MARK WAHLBERG

Date of Birth
5 June 1971, Dorchester, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Birth Name
Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg

Nickname
Marky Mark
Monk D

Height
5' 8" (1.73 m)

Mini Biography
American actor Mark Wahlberg is one of a handful of respected entertainers who successfully made the transition from teen pop idol to respected actor. A Best Supporting Actor Oscar nominee for The Departed (2006) who went on to receive positive critical reviews for his performance in The Fighter (2010), Wahlberg also is a solid comedy actor, proven by his starring role in Ted (2012).

Born Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg on June 5, 1971 in Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, Wahlberg is the youngest of nine children. Wahlberg became involved in drugs at a young age and, following a string of pretty crimes, was convicted of assault against two men in 1988. He was sentenced to two years in state prison at Boston's Deer Island House of Correction, but served 45 days. Wahlberg cites his jail time as being his motivation to improve his life. Around this time, his older brother Donnie Wahlberg had become an overnight teen idol as a member of the 1980's boy band New Kids on the Block.

Donnie used his connections in the music business to help his little brother secure a recording contract, and soon the world was introduced to Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, with Wahlberg as a bad-boy rapper who danced in his boxers. This led to a modeling contract with Calvin Klein, widespread fame and a 1992 biography that he dedicated to his penis. As that last detail hints, Wahlberg tended to get in trouble with his mouth, which was feverishly reported upon in the tabloids. But it was his appearance on a British talk show with rapper Shabba Ranks that effectively ended Wahlberg's career as a hip-hop star: When Ranks made blatantly homophobic statements that Wahlberg did nothing to refute, he soon found himself accused of bigotry. His second album was a flop, and soon after Wahlberg abandoned his rap career.

Using his real name, Wahlberg made his big screen debut in Penny Marshall's Renaissance Man (1994). This was followed by a performance in The Basketball Diaries (1995) that earned him positive critical notice, and a deeply disturbing role in Fear (1996) as a violent, obsessed stalker.

The major turning point in Wahlberg's career came with the role of troubled porn star Dirk Diggler in Paul Thomas Anderson's Boogie Nights (1997). Since then, Wahlberg has chosen roles that demonstrate a wide range of dramatic ability, starring in critically acclaimed dramas such as Three Kings (1999) and The Perfect Storm (2000), popcorn flicks like Planet of the Apes (2001) and Contraband (2012), and even indies such as I Heart Huckabees (2004).

Wahlberg also is the executive producer of such television series as "Boardwalk Empire" (2010), "In Treatment" (2008) and the highly successful comedy "Entourage" (2004), which was partly based on his experiences in Hollywood.

Wahlberg and his wife Rhea Durham have four children.

