American actor (b. 1960)
Oliver Platt
|
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Platt in 2010
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Born
| (
1960-01-12
)
January 12, 1960
(age 64)
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Nationality
| American
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Education
| Tufts University
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Occupation
| Actor
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Years active
| 1985?present
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Spouse
|
Camilla Campbell
(
m.
1992)
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Children
| 3
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Parent
| |
---|
Relatives
| Adam Platt
(brother)
|
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Oliver Platt
(born January 12, 1960
[1]
) is an American actor known for his work on stage and screen. He has been nominated for five
Primetime Emmy Awards
, a
Golden Globe Award
, two
Screen Actors Guild Awards
, and a
Tony Award
.
Platt made his acting debut in the 1988 film
Married to the Mob
. He gained prominence for his roles in
The Impostors
(1998),
Pieces of April
(2003),
The Ice Harvest
(2005),
Casanova
(2005),
Frost/Nixon
(2008), and
Please Give
(2010). His other notable roles include
Working Girl
(1988),
Flatliners
(1990),
Beethoven
(1992),
Indecent Proposal
(1993),
A Time to Kill
(1996),
Bulworth
,
Dr. Dolittle
(both 1998),
Ready To Rumble
(2000),
Kinsey
(2004),
2012
(2009),
Love & Other Drugs
(2010),
X-Men: First Class
(2011),
Ginger and Rosa
(2013), and
Rules Don't Apply
(2016).
Platt is known for his recurring roles in television series such as
The Big C
,
Fargo
,
Chicago Med
and
The Good Wife
. He received
Primetime Emmy Award
nominations for his roles in
The West Wing
in 2001,
Huff
in 2005 and 2006, and
Nip/Tuck
in 2008. He portrayed
George Steinbrenner
in the series
The Bronx Is Burning
(2007). He is also known for his recurring role as Uncle Jimmy in the
Hulu
series
The Bear
(2022?present).
Platt made his
Broadway
debut in the
Conor McPherson
play
Shining City
(2006) for which he earned a
Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play
nomination. He returned to Broadway portraying Nathan Detroit in the 2009 revival of the
Frank Loesser
musical
Guys and Dolls
.
Family and early life
[
edit
]
Family
[
edit
]
Platt was born in
Windsor, Ontario
, Canada,
[2]
to American parents Sheila Maynard, a clinical social worker, and
Nicholas Platt
, a career diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, Zambia, and the Philippines.
[3]
[4]
His older brother,
Adam Platt
, is a
New York
magazine
restaurant critic. They returned to the United States when Platt was three months old.
[5]
Platt's paternal great-grandfather was artist and architect
Charles A. Platt
,
[6]
and his maternal great-grandparents were equestrian Arthur Scott Burden (of the industrialist
Burden family
) and socialite
Cynthia Roche
.
[7]
Platt is also a great-great-grandson of General
Robert Shaw Oliver
(through his mother).
[8]
Platt's paternal great great-grandfather was diplomat and lawyer
Joseph Hodges Choate
. Choate was the most successful lawyer in New York City during the
Gilded Age
and was later appointed U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom by President
William McKinley
. His brother
William Gardner Choate
, who was also a prominent lawyer and federal judge, created
Choate Rosemary Hall
.
[9]
Early life
[
edit
]
Because of his father's career as a foreign service officer, much of Platt's childhood was spent in Asia and Washington, D.C.
[10]
Platt attended twelve different schools, including the
American School in Japan
, and has said "Even now I find myself envying people who have neighborhoods and roots."
[10]
Platt's family made frequent trips back to Washington, where they held
Redskins
season tickets.
[11]
Platt is also a fan of the
Boston Red Sox
.
[11]
When he was nine years old, Platt and his family visited the
Kennedy Center
in Washington, where he watched a performance that helped inspire his acting career.
[4]
"One of the performances that really made me want to be an actor started out with this probably 20-minute rambling,
drunken
monologue by this
bum
. And it was a young
Morgan Freeman
. I'll never forget it. This guy was just so riveting. He stood there on stage alone before the curtain went up, and he held this audience utterly rapt. Including myself, obviously."
[4]
According to Platt, drama departments gave his childhood some stability, "It was something of a survival mechanism, in that it gave me a little
subculture
to plug into wherever I ended up. Kids need that. I certainly did."
[10]
Education
[
edit
]
Platt attended a progressive
boarding school
named
Colorado Rocky Mountain School
in
Carbondale, Colorado
.
