Add to Gary's Bio

Birthday: March 17, 1955 Birthplace: Blue Island, Illinois Where he grew up: Highland Park Where he lives now: Los Angeles, California Nickname: Lt. Dan (from Forrest Gump) Pets: 2 Cats and a dog Height: 5' 10" (1.78 m.)

Family/relationships: Married to actress Moira Harris, an original member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, since 1981. They have 3 children: Sophia Ana, McCanna Anthony, and Ella Jane.

Memorable quotes (on/off the set): "'The Stand' came out in May of '94 and was seen by 60 million people a night for four nights, and then two months later 'Forrest Gump' opened. So within a very short time I went from being depressed about not getting any work to being in two of the most popular shows of the year."---Sinise to Movieline, June 1995. "Each time out, I try to have some impact. If the part's important to the story, that's the vital thing."---Sinise quoted in Live!, Sept.1996. "I'm still basically a character actor in the business. Until you prove yourself as a box office star, you're not going to get offered those things. But I'm still driven by whether I connect to the character, and does it make sense to me as a movie. I've turned down things, possible commercial choices, but they just didn't feel right. I turned down some starring roles in features, but nothing I've ever regretted."---Gary Sinise quoted in The Boston Globe, August 2, 1998. "Television is very, very good to guys my age. The movies are very good to guys half my age. Things like type, age and celebrity all come into play with what's going to be available to you as an actor. Also, unless you are a very well established movie star, the level of writing you tend see is not all that good. The writing on television these days is quite often much better than in the movies."---Sinise on taking the role in "CSI: NY" to emmy, issue no. 5, 2004. "The actors I was most impressed with and who were influencing my taste were all movie actors, so I always wanted to do movies but I didn't want to go to Hollywood and become a waiter in the meantime. The chances are really slim that an actor will be discovered in Hollywood. ... I've never had to compromise myself for a job, ever."---Gary Sinise to Neon, November 1998. "There are times when I just love acting so much. It's almost spiritual. A visceral adrenaline thing that's kind of addicting. There's something really insecure inside me. I never lose that insecure actor thing, I've always had that. Even when things are working. There's something I have to keep proving to myself I can do it."---From "At Lunch with Gary Sinise: A Takeoff Fueled By Passion" by Bernard Weinraub, The New York Times, July 27, 1994. Ironically, on the night Sinise won his Emmy for his portrayal of politician George Wallace, Wallace died.

Milestones: (1973) Professional stage debut, "The Physicist" at age 17 (1974) At age 18, co-founded (with Terry Kinney and Jeff Perry) Chicago's acclaimed Steppenwolf Theatre at a church in Highland Park (1976) Appeared in "The Indian Wants the Bronx" at Steppenwolf (1979) Moved to Los Angeles (1980) Primetime debut, had a two-line role on CBS' "Knots Landing" (date approximate) (1980) Made TV debut as an extra in disco scenes in the ABC daytime serial "General Hospital" (date approximate)(1981) Early stage directing credit, "Waiting for the Parade" at Steppenwolf (1982) Co-starred in Steppenwolf staging of "Loose Ends" (1982) Directed Steppenwolf production of "True West" by Sam Shepard; production moved to Off-Broadway in NYC; also played role of Austin (1984) First network TV-movie, "Family Secrets" (NBC); appeared as a motorcyclist (1984) First notable TV work, recreating stage role in "True West" opposite John Malkovich for a presentation of PBS' "American Playhouse" (1985) Appeared in "Balm in Gilead" Off-Broadway; production directed by John Malkovich (1986) Acted with wife Moira Harris in an episode of "Crime Story" (NBC) (1987) TV directorial debut with a two-part episode of "Crime Story" (1988) Feature directorial debut with "Miles From Home" (1988-1990) Starred in the Steppenwolf production of "The Grapes of Wrath", which toured New York, London, Chicago and La Jolla; received Tony Award nomination for Broadway production; reprised role in a 1991 PBS production (1989) Helmed two episodes of "thirtysomething" (ABC) (1991) Directed "The Always Goodbye" episode of the ABC drama "China Beach" (1992) Made feature acting debut in "A Midnight Clear" (1992) Debut as a producer with "Of Mice and Men"; also directed and played first leading film role as George (1994) Co-starred as the paraplegic Lieutenant Dan Taylor in "Forrest Gump"; received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination (1995) Portrayed astronaut Ken Mattingly in "Apollo 13"; first collaboration with director Ron Howard (1994) Has leading role in the ABC miniseries version of Stephen King's "The Stand" (1995) Won praise for portrayal of US President Harry Truman in the HBO biopic "Truman" (1996) Cast as Jimmy Shaker a police detective investigating a kidnapping in "Ransom", directed by Ron Howard (1996) Broadway debut as co-producer and director, "Buried Child"; received Tony nomination as Director of a Play (1997) Starred as Stanley in the 50th Anniversary production of "A Streetcar Named Desire" at Steppenwolf Theatre (1997) Garnered an Emmy Award for portrayal of Alabama governor "George Wallace" (1998) Appeared in the Brian De Palma-directed thriller "Snake Eyes" (1999) Made cameo appearance opposite Tom Hanks in "The Green Mile"; cast as the lawyer hired to defend John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan) (1999) Teamed with fellow Steppenwolf actor Terry Kinney in the Showtime remake of "That Championship Season", co-starring and directed by Paul Sorvino (2000) Undertook villainous role in the Frankenheimer-directed "Reindeer Games" (2000) Returned to outer space as an astronaut leading a "Mission to Mars", helmed by De Palma (2000) Starred as Randle P McMurphy in Steppenwolf revival of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"; production originated in Chicago before moving to London (2001) Recreated role of McMurphy in Broadway revival of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"; earned Tony nomination Returned to Chicago and began appearing in Steppenwolf productions (2002) Starred in the sci-fi tilm "Impostor"; originally intended as one of three short films to be released under the title "Alien Love Story", the movie was re-worked into a feature; also co-produced with director Gary Fleder (2003) Portrayed a novelist opposite Anthony Hopkins and Nicole Kidman in "The Human Stain" (2004) Played a psychiatrist opposite Julianne Moore in the thriller "The Forgotten" (2004) Played wealthy developer Ray Ritchie in "The Big Bounce," with Owen Wilson and Morgan Freeman (2004) Starring in CBS' "CSI: New York," as a crime-scene investigator; this is his first foray into series television. (2006) Voiced a paranoid über-hunter in the animated comedy, "Open Season"

