Who Is Mandy Patinkin? Wife, Net Worth, Why Did He Leave Criminal Minds?
Mandy Patinkin is an artist in every respect; he is successful both as a theater, film, and television actor and as a recording artist. He began his career in 1980 as a Broadway actor and appeared in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita as Che. In 1984 he was nominated for an award for his performance in George in Sunday in the Park with George – a Pulitzer Prize-winning musical. Mandy is popular as the lead actress in the 1987 film The Princess Bride and in other films such as Wish I Was Here, Dick Tracy, Alien Nation, Yentl, and many others. Mandy Patinkin has also played major roles in television series such as Dead Like Me, Chicago Hope, Homeland, and Criminal Minds.
As a recording artist, he has released two solo albums, Mandy Patinkin and Mandy Patinkin In Concert: Dressing Casual. Learn more about the multi-talent and why he left Criminal Minds below.
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Who is Mandy Patinkin?
The Hollywood actor was born on November 30, 1952, in Chicago, Illinois, as Mandel Bruce Patinkin. His father Lester Patinkin ran two large metal factories in the Chicago area, and his mother Doris was a housewife.
He grew up in an upper-middle-class family of Jewish emigrants from Poland and Russia. Mandy grew up as a conservative Judaist; he attended religious school until the age of fourteen and also sang in the choirs of the synagogue.
Mandy Patinkin is a graduate of Harvard St. George School, Kenwood Academy (formerly Kenwood High School), and South Shore High School. After graduating high school in 1970, he went to the University of Kansas and then to the Juilliard School between 1972 and 1976.
It is not surprising that Patinkin ended up as an artist, as he came from an artistically inclined line of descent. His mother is the author of the Jewish Family Cookbook by Granny Doralee Patinkin. His cousin Mark Patinkin is an author and a national columnist for the Providence Journal. Another of his cousins, Sheldon Patinkin, headed the theater department at Columbia College Chicago and is the founder and artistic advisor of The Second City. A third cousin of his named Bonnie Miller Rubin worked as a reporter for the Chicago Tribune.
Mandy Patinkin Career
Mandy began his career as a Broadway actor in 1980 as Che in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita, his performance earned him the 1980 Tony Award for best performance of a leading actor in a musical. In 1984 he appeared as George in the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Sunday in the Park with George.
He has appeared in several other stage productions such as Enemy of the People, Leave It to Beaver is Dead, Compulsion, The Division, The Wild Party, Paradise Found, The Secret Garden, Henry IV, Trelawney of the Wells, The Tempest, The Winter’s Tale, Rebel Women, The Shadow Box, The Knife, Savages, Falsettos, Hamlet, etc.
His films include Ragtime, Yentl. In 1987, he starred in the film The Princess Bride, and after the success of The Princess Bride, he landed in 1988 as Sam Francisco in the science fiction action movie Alien Nation, and later as the piano player at the Ritz Club, who later became the lackey of No Face in the action-comedy movie Dick Tracy in 1990.
In 1994, he began playing Dr. Jeffrey Geiger in Chicago Hope, a CBS medical drama series that was broadcast on the station from 1994 to 2000. Although he only played one season in the series, Mandy’s role earned him an Emmy Award. He has also appeared in other series such as Three Rivers, The Whole Truth, Criminal Minds, and Homeland, earning him both a Golden Globe and Emmy Award nomination.
Patinkin is also a singer with two albums, two solo albums entitled Mandy Patinkin and Mandy Patinkin In Concert: Dressing Casual.
Who Is Mandy Patinkin’s Wife?
Patinkin has been married to the American actress and writer Kathryn Grody since June 1980. Together the couple has two children named Isaac and Gideon. Grody is a two-time Obies Prize winner for her outstanding achievements in off-Broadway. She is also the author of an autobiographical play entitled A Mom’s Life.
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Why Did He Leave Criminal Minds?
In September 2005 Patinkin began playing Jason Gideon in the CBS crime series Criminal Minds TV series. After the second season, Mandy Patinkin refused to return for the third season. Later he revealed in an interview that the reason for his departure was not a breach of contract but creative differences.
He said that he felt uncomfortable with certain scenes of the series. Mandy described his appearance in the series as his biggest mistake in public, he never thought there would be rap and killing scenes. He explained that these scenes were very destructive to his soul and personality and that he didn’t believe that he would come back to work on TV.
His Net Worth
Mandy is currently worth $10 million, which he earns through his career as a theater, film, and television actor and through the sale of his albums as a sound artist.
