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David Duchovny

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For the Bree Sharp song, see David Duchovny (song).
David Duchovny
Duchovny at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival
Born
David William Duchovny

(1960-08-07) August 7, 1960 (age 64)
New York City, New York
Alma materPrinceton University (B.A., English Literature)
Yale University (M.A., English Literature)
OccupationActor
Years active1987–present
SpouseTéa Leoni (1997) - separated

David William Duchovny (born August 7, 1960) is an American actor, writer, and director. He has won Golden Globe awards for his work as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder on The X-Files and Hank Moody on Californication.[1]

Early life

Duchovny was born in New York City, New York. He is the son of Margaret "Meg" (née Miller), a school administrator and teacher, and Amram "Ami" Ducovny (1927–2003),[2] a writer and publicist who worked for the American Jewish Committee.[3][4][5] His father was Jewish, from a family that immigrated from Poland and Ukraine.[6] His mother is a Lutheran emigrant from Aberdeen, Scotland.[7][8][9] His father dropped the h in his last name to avoid the sort of mispronunciations he encountered while serving in the Army.[3][10][11]

Education

Duchovny attended Grace Church School and The Collegiate School For Boys; both are in Manhattan. He graduated from Princeton University[4] in 1982 with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. He was a member of the Charter Club, one of the university's eating clubs. In 1982, his poetry received an honorable mention for a college prize from the Academy of American Poets. The title of his senior thesis was The Schizophrenic Critique of Pure Reason in Beckett's Early Novels.[12] Duchovny played a season of junior varsity basketball as a shooting guard and centerfield for the varsity baseball team.

He received a Master of Arts in English Literature from Yale University and subsequently began work on a Ph.D. that remains unfinished.[4] The title of his uncompleted doctoral thesis was Magic and Technology in Contemporary Poetry and Prose. At Yale, he was a student of popular literary critic Harold Bloom.

Career

Duchovny appeared in an advertisement for Löwenbräu beer in 1987. He appears in two scenes in Working Girl (1988). He had a recurring role as a transvestite DEA agent on the series Twin Peaks and played the narrator/host in the long-running Showtime erotica/softcore TV series Red Shoe Diaries. In 1992, he played the role of Rollie Totheroh, in the biographic film Chaplin, directed by Richard Attenborough, and based on the life of Charlie Chaplin. In 1993, Duchovny began starring in the science fiction series The X-Files as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder, a conspiracy theorist who believed his sister had been abducted by aliens.[4] The show emerged as a cult hit and quickly became one of The Fox Network's first major hits. Also in 1993, Duchovny was cast alongside Brad Pitt and Juliette Lewis, in the Dominic Sena-directed thriller, Kalifornia.

David Duchovny at the 2009 Golden Globe after party
Duchovny and Gillian Anderson at The X-Files: I Want to Believe[13] premiere, 2008

During The X-Files run, in between the fifth and sixth seasons, Duchovny co-starred alongside Gillian Anderson in a 1998 motion picture that continued the X-Files storyline, titled The X-Files: Fight the Future.[4] He remained with the series until quitting in 2001, partly because of a contract dispute that occurred after season seven finished filming.[14] Duchovny appeared in half of the season eight episodes, but did not appear in season nine until the series finale in 2002. He also provided the voice for a parody of his Fox Mulder character in an episode of The Simpsons, titled The Springfield Files. Duchovny was nominated for four Emmy Awards[15]

Duchovny caused controversy when it became public that he was the primary reason for which filming of The X-Files series was moved from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Los Angeles in 1998. Many residents of Vancouver were upset with Duchovny over scripted jokes on Late Night with Conan O'Brien about the city's heavy rainfall; he joked, "Vancouver is a very nice place, if you like 400 inches of rainfall a day." He also stated, "Of course, I'm tired of the rain. But if I wasn't married to a woman that lives in L.A. I'd stay in Vancouver. It's a lovely city."[16] During the run of The X-Files, he also made several guest appearances in the cult TV satire The Larry Sanders Show, playing himself, but adding a strong attraction to Sanders. In the final episode of the series, he performed a parody of Sharon Stone's 'flashing' scene from Basic Instinct and a parody of "Dr. Hannibal Lecter" being introduced to Agent "Clarice Starling" in The Silence of the Lambs.

Duchovny has guest hosted Saturday Night Live twice (May 13, 1995 and May 9, 1998). Both shows were season finales. In 2000 he starred in the feature film Return to Me, a romantic comedy/drama directed by Bonnie Hunt and co-starring Minnie Driver and Carroll O'Connor. In 2001 Duchovny played a hand model in the Ben Stiller comedy, Zoolander. He also played the role of Ira Kane in the movie Evolution alongside Seann William Scott that same year.

