Tom Wopat
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Tom Wopat | |
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| Born | September 9, 1951 Lodi, Wisconsin |
| Occupation | actor |
| Years active | 1974 - present |
| Spouse(s) | Vickie Allen, 1984 - ? (divorced) |
Tom Wopat (born September 9, 1951 in Lodi, Wisconsin) is an American actor.
He first achieved fame as Luke Duke in the long-running 1979 television series The Dukes of Hazzard. He also played Jeff, one of Cybill Shepherd's ex-husbands in the TV series Cybill.
[edit] Career
Wopat attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and made his television debut in the daytime drama "One Life to live, however, he achieved television fame in the popular long-running television series The Dukes of Hazzard (1979-1985).
Wopat first appeared on the Broadway stage as a replacement in the 1977 musical I Love My Wife, as "Wally". He then appeared as a replacement in the stage musicals City of Angels, and Guys and Dolls. He finally appeared in the opening cast of the 1999 revival of Annie Get Your Gun opposite Bernadette Peters, Susan Lucci and Reba McEntire, who played Annie Oakley (in consecutive order). He was nominated for a Tony Award in 1999 for his role as "Frank Butler". He has since appeared in the revivals of the musicals Chicago and 42nd Street.
In 2005, Wopat appeared in a non-singing role in the Broadway revival of David Mamet's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Glengarry Glen Ross as the browbeaten customer, James Lingk.
Wopat recently starred in the North Carolina Theatre's production of The Music Man, in the role of Harold Hill in November 2006. [1]
Playbill reported that Wopat, along with Nathan Lane, took part in a workshop of a musical, Catch Me If You Can, in July 2007. [2]
Wopat's most recent Broadway role is that of the father in the musical A Catered Affair, written by Harvey Fierstein (book) and John Bucchino (score), which opened on April 17, 2008 at the Walter Kerr Theatre. [3]
He has also embarked on a music career. Musically he switches between rock and roll and country music styles though his last two albums have been of classic standards. The latter one, "Dissertation on the State of Bliss", is a collection of Harold Arlen songs.
Wopat also provided a minor voice part as a member of the "Bloodhounds" on the 2007 release, Manhunt 2 video game.
On May 26, 2008 Wopat sang the Star Spangled Banner and God Bless America at the Milwaukee Brewers vs. Washington Nationals MLB game.
