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'{{About|the American actor|the British archaeologist|Mark Patton (archaeologist)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}} {{Infobox person <!-- For more information see [[:Template:Infobox person]]. --> | name = Mark Patton | image = | image_size = | alt = | caption = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1958|9|22}} | birth_place = [[Kansas City, Missouri]], [[United States|U.S.]] | death_date = <!-- {{Death date and age|df=yes|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} --> | death_place = | occupation = Actor, interior designer | years_active = 1982–1986, 2015–present | spouse = Hector Morales Mondragon | residence = [[Puerto Vallarta]], [[Jalisco]], [[Mexico]]<ref name = hiv/> | website = <!-- www.example.com --> }} '''Mark Patton''' (born September, 22 1958) is an American interior designer and actor. Beginning his professional acting career at the age of 18, Patton is perhaps best known for his feature film roles as Joe Qualley in the 1982 dramatic film ''[[Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (film)|Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean]]'' and as [[Jesse Walsh]] in the 1985 horror film ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge]]'', a role for which he is touted as the first male [[scream queen]] in modern cinema. == Career == Patton grew up in [[Riverside, Missouri]] and, after graduating high school, he moved to [[New York City]] to pursue an acting career. Within a few years he landed the role of Joe Qualley in the 1982 [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] production of ''[[Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (play)|Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean]]''. Patton reprised the role in the 1982 [[Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (film)|film of the same name]]. Although his character in the play and film was gay, Patton was not allowed to do an interview with the [[LGBT]]-interest magazine, ''[[The Advocate (LGBT magazine)|The Advocate]]''. Patton identified this as an early indicator of the [[homophobia]] in Hollywood at that time.<ref name=hiv>{{cite journal| url=http://www.hivplusmag.com/people/cover-stories/2013/08/08/nightmare-hollywood-couldnt-kill-mark-patton| title=A Nightmare in Hollywood Couldn't Kill Mark Patton| date=8 August 2013| last=Peeples| first=Jase| work=[[LPI Media#HIV Plus|HIV Plus]]| accessdate=24 January 2016}}</ref> In 1985, Patton landed the lead role in the horror film ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge]]'' portraying [[Jesse Walsh]], a teen whose body becomes possessed by [[Freddy Krueger]].<ref>{{cite journal| url=http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/34384/never-sleep-again-twitterfeed-wednesday-edition-and-more| title=Never Sleep Again – Twitterfeed Wednesday Edition and MORE!| publisher=DreadCentral| date=5 November 2009| last=Barton| first=Steve}}</ref> Critics and audiences noted the gay subtext of the film, something screenwriter David Chaskin initially attributed to Patton's portrayal of Jesse.<ref name = hiv /> However, in the 2010 documentary ''[[Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy]]'' Chaskin acknowledged that he, himself, was responsible for the film's deliberate gay subtext. Patton had a guest appearance on the television series ''[[Hotel (U.S. TV series)|Hotel]]'' and had scenes alongside George Clooney and Maud Adams. He also starred in a [[television pilot]] with [[Chuck Connors]] entitled ''Kelsey's Son'', which was never picked up.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1893&dat=19830821&id=prYfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ltcEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3017,4608996| last=Bobbin| first=Jay| title=Kelsey's Son| work=[[Southeast Missourian]]| date=21 August 1983| accessdate=24 January 2016}}</ref> Other roles include ''[[General Hospital]]'' as Greg Collier, ''Misplaced'' with [[John Cameron Mitchell]], ''[[Anna to the Infinite Power]]'' with [[Dina Merrill]] and [[Martha Byrne]] and ''Have You Tried Talking to Patty'' with [[Heather Langenkamp]]. Patton says he gave up on his acting career following being cast in a planned CBS series in which he would have played a gay character. "They began to ask me if I would be comfortable playing a gay character and telling people I was straight if they began to question my sexuality?...All I could think about was how everyone I knew was dying from AIDS and we were having this bullshit conversation. My heart just broke and that was the line for me. I knew I would never be able to do what they were asking, so I walked away from Hollywood and decided to move on to a place where it was totally acceptable to be gay."<ref name=hiv /> In December 2015, it was announced that Patton was cast in the independent paranormal horror film, ''Family Possessions'', which is written and directed by Tommy Faircloth of Horse Creek Productions. Mark will play the role of Tyson, a male [[Regina George (Mean Girls)|Regina George]] who torments a new girl in town with his best friend Tristen. Filming took place in March 2016 in Greenville, North Carolina. ''Family Possessions'' had its World Premiere in mid October 2016 and won many awards at film festivals around the globe. This film marks the first horror movie Mark has acted in since ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge]]''. In February 2018, "Family Possessions" was released on North American by 4Digital Media/Sony Pictures. It was also released in South Korea and Taiwan. == Personal life== Patton is openly gay. On his 40th birthday, he was diagnosed with [[HIV]] along with pneumonia, thrush and tuberculosis. His medications interacted badly and he was hospitalized. Upon recovering, he moved to [[Mexico]], where he met and later married Hector Morales Mondragon. The couple owns and operates an art store in Puerto Vallarta.<ref name = hiv /> Patton appears in the ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street]]'' documentary ''[[Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy]]'', directed by Dan Farrands.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/34479/never-sleep-again-after-decades-mark-patton-talks-elm-street-2| title=Never Sleep Again: After Decades ... Mark Patton Talks Elm Street 2| publisher=DreadCentral| date=10 November 2009| author=thehorrorchick}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/34501/never-sleep-again-a-talk-with-directors-daniel-farrands-and-andrew-kasch| title=Never Sleep Again: A Talk with Directors Daniel Farrands and Andrew Kasch| publisher=DreadCentral| date=11 November 2009| author=thehorrorchick}}</ref> Following his appearance in the documentary Patton began touring horror conventions where he is lauded as mainstream cinema's first male "[[scream queen]]". He donates most of his appearance fees to HIV treatment groups and charities benefiting LGBT youth such as [[The Trevor Project]].<ref name=hiv /> ==Filmography== ===Film=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! width="197" |Title ! Role ! Notes |- |1982 |''[[Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (film)|Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean]]'' |Joe Qualley |Feature film |- |1982 |''[[Anna to the Infinite Power]]'' |Rowan Hart |Feature film |- |1985 |''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge]]'' |[[Jesse Walsh]] |Feature film |- |2003 |''[[Freddy vs. Jason]]'' |[[Jesse Walsh]] |Archive footage, special thanks |- |2010 |''[[Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy]]'' |Himself |Documentary |- |2016 |''Family Possessions'' |Tyson |Feature film |- |2017 |''Amityville: Evil Never Dies'' |James |Feature film |- |2019 |''Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street'' |Himself |Documentary |} ===Television=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! width="197" |Title ! Role ! Notes |- |1983 |''Kelsey's Son'' |Tim Kelsey |Television pilot |- |1986 |''[[CBS Schoolbreak Special]]'' |Chris Jenson |Episode: "Have You Tried Talking to Patty?" |- |1986 |''[[Hotel (U.S. TV series)|Hotel]]'' |Todd Radcliff |Episode: "Recriminations" |} == References == {{Reflist}} == External links == * {{IMDb name|id=0666593|name=Mark Patton}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Patton, Mark}} [[Category:1958 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Male actors from Missouri]] [[Category:American male film actors]] [[Category:Gay actors]] [[Category:LGBT entertainers from the United States]] [[Category:LGBT people from Missouri]] [[Category:People from Platte County, Missouri]] [[Category:People with HIV/AIDS]]'