Biography
With a vast array of talents from which to draw, Lithgow ironically had difficulty translating his acting versatility into stardom. He had his start in the theater, performing in numerous Shakespeare productions before making the jump to features in the early 1970s; most notably as a relentless assassin in the Brian De Palma thriller "Blow Out" (1981). But it was his Oscar-nominated performance as a former football player-turned-transvestite …
Latest Tv Credits
1 - 4 of 4
John Lithgow SlideShow
1 - 4 of 7
Career Milestones
| Raised in Yellow Springs, OH | ||
| Starred as George S. Kaufman in a one-man off-Broadway show "Kaufman at Large" | ||
1951 | Made stage debut at age six, in his father's production of "Henry VI, Part III" | |
1967 | Won a Fulbright Scholarship to study drama in England | |
1969 | Began stage career as a director with the McCarter Theatre (operated by his father) | |
1972 | Feature acting debut, "Dealing: Or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues" | |
1973 | Debuted on Broadway in David Storey's "The Changing Room"; won both the Tony and Drama Desk Awards | |
1974 | Starred on Broadway opposite Lynn Redgrave in "My Fat Friend" and opposite Meryl Streep in Arthur Miller's "A Memory of Two Mondays" | |
1976 | First collaboration with Brian De Palma, "Obsession" | |
1982 | Breakthrough role, playing the transsexual football player in "The World According to Garp"; earned first Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination | |
1983 | Earned second Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his turn as a lawyer who enters into an affair with Debra Winger's character in "Terms of Endearment" | |
1983 | First leading role in a feature, the George Miller-directed remake of the classic Twilight Zone episode 'Nightmare at 20,000 Feet' in "Twilight Zone: The Movie" | |
1984 | Played the moralistic anti-dancing, anti-rock pastor in "Footloose" | |
1985 | Earned a Tony Award nomination for Featured Actor in the Broadway production of "Requiem for a Heavyweight" | |
1986 | Delivered an Emmy-winning turn as a bachelor whose life is altered when he buys 'The Doll'; a segment of the NBC anthology series "Amazing Stories" | |
1986 | Played Walter Burns in the Lincoln Center Broadway revival of "The Front Page" | |
1988 | Originated the lead role of a French diplomat in love with a Chinese opera singer in the Broadway production of "M. Butterfly"; earned a Tony Award nomination for Featured Actor in a Play | |
1990 | Appeared (also sang and wrote music) in a music video for children, "John Lithgow's Kid-Size Concert" | |
1990 | Played Colonel Bruce Derringer in the World War II drama "Memphis Belle" | |
1992 | Offered a brilliant dual performance in the psychological thriller "Raising Cain" | |
1993 | Was the villain who hunted Sylvester Stallone in the action-thriller "Cliffhanger" | |
1996 | Cast as Dr. Dick Solomon, an extraterrestrial scientist and the High Commander on the NBC sitcom "3rd Rock from the Sun"; received Golden Globe (1998, 1999), Emmy (1998, 2000, 2001) and SAG (2001) nominations for his role | |
2000 | Executive produced and had title role in the TNT production "Don Quixote" | |
2001 | Voiced Lord Farquaad in the animated feature "Shrek" | |
2002 | Acted in the teen comedy "Orange County" | |
2002 | Played the role of J.J. Hunsecker in the Broadway production of Marvin Hamlisch's "Sweet Smell of Success" | |
2004 | Cast in the Broadway production of "The Retreat from Moscow" | |
2004 | Portrayed Blake Edwards in the HBO movie "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" | |
2004 | Portrayed the title character's moralistic, rigid father, opposite Liam Neeson in Bill Condon's "Kinsey" | |
2004 | Received a Grammy nomination for Best Spoken word for The World According to Mr. Rogers and Carnival of the Animals | |
2005 | Starred in "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," the Broadway musical adapted from the 1988 movie starring Michael Caine and Steve Martin; received a Tony nomination for his role | |
2008 | Played Joe Keller in a Broadway revival of Arthur Miller's "All My Sons" | |
2009 | Joined the fourth season of the Showtime series "Dexter" as Arthur Mitchell, a serial killer | |
2011 | Cast as Barney's (Neil Patrick Harris) father on two episodes of CBS' "How I Met Your Mother" | |
2011 | Cast in the ensemble romantic comedy "New Year's Eve," directed by Garry Marshall | |
2011 | Played James Franco's Alzheimers-stricken father in "Rise Of The Planet of the Apes" | |
2012 | Starred on Broadway in "The Columnist," by Tony and Pulitzer Prize winner David Auburn | |
Awards
1973 | Tony Award for Actor, Supporting or Featured (Dramatic) |
1982 | Academy Award for Actor In a Supporting Role in The World According to Garp |
1982 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor in The World According to Garp |
1982 | New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor in The World According to Garp |
1983 | Academy Award for Actor In a Supporting Role in Terms of Endearment |
1986 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Performer In a Drama Series in Amazing Stories |
1995 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor In a Miniseries or Special in My Brother's Keeper |
1996 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1996 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor For a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1997 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1997 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1997 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1997 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1998 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1998 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1998 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1998 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1999 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
1999 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
2000 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
2001 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 3rd Rock From the Sun |
2001 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries in Don Quixote |
2002 | Tony Award for Actor (Musical) |
2009 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television in Dexter |
2010 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor In a Drama Series in Dexter |
2010 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in Dexter |
2012 | Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play |