David Marshall Grant (born June 21, 1955) is an American actor, singer and writer.
David Marshall Grant | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 21, 1955 Westport, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Education | Yale University (Master of Fine Arts) |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, singer, writer |
| Years active | 1979–present |
Life and career
editGrant was born in Westport, Connecticut to physician parents.[1] Immediately after graduating from Connecticut College with an M.F.A. and receiving a certificate in fine arts from the Yale School of Drama, his first paying job was as Richard Gere's lover in the Broadway play Bent.[2] A student at Juilliard during summer breaks from high school, Grant soon joined the Yale Repertory Company during his college days, and in 1978, made an impression in the play Bent.[3]
His first screen role was in the 1979 film French Postcards. He went on to appear in several more films. In 1985, he co-starred with Kevin Costner in American Flyers, John Badham's film on bicycle racing. By this time, Grant was working in episodic television and had the role of Digger Barnes in the miniseries Dallas: The Early Years. In 1987, he played Sonny Binkley in the Matt Dillon film The Big Town. In 1989, he portrayed the gay character Russell Weller on the television show thirtysomething. Although he only appeared in four episodes from 1989 to 1990, the role brought him considerable recognition, particularly in one groundbreaking episode that featured his character in bed with another male character, a scene that caused outcry among conservative sponsors at the time.
Grant played roles in various television shows and movies, including Happy Birthday, Gemini, Legs, Labor of Love, CSI: Miami, Law & Order, Criminal Minds, and Alias. He played a gay husband in the 2004 remake of The Stepford Wives; the father of Anne Hathaway's character in the 2006 film The Devil Wears Prada; and more recently appeared on television in a May 2009 episode of Party Down and in the fifth season premiere of A Million Little Things in February 2023.
On the stage, Grant is most notable for his portrayal of Joe Pitt in the first Broadway production of Tony Kushner's Angels in America. The role earned him a 1994 Tony Award nomination as Best Actor (Featured Role – Play).
In 1998, Grant began a career as a writer. Snakebit, his first play, premiered at Grove Street Playhouse and transferred to the Century Theatre. The play was nominated for the 1999 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play and was nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award. Current Events, his second play, was produced by Manhattan Theatre Club in 2000. Pen opened in 2006 at Playwrights Horizons. Also in 2006, he began working for the drama series Brothers & Sisters as a screenwriter, story editor and (as of season 2 in September 2007), a series producer. The show was co-produced by Ken Olin, whom Grant had worked with on thirtysomething. In 2012, he was a writer and producer on the musical series Smash.
Grant is the great-great-grandson of the first couple to have their wedding featured in the famous wedding announcement section of The New York Times.[4] He is also a distant cousin to Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th president of the United States.[4]
Film and television
edit- French Postcards (1979) as Alex
- Happy Birthday, Gemini (1980) as Randy
- American Flyers (1985) as David Sommers
- Dallas: The Early Years (1986) as Digger Barnes
- The Big Town (1987) as Sonny Binkley
- Bat*21 (1988) as Ross Carver[5]
- Breaking Point (1989) as Osterman
- Thirtysomething (5 episodes between 1989 and 1990) as Russell Weller[6]
- Air America (1990) as Rob Diehl
- Strictly Business (1991) as David
- Citizen Cohn (1992) as Robert Kennedy
- Forever Young (1992) as Lt. Col. Wilcox[7]
- Through the Eyes of a Killer (1992), TV, as Max Campbell
- And the Band Played On (1993) as Dennis Seeley
- Chicago Hope, episode "Internal Affairs" (March 20, 1995) as Stephen Tomilson
- Three Wishes (1995) as Phil
- The Chamber (1996) as Governor David McAllister
- The Rock as White House Chief of Staff Hayden Sinclair
- A Season in Purgatory (1996), miniseries
- Law & Order, episode "Harvest" (October 29, 1997) and episode "Shadow" (November 26, 1997) as Charlie Harmon
- Nothing Sacred (6 episodes in 1998, 3 unaired) as Fr. Martin Briggs[8]
- Law & Order: Criminal Intent, episode "Best Defense" (October 20, 2002)
- The Stepford Wives (2004) as Jerry Harmon
- Numb3rs, episode "Dirty Bomb" (April 22, 2005) as Brent Hauser
- CSI: Miami, episode "Murder in a Flash" (2005) as Headmaster Brooks
- The Devil Wears Prada (2006) as Richard Sachs
References
edit- ^ "David Marshall Grant Biography (1955-)". Film Reference.
- ^ Vaillancourt, Daniel (March 2, 1999). "Writing his own ticket - gay actor/dramatist David Marshall Grant's new play 'Snakebit'". FindArticles. Archived from the original on April 1, 2008.
- ^ "David Marshall Grant". Hollywood.com. Archived from the original on November 11, 2017. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
- ^ a b Smith Brady, Lois (January 23, 2017). "COMMITTED – 1851 – 1880". The New York Times. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
- ^ Kempley, Rita (October 21, 1988). "'Bat 21'". The Washington Post.
- ^ Kramer, Gary M. (December 7, 2022). "David Marshall Grant on his life, work, and "Spoiler Alert"". Philadelphia Gay News. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
- ^ "David Marshall Grant". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
- ^ Barnhart, Aaron (March 7, 1998). "Jennifer Beals Joins 'Nothing Sacred'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
