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. Wahlberg has appeared in numerous films, including Boogie Nights (1997) and The Departed (2006) for which he was nominated an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Trivia

Younger brother of Donnie Wahlberg and Robert Wahlberg.

Named one of “People” magazines 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. [May 1992]

His older siblings are: Arthur, James, Debbie, Michelle, Paul, Tracey, Robert Wahlberg and Donnie Wahlberg. Robert, Donnie and Mark are from their mother’s third marriage with Donald Wahlberg. Half Siblings from his dad’s side of the family Scott Wahlberg, Buddy Wahlberg and Donna Wahlberg.

Was originally cast as Linus Caldwell in Ocean’s Eleven (2001) but dropped out.

December 2001 – Bought a 5 million dollar mansion in Beverly Hills, and moved his mother in.

His music group, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, debuted on “The Arsenio Hall Show” (1989) in the late 1980s.

[September 2, 2003] His first child with Rhea Durham, a girl named Ella Rae was born at 4.am at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The baby weighed in at 7 pounds, 4 ounces.

He said in one of the featurettes in The Italian Job (2003) DVD that he thought about doing the movie because it was going to be his third remake in a row (if you don’t count Rock Star (2001)) after The Truth About Charlie (2002) and Planet of the Apes (2001).

Is of Swedish, Irish, German and French Canadian descent.

Narrated the documentary Juvies (2004) along with The Italian Job (2003) co-star Mos Def (Mos Def supplied poetry).

Dated actress Jordana Brewster for several years [1998-2001].

His older sister Debbie passed away on September 2nd, 2003, leaving behind a teenage son. She died the same day Mark’s first child Ella Rae was born.

Has a tattoo of Bob Marley on his left shoulder.

Is very close to his mother.

Older brother, Donnie Wahlberg, was a member of the boy group New Kids on the Block.

Mark and Rhea Durham, welcomed their second baby and first son, Michael Wahlberg, on March 21, 2006.

Has a summer home in Wrentham, Massachusetts.

Turned down the role of “Hero” in Feast (2005).

Turned down the lead role of “Jake Roenick” in Assault on Precinct 13 (2005).

Martin Scorsese directed Wahlberg to his very first Academy Award nomination as “Sgt. Sean Dignam” in The Departed (2006). Wahlberg has said that it’s one of the roles he is most proud of.

Friends with Leonardo DiCaprio.

Considers The Truth About Charlie (2002) his worst film.

He and some friends were actually booked to fly on one of the planes that crashed in to the twin towers on September 11, 2001. Originally planning on flying from Boston to Los Angeles but at the last minute they decided to charter a plane to Toronto, Canada for a film festival and then from there to Los Angeles. A near brush with death that he still dreams about today. “We certainly would have tried to do something to fight. I’ve had probably over 50 dreams about it.”

Ranked #65 on VH1′s 100 Sexiest Artists.

His father Donald E. Wahlberg, a veteran of the Korean War, died on 14 February 2008.

As of 2008, he earns a reported $12-15 million per film plus a percentage of the back end profits.

While performing as Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch he often wore nothing but underpants on stage. Calvin Klein consequently asked him to model for Klein’s underwear line.

Was originally a member of New Kids on the Block, but left the band before they had their big break.

Through being a distant relative of Madonna, he is also one of Céline Dion.

Had to spent about 60 days in the House of Correction in Massachusetts when he was a teenager.

Was a drug dealer as a young teenager.

His mother’s maiden name is Alma McPeck.

Was born in St. Margarets’s hospital in Boston.

Dropped out of school when he was 13.

Rhea Durham, gave birth to their third child, a boy named Brendan Joseph Wahlberg, on September 16, 2008. He weighed 7 lbs. 10 oz.

Has stated his performance as Max Payne in Max Payne (2008) as his favorite role.

Has stated that he struggled with weight gain his whole life.