[12]
Platt majored in drama at
Tufts University
, where he met and became close friends with
Hank Azaria
.
[13]
[14]
[15]
He spent three years working in theatre in
Boston
, Massachusetts, which he said had a "wealth of serious amateur theatre at that time…I played many roles, and it was the best training I could have had."
[16]
Platt travelled with Shakespeare and Company, based in
Lenox, Massachusetts
, touring schools to earn his
Equity
card, before moving to New York.
[16]
Platt's early career involved
Off-Broadway
and regional theatre, and he appeared onstage with the
New York Shakespeare Festival
,
Lincoln Center Theater
,
Manhattan Theatre Club
and other companies across many genres.
[16]
He obtained an agent while working at Manhattan Punch Line Theatre, and met actor
Bill Murray
at his cousin's Christmas party.
[16]
Murray attended Platt's show and recommended Platt to director
Jonathan Demme
, who cast him in
Married to the Mob
in 1988.
[16]
Platt attributes his breakthrough to appearing at the Punch Line Theater.
[16]
Career
[
edit
]
Platt makes his decisions about accepting acting roles based on the role being "different from what I just did...I do have to be interested in the role".
[16]
After
Married to the Mob
, he appeared in
Working Girl
(1988),
Flatliners
(1990),
Beethoven
(1992),
The Three Musketeers
(1993),
A Time to Kill
(1996),
Executive Decision
(1996), and
Bulworth
(1998).
[17]
In 1998 Platt and
Stanley Tucci
played two deadbeat actors who improvise with unsuspecting strangers in
The Impostors
.
[18]
Tucci and Platt developed the characters while working on a play at
Yale University
in 1988, with Tucci later completing the screenplay and directing the film.
[18]
In 1999, Platt played the wealthy and eccentric
crocodile
enthusiast Hector in
David E. Kelley
's
Lake Placid
, alongside
Bill Pullman
and
Bridget Fonda
.
[19]
Platt described Hector as "pretty abrasive and obnoxious at times, but, I hope, he has a way of growing on you. I think David originally thought of him as a
great white hunter
sort of guy, but when I signed on for the role he sort of wrote him in a different direction."
[19]
The short-lived drama
Deadline
provided Platt's first lead role on television. Created by
Dick Wolf
, who also created
Law & Order
,
Deadline
focused on the lives of newspaper
journalists
in New York City.
[20]
Platt starred as
Pulitzer Prize
-winning columnist Wallace Benton, an "unlikely hero". The strong cast, which also included
Bebe Neuwirth
and
Hope Davis
, could not compensate for substandard writing and the series was soon canceled.
[16]
[20]
After
Deadline
's
failure, Platt avoided work on television until he read a script for
The West Wing
and signed on for a guest role.
[16]
He received an
Emmy
nomination for his portrayal of no-nonsense
White House Counsel
Oliver Babish
,
[16]
brought in during season two to compile a defense for
President Bartlet
and others who covered up his non-disclosure of
multiple sclerosis
.
[21]
His role in the television series
Huff
as Russell Tupper from 2004 to 2006 was well-received, especially by creator Bob Lowry, who said, "Oliver plays an alcoholic,
drug-addicted
,
sexaholic
,
workaholic
, womanizing
misogynist
who is adorable. I don't know any actor who could do that. I originally saw Russell as a blond stud, but when I saw what Oliver could do, I realized how much better, richer, and less predictable he was than my idea of the character ... Oliver is very committed to the idea that story and dialogue be character-driven and unique".
[16]
Platt's work was nominated for two
Emmy awards
and a
Golden Globe
.
[16]
[22]
In 2005, Platt acted in
Harold Ramis
's film
The Ice Harvest
as an unhappy businessman with a
trophy wife
and two
stepchildren
who becomes involved with a friend who has stolen $2 million from a
Mafia boss
.
[23]
He also played a
lard
merchant named Papprizzio in
Lasse Hallstrom
's
Casanova
, who competes with Casanova (
Heath Ledger
) for marriage to Francesca (
Sienna Miller
).
[23]
Platt won the New York Film Critics Online Award for best supporting actor for his role in
Casanova
.
[24]
A Broadway production named
Shining City
was Platt's Broadway debut in 2006.
[16]
The play was set in
Dublin
, and Platt's role was the tortured
protagonist
, John.
