One of the most popular comedic actors in Hollywood today, it’s easy to forget that Greg Kinnear got his start as a talk-show host on the E! Channel. Born June 17, 1963 in Logansport, Indiana, Kinnear has become a celebrated actor for his brilliant comedic performances and everyman swagger.
Kinnear had a glamorously nomadic childhood due to his father’s globetrotting job with the U.S. State Department. The ambitious performer lived in places as diverse as Beirut and Athens, and while in the latter city he hosted his own radio show, “School Daze With Greg Kinnear”. He then received a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Arizona – Tucson, and moved to Los Angeles where he worked as a marketing intern and briefly as a reporter for MTV. However, MTV wasn’t a good match for the talented youngster, and he left for small parts on “L.A. Law” and “Life Goes On”. His break came in 1991 with E! Channel’s new program “Talk Soup”, which saw Kinnear poking fun at clips from recent talk shows like “The Tonight Show”. He left the program in 1994 to host NBC’s late-late show, “Later with Greg Kinnear”, and had a large role in “Blankman”, a superhero comedy starring Damon Wayans. Kinnear hosted “Later” until 1996, and during that time he scored a lead role in Sydney Pollack’s misguided remake of “Sabrina” in addition to adding his voice to the big-screen “Beavis and Butthead Do America”.
The humble comic was well known by the mid-90s, but it was James L. Brooks’s hilarious 1997 dramedy “As Good as It Gets” that made him a star. Playing a troubled gay artist who falls victim to the grumpiness of obsessive-compulsive neighbor Jack Nicholson, Kinnear gave a touching and at times hilarious performance in the smash hit film, earning him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Co-stars Nicholson and Helen Hunt both earned heaps of acclaim as well, including Oscars for their terrific performances. Kinnear then appeared in “You’ve Got Mail” with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, the box office bomb “Mystery Men”, and the Garry Shandling vehicle “What Planet Are You From?”
The 2000s have seen Kinnear continue his string of hit comedies while also branching out to more dramatic roles. Recent highlights include Neil LaBute’s hilarious “Nurse Betty”, Sam Raimi’s “The Gift”, the Mel Gibson vehicle “We Were Soldiers”, “Stuck on You”, and quirky dramedies like “Auto Focus” and “The Matador”. Kinnear is unstoppable at the moment, with this summer’s ensemble comedy “Little Miss Sunshine” lighting up the box office while Kinnear’s latest film, the sports drama “Invincible” with Mark Wahlberg, is opening to better-than-expected reviews. Later this year Kinnear is starring in Richard Linklater’s hotly anticipated “Fast Food Nation” as a naïve corporate lackey.