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Terry O’Quinn – Wiki Bio
American actor Terrance ‘Terry’ O’Quinn was born under the zodiac sign Cancer on 15 July 1952, in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan USA. He has 126 acting credits, and is perhaps still known best for starring as John Locke in all 120 episodes of the hit adventure fantasy series “Lost”, which also starred Jorge Garcia and Josh Holloway, and which Damon Lindelof and J. J. Abrams created. It follows a group of people whose plane has crashed on a mysterious island, the series aired from 2004 through 2010 and won 113 of its 512 award nominations.
Terry’s today shooting for the upcoming film “Unsung Hero” and the series “Resident Alien”.
Education and early life
Terry was raised in Newberry, Michigan alongside his 10 siblings, by their American parents of Irish descent; not many other details have been shared about Terry’s family, because he respects their privacy. He was raised Catholic.
Terry became interested in acting while attending a local high school in Newberry but at that time had no plans to pursue it as a career; he was into several other activities, including playing sports with his peers, and playing the guitar. Upon matriculating in 1969, Terry enrolled at Central Michigan University; he eventually transferred to the University of Iowa, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in 1973.
Terry then moved to Baltimore, Maryland, and joined the theatre Center Stage, staying with them until he launched his career on TV in 1980.
Roles in movies
Terry’s debut film role was playing James Roosevelt in the 1980 biographical drama “F. D. R.: The Last Year”, and some of his following roles were later that year in the adventure western “Heaven’s Gate”, in 1983 the mystery “Without a Trace” and the drama “Jacobo Timerman: Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number”.
In 1984, he portrayed Buddy Kelsey in the hit drama “Places in the Heart”, which starred Ed Harris, Lindsay Crouse and Sally Field, and was written and directed by Richard Benton. It follows a widow with two children as she’s trying to save her 40-acre farm in 1930s Texas, and the movie won 13 of its 27 award nominations, including Oscar wins for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Sally) and Best Writing. Some of Terry’s notable performances in the remainder of the ‘80s were in the 1984 romantic drama “Mrs Soffel”, the 1986 war drama “Women of Valor” and the 1989 romantic horror mystery “The Forgotten One”.
Terry left Twitter last week so we can’t personally wish him Happy Birthday, but we’re all sending him love and hope he has the best day! https://t.co/HArv8d0LLb
— LOST (@TheLOSTFans) July 15, 2020
The year 1992 saw him play Bob Altschuler in the thriller “Trial: The Price of Passion”, which starred Beverly D’Angelo and Peter Strauss, and was directed by Paul Wendkos. It follows lawyer Warren Blackburn as he’s defending Johnie Faye Boudreau who’s been accused of killing her husband, and the movie was nominated for only a single award. Terry could then have been seen appearing in the 1993 horror “Amityville: A New Generation”, the 1997 comedy “Breast Men” and the 1999 crime thriller mystery “Murder in a Small Town”.
In 2003, he played Goldberg in the hit comedy “Old School”, which starred Vince Vaughn and Luke Wilson, and was written and directed by Todd Phillips. It follows three friends who’ve opened up a fraternity, and the film was nominated for five awards. Terry had only one other film role in the 2000s, voicing FBI Assistant Director Kendall in the 2004 short animated action “The Animated Alias: Tribunal”.
Some of his most recent film roles have been in the 2015 drama “The Adversaries”, the 2016 romantic drama “New Life” and the 2021 romantic drama “Christmas Sail”.
Roles in TV series
Terry’s debut TV series role was playing Dr. Jerry Dancy in four episodes of the 1981 romantic drama “The Doctors”, and the remainder of the ‘80s saw him appear in an episode of the horror comedy “Tales of the Unexpected”, the adventure comedy “ABC Afterschool Specials” and the crime action “Miami Vice”.
In 1994 and 1995, he played Reilly in six episodes of the adventure science fiction “Earth 2”, which starred Clancy Brown and Debrah Farentino, and was created by Michael Duggan. It follows a group of colonists who’ve crash-landed on an alien planet, and the series won two of the eight awards for which it was nominated. The remainder of the decade saw Terry appear in an episode of the crime thriller “The Client”, the crime mystery “Homicide: Life on the Street” and the crime action “Diagnosis Murder”.
From 2002 through 2004, he portrayed FBI Assistant Director Kendall in 18 episodes of the action mystery “Alias”, which starred Ron Rifkin and Jennifer Garner, and was created by JJ Abrams. It follows the life of international spy Sydney Bristow, and the series won 33 of its 179 award nominations. Terry appeared in only a couple of other TV series in the 2000s, including the crime action “NCIS”, the drama “The West Wing” and the fantasy horror “Masters of Science Fiction”.
In 2012 and 2013, he starred as Gavin Doran in all 13 episodes of the fantasy horror “666 Park Avenue”, which also starred Dave Annable and Rachael Taylor, and was created by David Wilcox. It follows The Drake who’s offering people to fulfill their one wish but with a price, and the series was nominated for two awards.
Some of Terry’s most recent TV series roles have been in nine episodes of the crime action “FBI: Most Wanted” from 2020 through 2022, six episodes of the 2022 crime mystery “Pieces of Her”, and five episodes of the 2022 mystery comedy “Resident Alien”.
Other credits
Terry received special thanks for the 2009 drama film “Lost: A Journey in Time”, the 2010 adventure mystery movie “Lost: Final Chapter” and thedocumentary film “Lost: The Final Journey” both in 2010.
He sang the song “Gwine to Rune All Night (De Camptown Races)” in the 1987 movie “The Stepfather”, the song “Camptown Races” in the 1989 movie “Stepfather II: Make Room for Daddy”, and the song “If I Needed You” in the 2015 episode “Milwaukee, America” of the series “Patriot”.
Some of Terry’s most recent talk-show appearances have been in “Mysteries of the Missing”, “Celebrity Page” and “Modern Dadhood”.
Awards and nominations
Terry’s won seven of his 32 award nominations. Some of his wins include a 2006 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (shared with colleagues), a 2007 Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, and a 2010 Gold Derby Award for Drama Supporting Actor of the Decade, all for “Lost”.
Love life and marriage
Terry shies away from speaking about his love life in public, but we still know about two women whom he’s been with. He and American non-celebrity Lori O’Quinn exchanged vows in a small and private ceremony in November 1979; she gave birth to their first son Oliver Quinn in 1984, and their second son Hunter Quinn followed in either 1985 or 1986. Both Oliver and Hunter have a single acting credit. Terry and Lori divorced in 2012.
Since 2014, he’s been in a relationship with Kate Baldwin, an American screenwriter who prefers to stay away from media.
Interesting facts and hobbies
For his role in the series “Lost”, Terry learned to handle and throw knives.
He’s an avid guitarist and singer, and one of his favorite musicians is Neil Young.
Although born ‘Quinn’, Terry changed his last name to ‘O’Quinn’ because there was already an actor named Terry Quinn.
He’s good friends with American screenwriter, producer and director Chris Carter, and has appeared in many of his movies and TV series.
Terry’s a huge lover of animals, and has a pet dog Reggie.
He’s a philanthropist and joined the charity network Cameo as soon as it was launched in 2017; he creates at least one new video on Cameo every week.
Terry’s brother Thomas Anthony Quinn is also an actor.
One of his favorite actors is Russell Crowe, and some of Terry’s favorite films are “Unhinged”, “Robin Hood” and “The Pope’s Exorcist”.
Appearance and net worth
Terry’s age is 71. He has blue eyes and is bald, weighs around 175lbs (79kgs) and is 6ft (1.84m) tall.
Terry’s net worth’s been estimated at over $8 million, as of September2023.
