Sunday, July 1, 2012

Out Spotlight

For Canada Day, today's Out Spotlight is a Canadian actor and musician. Today's Out Spotlight is Luke Macfarlane.

Thomas Luke Macfarlane , better known as Luke Macfarlane,  was born January 19, 1980, in London, Ontario, Canada. His later father, Thomas, was the Director of Student Health Services at the University of Western Ontario, and his mother, Penny, is a mental health nurse at a London hospital. He attended London Central Secondary School with twin sister Ruth and older sister Rebecca.

Macfarlane attended the Lester B. Pearson School for the Arts, then later studied drama at Julliard in New York City, where he starred in the productions of Romeo & Juliet, Richard III, The School of Night, Blue Window, The Grapes of Wrath, and As You Like It before graduating from the drama division in 2003.

He was one of the four leads in Juvenilia at the Playwrights Horizons Theater from November 14–December 21, 2003. He went on to  play the lead role in the American premiere of the play Where Do We Live, staged at the Vineyard Theatre in May 2004. The production was cited by the 2005 GLAAD Media Awards for Outstanding New York Theatre: Broadway and Off-Broadway. He also appeared with Jill Clayburgh and Hamish Linklater in the off-Broadway production of The Busy World is Hushed, again at Playwrights Horizons, in the Summer of 2006.  He reprised his role of Thomas for the L.A. Premiere at the Skirball Cultural Center from February 7–11 of 2007.

On television, he is perhaps best known for his role as Scotty Wandell on ABC's Brothers & Sisters, husband to Kevin Walker (played by Matthew Rhys), one of the "brothers" of the show.

His  previous TV roles include Pvt. Frank "Dim" Dumphy on the 2005 FX network television series Over There and played opposite Cynthia Nixon in Robert Altman's Tanner on Tanner on the Sundance Channel.

Macfarlane was the last cast member to be added to the Fox pilot, Supreme Courtships, playing the role of conservative Allen Moore, described as a trust fund baby trying to prove he's more than just a legacy in the court. The pilot was not picked up by Fox Broadcasting Company for the 2007–2008 season.  He was cast as the leading role in the two-part mini-series for CBC called Iron Road which filmed in China and British Columbia.


After several years of speculation about MacFarlane’s sexuality, including a relationship with fellow actor TR Knight,  the actor confirmed he was gay in an interview with the Canadian paper Globe and Mail in 2008.

"I don't know what will happen professionally," MacFarlane said. "That is the fear, but I guess I can't really be concerned about what will happen, because it's my truth. ... There is this desire in L.A. to wonder who you are and what's been blaring for me for the last three years is how can I be most authentic to myself - so this is the first time I am speaking about it in this way."

The timing of his confirmation was also in part due to an upcoming storyline on Brothers & Sisters that involves his character being “married” to Kevin Walker (Matthew Rhys), his boyfriend on the show.

"From a standing outside perspective, and also as someone who is gay, I think that it's a very exciting time," MacFarlane said. "How exciting that we're saying, 'This can be part of the cultural fabric, now,' because it is two series regulars, two people that you invite into your home and you see every week. It's telling of the beginning of more waves and I'm very proud of that."

He was  also part of the one-night celebrity performed staging of Howard Ashman's unproduced musical "Dreamstuff". The musical was re-imagined by Howard's partners Marsha Malamet and Dennis Green and performed one night only at Los Angeles' Hayworth Theatre as part of the Bruno Kirby celebrity reading series, directed by Ugly Betty's Michael Urie. Luke starred in the show alongside Eden Espinosa, Vicki Lewis, Fred Willard and David Blue.

He joined the cast of Larry Kramer's A Normal Heart, and returned to join National company in 2012.    The story of a city in denial which "unfolds like a real-life political thriller—as a tight-knit group of friends refuses to let doctors, politicians and the press bury the truth of an unspoken epidemic behind a wall of silence. A quarter-century after it was written, this outrageous, unflinching and totally unforgettable look at the politics of New York during the AIDS crisis remains one of the theater's most powerful evenings ever."

