William H. Macy

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William H. Macy
WilliamHMacyTIFFSept2012.jpg
Born William Hall Macy, Jr.
(1950-03-13) March 13, 1950 (age 74)
Miami, Florida, U.S.[1][2]
Residence Los Angeles, California
Vermont[3]
Other names W.H. Macy
Education Allegany High School
Alma mater Goddard College
Occupation Actor, theater director, writer, teacher
Years active 1978–present
Spouse(s) Felicity Huffman (m. 1997)
Children 2

William Hall Macy, Jr. (born March 13, 1950) is an American actor, screenwriter, teacher and theater director. His film career has been built mostly on his appearances in small, independent films, though he also appeared in summer action films.[4] Macy has described himself as "sort of a Middle American, WASPy, Lutheran kind of guy... Everyman".[5]

Macy has won two Emmy Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Award throughout his career, as well as being nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Since 2011, he has played Frank Gallagher, a main character in the Showtime television series Shameless. Macy and actress Felicity Huffman have been married since 1997.

Early life

Macy was born in Miami, Florida, and grew up in Georgia and Maryland.[6] His father, William Hall Macy, Sr., was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and an Air Medal for flying a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber in World War II; he later ran a construction company in Atlanta, Georgia, and worked for Dun & Bradstreet before taking over a Cumberland, Maryland-based insurance agency when Macy was nine years old. His mother, Lois (née Overstreet), was a war widow who met Macy's father after her first husband died in 1943; Macy has described her as a "Southern belle".[7][8][9]

Macy graduated from Allegany High School in Cumberland, Maryland in 1968.[4] Afterwards, he studied veterinary medicine[4] at Bethany College in West Virginia. By his own admission a "wretched student," he transferred to Goddard College and became involved in theatre,[6] where he performed in ensemble productions of The Three Penny Opera, A Midsummer Night's Dream and a wide variety of contemporary and improvisational pieces. At Goddard, he first met playwright David Mamet.[6]

Career

After graduating from Goddard in 1971, Macy moved to Chicago, Illinois, working as a bartender to pay the rent. Within a year, he and David Mamet, among others, founded St. Nicholas Theater Company,[6] where Macy originated roles in a number of Mamet's plays, such as American Buffalo and The Water Engine.[10] While in Chicago in his twenties, he did a TV commercial. He was required to join AFTRA in order to do the commercial, and received his SAG card within a year, which for an elated Macy represented an important moment in his career.[11]

Macy spent time in Los Angeles, before moving to New York City in 1980, where he had roles in over 50 Off Broadway and Broadway plays. One of his early on-screen roles was as a turtle named Socrates in the direct-to-video film The Boy Who Loved Trolls (1984), under the name W. H. Macy (so as not to be confused with the actor Bill Macy). He also had a minor role as a hospital orderly on the sitcom Kate & Allie in the fourth season episode "General Hospital" (also as W. H. Macy). He has appeared in numerous films that Mamet wrote and/or directed, such as House of Games, Things Change, Homicide, Oleanna (reprising the role he originated in the play of the same name), Wag the Dog, State and Main and Spartan.

Macy may be best known for his lead role in Fargo, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award.[6] The role helped boost his career and recognizability, though at the expense of nearly confining him to a narrow typecast of a worried man down on his luck.[12] Other Macy roles of the 1990s and 2000s included Benny & Joon, Above Suspicion, Mr. Holland's Opus, Ghosts of Mississippi, Air Force One, Boogie Nights, Pleasantville, Gus Van Sant's remake of Psycho, Happy, Texas, Mystery Men, Magnolia, Jurassic Park III, Focus, Panic, Welcome to Collinwood, Seabiscuit, The Cooler and Sahara.

William H. Macy at the 62nd Annual Peabody Awards

Macy has also had a number of roles on television, including a guest appearance on The Unit, as the President of the United States. In 2003, he won a Peabody Award and two Emmy Awards, one for starring in the lead role, and one as co-writer, of the made-for-TNT film Door to Door.[6] Door to Door is a drama based on the true story of Bill Porter, a door-to-door salesman in Portland, Oregon, born with cerebral palsy.[6]

His work on ER and Sports Night has also been recognized with Emmy nominations.

In a November 2003 interview with USA Today, Macy stated that he wanted to star in a big-budget action movie "for the money, for the security of a franchise like that". He serves as director-in-residence at the Atlantic Theater Company in New York, where he teaches a technique called Practical Aesthetics. A book describing the technique, A Practical Handbook for the Actor (ISBN 0-394-74412-8), is dedicated to Macy and Mamet.

In 2007, Macy starred in Wild Hogs, a film about middle-aged men reliving their youthful days by taking to the open road on their Harley-Davidson motorcycles from Cincinnati to the Pacific Coast. Despite being critically panned with a 14% "rotten" rating from Rotten Tomatoes, it was a financial success, grossing over $168 million.[13] In 2009, Macy completed filming on The Maiden Heist, a comedy that co-starred Morgan Freeman and Christopher Walken.

