Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg, 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 Un poeta entre reclutas
(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 Un poeta entre reclutas
(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 Diario de un rebelde (1995) and chilled them in Pasión obsesiva (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
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.
Spouse
| Rhea Durham | (1 August 2009 - present) (4 children) |
Trade Mark
Boston accent
Often plays tough, no-nonsense characters
Trivia
Named one of "People" magazines 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. [May 1992]
His older siblings are: Arthur Wahlberg, James, Debbie, Michelle, Paul Wahlberg, 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 are
Scott Wahlberg, Buddy Wahlberg and Donna Wahlberg.
Was originally cast as Linus Caldwell in Ocean's Eleven. Hagan juego (2001) but dropped out.
His music group, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, debuted on The Arsenio Hall Show (1989) in the late 1980s.
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 La verdad sobre Charlie (2002) and El planeta de los simios (2001).
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.
Has a summer home in Wrentham, Massachusetts.
Turned down the role of "Hero" in Atrapados (2005).
Turned down the lead role of "Jake Roenick" in Asalto al distrito 13 (2005).
Martin Scorsese directed Wahlberg to his very first Academy Award nomination as "Sgt. Sean Dignam" in Infiltrados (2006). Wahlberg has said that it's one of the roles he is most proud of.
Friends with Leonardo DiCaprio.
Considers La verdad sobre Charlie (2002) his worst film.
Ranked #65 on VH1's 100 Sexiest Artists.
His father, Donald E. Wahlberg, a veteran of the Korean War, died on 14 February 2008.
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.
His mother's maiden name is Alma Elaine Donnelly.
Was born in St. Margarets's hospital in Boston.
Dropped out of school when he was 13.
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 (2008)) going along with the joke.
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.
(August 1, 2009) Married long-time partner, Rhea Durham, at a private Catholic ceremony in Beverly Hills, California.
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.
Is a registered Democrat.
Became a father for the 1st time at age 32 when his girlfriend [now wife] Rhea Durham gave birth to their daughter Ella Rae Wahlberg on September 2, 2003.
Became a father for the 2nd time at age 34 when his girlfriend [now wife] Rhea Durham gave birth to their son Michael Wahlberg on March 21, 2006.
Became a father for the 4th time at age 38 when his fiancée [now wife] Rhea Durham gave birth to their daughter Grace Margaret Wahlberg on January 11, 2010.
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'sInvencible (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 Infiltrados(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 Reynoldswas 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.
For actors who sit there and talk about, "Oh, I went to SEAL training." I don't give a fuck what you did. You don't know what these guys did. For somebody go sit there and say my job was as difficult as being in the military? How fucking dare you, while you sit in a makeup chair for two hours?
I pray to be a good servant to God, a father, a husband, a son, a friend, a brother, an uncle, a good neighbor, a good leader to those who look up to me, a good follower to those who are serving God and doing the right thing.
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
2 Guns (2013) $10.000.000
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'sInvencible (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 Infiltrados(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 Reynoldswas 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.
For actors who sit there and talk about, "Oh, I went to SEAL training." I don't give a fuck what you did. You don't know what these guys did. For somebody go sit there and say my job was as difficult as being in the military? How fucking dare you, while you sit in a makeup chair for two hours?
I pray to be a good servant to God, a father, a husband, a son, a friend, a brother, an uncle, a good neighbor, a good leader to those who look up to me, a good follower to those who are serving God and doing the right thing.
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
2 Guns (2013) $10.000.000
(Gifs and photos: source_Tumblr and google)
