Miami Vice Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Ed O'Neill

Edoneill

Miami Vice Character
Born
April 12, 1946, Youngstown, Ohio
Active
1972-present
Spouse/Children
Catherine Rusoff (1986-present), two daughters


Edward Phillip O'Neill Jr. (born April 12, 1946) is an American actor. He appeared in the show Miami Vice as Arthur Lawson, undercover FBI agent (cover name Artie Rollins) in the episode "Heart of Darkness".

Early Life/Career[]

O'Neill was born in Youngstown, Ohio, the son of a social worker/housewife and a mill worker/truck driver. After graduating high school, he attended Ohio University and Youngstown State University, where he played football. He was signed in 1969 by the Pittsburgh Steelers but failed to make the team, he then went into teaching at his high school alma mater before going into acting. He performed in a stage production of Of Mice and Men at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts, then made his film debut in 1972's Deliverance before appearing in a number of TV movie roles in the early 1980s, mainly playing police detective types. He was nearly cast in the roles of Sam Malone (went to Ted Danson) and Steven Keaton (went to Michael Gross) in the series Cheers and Family Ties.

After his Vice appearance, O'Neill continued to guest star on police shows such as The Equalizer, Hunter, and Spencer: For Hire before landing his most famous role as Al Bundy in the comedy Married With Children, a role he played for 10 years and 260 episodes. During his Married run he appeared in the movies K-9, Wayne's World and its sequel Wayne's World 2, and others. After Married went off the air, O'Neill returned to his police role roots in the movie The Bone Collector, then in television as Detective (later Lieutenant) Joe Friday in Dick Wolf's revival of Dragnet. He went back into comedy with his role as Jay Pritchett in Modern Family, for which he received Emmy nominations in 2011, 2012, and 2013. Ed is also the voice actor of Mr. Litwak, the owner of Litwak's Arcade in Wreck-It Ralph and its' sequel, Ralph Breaks the Internet (most recent movie appearance, and as Hank in Finding Dory, and appeared in the movies Entourage and Sun Dogs.

Personal Life[]

O'Neill has been married to Catherine Rusoff since 1986, surviving a four year separation from 1989-1993. They have two daughters. O'Neill also has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Advertisement