As a musician, Macfarlane was the lead singer and a songwriter for the band Fellow Nameless, which began in his 8th grade along with some of his classmates at Lester B. Pearson School for the Arts under the name of Slipnaught, a name they randomly chose from a dictionary because they did not have a name for the band when it came time to perform on stage. Fellow Nameless came from Slipnaught mainly because the band members hated the original name, and so, Fellow Nameless was born at London Central Secondary School. Fellow Nameless produced one underground album, which was a half-studio, half-live CD album, and they recorded an additional ten songs that never got put out including three songs that were recorded for a development deal with Maverick Records. They played a showcase for Danny Strick A&R of Maverick Records and in the end got passed over. The once thought of as defunct London, Ontario, based band, Fellow Nameless, later had two incarnations without Macfarlane as lead singer. The first incarnation came in the second quarter of 2004 with the creation of Van A Primer and a new singer, Matthew Pearn. Their current incarnation, as of March, 2006, has three of the remaining band members under the new band name of Cancel Winter.

Macfarlane’s other musical talents include classical cello and the trumpet.

Luke was recently voted  29th, on the 2012 After Elton's Hot 100.

Happy Canada Day!

33 comments:

destiny said...

Happy Canada Day Seaweed.

destiny said...

LOL Ent. Lawyer.

Thanks Passing By for the rundown on the films opening the same time as EOW. I suspect the sci-fi film will come out on top, sounds like the kind of film that usually draws in the big crowds.

Florida Tom said...

Happy Canada Day Seaweed.

Luke is such a cutie. Was Luke linked to Hayden Christensen or the guy who starred in Prison Break?

It would be an achievement for Jake if EOW topped the box office in its first week. Bruce Willis wil be tough if his movie is promoted well.

the real m said...

Thanks for today's spotlight. I enjoyed Luke on Brothers and Sisters. Their story line was my favorite and he was so cute. Thanks too to Netflix for allowing me to watch 5 seasons or so in just a few weeks.

the real m said...

I saw the Looper trailer too and it looked pretty exciting. Odd that both Jake and Maggie have films opening the same day. Talk about sibling rivalry.

Florida Tom said...

Wentworth Miller. God I could not think of his name. There were so many rumors about him being Gay. I guess he will never come out either.

Special K said...

Happy Canada Day Seaweed and all OMG friends in Canada!

prairiegirl said...

Happy Canada Day, Seaweed! Wherever you are. ;)

Wowsa, that Luke McFarlane is cutie cute. Mmmm mmm mm. Very nice looking.

lol said...

Looks like Jake is back in TO to celebrate Canada day. That's near Paris, right?

prairiegirl said...

Oh please, one spotting at Tetrazzini's does not make a legit case.

In fact, don't even come over here unless you've got your back up to go along with your silly boasting because we're not putting it up for you.

Unless it's as made up as your Minky tweet nonsense, Troll. #Amateur.

prairiegirl said...

In fact, I predict the olllll' patio smoke break sighting tweet by morning.

#TickTock #SureAsRain

prairiegirl said...

Terroni's = Patio = Spin Cycle = Alice in Chains Restaurant = Parma = Colombo Coffee = Trains = Runyan Canyon = Las Feliz Navidad = Hollywood Farmers Market. #Interchangeable #OldReliables #BigYawn

PG the fortune teller lol said...

Aww PG you're so clever. You've already seen the tweets haven't you?

Special K said...

Well now it is not a mystery lady. It's a female friend.

Popsugar

#whatadifferenceadaymakes

prairiegirl said...

After seeing that Pop Sugar wasted 24 photos of the lame Soho 10 min. Stroll in one post, I'm convinced more than ever that Jake was in France if but for a few days.

Nearly 50 pictures on IHJ and Pop Sugar publishing 24 of those, just like M&M said on someone that nobody even knows her name but she has all the looks of a publicity employee, totally smacks of Lookit Here. Look at this big nothing.

It's not even worth pointing out the other obvious nonsense about it.

It was all about Jake and Paris.

Jake and Paris.

In June.

Paris.

Jake.

Austin.

Jake with Austin in Paris France.

prairiegirl said...

Jinx you owe me, Special. LOL

And this is how Jake justifies it in his little mind by edging around the railing with "mystery lady" enough to distract and then he pops back into view with, "but she's only a friend. What were you thinking she was? I never said exactly what she was. It was All You who was conjecturing. Not me. See? Nothing to see. "

#WhatAWienie

prairiegirl said...

Oh oh. Someone got a little irritated. Now, that's no way to start the week....


