Tom Selleck (born on January 29, 1945 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American actor, screenwriter and film producer, best known for his starring role on the long-running television show Magnum P.I..

Biography

Rising to 6'4", Tom's dark hair, chiseled good looks, muscular and hairy-chested physique, sex appeal, iconic moustache and good sense of humor make him popular for action, drama, and comedy parts; his Magnum role was a mix of all three.

Born in Detroit to Ukrainian Rusyn parents, but raised in Los Angeles, Tom did modeling work and attended the University of Southern California on an basketball scholarship; he majored in business administration, however a drama coach suggested he try acting. Tom Selleck then studied acting at the Beverly Hills Playhouse under Milton Katselas.

Tom began his career with bit parts in smaller movies, including the over-the-top Myra Breckinridge and Russ Meyer's The Seven Minutes. Tom Selleck also appeared in number of TV series, mini-series and TV movies. Selleck also had a recurring role in the 1970s as Lance White in The Rockford Files. Lance was very trusting and always lucky, much to the surprise of Jim Rockford, the show's star private eye played by James Garner. White would frequently say to Rockford, "Don't worry, Jim, clues will turn up" and then a clue would just turn up, much to Rockford's consternation, for whom obtaining clues required hard work and hard knocks. Selleck's character was based on one played in Garner's earlier TV series Maverick (1957) by Selleck lookalike Wayde Preston in that series' highest-rated episode, "The Saga of Waco Williams." Ironically Selleck, after years of little interest, was cast as Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark that same year. Magnum's producers would not release the actor and he had to pass on the role, which then went to Harrison Ford.

Tom starred in a number of film roles during and after Magnum; among the most notable were as an acrophobic police detective in Runaway and as a stand-in father in Three Men and a Baby. Tom Selleck also played the lead role in the Australian western Quigley Down Under. His other films included High Road to China, Lassiter, Her Alibi, An Innocent Man, Folks!, Christopher Columbus: The Discovery, Mr. Baseball, In & Out and The Love Letter. Selleck had a very successful recurring guest-star television role on the popular sitcom Friends as "Richard," an ophthalmologist friend of Monica Geller's father and, eventually, one of Monica's (ex-)boyfriends. During filming, when he shows up on stage, he would receive long standing ovations. This leads to changing Friends' filming style by removing the audience and use laugh tracks.

Tom has also appeared in a number of made-for-TV movies in recent years. In particular, he has sought to help bring back to popularity the western, often playing one of that genre's typical characters but thrust into a modern context.

Surprising many of his fans, Selleck unexpectedly played the role of General Dwight D. Eisenhower in the History Channel's 2004 made-for-TV movie Ike: Countdown to D-Day. The movie showed the planning, politics, and preparation for the 1944 Invasion of Normandy, and Selleck was critically lauded for playing a cool, calm Eisenhower.

Most recently, Tom has appeared in a recurring role on the acclaimed ABC drama Boston Legal as Ivan Tiggs, the troubled ex-husband of Shirley Schmidt (Candice Bergen).

Tom played the role of Thomas Magnum in 1980 after six failed TV pilots. The show would go on for eight seasons and 162 episodes until 1988. Tom was famous for wearing a Hawaiian-style aloha shirt and also wearing a Detroit Tigers baseball cap. In the series, Magnum would drive a Ferrari 308 GTS.  Selleck will not star in the upcoming Magnum P.I. film, because he has been considered too old but may appear in a cameo role. George Clooney, Vince Vaughn, and Ben Affleck have been rumored for the role.

Awards for Tom Selleck

• Golden Apple Awards- 1982 Male Star of the year
• Golden Apple Awards- 1983 Male Star of the year
• Emmy Awards- 1984 Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
• Golden Globes- 1985 Best Performance by an Actor in a TV-Series-Drama

Tom Selleck was married to model Jacqueline Ray from 1970 to 1982 from which he adopted her son, Kevin, from a previous marriage. Selleck's second marriage was to Jillie Mack, they married in 1987. They have one daughter, Hannah Selleck. Tom also dated Mimi Rogers in the early 1980's. He reportedly lives in Abbotsford, British Columbia.

Tom is a member of the National Rifle Association. On May 20, 1999 He sparred with Rosie O'Donnell on The Rosie O'Donnell Show on the issue of gun control and an ad in which he appeared which supported the NRA. Selleck was invited to the show to promote his latest movie, The Love Letter, but found himself instead defending his position on gun ownership. Selleck refused to be drawn into a heated discussion by saying: "It's your show, and you can talk about it after I leave". O'Donnell was highly criticized for this, which led her to make an apology to Selleck by saying: "For him feeling embarrassed and humiliated by me, I strongly do apologize to him personally, but I do not apologize for my feelings about this issue gun control." Though often considered a conservative, Selleck describes himself politically as "a registered independent with a lot of libertarian leanings".

On April 28, 2000, he received an honorary doctorate from Pepperdine University. He was chosen because of his outstanding character and ethic. He is a board member of the non-profit Michael Josephson Institute of Ethics and co-founder of the Character Counts Coalition.

