Ken Olin

Ken Olin

  • Birthday: 1954-07-30
  • Place of birth: Chicago, Illinois, USA
  • Also know as: Kenneth Edward Olin

Biography

His dark, sincere good looks were steadily put to use on the small screen during the 80s, but, in retrospect, actor Ken Olin will probably be considered more of a major force behind the camera. Born in Chicago, Ken went to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and headed for Hollywood in the late 70s. After the typical route of bit parts, he started moving up in leaps and bounds on TV's top shows. A couple of strong, single season regular parts on both Hill Street Blues (1981)and Falcon Crest (1981) ultimately led to his casting as the introspective and quietly sexy Michael Steadman on Thirtysomething (1987), which ran for four seasons and nabbed numerous awards for its liberal writing and sensitive content. Ken co-starred with wife Patricia Wettig on the show, but the multi-Emmy winner Wettig did not play Ken's wife (actress Mel Harris did) and the public was often confused as to who Ken's wife really was. Ken also earned the chance to direct occasionally on Thirtysomething (1987) and this would have a significant impact as to the direction of his career in the years to come. Following Thirtysomething (1987), Ken pursued acting work in mini-movies as both hero ( Police Story: Cop Killer (1988) ) and villain ( Dead by Sunset (1995) ), but almost always seemed on the verge of leaving acting altogether. It was his burgeoning interest in directing that took over, and he has since found steady helming duties on such popular shows as Felicity (1998) and The West Wing (1999). His TV drama Doing Time on Maple Drive (1992)was nominated for three Emmys.

Filmography

Y2K

1999

As Nick Cromwell

The Advocate's Devil

1997

As Abe Ringel

Police Story: Cop Killer

1988

As Officer Manny Mandell

Telling Secrets

1993

As Det. Jay Jensen

A Stoning in Fulham County

1988

As Jim Sandler

Nothing But the Truth

1995

As Dr. Peter Clayman

Queens Logic

1991

As Ray

There Must Be a Pony

1986

As Jay Savage

Tonight's the Night

1987

As Henry Fox

Ghost Story

1981

As Young Sears James

Women at West Point

1979

As Board Member

The Story of Soaps

2020

As Self

Til There Was You

1997

As Gregory

Production

Doing Time on Maple Drive

1992

As Director

In Pursuit of Honor

1995

As Director

Phenomenon II

2003

As Director

The Broken Cord

1992

As Director

Kansas

1995

As Executive Producer

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