page_title: Ed Begley Jr.
section_title: Acting career
hierarchical_section_title: Ed Begley Jr. / Acting career
caption_attribution_description: Ed Begley Jr. and Penny Marshall on the red carpet at the 40th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, 8/28/88
context_page_description: Edward James Begley Jr. is an American actor and environmental activist. Begley has appeared in hundreds of films, television shows, and stage performances. He played Dr. Victor Ehrlich on the television series St. Elsewhere. The role earned him six consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations and a Golden Globe Award nomination. He also co-hosted, along with wife Rachelle Carson, the green living reality show entitled Living with Ed.
  Equally prolific in cinema, Begley's best known films include Stay Hungry, Blue Collar, An Officer and a Gentleman, This Is Spinal Tap, The Accidental Tourist, She-Devil, The Pagemaster, Batman Forever, Auto Focus, Pineapple Express, What's Your Number?, Ghostbusters and CHiPS. He is a recurring cast member in the mockumentaries of Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy, including Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, For Your Consideration, and Mascots.
context_section_description: Begley's numerous roles in television and film include one of his earliest appearances as a guest actor on Maude. He had guest appearances in the 1970s series Room 222. He had recurring roles on Mary Hartman, 7th Heaven, Arrested Development, Meego and Six Feet Under and starring roles in Stephen King's Kingdom Hospital, St. Elsewhere, and Wednesday 9:30 (8:30 Central). He was in one episode of My Three Sons, playing a tall classmate of Chip.
  He has played significant roles in the mockumentary films Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, and For Your Consideration. Additionally, Begley played Viper pilot Greenbean on the original Battlestar Galactica TV series, Boba Fett in the radio adaptation of Return of the Jedi, and Seth Gillette, a fictional Democratic U.S. senator from North Dakota on The West Wing.
  From 2000 to 2016, he was a member of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 1996, Begley appeared in a TV movie called The Late Shift, where he played real-life CBS executive Rod Perth. He has guest-starred on shows such as Scrubs, Boston Legal, and Star Trek: Voyager (Future's End, parts I and II). He had a recurring guest role in season three of Veronica Mars. He appeared in the 2008 HBO film Recount, which profiled the 2000 Presidential Election and its aftermath, which was decided by the state of Florida's electoral votes. Begley also made an appearance on Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! Season 3, Episode 3, as a spokesman for Cinco.
  In 2003, Begley wrote and directed the musical Cesar and Ruben. It was performed at the El Portal Theatre in Los Angeles and was revived in 2007. One of Begley's recent acting roles was in the CBS sitcom Gary Unmarried. Begley played Dr. Walter Krandall, the protagonist's former marriage counselor and fiancé of his ex-wife. Since 2008, he has appeared in a series of DirecTV commercials as a "Cable Corp Inc." executive. In 2013, he appeared on the reality television show Beverly Hills Pawn. As of 2019, he is starring in Bless This Mess.
caption: Begley and Penny Marshall on the red carpet at the 40th Primetime Emmy Awards, August 28, 1988
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