Biography

Early life

Wahlberg was born in Dorchester, Boston, Massachusetts to Catholic parents Donald Edward Wahlberg and Alma Elaine Donnelly. His paternal grandfather, Axel Simon Wahlberg, was of Swedish descent, while the remainder of his ancestry is Irish. He graduated from Copley Square High School on Newbury Street in Boston.

According to ABC News, as a teen Wahlberg had a history of "petty crime, drug dealing and racism."

"He harassed a group of African American school kids with racist epithets, and when he was 16, again using racist language, he attacked a middle-aged Vietnamese man and left the man blind in one eye. Wahlberg was arrested for attempted murder, plead guilty to assault, and spent 45 days in jail."

Career

Wahlberg first came to fame as the younger brother of Donnie Wahlberg of the successful bubblegum pop group New Kids on the Block. Mark had been hired as an original member of the group but quit before it became a success.

SKY Magazine cover from November 1993 featuring Wahlberg in his Marky Mark persona.When the New Kids' success finally ended, Mark began recording as Marky Mark & the Funky Bunch, earning a hit with Good Vibrations from the album Music for the People. The record was produced by his brother Donnie. The second Marky Mark LP, You Gotta Believe, was a relative failure. He briefly became embroiled in controversy when he appeared to endorse the homophobic comments made by Shabba Ranks when they appeared as guests on the British chat show The Word. He later publicly dissociated himself from Ranks' comments, but after widespread media coverage.

Wahlberg was also known for his impressive physique. He first displayed it in the Good Vibrations music video and most prominently in a series of underwear ads for Calvin Klein shot by Herb Ritts. He also made a workout video entitled The Marky Mark Workout: Fitness, Form, Focus. Afterwards he had a few hits in the european dance scene with prince Ital Joe, which abruptly ended when the latter died in a car accident.

He then began an acting career, making his debut in the 1993 TV movie The Substitute. He has earned positive reviews and appeared in a number of successful movies like Boogie Nights, Three Kings, The Perfect Storm, Four Brothers, and The Italian Job.

Wahlberg recently starred in the football drama, Invincible, based on the true story of Vince Papale. He is also the executive producer of the HBO series Entourage which is loosely based on his experiences in Hollywood. He also appeared as a Massachusetts State Police detective in Martin Scorsese's thriller, The Departed in 2006. He is nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama (2007) for this role.

Personal life

Wahlberg has two children, Ella Rae born on September 2, 2003, and son Michael, born on March 22, 2006.

Discography

Music for the People (1991)

You Gotta Believe (1992)

Selected filmography

The Brazilian Job (2008) ... Charlie Croker

Shooter (2007)

The Departed (2006) ... Sgt. Bryce Dignam

Life of Marlon O'Reilly (2006) ... Himself

Invincible (2006) ... Vince Papale

Four Brothers (2005) ... Bobby Mercer

I Heart Huckabees (2004) ... Tommy Corn

The Italian Job (2003) ... Charlie Croker

The Truth About Charlie (2002) ... Joshua Peters

Rock Star (2001) ... Chris 'Izzy' Cole

Planet of the Apes (2001) ... Capt. Leo Davidson

The Perfect Storm (2000) ... Bobby Shatford

The Yards (2000) ... Leo Handler

Three Kings (1999) ... Sfc. Troy Barlow

The Corruptor (1999) ... Danny Wallace

The Big Hit (1998) ... Melvin Smiley

Boogie Nights (1997) ... Eddie Adams/Dirk Diggler

Traveller (1997) ... Pat O'Hara

Fear (1996) ... David McCall

The Basketball Diaries (1995) ... Mickey

Renaissance Man (1994) ... Pvt. Tommy Lee Haywood

Trivia

Wahlberg was originally cast as Linus Caldwell in Ocean's Eleven; Matt Damon played the role instead. The two later worked together in The Departed.

Was a scheduled passenger on United Airlines Flight 93 on September 11, 2001.

He has said in many interviews that he plans to retire when he is 40.

"The Touch", a song by Stan Bush, gained some notoriety when Mark Wahlberg performed it in his 1997 film Boogie Nights.

Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg (born June 5, 1971) is an American actor, rapper and producer of film and television. He was known as Marky Mark in his earlier years and became famous in his 1991 debut as a rap musician with the band Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. Wahlberg has appeared in numerous films, including The Other Guys (2010), Boogie Nights (1997) and The Departed (2006) for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He also serves as one of the co-executive producers for the HBO television series Entourage.