Was briefly sent to prison for two 1988 incidents in which he attacked, beat, and yelled ethnic slurs at two Vietnamese men in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Both incidents were unprovoked by the victims, and in the second attack, Wahlberg beat and permanently blinded in one eye a man who was trying to help him escape from the police after the first attack.

Ranked #1 on VH1′s “Hottest Hotties of the 90′s”.

Was spoofed by Andy Samberg on “Saturday Night Live” (1975). After the first skit premiered Wahlberg jokingly acted as if he was offended when appearing on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (2003) (“Jimmy Kimmel Live!: Episode #6.141″ (2008)), but he eventually appeared in SNL (“Saturday Night Live: Josh Brolin/Adele (#34.5)” (2008)) going along with the joke.

He and his wife, Rhea Durham, welcomed their fourth child, Grace Margaret Wahlberg, on January 11, 2010.

Paid $8.25 million to purchase a 6.14-acre, vacant lot in Beverly Hills, California’s Beverly Park neighborhood where he plans to custom-build a mansion on the property. [2009]

Alexander Rae “Alec” Baldwin III (born April 3, 1958) is an American actor who has appeared on film, stage and television.

Baldwin first gained recognition through television for his work in the soap opera Knots Landing, which aired on CBS from 1984 to 1986. He has since played both leading and supporting roles in films such as Beetlejuice (1988), The Hunt for Red October (1990), The Aviator (2004) and The Departed (2006). His performance in the 2003 film The Cooler garnered him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor nomination.

He currently stars as Jack Donaghy on the NBC sitcom 30 Rock. He has received two Emmy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards. He is the oldest of the Baldwin brothers working in Hollywood.

Trivia:

Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#80). [1995]

Daughter, Ireland Eliesse (aka Addie Baldwin), born on October 23, 1995.

He and his wife Kim Basinger owned a total of eleven dogs, seven cats and a wolf.

Education: George Washington University, Washington, D.C. (majored in political science), New York University, New York, New York (majored in drama; BA, 1993).

As part of his preparation for The Hunt for Red October (1990), he was trained to drive a Los Angeles-class attack submarine at the New London Submarine Base in Connecticut.

Brother of William Baldwin, Stephen Baldwin, Daniel Baldwin, Jane Sasso, and Elizabeth Keuchler.

Cousin of Charles H. Baldwin

Dated Michelle Pfeiffer, Janine Turner and Ally Sheedy.

Brother-in-law of singer Chynna Phillips and Kennya Baldwin.

Chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the world. [1990]

Cousin of actor Joseph Baldwin.

Originally wanted to be a lawyer.

His father was not only a social studies teacher in Massapequa, but also the football coach. It was his father who coined the nickname for Massapequa: Matzoh-Pizza.

Alec’s daughter is often called “Addie” by family members.

During the Bill Clinton impeachment trial went on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” (1993) and said to a cheering audience that the head of the trial, Henry Hyde and his family, should be stoned to death. He later apologized and said it was just a joke.

A fan of novelist James Lee Burke, he owns the rights to a number of books featuring his character Dave Robiceaux. One of these, Heaven’s Prisoners (1996), was released in 1996.

Wrote “Tabloid,” an episode of “Law & Order” (1990), based on his own experiences with tabloid reporters.

Turned down the chance to reprise the role of Jack Ryan in Patriot Games (1992) in order to play Stanley Kowalski in a revival of Tennessee Williams’s “A Streetcar Named Desire” on Broadway.

Told brother Stephen Baldwin that doing Bio-Dome (1996) could be the single most career ending decision he could possibly make.

Loves Cuban cigars.

At George Washington University, Baldwin ran for president but lost by two votes.

Taught “Master Theater Workshop” in summer 2002 at Southampton College, New York where friend James LaRocca is Dean.

Is only the third person in history to be nominated for both Best Supporting Actor from the Oscars, for The Cooler (2003), and Worst Supporting Actor from the Razzies, for The Cat in the Hat (2003), in the same year.

Jokes that he “stole” his performance in The Cooler (2003) from Ben Kingsley’s in Sexy Beast (2000).

