Jon Cryer

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Jonathan Niven "Jon" Cryer (born April 16, 1965) is an American actor, screenwriter, film director, and film producer. He is the son of Gretchen and David Cryer. Cryer made his motion picture debut in the 1984 romantic comedy No Small Affair, but found greater fame in the 1986 John Hughes-written film Pretty in Pink. In 1998, he wrote and produced the independent film Went to Coney Island on a Mission from God... Be Back by Five.

Although Cryer gained subsequent fame by starring in these films, it took several years to find success on television. The shows in which Cryer starred, such as The Famous Teddy Z, Partners, and The Trouble with Normal, did not last long. In 2003, Cryer was cast as Alan Harper on the hit CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men, for which he won two Primetime Emmy Awards in 2009 and 2012.[1] [2] Cryer received a star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television in 2011.

Early life
Cryer was born in New York City, New York. His mother, Gretchen (née Kiger), is a playwright, songwriter, actress, and singer; his father, Donald David Cryer, is an actor and singer who originally studied to be a minister.[3] [4] [5] Cryer's paternal grandfather, Rev. Dr. Donald W. Cryer, was a well-known Methodist minister. He has two sisters, Robin and Shelly. He also has a step-sister, Hannah Douglas-Cryer.[6] When Cryer was twelve years old, he decided that he wanted to become an actor.[7] When his mother heard this, she thought he should have a backup plan, and joked: "Plumbing is a pretty good career."[6] Cryer attended Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Training Center for several summers as a teenager,[8] and is a 1983 graduate of the Bronx High School of Science. He was classmates with screenwriter and film director Boaz Yakin.[9] To his mother's "great disappointment", Cryer skipped college and went to study acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London, England.[10]

Career
Cryer's first professional acting effort was as David in the Broadway play Torch Song Trilogy, replacing Matthew Broderick, who he "closely resembled".[11] Cryer was later an understudy and replacement for Broderick in Neil Simon's Brighton Beach Memoirs in 1989. This resemblance to Broderick became something of a running joke,[12] [13] even referenced numerous times on his hit series Two and a Half Men, where his character posed as Broderick in order to get star treatment on various occasions.

At age 19, Cryer appeared in the 1984 romantic comedy film No Small Affair, in the lead role as Charles Cummings.[14] He went on to have small roles in films and television movies, and he made his breakthrough as Phil "Duckie" Dale in the John Hughes-scripted film Pretty in Pink.[15] In an interview with the Daily News, Cryer's mother said that after Pretty in Pink, she started getting calls from teenage girls from all over the world, who would leave hysterical, giggling messages on her answering machine.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-E.21_6-2">[6] In 1989, he got the lead role in the TV comedy series, The Famous Teddy Z. His performance gained poor reviews<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-EW1_16-0">[16] and the show was canceled after the first season.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-EW1_16-1">[16]

One year later, he starred with Charlie Sheen in the Jim Abrahams comedy Hot Shots!,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-TT_7-1">[7] which was received very positively.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-17">[17] Cryer is frequently linked to the Brat Pack.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Brat_Pack_18-0">[18] In a March 2009 interview on Anytime with Bob Kushell, Cryer stated that he had auditioned for St. Elmo's Fire but was not cast in a role.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19">[19] In 1993, he was asked to audition for the role of Chandler Bing on Friends, while doing a play in London. His reading was videotaped by a British casting agent but the tape failed to arrive in the U.S. before the network had made its final decision.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-TT_7-2">[7]

In 1995, he was cast as Bob in the sitcom Partners, which, like his prior show The Famous Teddy Z, was canceled after its first season. In an interview with Time Out New York he stated, "Hey, every show I'm in goes down. Think about this: George Clooney was in 28 pilots, or something. It means nothing".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-E.21_6-3">[6] After guest starring on shows such as Dharma & Greg and The Outer Limits, he successfully wrote and produced the film, Went to Coney Island on a Mission from God... Be Back by Five. It debuted in 1998 at the Los Angeles Film Festival and gained positive reviews from critics.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-RT1_20-0">[20] Leonard Maltin from Playboy Magazine called it "A breath of fresh air".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-CoverConeyIsland_21-0">[21] In 2000, he was cast as the lead in a comedy series called Trouble With Normal. For the third time, Cryer starred in a show which was canceled after its first season.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22">[22]

Cryer's long run of unsuccessful TV projects finally ended three years later. Against the wishes of CBS executives (who were aware of his past failures), he was cast in 2003 to portray Alan Harper on the hit comedy series Two and a Half Men. To date, he has earned seven Primetime Emmy Award<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23">[23] nominations and two wins<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-emmywin_1-1">[1] for his acting work on the show.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-08emmynoms_2-1">[2] In a comment on the show's high ratings, he said: "When you’re on a show that's fighting for survival every week, you stop trusting your instincts, because you think, ‘My instincts haven't worked so far.’ But when people clearly like the show and are watching it in great numbers, it takes a huge amount of pressure off you. It allows you to trust your instincts and go with what has worked for you before."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-TT_7-3">[7] After former co-star Charlie Sheen's departure from the series, Cryer's character has since become the show's central character, mainly due to the show's retooled plot. Before being cast for Two and a Half Men, Cryer auditioned for the role of Gaius Baltar on the Sci-Fi Channel's reimagined Battlestar Galactica, but the role went to James Callis.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-vary_24-0">[24] In 2008, Cryer appeared with Laurence Fishburne and James Cromwell in the film Tortured,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-25">[25] and in 2009 co-starred with James Spader in the film Shorts.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-DS_26-0">[26]

Cryer made a guest appearance on the sitcom series Husbands in its second season.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Tubefilter_27-0">[27] He was initially cast to voice the lead character in the DisneyToon Studios animated film Planes, a spin-off of Pixar's Cars,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-28">[28] but later dropped out and was replaced by Dane Cook.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-29">[29] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-30">[30]

Personal life
Cryer married British actress Sarah Trigger in 1999, with whom he has a son, Charlie Austin.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-E.21_6-4">[6] The pair divorced in 2004. In February 2007, on an episode of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, he announced that he would marry entertainment reporter Lisa Joyner; the couple married in Mexico<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-E.21_6-5">[6] in June 2007.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-marriage_31-0">[31] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-32">[32] On September 29, 2009, Jon and Lisa announced that they adopted a baby girl, whom they named Daisy.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-33">[33] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-34">[34]

During the 2008 presidential election campaign, Cryer attended a fundraiser hosted by the McCain campaign and, according to most news reports, endorsed Senator John McCain.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-wt_35-0">[35] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-36">[36] Cryer's spokeswoman, Karen Sanfilippohis, stated: "Jon is not a Republican. The mistake was made because in 2008 he attended events for both parties. It seems the Republican Party was very quick to align him with their group of supporters. He did attend events for both parties, because he wanted to hear what both sides had to say. He's not really political."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-hill_37-0">[37]