Hey Special, it's Ice Cream Mondayyyyy!!!

I salute a King Cone to you.

destiny said...

That link takes you to a OD video, not Popsugar. :-D

M, I thought Magic Mike was really good, but unfortunately there's not as much dancing and skin as you'd expect after seeing the red band trailer. But I still enjoyed it and had a good time. Matthew McConaughey is particularly good (just saw him in Bernie last week too, and another good performance).

I knew Matt's role was small, but boy, he's on screen very little--again I thought there would be longer dance scenes for everyone. You do see a lot of Tatum though.

destiny said...

In the it's about time category.......

Anderson Cooper is out.

The Fact is I'm Gay

Special K said...

Sorry about the wrong link I will have to grab it and fix it.

Destiny, I am starting to feel a better now. I'm about 80%. Still leery of certain things to eat.

Good to hear that about Anderson.

prairiegirl said...

I just texted Tom with the news. He said "No way."

I said, "Yes, way!!!" lol

the real m said...

Very ahppy to hear about Anderson and his comments were very well written as one owuld expect from such an intelligent man. Very classy way to do it. Jake, you are up next.

destiny said...

It was nice to see Anderson acknowledge that he was not out and talk about the whole privacy issue.

destiny said...

Glad you're feeling better Special.

Florida Tom said...

I love days like this. Thanks for lettting me know PG.

One thing I can understand which prevented Anderson from coming out was the countries and the war zones he went to. In some of those countries it is dangerous to be Gay.
I can understand he didnt want to endanger himself or others.

Who is next? I totally expect someone or multiple players to come out in the NHL in the near future.

Florida Tom said...

One great thing that Anderson has done has been to not complicate his life so much that he could not ever come out. How incredibly bad do men like Travolta and Cruise look if they are outed. Men like Jim McCreevey leave themselves open for blackmail and their families and careers are destroyed. I think Jake has made some mistakes like reeke but I don't think he has painted himself into a corner he can't get out of. I believe there was a cotract involved which protected reese from any embarrassment if Jake came out in the future.

Florida Tom said...

The Gray Fox is such a cutie.

destiny said...

I've never quite bought that explanation for why Anderson didn't come out. A lot of places around the world are also very dangerous for women, and yet it doesn't stop them from going to those countries.

Anderson said...

"As long as a journalist shows fairness and honesty in his or her work, their private life shouldn't matter," Cooper writes. "I’ve stuck to those principles for my entire professional career, even when I’ve been directly asked 'the gay question,' which happens occasionally."

Recently, however, Cooper says he's been reminded "that … the tide of history only advances when people make themselves fully visible. There continue to be far too many incidences of bullying of young people, as well as discrimination and violence against people of all ages, based on their sexual orientation, and I believe there is value in making clear where I stand."

He said he wasn’t comfortable with the assumption by some that because he wasn’t speaking about his sexuality, he was trying to hide something – an impression that he finds “distressing because it is simply not true.”

And so, for the record, Cooper writes: "The fact is, I'm gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn’t be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud."

He adds that he's always been this open with family, friends and colleagues. "In a perfect world, I don't think it's anyone else's business, but I do think there is value in standing up and being counted," Cooper says.

"The ability to love another person is one of God’s greatest gifts, and I thank God every day for enabling me to give and share love with the people in my life," Cooper says in closing. "I still consider myself a reserved person and I hope this doesn’t mean an end to a small amount of personal space. But I do think visibility is important, more important than preserving my reporter’s shield of privacy."

Not True said...

A lot of places around the world are also very dangerous for women, and yet it doesn't stop them from going to those countries.

Actually, it does. I know of several women who have been nervous about and/or cancelled business travel or made other arrangements because of the perceived dangers for women of traveling to war-torn or countries associated with terrorism. I'm sure they are not alone.

prairiegirl said...

I think an important and beautifully simple sentence that came just before the sentence "In my opinion, the ability to love another person..." in Anderson's statement was this.

I love, and I am loved.

That was a beautiful part of his writing. Just a very eloquent statement by Anderson Cooper, so well written.

Special K said...

I agree PG, that is the one sentence that stood out to me when I read about Anderson.

the real m said...

Oh, PG, that statement hit home with me too. Lovely sentiment. And so respectful of his relationship. His partner is a lucky man. I have not been over to Michael D yet to see what he has to say about it.