Mark Wahlberg
Mark Wahlberg | |
---|---|
Born | Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg |
Other names | Marky Mark Monk D |
Occupation(s) | Actor, Producer |
Years active | 1991–present |
Spouse | Rhea Durham (2009-present) |
Website | http://www.MarkWahlberg.com/ |
Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg (born June 5, 1971) is an American actor, rapper and producer of film and television. He was known as Marky Mark in his earlier years and became famous in his 1991 debut as a rap musician with the band Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch.
Early life
Wahlberg was born in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, the youngest of nine children,[1] with siblings Arthur, Jim, Paul, Robert, Tracey, Michelle, Debbie (died in 2003 at age 44), and Donnie. He is of Swedish, Irish, and French Canadian ancestry.[2] His mother, Alma Elaine (née Donnelly), was a bank clerk and nurse's aide, and his father, Donald Edward Wahlberg, was a Teamster who worked as a delivery driver.[3] His parents divorced in 1982. Wahlberg had a Catholic upbringing and attended Copley Square High School (but never graduated) on Newbury Street in Copley Square in Boston. The campus now houses Muriel Snowden International School.[4]
As a teenager, Wahlberg stole cars, abused drugs and alcohol, and got into fights.[5] At fifteen, he was amongst a group who threw rocks at a group of African American school children on a field trip while shouting racial epithets.[6] The following year, Wahlberg robbed a pharmacy while he was under the influence of PCP. During the commission of the crime, he used racial slurs. He knocked one middle aged Vietnamese man unconscious and permanently blinded another in one eye before he was arrested by the police.[7][2] Wahlberg was tried as an adult and charged for attempted murder. Pleading guilty to the lesser charge of assault, he was sentenced to two years in jail at Boston's Deer Island House of Correction, of which he served 45 days.[8] In another incident, it was alleged the 21-year-old Wahlberg fractured the jaw of a neighbor in an unprovoked attack.[9]
Music career
Wahlberg was assisted to fame as the younger brother of Donnie Wahlberg of the successful 1980s and 1990s boy band New Kids on the Block. Mark, at age thirteen, had been one of the group's original members, along with Donnie, Danny Wood, Jordan Knight, and Jonathan Knight. Uninterested in the group's bubblegum pop style, however, he soon quit. It was his departure that eventually allowed Joe McIntyre to take his place as the fifth member of the group.
Wahlberg began recording as Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch and earned a hit with "Good Vibrations" from the album Music for the People.[5] The record was produced by brother Donnie and later hit #1 on The Billboard Hot 100, later becoming certified as a Platinum single. In the video, widely broadcast on music video channels, Mark was shown boxing, lifting weights and posing shirtless, showing off his bare, muscled torso.
The second single by the group, "Wildside", peaked at #5 on Billboards Hot Singles Sales chart and at #10 on The Billboard Hot 100.[10] It was certified as a Gold single. Marky Mark opened for the New Kids on the Block during their last tour. The second Marky Mark LP, You Gotta Believe, wasn't as successful as the prior, yielding only a minor hit single in the title track. Wahlberg later collaborated with reggae / ragga singer Prince Ital Joe.
Mark's cocky, street-wise persona contributed to his fame. During concert performances, he was known for being shirtless and dropping his pants.[11] In the dedication of his 1992 book Marky Mark, co-authored with photographer Lynn Goldsmith, Wahlberg says in the preface that "I wanna dedicate this book to my cock".[2]
Advertising career
Wahlberg is known for his physique,[2] which was first shown in the Good Vibrations music video and most prominently in a series of underwear ads for Calvin Klein[12] shot by Herb Ritts, following it with Calvin Klein television ads. In 1992 the Calvin Klein billboard in New York's Times Square featured Wahlberg exclusively.[2] Magazine and television promotions would sometimes feature him exclusively or accompanied by model Kate Moss.[13][14] Annie Leibovitz shot Wahlberg in underwear for Vanity Fair's annual Hall of Fame issue.[citation needed] He made a workout video titled The Marky Mark Workout: Form... Focus... Fitness (ISBN 1-55510-910-1).
Film career
Wahlberg then began an acting career, making his debut in the 1993 TV movie The Substitute. His big screen debut came the next year, with the Danny DeVito feature Renaissance Man.[2] A basketball fanatic, he caught the attention of critics after appearing in The Basketball Diaries in 1995, playing the role of Mickey alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, in a film adaptation of the Jim Carroll book of the same name. He also starred in the 1996 James Foley thriller Fear.