Mini Biography
Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg was born June 5th, 1971 in the poor working class district of Boston known as Dorchester, the youngest of nine children. His parents were Alma & Donald Wahlberg. The large Wahlberg brood didn't have a lot growing up, especially after his parents divorced when he was eleven. The kids crammed into a three bedroom apartment, none of them having very much privacy. After the divorce, Mark's mother has said that she became very self-absorbed with her own problems. She blames herself for her son's subsequent problems and delinquency. Wahlberg dropped out of high school at age 14 (but later got his GED) to pursue a life of petty crime and drugs. He'd spend his days scamming and stealing, working on the odd drug deal before treating himself to the substances himself. The young man also had a violent streak - one which was often aimed at minorities. At age 16, he was convicted of assault against two Vietnamese men after he had tried to rob them. As a result of his assault conviction, he was sentenced to serve 50 days in prison at Deer Island penitentiary. Whilst there, he began working out to pass time and, when he emerged at the end of his sentence, he had gone from being a scrawny young kid to a buff young man. Wahlberg also credits the jail time as being his motivation to improve his lifestyle and leave the crime behind him. Once he was released, Mark rejoined his family, who were now in the national spotlight. His older brother Donnie Wahlberg was a member of the 1980's singing sensation New Kids on the Block. Mark himself had been an original member of the band but had backed out early on - uncomfortable with the squeaky clean image of the group. A precursor to the boy-band craze, New Kids on the Block were dominating the charts and were on top of their game. Donnie decided to help his little brother out and tried to get him on the straight and narrow. He pulled some strings and got Mark set up with a recording contract. Despite a lack of singing ability, promoters took to his dance moves and a physique they knew teenage girls would love. Donnie scripted some easy songs for Mark, who collected a troupe of dancers and a DJ to become his "Funky Bunch" and "Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch" was born. His debut album, "Music for the People", was a smash hit, which was propelled along by the rapper's willingness to disrobe down to boxer-briefs on stage, not to mention several catchy tunes. Teenage girls thrilled to the rapping "bad boy". Record producer David Geffen saw in Wahlberg a cash-cow of marketing ability. After speaking to designer Calvin Klein, Marky Mark was set up as the designer's chief underwear model. His scantily clad figure soon adorned billboards across the nation. Ironically, while the New Kids on the Block's fame was dwindling as audiences tired of their syrupy lyrics, "Marky Mark's" bad boy image was becoming even more of a commodity. He was constantly in the headlines (often of the tabloids) after multiple scandals. In 1992, he released a book dedicated to his penis. Wahlberg was constantly getting into rumored fights, most memorably with Madonna and her entourage at a Los Angeles party. While things were always intense, they were relatively harmless and made for enjoyable reading for the public. However, when the story of his arrest for assault (and the allegations of racism) broke in the press, things took on a decidedly darker note. People were not amused. Soon after, while on a British talk show along with rapper Shabba Ranks, he got into even more trouble. After Ranks made the statement that gays should be crucified, Wahlberg was accused of condoning the comments by his silence. Marky Mark was suddenly surrounded by charges of brutality, homophobia and racial hatred. His second album, "You Gotta Believe", had not been faring well and, after the charges surfaced, it plummeted from the charts. Adding to the hoopla, Wahlberg was brought to court for allegedly assaulting a security guard. He was ordered to make amends by appearing in a series of anti-bias advertisements. Humbled and humiliated by his fall from grace in the music world, Wahlberg decided to pursue another angle, acting. He dropped the "Marky Mark" moniker and became known simply as Mark Wahlberg. His first big screen role came in Penny Marshall's Renaissance Man (1994). Despite the name change, many people snickered at the idea of the has-been rapper thinking he could make it as an actor. From the get-go, he was proving them wrong. In Renaissance Man (1994), he gave an utterly charming performance as a simple but sincere army recruit. What naysayers remained found it increasingly difficult to write Mark Wahlberg off as he delivered one fine performance after another. He blew them away in the controversial The Basketball Diaries (1995) and chilled them in Fear (1996) as every father's worst nightmare. Wahlberg hit a high point in Paul Thomas Anderson's Boogie Nights (1997), in which he metamorphosed from shy young "Eddie Adams" into egomaniac porn star "Dirk Diggler". Critics and audiences were impressed with the young actor's range and abilities, not to mention certain other attributes. It seems as though Mark Wahlberg has finally put bad boy "Marky Mark" behind him. While some controversy remains (Wahlberg denies ever having been a racist), he is now taken much more seriously than he ever was before. He is one of the few teen pop sensations to survive through it and come out on top.

IMDb Mini Biography By: Julianna_Peterson@yahoo.com

Spouse
Rhea Durham (1 August 2009 - present) 4 children

Trade Mark
Boston accent

Often plays tough, no-nonsense characters


Trivia
Younger brother of Arthur Wahlberg, Donnie Wahlberg and Robert Wahlberg.

Named one of "People" magazines 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. [May 1992]

His older siblings are: Arthur Wahlberg, James, Debbie, Michelle, Paul, Tracey,Robert Wahlberg and Donnie Wahlberg. Robert, Donnie and Mark are from their mother's third marriage with Donald Wahlberg. Half Siblings from his dad's side of the family Scott Wahlberg, Buddy Wahlberg and Donna Wahlberg.

