Award-winning actor Ted Danson was born on December 29, 1947 in San Diego, California. He was a member of the varsity basketball team during his tenure at Kent School, but his interests shifted to drama when he attended Stanford University. He eventually transferred to the then-called Carnegie Institute of Technology, where he graduated with a drama degree in 1968. He began his television career in 1975, appearing in the daytime soap Somerset; this was followed by guest roles in shows such as Taxi, Laverne and Shirley, Benson and Magnum P.I., as well as several advertisements.
Danson’s most popular role came in 1982, when he joined the cast of the successful sitcom Cheers. In many ways he is the comedy’s central character: he played Sam Malone, a former baseball star and recovering alcoholic, who owns and tends bar at Cheers. Many of the program’s central themes revolve around Sam’s attempts to start romances with various women, and as the series progressed, his attempts to settle down to a monogamous lifestyle. He earned two Emmys and two Golden Globes for this character.
Danson’s next notable work was in another sitcom, Becker, which first aired in 1998. Here he played the title character, Dr. John Becker, whose irritability towards everybody—his patients, colleagues, friends and everything else—makes him inaccessible to most people, although he still manages to show his kind-hearted side. The series ran for six seasons and ended in 2004. He also had a recurring role in Curb Your Enthusiasm, where he played himself. He also starred in two unsuccessful sitcoms, Ink and Help Me Help You.
Despite his fame in comedic roles, Danson also established himself as a dramatic actor. This became first known with his role in the 1984 television movie, Something About Amelia, which earned him a Golden Globe award the following year. More recently, he joined the cast of the legal drama Damages as Arthur Forbisher, a powerful and corrupt self-made billionaire. The role earned him an Emmy nomination for best supporting actor in 2008.