He appeared in a celebrity edition of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? in May 2000. He got to the $250,000 question, but answered his $500,000 question incorrectly and lost $218,000, leaving him with $32,000.

He also appeared on Celebrity Jeopardy! in 1995 and 2010.

Duchovny provided the voice of Ethan Cole in the 2005 video game, Area 51, as well as that of the title character "XIII" in the 2003 video game XIII. In 2003 Duchovny starred in the 84th[17] episode of the HBO show Sex And The City. He played the role of Jeremy, Carrie Bradshaw's high-school ex-boyfriend, who has committed himself to a Connecticut mental health facility. In 2005 Duchovny, who had already made his directorial debut with an episode of The X-Files, wrote, directed, and appeared in the feature film House of D.[4] The film starred Anton Yelchin, Robin Williams, and Duchovny's wife Téa Leoni in a coming-of-age tale.[4] It received mostly poor reviews[18] and little box office success.[19] Duchovny also directed an episode of Bones (Episode 211, "Judas on a Pole") during its second season.

Duchovny currently plays Hank Moody, a troubled novelist in Showtime's series Californication. The portrayal landed him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Comedy or Musical in 2007.[20]

According to X-Files creator Chris Carter, Duchovny turned out to be one of the best-read people he knew.[21] After getting the role, Duchovny thought the show wouldn't last for long or that it wouldn't make as much impact as it did. Executive producer Frank Spotnitz called portraying actor Duchovny "amazingly smart". He further stated that Duchovny was behind some of the main characteristic ideas behind Mulder.[22]

Personal life

Duchovny married actress Téa Leoni on May 6, 1997. In April 1999, Leoni gave birth to a daughter, Madelaine West Duchovny. Their second child, a son, Kyd Miller Duchovny, was born in June 2002.

Duchovny is a former vegetarian and, as of 2007, is a pescetarian.[23]

On August 28, 2008, Duchovny announced that he had checked himself into a rehabilitation facility for treating sex addiction.[24][25] On October 15, 2008, Duchovny's and Leoni's representatives issued a statement that they had separated and had been for several months prior to this announcement.[26] A week later, Duchovny's lawyer said that he plans to sue the U.K.'s Daily Mail over an article it ran that claimed he had an affair with Hungarian tennis instructor Edit Pakay while still married to Leoni, a claim that Duchovny has denied.[27] On November 15, 2008, the Daily Mail printed a retraction stating that the story "is inaccurate and Ms. Pakay and Mr. Duchovny are only friends who used to play tennis occasionally".[28] Duchovny and Leoni once again split on June 29, 2011.[29]

Awards and nominations

Emmy Award

  • 1997 – Nominated – Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series – The Larry Sanders Show
  • 1997 – Nominated – Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series – The X-Files
  • 1998 – Nominated – Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series – The X-Files
  • 2003 – Nominated – Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series – Life with Bonnie

Golden Globe

  • 1995 – Nominated – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama – The X-Files
  • 1996 – Winner – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama – The X-Files
  • 1997 – Nominated – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama – The X-Files
  • 1998 – Nominated – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series– Drama – "The X-Files"
  • 2007 – Winner – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy – Californication
  • 2008 – Nominated – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy – Californication
  • 2009 – Nominated – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy – Californication
  • 2011 – Nominated – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy – Californication
  • 2012 – Nominated – Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy – Californication

Filmography

Year Film Role Notes
1988 Working Girl Tess' birthday party friend
1989 New Year's Day Billy
1990 Denial John
Bad Influence Club goer with glasses
1991 Twin Peaks DEA Agent Denise/Dennis Bryson TV series
Julia Has Two Lovers Daniel
Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead Bruce
The Rapture Randy
1992 Ruby Officer Tippit
Beethoven Brad
Baby Snatcher David Anderson TV movie
Red Shoe Diaries Jake Winters TV series (1992–1997) and movie
Venice/Venice Dylan
Chaplin Rollie Totheroh
1993 Kalifornia Brian Kessler
The X-Files FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder TV series (1993–2002)
1995 Saturday Night Live Host Episode 386, May 13, 1995
1996 Space: Above and Beyond Alvin EL 1543, a.k.a. "Handsome Alvin"
1997 The Simpsons FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder TV series (One episode: "The Springfield Files")
Duckman: Private Dick/Family Man Richard TV series (One episode: "The Girls of Route Canal")
Playing God Dr. Eugene Sands
1998 The X-Files: Fight the Future FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder
Saturday Night Live Host Episode 446, May 9, 1998
2000 Return to Me Bob Rueland
2001 Evolution Dr. Ira Kane
Zoolander J.P. Prewitt
2002 Full Frontal Bill/Gus
2003 Sex and the City Jeremy TV series (One episode: "Boy, Interrupted")
2004 Connie and Carla Jeff
House of D Tom Warshaw Directorial debut, also wrote film
2005 Trust the Man Tom
2006 Pedigree Petfoods Voice-over "We're for dogs" ad campaign
Queer Duck: the Movie Tiny Jesus
The TV Set Mike Klein
2007 Things We Lost in the Fire Brian Burke
The Secret (AKA Si j'étais toi) Dr. Benjamin Marris
Quantum Hoops Narrator
Californication Hank Moody TV series (2007–Present)
2008 The X-Files: I Want to Believe Fox Mulder
2010 The Joneses Steve Jones
2012 Goats The Goat Man

