Donnell on the television legal drama The Practice, and the series Dark Blue as Lt. Carter Shaw.
McDermott was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, to Diane (née Marino) and Richard McDermott.[2] His Italian American mother was fifteen and his Irish American father was seventeen when he was born.[1] By 1967, the couple had divorced, and Diane and her children were living with her mother.[1] On February 9, 1967,[2] his mother was accidentally shot and killed with her boyfriend's gun; McDermott was five.[3] Her boyfriend reported to newspapers at the time that she picked up his gun and it went off.[2] He and his sister, Robin, then began to be raised by their maternal grandmother, Avis Marino, in Waterbury.[1]
As a teenager, McDermott began taking trips to visit his father, who owned the West Fourth Street Saloon in New York City. The two would see movies together, and the younger McDermott would work in his father's bar serving drinks and breaking up fights. He would also fast talk his way into the Mudd Club and Studio 54.[2] McDermott was uncomfortable with himself as a teenager, saying he had a "Dorothy Hamill hairdo". He began to imitate his acting heroes, such as Marlon Brando and Humphrey Bogart, to adopt their demeanor.[4] McDermott attended and graduated from Holy Cross High School in Waterbury.
His father's third wife was Eve Ensler (author of The Vagina Monologues) and she legally adopted McDermott when he was nineteen years old; she has since divorced his father. McDermott was encouraged by Ensler, with whom he has remained close, to pursue an acting career,[3] and began writing roles for him into her plays.[2] After Ensler suffered a miscarriage, he took on the name Dylan—the name of her unborn child.[citation needed] He attended acting school at the Jesuit-run Fordham University, as well as studying under Sanford Meisner at The Neighborhood Playhouse.
Career
McDermott starred as Chris in the 1989 film Twister about a man who tried to rescue his girlfriend and daughter from a tornado storm.[5] The same year brought the Neon Empire, a movie about the rise and fall of one man in Las Vegas.[6] However, his first big break as an actor was in the acclaimed hit film In the Line of Fire. Through his connection with Clint Eastwood, McDermott was able to land his first major gig in The Practice. The show expanded McDermott's stardom, and he made People's list of the "50 Most Beautiful People In The World 1998" with the magazine calling him a "a prime-time heartthrob".[4] He nabbed the distinction again in 2000.[7] Despite his success on The Practice, McDermott (and five other starring cast members) were cut from the show. Executive producerDavid E. Kelley cited "economic and creative realities" as a result of pressure from ABC to reduce costs.[8]
In 2007, McDermott starred in the television series Big Shots. Due to low viewership, the show was cancelled in January 2008 after 11 episodes without completing the planned 13-episode season.
On October 30, 2008, TV Guide reported that McDermott is due to co-star alongside Shannen Doherty in Burning Palms, a satire based on Los Angeles stereotypes told through five intertwining storylines.[11]
On November 7, 2008, TV Guide reported that McDermott will star in the new Jerry BruckheimerTNT drama pilot, Dark Blue. McDermott will play a veteran cop who heads a squad of undercover LAPD officers.[12]
Personal life
McDermott is noted for his rugged looks and fashionable style, and in addition to his People magazine nods[clarification needed],[13] he has been featured for his style in magazines like Men's Health.[14] In 1999, he was one of six-way tie for sixth in GQ's Man of the Year issue.[15]
McDermott used to date actress Julia Roberts, who played opposite him in the film version of "Steel Magnolias." McDermott married actress Shiva Afshar Rose, who is of half Irish and half Persian descent,[1] on November 19, 1995. They have two daughters - Colette (born 1996), and Charlotte Rose (born on September 8, 2005). Colette's birth is prominently featured in Ensler's Vagina Monologues.[2] On September 27, 2007, People confirmed that McDermott and Rose have separated.[16] On May 16, 2008, CelebTV.com reported that McDermott had filed for divorce from Rose.[17] The divorce was finalized on January 2, 2009.[18]