Was originally cast as Linus Caldwell in Ocean's Eleven (2001) but dropped out.

December 2001 - Bought a 5 million dollar mansion in Beverly Hills, and moved his mother in.

His music group, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, debuted on "The Arsenio Hall Show" (1989) in the late 1980s.

[September 2, 2003] His first child with Rhea Durham, a girl named Ella Rae was born at 4.am at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The baby weighed in at 7 pounds, 4 ounces.

He said in one of the featurettes in The Italian Job (2003) DVD that he thought about doing the movie because it was going to be his third remake in a row (if you don't count Rock Star (2001)) after The Truth About Charlie (2002) and Planet of the Apes (2001).

Is of Swedish, Irish, German and French Canadian descent.

Narrated the documentary Juvies (2004) along with The Italian Job (2003) co-star Mos Def (Mos Def supplied poetry).

His older sister Debbie passed away on September 2nd, 2003, leaving behind a teenage son. She died the same day Mark's first child Ella Rae was born.

Has a tattoo of Bob Marley on his left shoulder.

Is very close to his mother.

Older brother, Donnie Wahlberg, was a member of the boy group New Kids on the Block.

Mark and Rhea Durham, welcomed their second baby and first son, Michael Wahlberg, on March 21, 2006.

Has a summer home in Wrentham, Massachusetts.

Turned down the role of "Hero" in Feast (2005).

Turned down the lead role of "Jake Roenick" in Assault on Precinct 13 (2005).

Martin Scorsese directed Wahlberg to his very first Academy Award nomination as "Sgt. Sean Dignam" in The Departed (2006). Wahlberg has said that it's one of the roles he is most proud of.

Friends with Leonardo DiCaprio.

Considers The Truth About Charlie (2002) his worst film.

He and some friends were actually booked to fly on one of the planes that crashed in to the twin towers on September 11, 2001. Originally planning on flying from Boston to Los Angeles but at the last minute they decided to charter a plane to Toronto, Canada for a film festival and then from there to Los Angeles. A near brush with death that he still dreams about today. "We certainly would have tried to do something to fight. I've had probably over 50 dreams about it."

Ranked #65 on VH1's 100 Sexiest Artists.

His father Donald E. Wahlberg, a veteran of the Korean War, died on 14 February 2008.

As of 2008, he earns a reported $12-15 million per film plus a percentage of the back end profits.

While performing as Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch he often wore nothing but underpants on stage. Calvin Klein consequently asked him to model for Klein's underwear line.

Was originally a member of New Kids on the Block, but left the band before they had their big break.

Through being a distant relative of Madonna, he is also one of Céline Dion.

Had to spent about 60 days in the House of Correction in Massachusetts when he was a teenager.

Was a drug dealer as a young teenager.

His mother's maiden name is Alma McPeck.

Was born in St. Margarets's hospital in Boston.

Dropped out of school when he was 13.

Rhea Durham, gave birth to their third child, a boy named Brendan Joseph Wahlberg, on September 16, 2008. He weighed 7 lbs. 10 oz.

Has stated his performance as Max Payne in Max Payne (2008) as his favorite role.

Has stated that he struggled with weight gain his whole life.

Was briefly sent to prison for two 1988 incidents in which he attacked, beat, and yelled ethnic slurs at two Vietnamese men in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Both incidents were unprovoked by the victims, and in the second attack, Wahlberg beat and permanently blinded in one eye a man who was trying to help him escape from the police after the first attack.

Ranked #1 on VH1's "Hottest Hotties of the 90's".

Was spoofed by Andy Samberg on "Saturday Night Live" (1975). After the first skit premiered Wahlberg jokingly acted as if he was offended when appearing on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" (2003) ("Jimmy Kimmel Live!: Episode #6.141" (2008)), but he eventually appeared in SNL ("Saturday Night Live: Josh Brolin/Adele (#34.5)" (2008)) going along with the joke.