[16]
Shining City
's
director said, "There is one word to describe Oliver. It's 'humanity.' He's got that
everyman
quality. He's a contradictory human being with flaws and strengths. And he's loveable. He can simultaneously make you laugh and break your heart. Oliver has brought to the role of John what I expected and more: tremendous inventiveness and sensitivity."
[16]
Platt visited Dublin to prepare for the role and ensure his performance was authentic.
[16]
He was nominated for a
Tony award
for "Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play".
[25]
In 2007, Platt played the part of
Yankees
owner
George Steinbrenner
in the
ESPN
mini-series
The Bronx Is Burning
.
[26]
Platt signed onto the project after
John Turturro
was confirmed as
Billy Martin
, because "This thing lives or dies by that portrayal ... I think it's great casting. God knows he has the intensity."
[11]
Platt starred in the pilot episode of
The Thick of It
, a remake of the
British show of the same name
in 2007.
[22]
The series was not picked up by
ABC
.
[22]
Platt starred as Nathan Detroit, alongside
Lauren Graham
as Miss Adelaide, in the Broadway
revival
of
Guys and Dolls
which began performances at the
Nederlander Theatre
on February 3, 2009, and officially opened on March 1, 2009.
[27]
The production closed on June 14, 2009, after 113 performances.
[28]
Platt starred as
White House Chief of Staff
Carl Anheuser in
Roland Emmerich
's
2012
, a disaster film released November 13, 2009.
In August 2010, he was cast in the role of "The Man in Black" in 2011's
X-Men
spin-off,
X-Men: First Class
, directed by
Matthew Vaughn
.
[29]
In 2012, he starred in the romantic comedy
The Oranges
alongside
Hugh Laurie
and
Leighton Meester
[30]
and appeared in the action film
Chinese Zodiac
. He provided the voice of Wiser the Owl in the 2013 animated film
Dorothy of Oz
.
[31]
He appeared in
Miramax
's 2016 supernatural thriller,
The 9th Life of Louis Drax
.
[32]
Personal life
[
edit
]
Platt married Mary Camilla Bonsal Campbell on September 12, 1992, at the
First Congregational Church
in
Kittery, Maine
.
[33]
They have three children, born 1995, 1997, and 1999. As of 1998, Platt had an open
airline ticket
when filming so he could return home frequently because his family did not accompany him to filming locations.
[18]
In a 1999 interview, he explained that he had chosen to focus on film and television rather than theater because of his family.
[34]
Platt has a home in
North Haven, Maine
.
[35]
Filmography
[
edit
]
Film
[
edit
]
Television
[
edit
]
Theatre
[
edit
]
Video games
[
edit
]
Awards and nominations
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"UPI Almanac for Sunday, Jan. 12, 2020"
.
United Press International
. January 12, 2020.
Archived
from the original on January 13, 2020
. Retrieved
June 27,
2020
.
… actor Oliver Platt in 1960 (age 60)
- ^
Platt, speaking to brother
Adam Platt
in
Platt, Adam (February 19, 2009).
"The Brothers Platt"
.
New York
.
Vox Media
.
Archived
from the original on August 4, 2020.
Our father joined the Foreign Service at a young age, which meant that we grew up all over the place. You were born in Washington, D.C. Our younger brother, Nick, who's now a prosperous business executive, was born in Hong Kong. I was born in Windsor, Ontario, which is right across from Detroit, when our father was stamping visas there, on the U.S.-Canada border.
- ^
"Oliver Platt Biography"
.
Film Reference
. Retrieved
May 16,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
Kipen, David (April 3, 1995). "Oliver Platt: from second banana to pick of the bunch".
L.A. Life
. Los Angeles Daily News. p. L1.
- ^
McDonald, Gayle (April 28, 2006). "Oliver Platt: 7 questions".
The Globe and Mail
. p. R34.
- ^
"Hamlet in New Hampshire was a haven for artists"
.
Vindy.com
. February 21, 2010
. Retrieved
July 1,
2016
.
- ^
Roberts, Gary Boyd.
"#43 Royal Descents, Notable Kin, and Printed Sources: New ? and Deleted ? Immigrants of Royal Descent"
.
NewEnglandAncestors.org
. Retrieved
December 29,
2009
.
- ^
"Oliver Platt Pedigree Chart | Oliver Platt | Ahnentafel No: 1 (44106)"
.
Famouskin.com
. Retrieved
July 1,
2016
.