On June 23, 2008, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce announced Macy and his wife, Felicity Huffman, would each receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the upcoming year. On January 13, 2009, Macy replaced Jeremy Piven in David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow on Broadway. Piven suddenly and unexpectedly dropped out of the play in December 2008 after he experienced health problems; Norbert Leo Butz covered the role from December 23, 2008, until Macy took over the part.[14] Dirty Girl, which starred Macy along with Juno Temple, Milla Jovovich, Mary Steenburgen and Tim McGraw, premiered September 12, 2010 at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Macy in 2010

In summer 2010, Macy joined the Showtime pilot Shameless as the protagonist Frank Gallagher. The project ultimately went to series, its first season on premiered January 9, 2011. Macy has received high critical acclaim for his performance,[15] eventually getting an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2014. Showtime has now aired Shameless for five seasons, with a sixth season currently airing on Sundays.

In the 2012 film The Sessions, Macy played a priest who helps a man with a severe disability find personal fulfillment through a sex surrogate.[16] He made his directorial debut with the independent drama Rudderless, and stars Billy Crudup, Felicity Huffman, Selena Gomez and Laurence Fishburne. He is currently directing The Layover, a road trip sex comedy starring Alexandra Daddario and Kate Upton in which Macy will also appear.

In 2015, he had a small role as Grandpa in the drama film Room, which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

Personal life

Huffman and Macy at a ceremony where each received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on March 7, 2012

Macy and actress Felicity Huffman have been married since September 6, 1997; they have two daughters, Sophia Grace (born August 1, 2000) and Georgia Grace (born March 14, 2002).[17][18]

Macy and Huffman appeared at a rally for John Kerry in 2004.[19][20] Macy also plays the ukulele and is an avid woodturner; he has appeared on the cover of the specialist magazine Fine Woodworking and was featured in an article in the April 2015 issue of American Woodturner (publication of American Association of Woodturners). He is a national ambassador for the United Cerebral Palsy Association.[21]

Since shooting the film Wild Hogs, Macy has picked up a strong interest in riding motorcycles.[16]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1980 Foolin' Around Bronski
Somewhere in Time Critic
1983 Without a Trace Reporter
1985 The Last Dragon J.J.
1987 Radio Days Radio Actor
House of Games Sgt. Moran
1988 Things Change Billy Drake
1991 Homicide Tim Sullivan
1992 The Water Engine Charles Lang
1993 Being Human Boris
Benny & Joon Randy Burch
Searching for Bobby Fischer Petey's Father
1994 The Client Dr. Greenway
1995 Murder in the First D.A. William McNeil
Oleanna John
Dead on Sight Steven Meeker
Tall Tale Railroad Magnate Uncredited[22]
Mr. Holland's Opus Vice Principal Gene Wolters
Evolver Evolver (voice)
1996 Fargo Jerry Lundegaard
Andersonville Col. Chandler
Down Periscope Commander Carl Knox
Ghosts of Mississippi Charlie Crisco
1997 Colin Fitz Lives! Mr. O'Day / Colin Fitz
Air Force One Major Norman Caldwell
Boogie Nights Little Bill Thompson
Wag the Dog CIA Agent Charles Young
1998 Pleasantville George Parker
Psycho Milton Arbogast
The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue Justin (voice)
A Civil Action James Gordon
The Con Bobby Sommerdinger
1999 Happy, Texas Sheriff Chappy Dent
Mystery Men The Shoveler
A Slight Case of Murder Terry Thorpe
The Night of the Headless Horseman Ichabod Crane (voice)
Magnolia Quiz Kid Donnie Smith
2000 State and Main Walt Price
Panic Alex
2001 Jurassic Park III Paul Kirby
Focus Lawrence "Larry" Newman
2002 It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie Glenn
Welcome to Collinwood Riley
2003 The Cooler Bernie Lootz
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls Narrator Documentary
Stealing Sinatra John Irwin
Seabiscuit Tick Tock McGlaughlin
2004 Cellular Sgt. Bob Mooney
In Enemy Hands Chief of Boat Nathan Travers
Spartan Stoddard
2005 Sahara Admiral James Sandecker
Edmond Edmond Burke
Thank You for Smoking Senator Ortolan K. Finistirre
2006 Doogal Brian the Snail (voice)
Bobby Paul
Everyone's Hero Lefty Maginnis (voice)
Choose Your Own Adventure DVD Series Rudyard North
Inland Empire Announcer
2007 Wild Hogs Dudley Frank
He Was a Quiet Man Gene Shelby
2008 The Deal Charlie Berns
Bart Got a Room Ernie Stein
The Tale of Despereaux Lester (voice)
2009 The Maiden Heist George
Shorts Dr. Noseworthy
2010 Marmaduke Don Twombly
Dirty Girl Ray
2011 The Lincoln Lawyer Frank Levin
2012 The Sessions Father Brendan
2013 A Single Shot Pitt
Trust Me Gary
2014 The Wind Rises Satomi (voice) English version
Ernest & Celestine Head Dentist (voice)
Rudderless Tavern Owner / Emcee Director
Cake Leonard
Two-Bit Waltz Carl
2015 Walter Dr. Corman
Stealing Cars Philip Wyatt
Room Robert "Grandpa" Newsome
Blood Father
Dial a Prayer
2016 The Layover Director, filming
TBA Crystal Director
Pre-production