He earned many positive reviews after successful movies like Boogie Nights as Dirk Diggler, Three Kings, The Perfect Storm, The Italian Job, and Four Brothers.[2] His performance in I ♥ Huckabees was voted best supporting performance of the year in the 2004 Village Voice Critics Poll. Wahlberg was originally cast as Linus Caldwell in Ocean's Eleven; Matt Damon played the role. The two later worked together in The Departed.[15] Wahlberg was also considered for a role in the film Brokeback Mountain. It was originally intended to star him and Joaquin Phoenix, but Wahlberg was uncomfortable with the film's sex scenes and his role ultimately went to Jake Gyllenhaal.[16]
Wahlberg starred in the American football drama Invincible, based on the true story of bartender-turned-Philadelphia Eagle Vince Papale. He is also the executive producer of the HBO series Entourage, which is loosely based on his experiences in Hollywood. He also appeared as a foul-mouthed Massachusetts State Police detective in Martin Scorsese's critically acclaimed thriller The Departed in 2006, for which he won the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor and netted him nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture.[17]
Wahlberg has confirmed that he was approached to star in a sequel to The Departed, but it is still early in development. The sequel would reportedly revolve around Staff Sergeant Dignam played by Wahlberg.[18]
To prepare for his role in Shooter, Wahlberg attended long-range shooting training at Front Sight Firearms Training Institute near Pahrump, Nevada, and was able to hit a target at 2000 yards on his first day, a feat which took his instructor about six months to achieve.[19] He has said in a number of interviews that he will retire at the age of 40 to concentrate on parenthood[20] and professional golf. However, in early 2007 he indicated that the latter was no longer the plan as "his golf game is horrible".[21] He stars as Jack Salmon in Peter Jackson's film of The Lovely Bones.[22] In 2007 he starred opposite Joaquin Phoenix in We Own the Night, a movie about a family of police officers in New York City. The movie also stars Robert Duvall and Eva Mendes.
He starred in M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening as Eliot Moore, which opened in movie theatres on June 13, 2008. The same year, he played the title role in Max Payne, based on a video game of the same name. While promoting Max Payne, Wahlberg became involved in a staged feud with Saturday Night Live's Andy Samberg and threatened to "crack that big (bleep)ing nose of his." Samberg had done an impression of Wahlberg in a Saturday Night Live skit titled "Mark Wahlberg Talks To Animals."[23][24] However, Wahlberg later appeared in a follow-up skit parodying both the original skit, Samberg's impression of Wahlberg, and his own threats to Samberg.[25][26]
Video game career
Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch had their own video game in the Marky Mark: Make My Video game series on the Sega Mega-CD. Using various effects, the player is supposed to produce new versions of the videos to Marky Mark songs like "Good Vibrations" and "I Need Money". PC World.ca listed it as the eighth worst video game of all time. Recently, Wahlberg played the titular character in the Max Payne film based on the popular video games. Even though he played the character in the film, he has stated that he is not going to play the games.[27]
Personal life
Wahlberg is a practicing Roman Catholic.[28][2] He married model Rhea Durham on August 1, 2009 in a private Catholic ceremony in Beverly Hills, California.[29] They have three children together, daughter Ella Rae (born in September 2003), and sons Michael (born in March 2006) and Brendan Joseph (born in September 2008). The couple announced in September 2009 that they are expecting their fourth child,[30] which Wahlberg later announced was a daughter.[31]
Actively involved in charity, Wahlberg established the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation in May 2001 for the purpose of raising and distributing funds to youth service and enrichment programs.[32]
Wahlberg has four tattoos done by various artists including Paul Timman.[33] The tattoos include Sylvester the cat with Tweety in his mouth on his ankle, a tattoo of his initials MW with Wahlberg through them on his upper right arm, and a Bob Marley tattoo with "One Love" on his upper left arm.[34] The final tattoo, which Wahlberg holds as his most meaningful, is the rosary tattoed around his neck, with a crucifix and the words "In God I Trust" resting over his heart.[34]
His father, a US Army veteran of the Korean War, died on February 14, 2008.[35]
Discography
Mark Wahlberg |
---|
With the Funky Bunch
Year | Album | Chart Positions | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
US | US Hip-Hop | Heatseekers | |||
1991 | Music for the People | 21 | - | 1 | |
1992 | You Gotta Believe | 67 | 66 | - | |
"—" denotes the album failed to chart or not released |
With Prince Ital Joe
Year | Album |
---|---|
1994 | Life in the Streets |
1995 | The Remix Album |
Filmography
Films
Producer
Year | Film | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2004 | Juvies | Producer | Documentary |
2004—2009 | Entourage | Executive producer | 72 episodes 2007 BAFTA Television Award for Best International Program Nominated — 2007, 2008 — Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series |
2007 | We Own the Night | Producer | — |
2008 | In Treatment | Executive producer | 43 episodes |
References
- ^ [1][dead link ]
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Mark Wahlberg". Inside the Actors Studio. Season 11. Episode 6. 2004-11-14. Bravo. Retrieved 2009-08-03.
