Tom Selleck has had a long and highly successful career in the entertainment industry. The star of “Magnum, PI” and “Blue Bloods” is still passionate about his work – the next season of the successful drama series is about to start airing.
Over the years, Selleck has played many challenging roles. However, the 77-year-old has a history of performing his own stunts – a fact that sadly haunts him.
Tom Selleck wasn’t sure if he wanted to be an actor growing up. He was born on January 29, 1945 in Detroit, Michigan, and his family moved to California, where he grew up in the San Fernando Valley.
Selleck dreamed of attending the University of Southern California (USC), but his family could not afford the tuition.
He graduated from Grant High School in 1962. After enrolling at Los Angeles Valley College, he decided to live at home with his parents to save money.
At his young age, it seemed more likely that Tom would pursue a career in sports rather than acting. He was a basketball player on the rise and dreamed of becoming a professional. Given this background, one can only imagine how happy he was when he received a basketball scholarship to the University of Southern California.
“I never acted in school plays. I wasn’t interested in that,” Tom told AARP in 2015.
But playing basketball at the high collegiate level was easier said than done. As reported by KSL, he scored just four points in seven games for the USC Trojans during the 1965-66 season. The following year, he went scoreless in three games.
An excerpt from the USC handbook describes Tom as “a nimble and quick performer who adds depth to the front line. The economics major is a good rebounder with fine agility. An up-and-coming shooter, he has impressed the coaches with his effort in practice. Needs work on defense.”
But in the end, Tom just couldn’t keep up with his bigger, taller teammates. “I was pretty good, but I wasn’t good enough,” Selleck recalled.
Tom Selleck – the beginning of an acting career Selleck realized in the back of his mind that basketball was probably not going to be his future career. But he had a plan B and took a part-time job to pay his school fees. The ambitious student has appeared in several television commercials and appeared on The Dating Game.
In retrospect, it wasn’t a moment he was proudest of, but it would affect his future more than he could have ever imagined.
“It was humiliating and embarrassing,” he recalled of being on the dating show. “I lost. Twice. I wasn’t particularly funny or witty.”
Soon after, however, Selleck landed a spot in the talent show at 20th Century Fox. He began honing his skills, but after two years he took six months of active duty.
Upon his return, Selleck was kicked out. But instead of giving up, he was convinced that he would succeed as an actor.
In the early 1970s, he played minor roles in many television series. Then, as he approached his mid-30s, Selleck appeared in six TV pilots. However, the big breakthrough eluded him.
According to Tom himself, many thought he became an overnight success when he landed the role of Thomas Magnum in Magnum, PI
Breakthrough with ‘Magnum PI’ In reality he fought and fought hard.
“The best thing that happened to me was that I didn’t get a real job until I was 35,” Selleck explained.
“When I was 25, I looked like I was 35, but I sounded like I was 15. There are a lot of really good actors who can pass as younger leads, but they can’t pass – because the audience doesn’t accept them as adults.”
Magnum, PI was a huge success. The crime drama series aired between 1980 and 1988, instantly catapulting Tom to celebrity status. He was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for five consecutive years – finally winning it in 1984.
For more than a decade, Selleck struggled to become an actor and was on the verge of giving up.
“I don’t think Magnum worked, I wouldn’t be in this business again,” he admitted.
Tom achieved cult status through Magnum, and his career since then has been nothing short of an incredible success story. Among his other successes are films like “Three Men and a Baby” and “In & Out”. He was also introduced to a new generation of fans when he played Monica Geller’s older boyfriend, Richard Burke, starting with the second season of the hit comedy series “Friends.”
In 2010, Selleck was cast as Frank Reagan in the drama series Blue Bloods, which opened a new and exciting chapter for the actor. The series has just been renewed for its 13th season, and will premiere this fall.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Selleck has a net worth of around $45 million.
In many films and TV series, actors have their own doubles. It can often be a dangerous job, but for a select few, having someone else perform their stunts simply isn’t an option.
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Source: HIS Education