Ed O'Neill

Edward "Ed" O'Neill (born April 12, 1946) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as the main character, Al Bundy, on the FOX Network's sitcom, Married... with Children. O'Neill is often cast as a police officer in television shows and films.

Biography

Early life

O'Neill was born into an Irish Catholic family in Youngstown, Ohio. His mother, Ruth Ann (née Quinlan), was a homemaker and social worker, and his father, Edward Phillip O'Neill, was a steel mill worker and truck driver. O'Neill attended Ursuline High School and went on to study at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, where he was a member of Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity, and Youngstown State University. O'Neill was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1969 as an outside linebacker. He was released before the start of the 1969 regular season. Later, on Married... with Children, O'Neill played a former high-school football star who had failed to make it big and constantly relived his "glory days" at Polk High where he once scored 4 touchdowns in one game. O'Neill was also a social studies teacher at Youngstown's Ursuline High School, before becoming an actor.

Career

O'Neill played Lenny in a stage production of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He appeared in several movies, including The Bone Collector, Little Giants, and Dutch. He also starred as Sgt. Joe Friday on Dick Wolf's remake of Jack Webb's classic TV crime series Dragnet. The series was short-lived, cancelled by ABC in its second season. His film debut was in John Boorman's Deliverance as a deputy.

O'Neill is primarily known, however, for playing the lead role of Al Bundy in Married… with Children, a long-running American sitcom about a dysfunctional family living in Chicago. It was the first-ever primetime television series to air on the FOX Network as a midseason replacement, debuting on April 5, 1987 and concluding June 9, 1997. The series was created by Michael G. Moye and Ron Leavitt.

O'Neill had short cameos in Wayne's World and its sequel. He also appeared as Relish the Troll King in The 10th Kingdom. He also made a cameo on the sitcom 8 Simple Rules where he played Katey Sagal's old boyfriend. O'Neill made a brief appearance on the comedy variety show In Living Color, playing the champion who defeats the top challenge, played by Jamie Foxx, in a game show called Dirty Dozen.

O'Neill went on to appear as a recurring character on NBC's The West Wing, playing Gov. Eric Baker (D-PA). Baker, a strong candidate for the Democratic Presidential Nomination, assumed the office of the Vice Presidency under Matt Santos at the end of the series.

O'Neill currently appears in advertisements for AOL's online video service. His most recent role was Bill on HBO's television series John From Cincinnati. O'Neill also used to star in commercials for 1-800-COLLECT.

Personal life

O'Neill is married (1986 - present) to actress Catherine Rusoff, who played Betsy on 2 episodes of Married with Children (1988, 1989). In 1989, the couple separated but reconciled in 1993. They have 2 children.

After being introduced to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by his friend, writer/director John Milius, O'Neill has now trained in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for 15 years under the mentoring of Rorion Gracie and is now a Black Belt.

Filmography

• Deliverance (1972), deputy
• Cruising (1980), Det. Schreiber
• The Day the Women Got Even (1980), Ed
• The Dogs of War (1981), Terry
• Farrell for the People (1982), Detective Jay Brennan
• When Your Lover Leaves (1983), Mack Shore
• Police Academy (1984), supply clerk
• Braker (1985), Danny Buckner
• A Winner Never Quits (1986), Whitey Wyshner
• Popeye Doyle (1986), Popeye Doyle
• Right to Die (1987)
• Police Story: Gladiator School (1988), Sgt. Stanley Bivens
• Disorganized Crime (1989), George Denver
• K-9 (1989), Brannigan
• A Very Retail Christmas (1990)
• The Adventures of Ford Fairlane (1990), Lt. Amos
• Sibling Rivalry (1990), Capt. Wilbur Meany
• The Whereabouts of Jenny (1991), Jimmy O'Meara
• Dutch (1991), Dutch Dooley
• Wayne's World (1992), Glen, Mikita's Manager
• Wayne's World 2 (1993), Glen, Mikita's Manager
• Nick's Game (1993), Ron Hawthorne
• Blue Chips (1994), Ed
• Little Giants (1994), Kevin O'Shea
• W.E.I.R.D. World (1995), Dr. Monochian
• Prefontaine (1997), Bill Dellinger
• The Spanish Prisoner (1997), FBI Team Leader
• The Bone Collector (1999), Detective Paulie Sellitto
• The 10th Kingdom (tv mini) (1999), Troll King
• Lucky Numbers (2000), Dick Simmons
• Nobody's Baby (2001), Norman Pinkney
• Spartan (2004), Burch
• In the Game (2005), Buzz Reed
• Steel Valley (2005), Congressman Cardone
• Inseparable (2006), Alan
• Ytown: Down But Not OUT

Television credits

• mac cahans (1978), Arthur Lawson/Artie Rollins (1 episode)
• Hunter (1985), Dan Colson (1 episode)
• The Equalizer (1985), Doctor (1 episode)
• Spenser: For Hire (1986), Buddy Almeida (1 episode)
• Married... with Children (1987-1997), Al Bundy
• Midnight Caller (1988), Hank (1 episode)
• Top of the Heap (1991), Al Bundy (1 episode)
• Big Apple (2001), Det. Michael Mooney
• Dragnet (2003), Det. Joe Friday
• 8 Simple Rules (2005), Matt Walsh (1 episode)
• The West Wing (2005), Governor Eric Baker D-PA
• John from Cincinnati (2007), Bill Jacks

References

External links

• Ed O'Neill at the Internet Movie Database
• Ed O'Neill on TV.com