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suggested) (help) - ^ Child, Christopher Challender. "Notable Descendants of Francis Peabody" (PDF). Museums of Peabody, Massachusetts. Retrieved 2009-11-28.
{{cite web}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=
(help) - ^ "Snowden International School". Boston.k12.ma.us. Archived from the original on 2002-12-12. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ a b Burke, Monte (June 30, 2008). "Changing Room". Forbes.
- ^ "Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. Michael Guilfoyle, Derek Furkart, and Mark Wahlberg". Retrieved 2007-09-29.
- ^ "Commonwealth v. Mark R. Wahlberg". Retrieved 2007-09-29.
- ^ "ABC News: A Candid Chat With Mark Wahlberg". Abcnews.go.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "Crehan vs. Mark Wahlberg and Derek McCall". p. 9 and 10. Retrieved 2007-09-29.
- ^ "The Billboard Hot 100".
- ^ "Mark Wahlberg's Career, Fatherhood". 20/20. American Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved September 3, 2004.
- ^ "WMarky Mark's Calvin Klein Ads". Archived from the original on 2006-09-04. Retrieved 2008-11-12.
- ^ "YouTube - Calvin Klein ad #1 [feat. Mark Wahlberg]". Youtube.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "YouTube - Calvin Klein ad #2 [feat. Mark Wahlberg]". Youtube.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "filmfodder.com: archive: ocean's 11". Filmfodder.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "'Brokeback Mountain' Script 'Creeped Out' Mark Wahlberg - Starpulse Entertainment News Blog". Starpulse.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "The Departed (2006) - Awards". Imdb.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ IGN.com article about Departed 2 problems. Retrieved 2007-02-09.
- ^ "Shooter interview".
- ^ "Actor Mark Wahlberg says he plans to retire at age 40".
- ^ "HBO interview". Archived from the original on 2008-01-07.
- ^ Cardy, Tom (2007-10-23). "Lovely Bones' Gosling in shock exit". Dominion Post. Retrieved 2007-10-23.
- ^ "Wahlberg threatens to punch SNL's Samberg over impression". Chicago Tribune. 2008-10-26. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "Saturday Night Live - Mark Wahlberg Talks to Animals". NBC. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
{{cite web}}
: Text "NBC%20Video" ignored (help); Text "widget" ignored (help); Text "widget" ignored (help) - ^ "Saturday Night Live - Mark Wahlberg Backstage". NBC. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "Mark Wahlberg Cracks Jokes, Not Noses". Popeater.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "Max Payne: Mark Wahlberg Won't Play Max Payne". Kotaku.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ "The religion of Mark Wahlberg, singer and film actor". Adherents.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ Wihlborg, Ulrica (2009-08-01). "Mark Wahlberg Gets Married!". People. Retrieved 2009-08-02.
- ^ "Mark Wahlberg, Rhea Durham Expecting Fourth Child". US Magazine. 2009-09-03. Retrieved 2009-09-03.
- ^ Jeffrey Slonim (2009-10-29). "Mark Wahlberg Expecting a Girl". People. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
- ^ "The Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation". Markwahlbergyouthfoundation.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
- ^ Dunlop Tires (November 1, 2005). "Sunset Strip Artist To Ink Dunlop Treads At SEMA Show". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-06-03.
- ^ a b Mark Wahlberg Tattoos Photos Pictures Pics Of His Tattoos
- ^ "Donald E. Wahlberg - BostonHerald.com". Bostonherald.com. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
External links
- Please use a more specific IMDb template. See the documentation for available templates.
- Mark Wahlberg Interview at Moviehole.net
- Mark Wahlberg Interview on "Fresh Air"
- Marky Mark, Won't You Please Come Back?
- Mark Wahlberg on The Hour
- Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation
- Mark Wahlberg Video Interview at the Premiere of "The Happening"
- Template:Worldcat id
- Articles with dead external links from October 2008
- 1971 births
- Actors from Massachusetts
- American film actors
- American male models
- American rappers
- American Roman Catholics
- American television producers
- BAFTA winners (people)
- French-Canadian Americans
- Irish Americans
- Living people
- People from Boston, Massachusetts
- Swedish-American actors