References

  1. ^ "The best of Hank Moody: Quotes & clips". Cuzoogle. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  2. ^ "SSDI". Ssdi.rootsweb.ancestry.com. July 15, 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  3. ^ a b Hecker, Don R. (September 2, 2003). "Amram Ducovny, 75, Late-Blossoming Novelist". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2010.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Stated in interview on Inside the Actors Studio
  5. ^ "David Duchovny Biography (1960-)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  6. ^ http://thebrooklynink.com/2012/08/20/47060-a-literary-classic-of-coney-island-comes-to-digital-life/
  7. ^ "Craig Ferguson 8/10/10C Late Late Show David Duchovny". Youtube.com. Retrieved March 21, 2011.

    "... my father being a Russian Jew ..."
  8. ^ "My Kind of Day - David Duchovny". Radio Times. December 1995.

    My relatives are Scottish, so I think my Scottish audience is important. Some are in Glasgow, but my mum's from Aberdeen. I hear it's grey there - like my mum. The name's Russian, but New York is my home. That's where I'm from.

  9. ^ "David Duchovny DuchovnyNet - Article: A Man and His 'X'". Duchovny.net. October 26, 1997. Retrieved March 21, 2011.

    "I like that I look like my father and mother put together--that's a Russian Jew and a Scottish Lutheran, and I like that it all looks mixed up. . . . I'm sure my nose wasn't an asset until I was David Duchovny. Before that, it was, like, 'Yeah, that kind of Jewish-looking guy with the kind of big nose.' "

  10. ^ "David Duchovny DuchovnyNet - Article: Cult Times 1997". Duchovny.net. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  11. ^ http://www.grouchoreviews.com/interviews/84
  12. ^ Duchovny, David William. The Schizophrenic Critique of Pure Reason in Beckett's Early Novels. 1982.
  13. ^ Glen Schaefer (March 12, 2008). "Filming of the X-Files sequel wraps". Vancouver Province. Retrieved March 12, 2008. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/1337685.stm BBC News
  15. ^ David Duchovny Emmy Nominated
  16. ^ "Mike Roberts, Vancouver Province". Mjq.net. October 16, 1997. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  17. ^ "Boy, Interrupted". Hbo.com. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  18. ^ "House of D". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  19. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0372334/business/ IMDb
  20. ^ "Hollywood Foreign Press Association 2008 Golden Globe Awards For The Year Ended December 31, 2007". HFPA. 2007. Archived from the original on December 14, 2008. Retrieved December 13, 2007. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; December 14, 2007 suggested (help)
  21. ^ Carter, Chris. "Casting Mulder". BBC News. Retrieved July 12, 2009.
  22. ^ Spotnitz, Frank. "Amazingly Smart". BBC News. Retrieved July 12, 2009.
  23. ^ He stated on the November 16, 2007 episode of Live with Regis and Kelly that he is no longer vegetarian but still does not consume red meat.
  24. ^ "David Duchovny's Sex Rehab Not Because Of Affair: Report". Huffington Post. February 10, 2008.
  25. ^ "Duchovny enters rehab for sex addiction". MSNBC. August 28, 2008.
  26. ^ Fleeman, Mike (October 15, 2008). "David Duchovny & Téa Leoni Separated 'For Several Months'". People.com. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  27. ^ "The Ex Files: David Duchovny Sues Paper over Affair Story". TV Guide. Retrieved October 22, 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dtae= ignored (help)
  28. ^ "David Duchovny". The Daily Mail. November 15, 2008. Retrieved November 17, 2008.
  29. ^ "David Duchovny and Tea Leoni separated". Retrieved march, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
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