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Ken Olin

Ken Olin

Known For Acting
Birthday Jul 30, 1954 (71)
Birthplace Chicago, Illinois, USA
Popularity 0.3 (history)
Updated Nov 15, 2024
Entry Date Apr 13, 2024
Links TMDb IMDb
Biography

His dark, sincere good looks were steadily put to use on the small screen during the 80s, but, in retrospect, actor Ken Olin will probably be considered more of a major force behind the camera. Born in Chicago, Ken went to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and headed for Hollywood in th ... e late 70s. After the typical route of bit parts, he started moving up in leaps and bounds on TV's top shows. A couple of strong, single season regular parts on both Hill Street Blues (1981)and Falcon Crest (1981) ultimately led to his casting as the introspective and quietly sexy Michael Steadman on Thirtysomething (1987), which ran for four seasons and nabbed numerous awards for its liberal writing and sensitive content. Ken co-starred with wife Patricia Wettig on the show, but the multi-Emmy winner Wettig did not play Ken's wife (actress Mel Harris did) and the public was often confused as to who Ken's wife really was. Ken also earned the chance to direct occasionally on Thirtysomething (1987) and this would have a significant impact as to the direction of his career in the years to come. Following Thirtysomething (1987), Ken pursued acting work in mini-movies as both hero ( Police Story: Cop Killer (1988) ) and villain ( Dead by Sunset (1995) ), but almost always seemed on the verge of leaving acting altogether. It was his burgeoning interest in directing that took over, and he has since found steady helming duties on such popular shows as Felicity (1998) and The West Wing (1999). His TV drama Doing Time on Maple Drive (1992)was nominated for three Emmys.

Known For

Filmography

Y2K

Y2K

1999

as Nick Cromwell

The Advocate's Devil

The Advocate's Devil

1997

as Abe Ringel

Til There Was You

Til There Was You

1997

as Gregory

Nothing But the Truth

Nothing But the Truth

1995

as Dr. Peter Clayman

Telling Secrets

Telling Secrets

1993

as Det. Jay Jensen

Queens Logic

Queens Logic

1991

as Ray

Police Story: Cop Killer

Police Story: Cop Killer

1988

as Officer Manny Mandell

A Stoning in Fulham County

A Stoning in Fulham County

1988

as Jim Sandler

Tonight's the Night

Tonight's the Night

1987

as Henry Fox

There Must Be a Pony

There Must Be a Pony

1986

as Jay Savage

Ghost Story

Ghost Story

1981

as Young Sears James

Women at West Point

Women at West Point

1979

as Board Member

No data available

Phenomenon II

Phenomenon II

2003

Director

In Pursuit of Honor

In Pursuit of Honor

1995

Director

The Broken Cord

The Broken Cord

1992

Director

Kansas

Kansas

1995

Executive Producer

Organization Category Movie
Television Credits

thirtysomething

as Michael Steadman

Episodes: 85

First Aired: Sep 29, 1987

Brothers and Sisters

as David Caplan

Episodes: 30

First Aired: Sep 24, 2006

L.A. Doctors

as Dr. Roger Cattan

Episodes: 24

First Aired: Sep 21, 1998

Hill Street Blues

as Harry Garibaldi

Episodes: 24

First Aired: Jan 15, 1981

Falcon Crest

as Christopher Rossini

Episodes: 17

First Aired: Dec 04, 1981

EZ Streets

as Det. Cameron Quinn

Episodes: 13

First Aired: Oct 27, 1996

Zoo

as Professor Robert Oz

Episodes: 10

First Aired: Jun 30, 2015

Bay City Blues

as Rocky Padillo

Episodes: 8

First Aired: Oct 25, 1983

I'll Take Manhattan

as Nat Lammerman

Episodes: 4

First Aired: Mar 01, 1987

Murder, She Wrote

as Perry Revere

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 30, 1984

Alias

as David McNeil (uncredited)

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 30, 2001

The Hitchhiker

as Steve

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Nov 01, 1983

Hill Street Blues

as Det. Harry Garibaldi

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jan 15, 1981

Dead by Sunset

Episodes: 2

First Aired: Nov 19, 1995

Hotel

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Aug 21, 1982

Late Night with Conan O'Brien

as Self - Guest

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 13, 1993

Breaking News

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jul 17, 2002

Stars in the House

as Self

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Mar 16, 2020

Golden Globe Awards

as Self - Audience Member

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jan 20, 1944

Golden Globe Awards

as Self - Presenter

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jan 20, 1944

Popularity Metrics

Popularity History


Year Month Avg Max Min
2024 5 12 12 12
2024 6 7 10 4
2024 7 16 27 4
2024 8 13 24 5
2024 9 7 14 2
2024 10 6 13 1
2024 11 3 7 1
2024 12 4 7 2
2025 1 7 17 2
2025 2 4 9 1
2025 3 4 8 1
2025 5 1 2 1
2025 6 1 1 1
2025 7 0 0 0
2025 8 1 4 0
2025 9 0 0 0
2025 10 0 0 0

Trending Rank


Year Month Avg Rank Max Rank
2024 5 993 993

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