Jeffrey Donovan | |
---|---|
Born | Amesbury, Massachusetts, U.S. [1] | May 11, 1968
Education | Bridgewater State University University of Massachusetts, Amherst (BA) New York University (MFA) |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1995–present |
Spouse | Michelle Woods (m. 2012) |
Children | 3 |
Jeffrey Donovan (born May 11, 1968) [1] [2] is an American actor. He played Michael Westen in the television series Burn Notice , and appeared in films such as Hitch , Believe in Me , Changeling , and Come Early Morning . He played Robert F. Kennedy in Clint Eastwood's J. Edgar (2011) [3] and his brother John F. Kennedy in Rob Reiner's LBJ (2016). He had a recurring role in the second season of the TV series Fargo (2015). In 2022, he began starring as NYPD Detective Frank Cosgrove on the revival of the NBC crime drama Law & Order .
Donovan was born the middle of three boys to Nancy Matthews (1946–2010); his older brother is Michael Donovan (c. 1965) and his younger brother was Sean (1970-1987). Donovan’s mother raised her sons alone on welfare after their father abandoned the family. They moved several times before settling in Amesbury, Massachusetts. [4] [5] [6]
At Amesbury High School, Donovan was mentored by a teacher who helped him start a drama club [7] and find a private scholarship, enabling him to participate in a summer program that helped him start his acting career. [8] He attended Bridgewater State College before transferring to the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in drama.
While attending college, Donovan was a commercial bus driver at UMass Transit Service, where he operated passenger buses as part of the PVTA.[ citation needed ] [9] He went on to earn his Master of Fine Arts from New York University's Graduate Acting Program at the Tisch School of the Arts.
Donovan has guest-starred in several television shows, including CSI: Miami , Spin City , Monk , Millennium , Witchblade , The Pretender , Homicide: Life on the Street and Law & Order . In the short-lived TV series Threshold , Donovan played the antihero Dr. Sloan. Donovan also played the recurring role of William Ivers in Crossing Jordan . In 2004, he had his first leading role in the American remake of the British television series Touching Evil with Vera Farmiga on the USA Network.
From 2007 to 2013, Donovan starred in Burn Notice , as Michael Westen, a spy who was burned, seemingly by the CIA or Homeland Security, for reasons unknown to him, and marooned in Miami, Florida. The show follows Westen as he attempts to find out why he was burned and regain his job as a covert intelligence agent, in addition to bringing justice to the people of Miami. Donovan made his directorial debut with the series' episode, "Made Man" which first aired on June 17, 2010. Donovan also directed a prequel film starring co-star Bruce Campbell, titled Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe , which first aired on USA Network on April 17, 2011. The series lasted for seven seasons, received positive reviews from both fans and critics, and was nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards.
In 2015, Donovan had a recurring role on Fargo as North Dakota mobster Dodd Gerhardt. In 2016, he began starring as Tarot-reading con artist Charlie Haverford in Shut Eye on Hulu. On January 30, 2018, Shut Eye was canceled after two seasons. [10]
In 2021, he was cast as a series regular detective for the 21st season of Law & Order . [11]
Donovan has also performed on stage in various productions, including Hamlet as the title character, A View from the Bridge as Marco, An Inspector Calls, and Off-Broadway in Things You Shouldn't Say Past Midnight as Gene, The Glory of Living as Clint, regionally in Toys in the Attic as Julian Berniers, On the Waterfront as Terry Malloy, Oedipus as Teiresias and Freedomland (play) as Seth. From October 2008 until spring 2009, he starred in the farce Don't Dress for Dinner in Chicago. Donovan has also performed in the radio dramas On the Waterfront (once again as Terry Malloy), Frozen , and Grapes of Wrath .