He and his wife, Rhea Durham, welcomed their fourth child, Grace Margaret Wahlberg, on January 11, 2010.

Paid $8.25 million to purchase a 6.14-acre, vacant lot in Beverly Hills, California's Beverly Park neighborhood where he plans to custom-build a mansion on the property. [2009]

Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on July 29, 2010.

Married long time partner, Rhea Durham, at a private Catholic ceremony in Beverly Hills, California [August 1, 2009].

On September 11th 2001, Wahlberg and several friends were due to take flight United 93 from his native Boston to Los Angeles. At the last moment, they decided to hire a charter flight to a film festival in Toronto. United Airlines flight 93 went on to crash in a Pennsylvania field as passengers fought to overpower four Al-Qaeda hijackers who intended to use the plane to attack Washington DC.


Personal Quotes
I've always looked at my career as an athlete would look at his. I won't play forever. Some don't know when to walk away, but the smart ones do.

[Reflecting on his delight for starring in Walt Disney's Invincible (2006)]: It's a movie my kids can see - my nieces and nephews. I haven't had that. None of my nieces and nephews have seen Boogie Nights (1997), thank God! I haven't made too many PG movies.

[His reaction to his Oscar-nomination for The Departed (2006)]: Any time someone says you have an opportunity to work with Martin Scorsese you jump at the chance.

Marty and I were constantly in this struggle. I had problems with Marty. He was "I'm Martin Scorsese... da-dee-da." He was pushing me in different ways. But it wasn't just Marty. The whole time I was in the character so I was mad at everybody. It was Leo, Matt and Jack. Fuck Jack too. We were able to laugh about it afterwards and we have a great relationship now and we're going to do other stuff in the future.

In my movies, I'm not trying to erase any old image of myself, really. And also I'm not trying to imitate anyone or follow in their footsteps, because I know, Burt Reynolds was just one of the people that told me this, I know how you can only last in this business if you got something special to offer, just by being yourself. Imitators don't last, and I'd like to last.

[Talking about Boogie Nights (1997)]: It was a showstopper, and it had a good screenplay, a real story. It also helped Burt Reynolds' career, and now I can more sympathize with that, now that I've been in the business a fairly long time, so I can see how doing a comeback that's popular and also critically liked is something rare and real special.

[on David Beckham] I'm not telling Beckham to take his family home. I'm just not sure why he came to America in the first place. Man, we don't want your soccer. There's no way Americans are going to buy the idea of 90 minutes of running around without much happening. Thanks for trying guys, but we'll stick to baseball and basketball.

[on George Michael being sent to prison for driving under the influence of drugs] I was 16 when I went to prison but he's been busted a couple of times. He should get a driver or go to Amsterdam where pot is legal. But my heart goes out anyone who goes to prison. I pray for him.

I like to talk to people. I've got one assistant, one Blackberry. That's my overhead. I don't text that much or email. I like to sit down face-to-face and have a conversation with you. I'm old-fashioned.

[on narrowly avoiding being on hijacked 9/11 flight United 93] If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn't have went down like it did. There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, 'OK, we're going to land somewhere safely, don't worry.' We certainly would have tried to do something to fight. I've had probably over 50 dreams about it.

I did a lot of things that I regretted and I certainly paid for my mistakes. You have to go and ask for forgiveness and it wasn't until I really started doing good and doing right, by other people as well as myself, that I really started to feel that guilt go away. So I don't have a problem going to sleep at night.

As far as I'm concerned, there's no job more important on the planet than being a mom.

I don't want to let my guard down and feel too comfortable. If you become complacent, you start feeling entitled. I'm ready to go dig ditches if I have to. Whatever I gotta do to provide for my family. Whatever I gotta do to make sure that I do the best possible job at whatever wonderful opportunities I've been handed.


Salary
Planet of the Apes (2001) $8,000,000
The Truth About Charlie (2002) $10,000,000
"Entourage" (2004) $3,000,000/year (2007) as Executive Producer