Biography of Ted Danson

Edward Bridge Danson III is an American actor and producer who played the lead character Sam Malone on the NBC sitcom Cheers, Jack Holden in the films Three Men and a Baby and Three Men and a Little Lady, and Dr. John Becker on the CBS sitcom Becker. He also starred in the CBS dramas CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and CSI: Cyber as D.B. Russell. Additionally, he plays a recurring role on Larry David's HBO sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm, starred alongside Glenn Close in legal drama Damages, and was a regular on the HBO comedy series Bored to Death. In 2015 he starred as Hank Larsson in the second season of FX's black comedy-crime drama anthology Fargo. From 2016 to 2020, he played the afterlife architect Michael in the NBC sitcom The Good Place. During his career, Danson has been nominated for 18 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning two; 11 Golden Globe Awards nominations, winning three; one Screen Actors Guild Award; and one American Comedy Award and has been awarded a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame. He was ranked second in TV Guide's list of the top 25 television stars. Danson has also been a longtime activist in ocean conservation. In March 2011, he published his first book, Oceana: Our Endangered Oceans and What We Can Do to Save Them, written with journalist Michael D'Orso. Danson was born in San Diego to Edward "Ned" Bridge Danson, Jr. , an archaeologist and director of the Museum of Northern Arizona 1959â€“1975, and Jessica MacMaster , and has an older sister, Jan Ann Haury . Danson was raised in Flagstaff, Arizona. His ancestry includes English and Scottish. In 1961, Danson enrolled in the Kent School, a prep school in Connecticut, where he was a star player on the basketball team. He became interested in drama while attending Stanford University and, seeking a better acting program, transferred to Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in drama in 1972. Danson began his television career as a contract player on the daytime soap opera Somerset. He played the role of "Tom Conway" from 1975 to 1976. In 1977 he played Dr. Mitchell Pierson on the daytime soap opera The Doctors, having also appeared earlier in 1975 as another character, Dr. Chuck Weldon. He was also in a number of commercials, most recognizably as the "Aramis man". He made a number of guest appearances in episodic television in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including spots on Laverne & Shirley, B. J. and the Bear, Family, Benson, Taxi, Magnum, P.I., The Amazing Spider-Man and Tucker's Witch.