William H. Macy - Details

Biography

William H. MacyAlthough William H. Macy is not a household name such as Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise, he is certainly a recognizable, and respected talent in the ever-expanding thespian sea. "Willie" as friends called him during his Bethany College years, was raised primarily in Georgia and Maryland. He was brought up in a home where moral issues were clear. His mother lost her first husband in World War II, then married a war hero (Macy's father), a medal-winning B-17 pilot. "World War II was 'the good war,' " Macy has said in the past. "They felt good about their sacrifices and moved on."
As with most performers, his aspirations were not first aimed toward acting, but in the more conventional field of veterinary medicine. Somewhere along the way however, his goals switched direction, and he found himself as a student of playwright-director David Mamet at Vermont's Goddard College, and later became, with Joe Mantegna and Dennis Franz, a member of "Mamet's Mafia", the foremost interpreters of the auteurs stage work. Macy later teamed up with David Mamet and Steven Schachter to establish the St. Nicholas Theater in Chicago.
On the small screen, Macy appeared for four seasons on the hit series "ER" in the recurring role of Dr. Morgenstern, and also starred in TNT's "Andersonville", "The Water Engine" and "Heart of Justice". But it was the Coen brothers who directed Macy's film breakthrough in the part of Jerry Lundegaard in the quirky "Fargo", a part which earned William an Oscar® nomination. Some of his other work also includes the features "Ghosts of Mississippi", "Mr. Holland's Opus" and many more.
William along with his wife Felicity Huffman, Giancarlo Esposito and TV stars Camryn Manheim and Kristen Johnson are all members of the NY-based Atlantic Theater Company.
He and wife are expecting their first child in August 2000.