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The following biography
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Wikipedia.org
“The
Free Encyclopedia.”
Patrick Dempsey (born January 13, 1966 in Lewiston,
Maine) is an American actor.
Dempsey first became prominent in Hollywood during
the late 1980s. He is currently appearing as Dr. Derek "McDreamy" Shepherd on
the medical drama Grey's Anatomy.
****
Early
life and education
Dempsey grew up in Buckfield, Maine. He was the
youngest of three children and is of Irish American heritage. Dempsey attended
St. Dominic Regional High School, but dropped out before he graduated. He was an
adept juggler, tying for second in a National Juggling Competition. He once said
that as a child, one of his main ambitions was to be a supermodel.
Career
Stage
roles
Dempsey was discovered by an agent and invited to
audition for a role in the stage production of "Torch Song Trilogy." Dempsey's
audition was successful, and he spent the following four months touring with the
company in San Francisco. He followed this with another tour, "Brighton Beach
Memoirs," in the lead role, which was directed by Gene Saks.
Dempsey has also made notable appearances in the
stage productions of "On Golden Pond," with the Maine Acting Company, and "The
Subject was Roses," which showed at the Roundabout Theatre in New York.
Film
roles
Dempsey's first major feature film role was at age
21 in the teen comedy Can't Buy Me Love in 1987 with actress Amanda Peterson. In
1989, he had the lead role in the film Loverboy with actress Kirstie Alley.
Although the teen comedy and romance roles led to
Dempsey being somewhat typecast for a time, he continued to be featured in film
and television roles throughout the 1990s. Dempsey had a high-profile role as
one of the suitors for Reese Witherspoon in Sweet Home Alabama.
Current film roles include the 2007 Disney film,
Enchanted. He is also lending his voice for the main character in Brother Bear
2.
Television roles
Dempsey made a number of featured appearances in
television in the 1990s; he was cast several times in pilots that were not
picked up for a full season, including lead roles in the TV versions of the
films The Player and About A Boy.
His first major television role was a recurring
role as Will's closeted sportscaster boyfriend on Will & Grace. He went on to
play the role of Aaron Brooks, Sela Ward's psychologically unbalanced brother,
on Once & Again. Dempsey received an Emmy nomination in 2001 as Outstanding
Guest Actor in a Drama Series for the role of Aaron.
In 2004 he co-starred in the highly acclaimed HBO
production, Iron Jawed Angels, opposite Hilary Swank and Anjelica Huston.
Grey's
Anatomy
Dempsey has received signficant public attention
for his role as Dr. Derek Shepherd in the drama Grey's Anatomy. Initially a
midseason replacement, the show has become a highly-rated program.
Media attention has been focused on Dempsey's
character Derek, often referred to as "McDreamy"[citation needed], and the
character's romance with intern Meredith Grey (played by Ellen Pompeo).
The intense media attention appears to have led to
some backstage friction. News reports surfaced in October 2006 that Dempsey was
involved in an argument with co-star Isaiah Washington that appears to have
become a physical altercation. News reports have also stated that this argument
may have been initiated over T.R. Knight. [1]
Personal life
Dempsey has been married twice. From 1987 to 1994,
he was married to actress Rocky Parker. When the couple married, much was made
in the media of the age difference between the two (and its parallels to
Dempsey's film "Loverboy"); at the time, Dempsey was 21 years old, while Parker
was 48.
Dempsey remarried on July 31, 1999; his second wife
is noted make-up artist and founder of Delux Beauty, Jillian Fink Dempsey. The
couple has one child, a daughter named Tallulah Fyfe, born in January 2002. In
September, 2006, it was announced that Jillian is pregnant. When Dempsey
appeared on the show Live With Regis and Kelly on September 19, 2006, he
revealed that he and his wife are having twin boys.
Racecar driving
Dempsey enjoys racecar driving in his spare time.
On June 27, 2004, he participated in race #2 of the
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, driving a Panoz GTS race car.
In 2007 he will race in the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Trivia
In 1994, Dempsey directed and cameoed in Ava's
Magical Adventure, a children's adventure story in which his then wife had a
role.
Dempsey is 5'10 1/2".
Because of the age difference in his first
marriage, his stepson Corey Parker was actually one year his senior. The two
remain friends.
Prior to landing the role of Derek Shepard, Dempsey
auditioned for the role of Dr. Robert Chase on another medical show, House.
Selected filmography
Can't Buy Me Love (1987)
Mobsters (1991)
Run (1991)
Face The Music (1993)
With Honors (1994)
Outbreak (1995)
Scream 3 (2000)
The Emperor's Club (2002)
Sweet Home Alabama (2003)
Lucky 7 (2004)
Brother Bear 2 (2006)
Freedom Writers (2007)
****
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URL of Original Article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Dempsey
Date Article Copied:
October 2006
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