Tom Selleck Trivia

• Selleck screen-tested for, turned down the role of, Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark due to scheduling conflicts with "Magnum P.I.". The role went to Harrison Ford instead. Selleck later went on to star in High Road to China, one of the many adventure films inspired by the success of Raiders that emerged in the early to mid-1980s. The decision of choosing the role of Indiana Jones vs. Magnum actually haunted him so much that before making the decision, he consulted his best friend on what to do. Together they came to the conclusion that honoring the contract with Universal Studios was the honorable thing to do. It turned out that the shooting of the pilot for Magnum was delayed for over 6 months, which would have enabled him to complete the role as Indiana Jones. Ironically, while waiting in Hawaii for Magnum, P.I. to commence, Steven Spielberg & George Lucas were in Hawaii as well to shoot scenes for Raiders of the Lost Ark.

• In the early 1990s, Selleck had a press conference to say that he was not gay after a Queer Nation poster allegedly tried to out him. Years later, he played an openly gay character in In & Out with Kevin Kline. He also sued a tabloid for printing a story that he was gay, which later was settled with an apology and a financial sum that Selleck donated to a university journalism program, to promote ethics in media.

• Tom Selleck was born to a Slovak Rusyn father and a Scottish American mother.

• Tom Selleck is 6' 4" (1.93 m) tall.

• Served in the California National Guard and was activated for the Watts riots.

• One of only two people to have an original Hornby Eastwood 200.

• Has a stepson, Kevin, and a daughter, Hannah.

• Is a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.

• Prior to building up a successful acting career he was a car salesman.

• Is a member of the Church of Christ.

• Appeared twice on The Dating Game and lost each time.

• Was once a University of Southern California campus representative for United Airlines.

• Used to be part owner of The Black Orchid restaurant with Larry Manetti and one other investor in Honolulu, Hawaii.

• In 1998, he was chosen by People Magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world.

• Tom Selleck joined the Detroit Tigers in 1992 for spring training. He actually took an at-bat (as a pinch hitter) in a game against the Cincinnati Reds, facing Reds' pitcher Tim Layana. Selleck ended up striking out after fouling away half a dozen pitches.

• For the 8th and final season of Magnum, P.I., Universal Studios gave him a bonus of $350,000 which he spent on lavish gifts, such as Rolex watches, Porsches, $1,000 bonuses, for the entire cast and crew of Magnum, P.I..

• In 1993, During the brief run of the late night The Chevy Chase Show on Fox, he guest-starred and, as a gag, asked to be presented his 1992 Worst Supporting Actor Razzie award for his performance as King Ferdinand of Spain in Christopher Columbus: The Discovery. When the Razzie was actually presented to him on the air, Selleck took it in stride and asked the entire studio audience to "blow me a raspberry". Selleck thus became the third person in Razzie history to voluntarily accept one of the Worst Achievements in Film statuettes.

Television List for Tom Selleck

• The Movie Murderer (1970)

• A Case of Rape (1974)

• The Young and the Restless (cast member from 1974-1975)

• Returning Home (1975)

• Most Wanted (1976)

• Bunco (1977)

• Superdome (1978)

• The Chinese Typewriter (1979)

• The Sacketts (1979)

• The Concrete Cowboys (1979)

• Magnum, P.I. (1980-1988)

• Divorce Wars: A Love Story (1982)

• The Shadow Riders (1982)

• Murder, She Wrote (1986)

• Broken Trust (1995)

• Ruby Jean and Joe (1996) (also executive producer)

• Friends (recurring role in 1996)

• Last Stand at Saber River (1997) (also executive producer)

• The Closer (1998) (canceled after 10 episodes)

• Running Mates (2000)

• Crossfire Trail (2001) (also executive producer)

• Monte Walsh (2003) (also executive producer)

• Twelve Mile Road (2003)

• Reversible Errors (2004)

• Ike: Countdown to D-Day (2004)

• Stone Cold (2005) (also producer)

• Night Passage (2006) (also producer)

• Boston Legal (recurring role in 2006)

Film List for Tom Selleck

• Myra Breckinridge (1970)

• The Seven Minutes (1971)

• Daughters of Satan (1972)

• Shadow of Fear (1973)

• Terminal Island (1973)

• Midway (1976)

• The Washington Affair (1977)

• Coma (1978)

• The Gypsy Warriors (1978)

• High Road to China (1983)

• Lassiter (1984)

• Runaway (1984)

• Three Men and a Baby (1987)

• Her Alibi (1989)

• An Innocent Man (1989)

• Quigley Down Under (1990)

• Three Men and a Little Lady (1990)

• Folks! (1992)

• Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992)

• Mr. Baseball (1992)

• The Magic of Flight (1996) (short subject) (narrator)

• Open Season (1995)

• In & Out (1997)

• The Love Letter (1999)

• Meet the Robinsons (2007) (voice)

---

This Tom Selleck Biography Page is Copyright The Planets © 2004 - 2006 Chuck Ayoub