Replaced Alan Rickman as the voice of Leonardo Leonardo in the 2000 cartoon based on Kevin Smith’s film Clerks. (1994).

Received an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from Montclair State University at their 2004 Graduation.

Like ex-wife Kim Basinger, he is also a vegetarian. He claims she was the one who convinced him. Since their divorce he has continued to be an advocate for animal rights.

In 1995, he played the role of Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire (1995) (TV), a role originated by Marlon Brando, who went on to play Vito Corleone. On “Saturday Night Live” (1975), he has played Robert De Niro, who played the young Vito Corleone to Brando’s older Don Corleone, in The Godfather: Part II (1974).

His A Streetcar Named Desire (1995) (TV) castmate, John Goodman, played Marlon Brando on “Saturday Night Live” (1975).

Has done voice-over work in television ads for both General Electric and Subaru.

Was nominated for Broadway’s 1992 Tony Award as Best Actor (Play) for playing Stanley Kowalski in a revival of Tennessee Williams’s “A Streetcar Named Desire,” a performance he recreated in a television version of the same title, A Streetcar Named Desire (1995) (TV).

Is of Irish and French descent.

Is one of only two people with a standing invitation to host “Saturday Night Live” (1975) every year (schedules allowing). The other is Christopher Walken.

Has impersonated Robert De Niro on “Saturday Night Live” (1975) a few times, and now he will be in The Good Shepherd (2006), which is directed by De Niro.

He was willing to voice his own puppet in Team America: World Police (2004) (despite the movie’s unflattering portrait of him and other film stars, but was turned down by producers Matt Stone and Trey Parker, because all of the other celebrities were voiced by impressionists in the film. The role went to impressionist Maurice LaMarche.

In 1979, he auditioned for the New York University Undergraduate Drama Program on a dare (and was accepted).

No relation to actor Adam Baldwin.

Son of Carol M. Baldwin.

Was considered for the role of Dr. Curtis McCabe in Vanilla Sky (2001).

Has declined two roles that later went to Harrison Ford. First, he declined to reprise the role of Jack Ryan in Patriot Games (1992), then he turned down the lead role in The Fugitive (1993).

Was considered for the role of Batman/Bruce Wayne in Batman (1989).

Did a skit on “Saturday Night Live” (1975) in December of 2005 in which he spoofed himself delivering the same speech he did in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) to a couple of Santa’s elves. Only some of the words were changed to apply to the elves rather than salesmen. He slipped though when saying the line, “Always Be Cobbling” instead he said the original line, “Always Be Closing”. This made the other cast members break out in laughter on the live show.

He is frequently referred to as Irish-American and, although both of his parents have Irish heritage, he is not entirely Irish. His father was half-English and his mother’s side is primarily French (only one-quarter Irish).

Caused a scandal by leaving an expletive filled voice mail for his daughter Ireland, calling her a “thoughtless little pig”, which later was revealed to the media (11 April 2007).

Revealed during an appearance on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” (1993) that he suffers from OCD.

Wrote “Tabloid” episode for the television show “Law & Order” (1990) which was part of the 1998 season because of his own experience with tabloid reporters.

Caused a major uproar in the Philippines when he made a joke that he was interested in buying a Filipina wife. As a result, Philippine senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla, Jr., (also an actor) blasted Baldwin and even swore to personally beat him up if he ever visits the Philippines. Despite apologizing for the joke, Baldwin was effectively banned from visiting the Philippines.

He has tied long-time reigning champion, Steve Martin, for hosting “Saturday Night Live” (1975) the most times. Both have hosted 14 episodes to date. They were chosen to co-host The 82nd Annual Academy Awards (2010) (TV) together.

Teaches a theater class at The Ross School in New York, which actress Aimee Muschamp attended.

Has announced plans to retire from acting and pursue other interests when his contract for “30 Rock” (2006) expires in 2012.

Good friends with actress Meryl Streep.

Is five years younger than his ex-wife, Kim Basinger.