This tall, fair-haired son of Oscar-winner actor Ed Begley began his professional career in the 1960s with a guest appearance on "My Three Sons" and went on to achieve fame for his subsequent small screen work. Ed Begley Jr earned six successive Emmy nominations for his role as the bumbling but earnest Dr Victor Ehrlich on TV's "St. Elsewhere" (NBC, 1982-1988). Prior to his incarnation of the esteemed yet inane doctor, the actor had amassed credits in recurring roles on such shows like "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" (syndicated, 1976) and "The New Adventures of Wonder Woman" (CBS, 1977). Begley played Ichabod Crane in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (Showtime, 1986), an episode of "Shelley Duvall's Tall Tales & Legends". The Crane icon seems emblematic of Begley's persona: an uptight, somewhat goofy purveyor of cracker slapstick, but with hidden reservoirs of empathy and Ichabod-style gangly looks. He failed to find a subsequent successful small screen vehicle, striking out with the NBC sitcom version of "Parenthood" (1990) and the more dramatic primetime soap "Winnetka Road" (NBC, 1994). Begley returned to series work as the clueless father of three who hires an alien as a nanny in the absurd CBS sitcom "Meego" (1997).
Begley's film career has been somewhat less fruitful than his TV work, although he seems to have found a niche as the white straight man in every other kitsch film of the 80s and 90s. He has appeared in two Paul Bartel-helmed camp classics, "Eating Raoul" (1982) and "Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills" (1989) and starred as a lustful husband of the "She-Devil" (1989). He had his first leading role as the bug-turned-human in "Meet the Applegates" (1991), co-starring Stockard Channing. Begley can also be found in "This is Spinal Tap" (1984), as the drummer who dies from a bizarre gardening accident, Lawrence Kasdan's "The Accidental Tourist" (1988), as William Hurt's brother, "Greedy" (1994), as one of the relatives after Kirk Douglas's money, Gus Van Sant's "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" (1994) and Joel Schumacher's "Batman Forever" (1995).
- Also Credited As:
Ed Begley, Edward James Begley Jr
- Born:
Edward James Begley Jr on September 16, 1949 in Los Angeles, California, USA
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Job Titles:
Actor, Comedian, Cameraman, Carpenter
Family
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Daughter: Amanda Begley. Born Oct. 3, 1977; mother, Ingrid Taylor
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Daughter: Hayden Carson Begley. Born in 1999; mother, Rachelle Carson
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Father: Ed Begley. Won the Best Supporting Actor Academy Award in 1962 for Sweet Bird of Youth
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Mother: Allene Jeanne Sanders.
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Sister: Allene Johanna Begley. Born in October 1948
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Son: Nicholas Taylor Begley. Born Jan. 4, 1979; mother, Ingrid Taylor
Milestones
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1967 Professional debut at age 17 on the CBS sitcom My Three Sons
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1972 Film acting debut The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes
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1972 TV-movie debut, Family Flight (ABC)
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1973 TV series debut as regular, the short-lived CBS sitcom Roll Out!
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1976 Had a recurring roles on the syndicated series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman
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1977 Appeared in a recurring role on CBS The New Adventures of Wonder Woman
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1978 Played Lt. Greenbean on Battlestar Galactica (ABC); reprised role in the feature film version
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1982 Breakthrough role as intern, Dr. Victor Ehrlich on the NBC medical drama St. Elsewhere ; received six consecutive Emmy Award nominations
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1988 Cast as one of William Hurt s siblings in Lawrence Kasdan s The Accidental Tourist
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1989 Played the straying husband in She-Devil opposite Meryl Streep and Roseanne
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1990 Co-starred with Stockard Channing in Meet the Applegates
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1990 Starred in the short-lived NBC sitcom Parenthood
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1994 Appeared on the short-lived NBC primetime soap Winnetka Road
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1995 Co-starred in the Off-Broadway production of David Mamet s The Cryptogram
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1997 Returned to series TV in the CBS sitcom Meego
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1999 Appeared in a recurring role on the WB s 7th Heaven
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2000 Played a hotel manager in the mockumentary Best in Show ; co-starring and directed by Christopher Guest
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2001 Played the recurring role of Hiram Gunderson on HBO s Six Feet Under
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2003 Re-teamed with director Christopher Guest for the pseudo-documentary about folk music A Mighty Wind
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2004 Played hospital administrator Dr. Jesse James in Stephen King s thirteen-episode miniseries Kingdom Hospital (ABC)
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2005 Guest starred in several episodes on FOX s Arrested Development
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2006 Had a recurring guest role in season three of Veronica Mars (UPN)
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2006 Appeared in the comedy For Your Consideration ; directed by Guest
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2007 Appeared with wife Rachelle Carson in the reality television series, Living With Ed (aired on the Home & Garden Television channel and Discovery s Planet Green channel)
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2008 Appeared in the HBO movie Recount, which profiled the 2000 Presidential Election
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2009 Co-starred in Woody Allen s New York–based comedy Whatever Works
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Raised in Merrick, Long Island, New York