Kevin Bacon

Kevin Bacon is an American actor and a subject of the the game / hypothesis of a theorem of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. He is bigger in Hollywood than in Geni.

After an electrifying performance in the 1984 film Footloose, actor Kevin Bacon was transformed from a virtual unknown into an unlikely heartthrob. Bacon has won Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards, was nominated for an Emmy Award, and was named by The Guardian as one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination. His prolific screen career inspired the trivia game titled Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, based on the idea that any Hollywood actor can be linked to another in a handful of steps based on their associations with Bacon.

Born on July 8, 1958, one of six children, Bacon was raised in a close-knit family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His mother, Ruth Hilda (née Holmes; 1916–1991), taught elementary school and was a liberal activist, while his father, Edmund Bacon, was a well-respected architect and a prominent Philadelphian who had been Executive Director of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission for many years. At 16, in 1974, Bacon won a full scholarship to and attended the Pennsylvania Governors School for the Arts, at Bucknell University, a state-funded five-week arts program where he studied Theatre under Dr. Glory Van Scott, which helped solidify Bacon's passion for the arts.

Bacon studied acting at the Circle in the Square Theater in New York, and after some stage work gained his first feature film role in National Lampoon's Animal House (1981). Later films include Footloose (1984), JFK (1991), The River Wild (1993, Golden Globe Best Actor nomination), Apollo 13 (1995), Hollow Man (2000), Mystic River (2003), and Saving Angelo (2006). Since the mid-1990s he has performed with The Bacon Brothers, a folk-rock group formed with his brother Michael.

He has been married to actress Kyra Sedgwick since September 4, 1988; they met on the set of the PBS version of Lanford Wilson's play Lemon Sky.

Filmography

1978 National Lampoon's Animal House Chip Diller

1979 Starting Over Husband

1979 The Gift Teddy

1980 Hero at Large 2nd Teenager

1980 Friday the 13th Jack Burrell

1981 Only When I Laugh Don

1982 Diner Timothy Fenwick Jr.

1982 Forty Deuce Ricky

1983 Enormous Changes at the Last Minute Dennis

1984 Footloose Ren McCormack

1986 Quicksilver Jack Casey

1987 White Water Summer Vic

1987 End of the Line Everett

1987 Planes, Trains & Automobiles Taxi Racer

1988 She's Having a Baby Jefferson 'Jake' Edward Briggs

1989 Criminal Law Martin Thiel

1989 The Big Picture Nick Chapman

1990 Tremors Valentine 'Val' McKee

1990 Flatliners David Labraccio

1991 Pyrates Ari

1991 Queens Logic Dennis

1991 He Said, She Said Dan Hanson

1991 JFK Willie O'Keefe

1991 "A Little Vicious" narrator short subject

1992 A Few Good Men Capt. Jack Ross

1994 The Air Up There Jimmy Dolan

1994 The River Wild Wade Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture

1994 "New York Skyride" narrator short subject

1995 Murder in the First Henri Young Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor

Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role

1995 Apollo 13 Jack Swigert Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

1995 Balto Balto

1996 Sleepers Sean Nokes

1997 Picture Perfect Sam Mayfair

1997 Destination Anywhere Mike

1997 Telling Lies in America Billy Magic

1998 Digging to China Ricky Schroth

1998 Wild Things Sgt. Ray Duquette

1999 Stir of Echoes Tom Witzky

2000 My Dog Skip Jack Morris

2000 We Married Margo Himself

2000 Hollow Man Sebastian Caine

2001 Novocaine Lance Phelps

2002 Trapped Joe Hickey

2003 Mystic River Sean Devine Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Cast

Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

2003 In the Cut John Graham

2003 "Imagine New York" Himself short subject

2004 The Woodsman Walter Chlotrudis Award for Best Actor

Nominated—Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Male

Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama

2004 Cavedweller Randall Pritchard

2004 "Natural Disasters: Forces of Nature" narrator short subject

2005 Loverboy Marty also directed

2005 Beauty Shop Jorge

2005 Where the Truth Lies Lanny Morris

2007 Death Sentence Nick Hume

2007 Rails & Ties Tom Stark

2008 The Air I Breathe Love

2008 Frost/Nixon Jack Brennan Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

2008 "Saving Angelo" Brent short subject

2009 Taking Chance Lt. Col. Michael Strobl Television Film

Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film

Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie

Nominated—Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor – Miniseries or a Movie

Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film

2009 The Magic 7 Himself

2009 My One and Only Dan

2011 X-Men: First Class

Television

1979 Search for Tomorrow Todd Adamson

1980–1981 The Guiding Light T. J. 'Tim' Werner #2 Six episodes

1983 The Demon Murder Case Kenny Miller Television film

1984 Mister Roberts Ens. Frank Pulver

1985 The Little Sister Probation Officer Uncredited; television film

1988 Lemon Sky Alan Television film

1994 Frasier Vic Single episode

2002 Will & Grace Himself Single episode: "Bacon and Eggs"

Directing

   * The Closer (2006) (Episode: Serving the King: Part 2)

* The Closer (2007) (Episode: Blindsided)
* The Closer (2008) (Episode: Sudden Death)
* The Closer (2009) (Episode: Waivers of Extradition)