Edward Allen "Ed" Harris (born November 28, 1950) is an Academy Award-nominated American actor, best known for his performances in The Right Stuff, Apollo 13 and Pollock, among many others.

Harris was born in Tenafly, New Jersey. He was a star athlete in high school and competed in athletics at Columbia University in 1969. Two years later his family moved to Oklahoma and he followed after having discovered his interest in acting in various theater plays. He enrolled at the University of Oklahoma to study drama. After several successful roles in the local theater, he moved to Los Angeles, California, and enrolled at the California Institute of the Arts.

Career

Harris' first important film role was in Borderline with Charles Bronson. In Knightriders he played a motorcycle stunt rider in a role modeled after that of King Arthur. In 1983, he became a star, playing NASA astronaut John Glenn in The Right Stuff; in 1995 he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of NASA mission director Gene Kranz, in the film Apollo 13. Further Oscar nominations arrived in 1999, 2001 and 2003, for The Truman Show, Pollock and The Hours, respectively. More recently he appeared as a vengeful mobster in David Cronenberg's A History of Violence. He also had a role alongside Casey Affleck and Morgan Freeman in Gone, Baby, Gone, directed by actor Ben Affleck.

Harris has shown interest in directing. He made his debut in 2000 with Pollock, as well as directing various plays. Harris has also starred in television adaptations of Riders of the Purple Sage (1996) and Empire Falls (2005).

Harris also dabbled in stage acting. He was in the production of Neil LaBute's one-man play Wrecks at the Public Theater in New York City.

Private life

He has been married to actress Amy Madigan since 1983. They have a daughter named Lily.

Awards and Nominations

Academy Award

• Nominated: Best Supporting Actor, Apollo 13 (1995)

• Nominated: Best Supporting Actor, The Truman Show (1998)

• Nominated: Best Actor, Pollock (2000)

• Nominated: Best Supporting Actor, The Hours (2002)

BAFTA Award

• Nominated: Best Supporting Actor, The Truman Show (1999)

• Nominated: Best Supporting Actor, The Hours (2003)

Primetime Emmy

• Nominated: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie, Empire Falls (2005)

Golden Globe

• Nominated: Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture, Jacknife (1990)

• Nominated: Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture, Apollo 13 (1996)

• Won: Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture, The Truman Show (1999)

• Nominated: Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture, The Hours (2003)

• Nominated: Best Actor in a Mini-Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television, Empire Falls (2006)

Other Awards

• 2006 - At the San Francisco International Film Festival, Harris received the Peter J. Owens Award, which honors an actor whose work exemplifies brilliance, independence and integrity. A Flash of Green was screened at the festival in his honor.

Filmography

• Coma (1978)

• Borderline (1980)

• Knightriders (1981)

• Dream On! (1981)

• Creepshow (1982)

• The Right Stuff (1983)

• Code Name: Emerald (1983)

• Under Fire (1983)

• Swing Shift (1984)

• Places in the Heart (1984)

• A Flash of Green (1984)

• Alamo Bay (1985)

• Sweet Dreams (1985)

• Walker (1987)

• The Last Innocent Man (1987)

• To Kill a Priest (1988)

• Jacknife (1989)

• The Abyss (1989)

• State of Grace (1990)

• Paris Trout (1991)

• Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)

• The Firm (1993)

• Needful Things (1993)

• Milk Money (1994)

• China Moon (1994)

• Nixon (1995)

• Apollo 13 (1995)

• Just Cause (1995)

• The Rock (1996)

• Eye for an Eye (1996)

• Absolute Power (1997)

• Stepmom (1998)

• The Truman Show (1998)

• The Third Miracle (1999)

• Pollock (2000)

• The Prime Gig (2000)

• Waking the Dead (2000)

• A Beautiful Mind (2001)

• Buffalo Soldiers (2001)

• Enemy at the Gates (2001)

• The Hours (2002)

• Radio (2003)

• The Human Stain (2003)

• Masked and Anonymous (2003)

• Winter Passing (2005)

• A History of Violence (2005)

• Copying Beethoven (2006)

• National Treasure: The Book of Secrets (2007)