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1978 The Awakening Land Will Beagle 3 episodes
1984 The Boy Who Loved Trolls Socrates the Turtle (voice) Television film
1985–1988 Spencer: For Hire Efrem Connors 3 episodes
1986 Kate & Allie Carl Episode: "General Hospital"
1987 The Equalizer Dr. Spaulding Episode: "Hand and Glove"
1988 The Murder of Mary Phagan Randy Television film
1988 Lip Service Television film; director only
1990 Law & Order John McCormack Episode: "Everybody's Favorite Bagman"
1992 Law & Order Powell Episode: "Sisters of Mercy"
The Heart of Justice Booth Television film
1993 Bakersfield P.D. Russell Karp Episode: "Cable Does Not Pay"
L.A. Law Bernard Ruskin Episode: "Rhyme and Punishment"
1994–2009 ER Dr. David Morgenstern 31 episodes
1998 Superman: The Animated Series The Director Episode: "Where There's Smoke"
The Con Bobby Sommerdinger Television film
The Lionhearts Leo Lionheart 13 episodes
King of the Hill Dr. Rubin (voice) Episode: "Pregnant Paws"
1999 Batman Beyond Aaron Herbst (voice) Episode: "Disappearing Inque"
1999–2000 Sports Night Sam Donovan 6 episodes
2000 Batman Beyond Karros (voice) Episode: "Big Time"
2002 Door to Door Bill Porter Television film
2003 Out of Order Steven 6 episodes
2004 Reversible Errors Arthur Raven Television film
2005 The Wool Cap Charlie Gigot Television film
2006 The Simpsons Himself (voice) Episode: "Homer's Paternity Coot"
Nightmares and Dreamscapes Sam Landry / Clyde Umney Television film
2006–07 Curious George Narrator 30 episodes
2007 The Unit President of the United States Episode: "The Broom Closet"
2011–present Shameless Frank Gallagher 60 episodes

Awards and nominations

Year Association Category Nominated work Result
1992 Independent Spirit Awards Best Supporting Male Homicide Nominated
1995 Best Male Lead Oleanna Nominated
1997 Academy Awards Best Supporting Actor Fargo Nominated
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards Best Actor Nominated
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards Best Supporting Actor Nominated
Independent Spirit Awards Best Male Lead Won
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series ER Nominated
Satellite Awards Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama Fargo Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role Nominated
1998 Boston Society of Film Critics Awards Best Supporting Actor A Civil Action Won
Pleasantville Won
Psycho Won
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast Boogie Nights Won
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated
1999 American Comedy Awards Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Pleasantville Nominated
National Board of Review Best Cast Magnolia Won
2000 American Comedy Awards Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Happy, Texas Nominated
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast Magnolia Won
National Board of Review Best Cast State and Main Won
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Sports Night Nominated
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie A Slight Case of Murder Nominated
Satellite Awards Best Actor – Miniseries or a Television Film Won
Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Happy, Texas Won
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Magnolia Nominated
2001 Florida Film Critics Circle Awards Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast State and Main Won
Online Film Critics Society Awards Best Cast Won
2003 Golden Globe Awards Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film Door to Door Nominated
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie Won
Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special Won
Satellite Awards Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film Won
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie Won
2004 Golden Globe Awards Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Seabiscuit Nominated
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie Stealing Sinatra Nominated
Satellite Awards Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama The Cooler Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Seabiscuit Nominated
2005 Golden Globe Awards Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film The Wool Cap Nominated
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie Nominated
Outstanding Made for Television Movie Nominated
Satellite Awards Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film Stealing Sinatra Won
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie The Wool Cap Nominated
2006 Hollywood Film Festival Best Cast Bobby Won
2007 Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards Best Cast Nominated
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie Nightmares and Dreamscapes Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Bobby Nominated
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie Nightmares and Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King Nominated
2011 Critics' Choice Television Awards Best Actor in a Drama Series Shameless Nominated
Satellite Awards Best Actor – Television Series Drama Nominated
2012 Prism Awards Best Performance in a Comedy Series Won
2014 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Nominated
2015 Golden Globe Award Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series Won
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Nominated
2016 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series Nominated

See also

References

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  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 Stated on Inside the Actors Studio, 2004
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  11. Moynihan, Rob (January 19, 2015). "How I Got My SAG-AFTRA Card", TV Guide. p. 8
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  13. Wild Hogs, Rotten Tomatoes, Retrieved 07/28/10
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  16. 16.0 16.1 William H. Macy Interview, Ability.
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External links

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