Eric McCormack

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Eric McCormack
McCormack in November 2008
Born	Eric James McCormack April 18, 1963 (1963-04-18) (age 46) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupation	Actor, Producer, Writer
Years active	1986–present
Spouse(s)	Janet Holden (1997-present)
Official website

Eric James McCormack (born April 18, 1963) is an Canadian-American actor, musician, writer and producer. He is best known for his role as Will Truman in the American sitcom Will & Grace.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Acting career 3 Other projects 4 Personal life 5 Partial filmography 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Early life

McCormack was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the son of Doris, a homemaker, and Keith McCormack, an oil company financial analyst.^[1] He has Cherokee and Scottish ancestry.^[2][3] McCormack attended Sir John A. Macdonald Collegiate Institute in Scarborough, Ontario. McCormack attended high school with David Furnish. Educated and trained as an actor in Canada at the Ryerson University School of Theatre in Toronto,^[4] McCormack has been appearing in television productions since his debut in 1986.

[edit] Acting career

McCormack played Colonel Francis Clay Mosby in the 1-hour Western television miniseries Lonesome Dove: The Series (1994), and Lonesome Dove: The Outlaw Years (1995). He starred as the immortal Matthew McCormick in the Highlander: The Series episode "Manhunt" (1996). In 1997, he appeared in The Outer Limits in the episode "Tempests" and the holiday film, Borrowed Hearts as Sam Fields. In 1998, McCormack starred in the cult film Free Enterprise with William Shatner, playing a character based closely on the life of the film's co-writer Mark A. Altman.

In 2000, McCormack made a cameo appearance in the music video for Pinch Me, by the Barenaked Ladies. He happened to be on the lot the day of the filming, and being a fan of BNL, they allowed him to be in the video.^{[citation needed]}

McCormack's role as gay lawyer Will Truman in the NBC sitcom Will & Grace from 1998 until 2006 has brought him widespread recognition.^[4] Nominated for Emmy Awards on three occasions for this role, he won the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy in 2001.^[4] During the 2001 Broadway season, McCormack briefly portrayed Prof. Harold Hill (replacing Craig Bierko) in the Susan Stroman revival of The Music Man while on hiatus from Will & Grace. In August 2002, as part of the Hollywood Bowl's Summer Concert Series, he reprised the role for a one-night only appearance in which he and other artists re-created the songs from the show. He also appeared briefly in the television series Dead Like Me. McCormack also starred in the off-Broadway play Some Girl(s) with Fran Drescher in 2006 and is the executive producer of the new Lifetime comedy, Lovespring International. McCormack also played James Novak in Monk's 100th episode.

In 2008, McCormack co-starred in the television mini-series The Andromeda Strain, a remake of the 1971 movie which was based on the novel by Michael Crichton. In January 2009, McCormack starred in the television drama Trust Me, co-starring Tom Cavanagh. However, the series was cancelled after one season. He will also star in the '50s B-movie spoof, Alien Trespass, playing Dr. Ted Lewis and the alien Urp.

In September 2009, McCormack will be guest-starring on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in the second episode of its 11th season as someone's sugar daddy, which is the name of the episode, "Sugar". ^[5]

It has also been confirmed that McCormack will have a recurring role in Season 5 of The New Adventures of Old Christine. McCormack will be playing a therapist and love interest for the lead character Christine (played by Julia Louis Dreyfus).^[6]

[edit] Other projects

McCormack has set up his own production company called Big Cattle Productions to develop ideas for TV. The naming of the company came out of wordplay as by shortening the word "production," you get "Big Cattle Prod."

McCormack recorded a song, "The Greatest Discovery", which was written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin in 1970, for the album Unexpected Dreams: Songs from the Stars. He also wrote and sang a song called "Living with Grace" for the 2004 soundtrack to Will & Grace with piano music provided by Barry Manilow.

[edit] Personal life

McCormack has been married to Janet Leigh Holden since 1997, and they have a son, Finnigan Holden McCormack, born on July 1, 2002 in Los Angeles. He maintains residences in Los Angeles and Vancouver. McCormack became a US citizen in 1999 and now holds dual Canadian and US citizenship.

McCormack is involved in many Los Angeles and Canadian-based charitable organizations including Project Angel Food and others. The Wellness Community West Los Angeles Tribute to the Human Spirit Awards dinner presented an award to McCormack for his breast cancer awareness advocacy. McCormack shared with the audience how his comedy helped his mother, Doris McCormack, age 73 as of 2006, endure her breast cancer treatments.^[7] Doris was honored at the Lifetime’s Breast Cancer Heroes Luncheon in 2004.^[8][9] He serves as an honorary board member of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.^[10]

McCormack sang both the American and Canadian national anthems at the 2004 NHL All Star game in Minnesota. He is an avid fan of Elton John, particularly his classic album Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy. He wrote a tribute to the album that was featured on John's official website.

[edit] Partial filmography

• Alien Trespass
• Immigrants (L.A. Dolce Vita) (voiced only)
• Double, Double, Toil and Trouble
• Holy Man
• Free Enterprise
• The Audrey Hepburn Story

The Sisters

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Eric McCormack at the Internet Broadway Database
• Eric McCormack at the Internet off-Broadway Database
• Eric McCormack at the Internet Movie Database
• Eric McCormack at TV.com
• Eric McCormack Interview

v • d • e Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor – Comedy Series Eric McCormack (2001) · Ray Romano (2002) · Tony Shalhoub (2003) · Kelsey Grammer (2004) · Tony Shalhoub (2005) · Tony Shalhoub (2006) · Ricky Gervais (2007) · Alec Baldwin (2008) Complete list: (1950–1975) · (1976–2000) · (2001–present)

v • d • e Will & Grace Starring Eric McCormack • Debra Messing • Sean Hayes • Megan Mullally • Shelley Morrison Characters Will Truman • Grace Adler • Jack McFarland • Karen Walker • Rosario Salazar Supporting characters • List of episodes • Awards