| Mario Van Peebles | |
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Mario Van Peebles, March 2005 |
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| Born | Mario Cain Van Peebles January 15, 1957 Mexico City, Mexico |
| Occupation | Actor, director |
| Years active | 1971-Present |
Mario "Chip"[1] Cain Van Peebles[2] (born January 15, 1957) is an American director and actor who has appeared in numerous Hollywood films. He is son of filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles.
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Van Peebles was born in Mexico City, Mexico, the son of writer, director and actor Melvin Van Peebles and German actress and photographer Maria Marx.[3] He graduated from Saint Thomas More School in Connecticut in 1974 and from Columbia University in 1978 with a bachelor's degree in economics. He is married to Chitra Sukhu Van Peebles and has five children: Makaylo, Mandela, Marley, Maya and Morgana (3 boys, 2 girls).
Over the next 30 years, Van Peebles starred in and directed many television shows & films, including Panther, Ali, New Jack City, and an episode of Lost.
His 2004 biopic BAADASSSSS! describes the making of his father's seminal film, Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song. Van Peebles also directed Malcolm Takes a Shot, a CBS Schoolbreak Special about an aspiring high-school basketball star whose obstacles include epilepsy and his own arrogance. Van Peebles appeared in the special in a cameo, as Malcolm's doctor.
Van Peebles stars on the television show Damages, as Agent Harrison. Van Peebles was first brought on to the FX series to direct a few Season 1 episodes, and was then cast in a small role as an agent. Now, according to the Hollywood Reporter, Harrison will be back for six more episodes in Season 2 (which begins in early 2009). He is also on board to direct new episodes of FX's biker drama Sons of Anarchy. He is good friends with fellow actors Christopher Lambert and Jean Claude Van Damme. Van Peebles and his family live a environmentally sustainable lifestyle, as documented in the reality series, Mario's Green House, which premiered on TV-One on September 27, 2009.
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