Born John Mark Galecki in Bree, Belgium, where his father was stationed while serving in the U.S. Air Force, the star of a number one TV sitcom, “The Big Bang Theory,” moved to Oak Park in 1978. He announced to his parents early, at the age of four to be precise, that one day he would be a TV actor.
At age seven his parents took him to watch an audition at the former Village Players Theater on Madison St. to show him what life as an actor entailed. He was so enthusiastic he jumped on stage and sang the Star-Spangled Banner. The director was so impressed he cast Galecki in his upcoming production of “Fiddler on the Roof.”
After that introduction to the theater Galecki acted in a number of productions in the Chicago area and by age 11 received a Joseph Jefferson Citation nomination for his role in “Member of the Wedding.”
Galecki dropped out of school after the eighth grade to pursue acting. In 1989 his family moved to Los Angeles to help further his career and Galecki started appearing in films including the holiday movies “Prancer” and “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,”which became the second most popular holiday movie of all time. After nearly a year in Los Angeles the family, including father Richard, mother Mary Lou and siblings Allison and Nick, missed Oak Park and moved back. Galecki, however, was under contract for another show and stayed in LA, expecting to return to his family when the contract was over. He was 14, living alone in a studio apartment, and commuting to work on a motorcycle with a mirrored helmet to hide his age.
Roseanne Barr offered him a role in a TV movie which led to a one-time appearance on her show, “Rosanne,” and then a recurring role, and finally a contract; he appeared in 93 episodes. What followed was a series of movies and TV shows including “Suicide Kings“ (1997), “Bookies“ (2003), “Bounce“ (2000), “The Opposite of Sex (1998), “Norm” (1999), “My Name Is Earl“ (2005), “Hope & Faith“ (2003) and “My Boys“ (2006). In 2006 he appeared in the play "The Little Dog Laughed," for which he received a 2007 Theatre World Award for Outstanding Broadway Debut.
His biggest hit, however, was “The Big Bang Theory” which ran from 2006 to 2019, making it the longest-running primetime sitcom of all time. Galecki starred in all 279 episodes. as science nerd Leonard Hofstadter alongside Jim Parsons as the self-absorbed physics genius, Sheldon Cooper, and Kaley Cuoco as Penny, a neighbor, waitress, failing actress, and on again off again love interest of Leonard. The show won the People’s Choice Award for Favorite Network TV Comedy eight times, the most for any network comedy series. Galecki has been nominated for an Emmy, Critics Choice, Golden Globe, Kids Choice, Monte Carlo TV Festival, and Screen Actors Guild awards, among many others.
Besides being an actor, Galecki is a producer and writer of television shows, including sitcoms and drama, and executive producer of the HBO-Max comedy, the Griswolds. He is unmarried but had a son, Avery, in 2019 with Alaina Meyer.
While he lives in Southern California, he occasionally returns to Oak Park to visit his family.
Submitted by Michael Guerin, February 2023
Sources:
Internet Movie Database, Wednesday Journal, Oak Leaves, WGN Radio, Forest Park Review, 24 Celebs.com