Bruce Boxleitner

BRUCE BOXLEITNER

Date of Birth: May 12, 1950

Born in Elgin, Illinois, Bruce Boxleitner attended Prospect High School and then the Goodman Theater School of Drama of the Art Institute of Chicago. His first role was as Henry Higgins in a school production of My Fair Lady, when the young man originally cast in the role came down with mononucleosis. Boxleitner's success on stage encouraged him to continue studying drama. After moving to Los Angeles in 1972, Boxleitner landed a guest spot on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Guest roles on other series such as Police Woman, Baretta, Hawaii 5-0 and Gunsmoke followed.

In 1976 he gained household fame, even landing in teen magazines when the TV movie he starred in, The Macahans, was made into a TV series called How the West was Won, which ran for several years. The show won two Emmy awards and a Western Writers of America Award for Best TV Script in 1978. That led to him playing similar roles in other projects before Scarecrow and Mrs. King came along. Set in modern day, he played the debonair Lee Stetson opposite Kate Jackson of Charlie's Angels fame. When the show ended after four seasons, Boxleitner wasn't out of work long, working steadily in TV movies until he got a role in the 1994-1998 series Babylon 5.

On the big screen, Boxleitner's best-known film was Tron (1982), and over 25 years later, he was asked to reprise the role in the sequel, Tron: Legacy.

In 1977 Boxleitner married actress Kathryn Holcomb, who played his sister in How the West was won. The marriage ended amicably after 10 years and two sons together, Sam and Lee. Boxleitner was introduced to Little House on the Prairie actress Melissa Gilbert by Holcomb and in 1995, Boxleitner and Gilbert married. They later had one son together. In addition to Gilbert's other son from a previous marriage, Boxleitner is now a part of a family of six. Although he is mainly known for his acting, Boxleitner has also written two science fiction novels and from 1986-1989, he was a model for Estee Lauder. In 2003, Boxleitner was appointed to the Board of Governors of the National Space Society, a non-profit educational space advocacy organization.