Ted McGinley

### Known For

"Happy Days" (1980-1984), "The Love Boat" (1983-1984), "Married With Children" (1987-1997)

### Character

Randall Ewing

**Theodore "Ted" Martin McGinley** is an American actor best known for his roles as Jefferson D'Arcy on the television sitcom "Married with Children," Ace Covington on "The Love Boat" and as Roger Phillips on "Happy Days." He is also credited with being "The Sitcom Killer," having been cast in three TV shows declining in popularity that ended up being cancelled.

Born May 30, 1958 in Newport Beach, California, MicGinley is the son of Robert and Emily McGinley and is of Scottish-Irish descent. He attended Newport Harbor High School where he focused on athletics and swimming, becoming a star player in the water polo team. He also worked as a lifeguard at the beach during summers. After graduation, he attended the University of Southern California on a water polo scholarship, majoring in urban planning and real estate.

In his sophomore year, he followed advice from his girlfriend and began modeling as a way to break into acting scene. He later dropped out and moved to New York CityWith his scholarship not renewed, he dropped out from USC and, in 1979, moved to New York where a casting director spotted a picture of him in a magazine and advanced his acting career. His first movie role was in the Garry Marshall soap parody, "Young Doctors In Love," with Crystal Bernard. Following with an appearance on TV on "Fantasy Island" and the TV-movie, "Making of a Male Model," he reached widespread interest as the antagonist Stan Gable in "Revenge of the Nerds." This role was soon followed when he was added as Roger Phillips, a late character in the series to replace the departure of Ron Howard. Joined by Crystal Bernard in the cast, who had replaced Erin Moran, he was soon relegated to a recurring character in the crowded cast of characters, but his acting career thrived as he was immediately cast as photographer Ace Covington on "The Love Boat" and afterward as Clay Falmont on "Dynasty."

From 1986 to 1989, he was frequently seen on TV in roles on "Perfect Strangers," "Evening Shade," "Columbo," "Quantum Leap" and "The John Larroquette Show" between movies. He also reprised his role as Stan Gable in the 1992 movie, "Revenge of the Nerds III: The Next Generation, but in 1989, he was cast to replace David Garrison as the shifty gigolo and husband of Marcy Rhodes alongside Christina Applegate as Kelly Bundy. The series became a significant highlight of his career as he exhibited talent for slapstick and physical comedy playing Al Bundy's best friend, Jefferson Darcy on Married With Children." Describing it as a "great, great gig," he mocked his status as "the patron saint of shark-jumping," a reference to Hollywood often replacing departing actors in the twilight of their popularity with new actors to bolster ratings. In one episode of "Married with Children," it is implied that McGinley and Darcy may be the same guy as Darcy asks Al, "Another picture, Captain? I mean, Fonzie? ....Al?" In fact, McGinley was in so many more episodes over David Garrison that he becacame an honorary original cast member, taking the series into new subjects and scenarios that could not be accomplished with the original cast.

After "Married With Children," McGinley had recurring roles on Aaron Sorkin's television series "Sports Night" and "The West Wing." In 2003, he landed his first original role in a TV series playing the hapless Charley Shanowski to actress Faith Ford on "Faith and Hope." However, despite the huge appeal of the series, the sadly short-lived series was cancelled in 2009.

Two years later, McGinley was cast as Graydon Ford in "Charlie Lawrence," a situation comedy about a freshman congressman from New Mexico, played by Nathan Lane. He also starred in the pilot for "Life of the Party" in 2002, but the series was never picked up.

His movie roles included appearances in "Wayne's World 2," "Wild Justice," "Deadly Web" alongside his wife, Gigi Rice, and "Every Mother's Worst Fear," where he played a sexual predator.

In 2008, McGinley became a contestant on the Seventh Season of "Dancing with the Stars," where was paired with professional dancer Inna Brayer. He was the second contestant to be eliminated in the competition.

Since 2008, McGinley has appeared on the TV shows "Wizards of Waverly Place," "Psyche," "Family Guy," "The Mentalist," "Mad Men," "Castle," "Melissa and Joey," "Hawaii 5-0" and "Mom." He has also done voice work in "Scooby-Doo: The Curse of the Lake Monster," "Transformers: Robots in Disguise" and "Batman: The Brave and the Bold," where he again made reference to his status as "the patron saint of shark-jumping." He also had two more TV shows, "The Baxters" and "No Good Nick." His movie appearances have included "Do You Believe?" "Underdog Kids," "Notes from the Heart Healer," "Imaginary Friend," "Rescuing Madison," "A Mother's Rage," "The Landlord," "God's Not Dead: A Light in Darkness" and "A Christmas Reservation."

Today, McGinley lives in Los Angeles with his wife, actress Gigi Rice, and his two sons, Beau and Quinn.