Born on November 28, 1950 in Tenafly, New Jersey, Ed Harris is a four-time Oscar-nominated actor, writer, and director best known for his performances in The Rock, Glengarry Glen Ross, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, National Treasure: Book of Secrets, and The Truman Show. The son of a travel agent and a singer, Ed Harris was raised in a middle class Presbyterian family. After he graduated from Tenafly High School in 1969, his family moved to New Mexico, where he discovered his interest in acting after seeing theater productions. In his senior year, he was the captain of the football team and even competed in athletics at Columbia University. He enrolled at the University of New Mexico to major in drama, and since landed successful roles in the local theater. He moved to Los Angeles and eventually entered the California Institute of Arts.
It is said that Harris’ first "important" film was Borderline. In 1983, his portrayal as astronaut John Glenn in The Right Stuff earned him mainstream popularity. Around a decade later, he would be nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in the similarly themed Apollo 13. In the four-year period from 1999 to 2003, he received three Oscar nominations for The Truman Show, Pollock, and the Hours. He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor for The Truman Show.
Harris’ other screen credits include A History of Violence, Gone, Baby, Gone, and National Treasure: Book of Secrets. He also starred in the television adaptations of Riders of the Purple Sage and Empire Falls. His directorial debut, however, came in 2000 with Pollock.
Harris also has an admirable career in theater, most notable of which is the production of Neil LaBute’s one-man play Wrecks at the Public Theater in New York City. Such sterling performance earned him several major award nominations. He has been married to actress Amy Madigan since 1983.