Donovan has over 20 years of martial arts experience. In college, he earned his black belt in Shotokan karate and competed throughout the state. Later, he studied aikido for over six years and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. [12]
On July 3, 2009, Donovan, a Boston Red Sox baseball fan since childhood, threw the ceremonial first pitch at the game between the Red Sox and the Seattle Mariners at Fenway Park. [13] On July 3, 2010, he once again threw the ceremonial first pitch at Fenway Park, this time at a game between the Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles. [14]
Donovan married model and actress Michelle Woods in 2012. Their daughter, Claire, was born that same year. Son Lucas was born in 2014 and they had a third child, another daughter, in 2017. [15] [16]
In 2009, Donovan returned to Amesbury High School where he took part in a career day mentorship program with other successful professionals and presented the school with a $100,000 arts scholarship program. [17] The first $10,000 award was given out to a senior that June. [18]
For many years, Donovan has actively supported Life Rolls On (LRO), a foundation empowering people with spinal cord injuries. On October 4, 2009 he served as one of the chairmen for the 6th Annual LRO annual fundraiser called Night by the Ocean at the Kodak Theatre. [19] Donovan was named Grand Marshal of the 22nd annual AIDS Walk Miami held on April 17, 2010. [20]
Donovan also supports his friends' charity events. In September 2009, while helping Michael Bolton at the 17th Annual Benefit Concert for Women and Children at Risk in Stamford, Connecticut, Donovan auctioned off a "Burn Notice walk-on-part" plus a kiss. Walk on parts usually raise $2,000–$5,000. With the added kiss, he raised $36,000. [21]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1995 | Throwing Down | Pete Gulley | |
1996 | Sleepers | Henry Addison | |
Critical Choices | Randy | ||
1997 | Vegas Vacation | Hotel employee | Uncredited |
Catherine's Grove | Thomas Mason | ||
1998 | Witness to the Mob | Agent | |
When Trumpets Fade | Private Bobby Miller | ||
2000 | Bait | Julio | |
Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 | Jeffrey Patterson | ||
2002 | Purpose | Robert Jennings | |
2003 | Final Draft | Pascal | |
2004 | Sam & Joe | Eric | |
2005 | Hitch | Vance Munson | |
2006 | Come Early Morning | Cal Percell | |
Believe in Me | Clay Driscoll | ||
2008 | Hindsight | Paul | |
Changeling | Captain J.J. Jones | ||
2011 | J. Edgar | Robert F. Kennedy | |
2015 | Sicario | Steve Forsing | |
Extinction | Jack | ||
2016 | LBJ | John F. Kennedy | |
2017 | Shot Caller | Bottles | |
2018 | Sicario: Day of the Soldado | Steve Forsing | |
2019 | Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile | John O'Connell | |
Villains | George | ||
Lucy in the Sky | Jim Hunt | ||
Wonder Woman: Bloodlines | Steve Trevor | Voice role | |
2020 | Honest Thief | Agent Sean Meyers | |
Let Him Go | Bill Weboy | ||
2021 | Wrath of Man | Jackson | |
National Champions | Mark Titus | ||
2022 | Breaking | Major Riddick | |
R.I.P.D. 2: Rise of the Damned | Sheriff Roy Pulsipher | ||
First Love | Greg Albright | ||
2023 | Surrounded | Wheeler | |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1995 | Homicide: Life on the Street | Miles and Newton Dell | Episode: "Thrill of the Kill" |
1995, 2007 | Law & Order | Edward Nicodos / Jacob Reese | 2 episodes |
1997 | Millennium | Bobby Webber | Episode: "The Wild and the Innocent" |
Another World | Dwayne 'Popper' Collins | 1 episode | |
1997–1998 | The Pretender | Kyle | S1/E21-22 - "Dragon House: Part 1 & 2" S2/E19 - "Red Rock Jarod" |
1999 | Spin City | Tom | 2 episodes |
2000 | The Beat | Brad Ulrich | Recurring role |
2002 | Witchblade | Daniel Germaine | Episode: "Lagrimas" |
2004 | Touching Evil | Detective Inspector Dave Creegan | Main role |
2005 | CSI: Miami | Todd Kendrick | 2 episodes |
2006 | Threshold | Dr. Julian Sloan | Episode: "Vigilante" |
Monk | Steve Wagner | Episode: "Mr. Monk and the Astronaut" | |
2007 | Crossing Jordan | William Ivers | 5 episodes |
2007–2013 | Burn Notice | Michael Westen | Main role Also director (episodes: "Made Man", "Mixed Message", and "Forget Me Not") |
2011 | Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe | Michael Westen | Television film, cameo, also director and executive producer |
2015 | Fargo | Dodd Gerhardt | Recurring role, 10 episodes |
2016–2017 | Shut Eye | Charlie Haverford | Main role |
2021 | Invincible | Machine Head (voice) | Episode: "That Actually Hurt" |
2022–2023 | Law & Order | Det. Frank Cosgrove | Main role |
2022 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | 1 Episode | |
Law & Order: Organized Crime | 1 Episode |
Year | Award/Festival | Category | Nominated work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2003 | Method Fest Independent Film Festival | Best Supporting Actor | Sam & Joe | Won |
2010–2011 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV Actor: Action | Burn Notice | Nominated |
Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, less than one mile from Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the ballpark of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and, since 1953, its only Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise. While the stadium was built in 1912, it was substantially rebuilt in 1934, and underwent major renovations and modifications in the 21st century. It is the oldest active ballpark in MLB. Because of its age and constrained location in Boston's dense Fenway–Kenmore neighborhood, the park has many quirky features, including "The Triangle", Pesky's Pole, and the Green Monster in left field. It is the fifth-smallest among MLB ballparks by seating capacity, second-smallest by total capacity, and one of eight that cannot accommodate at least 40,000 spectators.