Fascinating facts: Plays the bass guitar. Huge fan of John Steinbeck. Takes visits to Marine training camps to attain an enjoyable and learning exprience.

Before he was famous... Formed Steppenwolf Theatre with his buddies Jeff Perry and Terry Kinney at the age of 19.

Acting bio (tv, movies, awards, etc):

Awards:
Nominated...Golden Palm................Miles from Home (1988)
Nominated...Golden Palm................Of Mice and Men (1992)
Won............NBR Award .................Forrest Gump (1994)
Nominated...Screen Actors Guild .....Forrest Gump (1994)
Nominated...Golden Globe...............Forrest Gump (1994)
Nominated...Screen Actors Guild.....The Stand (1994) (mini)
Nominated...Oscar..........................Forrest Gump (1994)
Won............Saturn Award...............Forrest Gump (1994)
Won............Chlotrudis Award..........Forrest Gump (1994)
Won............Commitment to Chicago Award
Won............CableACE.....................Truman (1995) (TV)
Won............Screen Actors Guild.......Truman (1995) (TV)
Won............Golden Globe ...............Truman (1995) (TV)
Nominated...Emmy .........................Truman (1995) (TV)
Won............CableACE ....................George Wallace (1997) (TV)
Won............Golden Satellite Award...George Wallace (1997) (TV)
Won............Screen Actors Guild ......George Wallace (1997) (TV)
Nominated...Golden Globe.................George Wallace (1997) (TV)
Won............Emmy...........................George Wallace (1997) (TV)
Nominated...Blockbuster...................Snake Eyes (1998)
Won............Milan Film Festival.........All the Rage (1999)
Won............DVD Premiere Award.....A Gentleman's Game (2001)
Won............Camie ..........................Fallen Angel (2003) (TV)


Stage Awards:
Nominated Tony Award Actor The Grapes of Wrath 1990
Nominated Tony Award Director Buried Child 1996
Nominated Tony Award Actor One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest 2001


Television:
CSI:NY (present)
CSI: Miami
Family Secrets
The Final Days
My Name Is Bill W.
The Witness
The Stand
Truman
George Wallace
That Championship Season
Fallen Angel
Path To War
Knot's Landing
True West
Crime Story

Movies:
Forrest Gump
Of Mice and Men
Apollo 13
Reindeer Games
Mission To Mars
A Midnight Clear
Jack the Bear
The Quick and the Dead
Ransom
Albino Alligator
Snake Eyes
The Green Mile
It's the Rage
Bruno
Imposter
The Human Stain
The Forgotten
The Big Bounce
Open Season (voice of Shaw)
Mission: Space
Made-Up
A Gentleman's Game

Stage:
Of Mice and Men
Grapes Of Wrath
Street Car Named Desire
True West
One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest


Director Credits:

Plays
True West
The Grapes of Wrath (1990)
Buried Child 1996

TV
Crime Story (1986)

Movie
Miles from Home (1988)
Of Mice and Men (1992)
A very nice man and very cool man too.