Michael O'Keefe

Michael O'Keefe (born April 24, 1955) is an American film and television actor, known for his roles as Danny Noonan in Caddyshack and Ben Meechum in The Great Santini — for which he received Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year, as well as a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Early life

O'Keefe was born Raymond Peter O'Keefe, Jr., in Mount Vernon, New York, the oldest of seven children in a devoutly Roman Catholic Irish American family.^[1] He is the son of Stephanie (née Fitzpatrick) and Raymond Peter O'Keefe, who was a law professor at Fordham University, and also taught at St. Thomas University.^[2][3] O'Keefe grew up in Larchmont, New York^[4] and attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and New York University, and made his acting debut in a 1970 Colgate television commercial.

He is a cousin of playwright Will Eno.

Career

O'Keefe's best-known film role is Danny Noonan in the comedy film Caddyshack. He received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his role as the oldest son of a Marine aviator in The Great Santini, starring Robert Duvall, also nominated for an Academy Award for the film. He played a Marine in 1980 in the miniseries A Rumor of War as the friend of Brad Davis' character, Philip Caputo, and played the lead role in the 1982 film, Split Image, as an all-American college athlete who gets lured into a religious cult by a beautiful girl (Karen Allen). He has also appeared in the thriller film The Glass House, and starred with Tommy Lee Jones in the 1983 pirate adventure Nate and Hayes (also known as Savage Islands). More recently, O'Keefe appeared opposite George Clooney in Michael Clayton. He has appeared twice opposite Jack Nicholson, as his son in Ironweed and as the father of a murdered girl in The Pledge. His film Frozen River was in the competition at the Sundance Film Festival in 2008. He also plays the powerful District Attorney Calvin Beckett in the film American Violet.

O'Keefe's Broadway theatre credits include Side Man, Mass Appeal, Fifth of July, and Reckless with Mary-Louise Parker.

O'Keefe's highest-profile television role to date has been his portrayal of Fred, the husband of Jackie Harris (Laurie Metcalf) on the ABC series Roseanne. O'Keefe appeared on the show from 1993 to 1995. After leaving the series, O'Keefe played the husband in the series Life's Work, which aired after Roseanne in its final season. Additional television credits include the lead role of Simon MacHeath in the short-lived Boston-based series Against the Law, which aired on Fox during the 1990–91 season, and the role of Ron Steffey in the short-lived 1992 CBS drama Middle Ages. He has guest starred on Saving Grace, The West Wing, Criminal Minds, Law & Order, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, House, M*A*S*H, Ghost Whisperer, Brothers and Sisters, Leverage, and The Waltons. He can be seen currently in Homeland as CIA agent and former interim station chief John Redmond.

Personal life

O'Keefe was married to rock/blues singer Bonnie Raitt from April 27, 1991, to November 9, 1999, when they were divorced. He has been a practicing Zen Buddhist since 1981.^[5] He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Bennington College.^[6] He married actress Emily Donahoe in 2011.^[7]

Filmography

Awards and nominations

Academy Award

• 1981: Nominated, "Best Actor in a Supporting Role" – The Great Santini

CableACE Award

• 1987: Nominated, "Best Actor in a Dramatic Series" – The Hitchhiker

Golden Globe Award

• 1981: Nominated, "New Male Star of the Year in a Motion Picture" – The Great Santini

References

External links

• Official website
• Michael O'Keefe at the Internet Movie Database
• Michael O'Keefe at the Internet Broadway Database
  
• Michael O'Keefe at the Internet Off-Broadway Database