Amesbury is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the left bank of the Merrimack River near its mouth, upstream from Salisbury and across the river from Newburyport and West Newbury. The population was 17,366 at the 2020 United States Census. A former farming and mill town, Amesbury is today largely residential. It is one of the two northernmost towns in Massachusetts.
Sharon Marguerite Gless is an American actress known for her television roles as Maggie Philbin on Switch (1975–78), Sgt. Christine Cagney in the police procedural drama series Cagney & Lacey (1982–88), the title role in The Trials of Rosie O'Neill (1990–92), Debbie Novotny in the Showtime cable television series Queer as Folk (2000–2005), and Madeline Westen on Burn Notice (2007–2013). A 10-time Emmy Award nominee and seven-time Golden Globe Award nominee, she won a Golden Globe in 1986 and Emmys in 1986 and 1987 for Cagney & Lacey, and a second Golden Globe in 1991 for The Trials of Rosie O'Neill. Gless received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1995.
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Amesbury High School is a coeducational public high school in the city of Amesbury, Massachusetts, serving as the primary high school for students from Amesbury and, South Hampton, New Hampshire, along with also drawing some students from other parts of the lower Merrimack Valley region.
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Burn Notice is an American espionage television series created by Matt Nix, which originally aired on the USA Network for a total of seven seasons from June 28, 2007, to September 12, 2013. The show stars Jeffrey Donovan, Gabrielle Anwar, Bruce Campbell, Sharon Gless, and Coby Bell.
Matthew E. Nix is an American writer, producer, and director. He is best known for creating the television series Burn Notice, The Good Guys, and The Gifted.
"Pilot" is the first episode of Burn Notice, an American television drama series created for the USA Network.
The first season of the American television series Burn Notice originally aired from June 28, 2007, to September 20, 2007.
The second season of the American television action-drama series Burn Notice, created by Matt Nix and starring Jeffrey Donovan, Gabrielle Anwar, Bruce Campbell, and Sharon Gless, premiered July 10, 2008. The season was split into two parts, with episodes 1–9 airing in the summer of 2008 and episodes 10–16 being broadcast in early 2009.
The third season of the American television spy drama Burn Notice premiered on June 4, 2009 on the cable television channel USA Network. Season three consists of sixteen episodes, split between a nine-episode summer season and a seven-episode winter season.
Westen may refer to:
The fourth season of the American television spy drama Burn Notice premiered on June 3, 2010 on the cable television channel USA Network. Coby Bell joined the main cast as Jesse Porter, a counter-intelligence agent Michael unwittingly burns.
Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe is a 2011 American television film based on the USA Network television series Burn Notice. It was the first official Burn Notice spin-off, starring Bruce Campbell, and directed by Jeffrey Donovan. The show was broadcast in the United States on April 17, 2011, on the U.S. television network USA Network. The film, while not an episode of the show, introduced plot elements for the show's fifth season.
The fifth season of the American television spy drama Burn Notice premiered on June 23, 2011 on the cable television channel USA Network. The season concluded after its eighteenth episode on December 15, 2011.
"Reckoning" is the final episode of Burn Notice, an American television drama series created for the USA Network.