- ^
"Joseph Hodges Choate Dies Suddenly Famous Lawyer and Statesman was 85"
.
The New York Times
. May 5, 1917.
- ^
a
b
c
Snead, Elizabeth (October 6, 1998). "Oliver Platt well-rounded as an 'Impostor'
".
USA Today
. p. 5D.
- ^
a
b
c
Deitsch, Richard (October 30, 2006). "Q&A Oliver Platt".
Sports Illustrated
. p. 24.
- ^
Lee, Linda (July 18, 1999).
"A night out with Oliver Platt; a wash and a shampoo"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
March 10,
2008
.
- ^
"All Rise! Veteran actor ? and Tufts graduate ? Oliver Platt stars as a judge in the new CBS show 'Queens Supreme'
"
.
Tufts e-News
. Medford/Somerville, Massachusetts. January 10, 2003. Archived from
the original
on September 18, 2016.
- ^
Shister, Gail (Fall 2004).
"It's Showtime! Former classmates and friends find themselves starring together in a new television series"
.
Tufts Magazine
. Archived from
the original
on March 5, 2016.
- ^
Lipton, Brian Scott (March 31, 2006).
"Playing Huff"
.
Theater Mania
. Archived from
the original
on July 31, 2008
. Retrieved
November 7,
2009
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
m
n
o
p
Horwitz, Simi (May 10, 2006). "Back stage; Oliver Platt plots his career without a map". VNU Entertainment Newswire.
- ^
"Face of the day: Oliver Platt". Wales on Sunday. August 11, 2002. p. 48.
- ^
a
b
c
Rowe, Douglas (October 27, 1998). "The ubiquitous Oliver Platt". Associated Press Newswires.
- ^
a
b
King, Dennis (July 19, 1999).
"Swimming with the crocs: Oliver Platt knows a thing or two about oddball characters"
.
Tulsa World
.
- ^
a
b
Gilbert, Matthew (October 2, 2000). "
'Deadline' misses, and that's a crime".
Living
. The Boston Globe.
- ^
Challen, Paul (2001).
Inside the West Wing
. Toronto: ECW Press.
ISBN
1-55022-468-9
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Oliver Platt joins ABC political comedy". Reuters News. March 9, 2007.
- ^
a
b
King, Susan (November 28, 2005). "Oliver Platt a scene-stealer in the old tradition: The actor tells all about the art of playing drunk, and the trouble with being the only American in a movie full of British actors playing Italians".
Vancouver Sun
. p. C3.
- ^
Hartl, John (December 25, 2005).
"Casanova: supporting actor Oliver Platt saves comedy's flow"
.
The Seattle Times
. Retrieved
March 10,
2008
.
- ^
"Oliver Platt, Donald Byrd receive Tony award nominations". US Fed News. June 5, 2006.
- ^
"Pinstripe epic".
New York Post
. September 20, 2006.
- ^
Itzkoff, Compiled by Dave (October 8, 2008).
"Theater : Guys & Dolls"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
July 1,
2016
.
- ^
"Playbill News: Adelaide's New Lament: Broadway's Guys and Dolls to Close June 14"
. Archived from
the original
on June 12, 2009
. Retrieved
June 23,
2009
.
- ^
Fleming, Mike (August 16, 2010).
"Oliver Platt Joins
X-Men: First Class
"
.
Deadline Hollywood
. Retrieved
August 16,
2010
.
- ^
"
The Oranges
official website"
.
Welcometooranges.com
. Retrieved
September 4,
2012
.
- ^
"
Dorothy of Oz
official website"
.
Dorothyofoz.com
. Retrieved
September 4,
2012
.
- ^
"Oliver Platt, Molly Parker, Barbara Hershey And Aiden Longworth Join "The 9th Life of Louis Drax" As Production Begins In Vancouver"
.
Miramax.com
. Archived from
the original
on May 9, 2018
. Retrieved
July 1,
2016
.
- ^
"WEDDINGS; Camilla Campbell, Oliver Platt"
.
The New York Times
. September 13, 1992
. Retrieved
March 10,
2008
.
- ^
Writer, Dennis King World Entertainment (July 19, 1999).
"Swimming with the crocs"
.
Tulsa World
. Retrieved
June 19,
2021
.
- ^
Star Map of North Haven Island | Portland Magazine
Retrieved April 14, 2017.
External links
[
edit
]
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International
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Artists
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People
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