Alec Baldwin biography

Synopsis

Early Life

Alexander Rae Baldwin III was born on April 3, 1958, in Amityville, New York, the second of six children of a football coach and a social studies teacher. He grew up in Massapequa, a suburb of Long Island, New York. His brothers Daniel, William, and Stephen are also actors.

Baldwin majored in political science at George Washington University, intending to go to law school. However, his childhood love for acting resurfaced in college, resulting in a move to Manhattan. He then enrolled in New York University's drama department under the tutelage of the venerable acting coach Lee Strasberg.

On Stage

Baldwin's career started on television. He landed a role on the NBC soap opera, The Doctors (1980-82). He soon moved to prime-time TV as a co-star in the series Cutter to Houston, and as Joshua Rush in the nighttime soap opera, Knots Landing (1984-85).

His Broadway debut was in Joe Orton's black comedy, Loot (1986), which won Baldwin a Theatre World Award. This was followed by a role in Caryl Churchill's hit comedy, Serious Money (1987). He starred off-Broadway in a sold-out engagement of Prelude to a Kiss, receiving an Obie Award as Best Actor in 1991. He would reprise this role on screen in 1992.

Baldwin then appeared as Stanley Kowalski in the revival of Tennessee Williams'A Streetcar Named Desire (1992), earning a Tony nomination for Best Actor. He later appeared in the 1995 version of the play on CBS, which co-starred Jessica Lange, John Goodman and Diane Lane.

Hollywood Success

Baldwin's inauspicious film debut was in the movie Forever Lulu (1987) with Deborah Harry and Dr. Ruth Westheimer. Subsequent film highlights include Tim Burton's offbeat comedy Beetlejuice (1988), Jonathan Demme's Married to the Mob (1988) with Michelle Pfeiffer, Oliver Stone's Talk Radio (1988), Mike Nichols' Working Girl (1988), as Jimmy Swaggart in Great Balls of Fire (1989), starring roles in Miami Blues (1990) and The Hunt For Red October (1990). He was also part of the all-star ensemble cast in David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross (1992), starred in Prelude to a Kiss (1992), The Shadow (1994) and an unbilled cameo in 1999's Notting Hill, with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant.

In 1998, Baldwin went back to the stage, appearing in Shakespeare's Hamlet with co-star Angela Bassett, at the Joseph Papp Public Theater in New York City. He returned to the big screen in the 1998 thriller Mercury Rising and the 1999 comedy Outside Providence. In 2003, Baldwin signed on to co-star in Aviator, a Howard Hughes biopic starring Leonardo DiCaprio. In 2004, Balwin starred in the quirky Along Came Polly with Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston.

Baldwin then landed a starring role in the popular NBC television sitcom 30 Rock with co-star Tina Fey, which debuted in the fall of 2006. He showed audiences his comedic talents with his portrayal of television network executive Jack Donaghy. Since the show's inception, Baldwin has received numerous awards for his work in the sitcom, including three Golden Globes, three Screen Actors Guild Awards and two Emmy Awards. Baldwin also works behind the cameras on 30 Rock, serving as a producer of the show.

In addition to his work with 30 Rock, Baldwin has made several films. He starred opposite Meryl Streep in the 2009 romantic comedy It's Complicated and appeared in the movie musical Rock