Friday, May 1, 2009

TheTVObserver: Gale Harold


TheTVObserver’s StarSpread presents Gale Harold. As the TV star returns to the successful ABC prime time drama Desperate Housewives this May, 3rd. We decided to pay tribute to one of television’s most talented actor. He returns as Jackson Braddock to the popular show, and he has also appreared on "Grey's Anatomy" as Shane, "Vanished" as Agent Graham Kelton, "Deadwood" as Wyatt Earp, "The Unit" as Rory, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" as Dr. Garrett Lang and the most popular role which remains associated with actor is "Queer as Folk" when he played the memorable Brian Kinney. Every gay man's fantasy date or husband.

There is something about Gale which is very attractive or sexy, as a fan keeps reminding me after the recent announcement we made about his return. Also I made the error of indicating to that he will be on StarSpread. The questions just poured through my mail box, ….how many pictures is TheTVObserver going feature on the spread?, what information will it have? Are the pictures hot?... blah blah blah….anyone with a gun, please? Moving on…….

We have observed every episode from season 1 to 5 of the show that made Gale Harold a popular TV star and sex symbol for a lot of guys and ladies. What we can't take away from Gale, are his looks and his amazing talent as an actor. Gale Harold, was born as Gale Morgan Harold III, on July 10, 1969. He is an American actor.

Gale Harold was born in Decatur, Georgia, the son of an engineer father and a mother who was a real estate agent. The second of three children, Gale Harold's parents were devout Pentecostals, and Harold had a strict Pentecostal upbringing. At age 15, he left the church, saying that he "knew it was bullshit." Harold's father left the church several years later.

I guess it was pretty much easy for him to draw inspiration to play Brian. At this time in the spread, I would like to remember some of the lines that made TheTVObserver laugh as we research this actor. Due to the strong language of the show, we have only selected less provocative quotes:

Brian: What are you doing?
Justin: Giving my friend Daphne a tour of your house.
Brian: This isn't the White House. George Washington hasn't slept here.
Justin: He's the only guy who hasn't.

After graduating from The Lovett School in Atlanta, Georgia, Harold attended American University in Washington, DC, on a soccer scholarship. He began a Liberal Arts degree in romance literature, only to depart after a year and a half following a conflict with his coach.

Gale Harold then moved to San Francisco, California, United States to pursue an interest in photography at the San Francisco Art Institute. He worked a variety of jobs including positions as a Ducati motorcycle technician and a construction worker.

In 1997, friend Susan Landau, daughter of actor Martin Landau, suggested Gale Harold try acting. He relocated to Los Angeles and began a 3-year period of intensive drama study. At 28, he was accepted into the Actors Conservatory Program with the classical theater company A Noise Within.

In his theatrical debut, Gale Harold appeared as "Bunny" in Me and My Friends. In 2003, he starred in Wake, produced by Susan Landau Finch and directed by her husband Henry Leroy Finch. The movie featured a cameo by Martin Landau and the lead part of Kyle Riven was written specifically for Harold.

In 2000, Gale Harold, landed the controversial role of unapologetic homosexual Brian Kinney, a central character on Showtime's popular gay drama Queer as Folk, a breakthrough performance that included a level of explicit male homosexual sex unusual for American television. Brian Kinney's character, as well as the show itself, elicited quite a great deal of controversy. It was alternately lauded and criticized for its explicit depictions of gay club life. The show ran for five successful seasons, ending in 2005.

Gale Harold had the lead role of Special Agent Graham Kelton in the short lived FOX series Vanished in 2006, but his character was killed off in the seventh episode and appeared only as a corpse in the eighth episode -- in which Harold nominally starred but was actually replaced by a new leading man, Eddie Cibrian. Cibrian received top billing only on the very last episode to be broadcast.

The show's ratings plummeted after Gale Harold's character's death, and the last two episodes (in a new timeslot on Friday night at 8 p.m. Eastern time) limped on with half the previous viewership. Although the loss of viewership has also been attributed to the so-called "Friday night death slot," it is useful to note that the show also ranked last in its time slot, that it declined further from its first Friday airing to its second, and that Fox's replacements in the slot (including a rebroadcast of a three year old Jim Carrey movie Bruce Almighty) did considerably better.

The second quote:
Brian: He stole all my clothes. I'm suspecting gay-on-gay crime here.
Lindsay: It wouldn't surprise me. You've had more visitors than Disney World.

Gale Harold also guest-starred as Wyatt Earp in two episodes of the HBO series Deadwood and appeared twice on the CBS series The Unit. Alongside childhood idol David Bowie, Gale is an associate producer of the documentary Scott Walker: 30 Century Man.

Gale Harold returned to the New York stage in Tennessee Williams' play Suddenly Last Summer on November 15, 2006, in the role of Dr. Cukrowicz ("Dr. Sugar"). Harold's co-stars in this Roundabout Theatre repertory production, a limited Off-Broadway engagement running through January 20, 2007, were Blythe Danner and Carla Gugino.

Gale Harold appeared in November 2007 in a guest role on ABC's Grey's Anatomy as Shane, a paramedic and white supremacist with a swastika tattooed on his abdomen, who is injured in an ambulance crash.

Gale Harold joined the cast of Desperate Housewives beginning May 18, 2008 as Jackson, Susan Mayer's latest love interest. On October 14, 2008, Harold was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident.

Gale worked as a carpenter and motorcycle mechanic before being cast in "Queer as Folk" (2000). He is an avid reader of The Nation magazine. He now calls the city of L.A his home, after relocating from Toronto.

Has an older sister and a younger brother. Attended South West Dekalb High School and The Lovett School. Past influences were Jack London, Gandalf & David Bowie.

The third and final, quotes:
Brian: Why don't you find yourself some nice fuzzy lezzy with a therapist license and work it out.
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Melanie: Your screwing everything that moves is your finest quality and our best defense.
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Brian: Basic rule of advertising and eternal damnation: Once you sell your soul to the devil, he holds the copyright.
Related Links
TheTVObserver: Gale Harold Returns
TheTVObserver: Gale Harold Returns Video
TheTVObserver: StarSpread
TheTVObserver: Brian Kinney's True Love

By TheTVObserver
@ 2009 © TheTVObserver. All Rights Reserved
Pictures used on TheTVObserver graphics and information sourced from third parties are the property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

19 comments:

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for featuring Gale on your blog! He's such a great actor and a fine human being too. Many people I know have met him and report that he's shy, but grateful and attentive to each and every fan. We have all been thrilled by his recovery from his accident and the fact that Marc Cherry wanted him back on Desperate Housewives! We're hoping he'll return for season six!

Unknown said...

Thank you! This feature of Gale on your blog is great. He's so very talented and, also, gorgeous. I'm so pleased that he is able to return to Desperate Housewives and hope that Marc Cherry and ABC will have the good sense to bring him back for Season 6. He's been sorely missed!!

Unknown said...

Bravo! Great column! Loved the quotes. Looking forward to the rest of the DH season (and season 6, I hope)!

scarygirl said...

Great to see such an extensive piece on Gale. He is awesome.

Tom said...

Well, Gale has always been one of the most charismatic actors for me. He's one of the most underrated persons in this showbiz, imo.
Thanks for that.

Anonymous said...

Thank you ! I agree, Gale Harold is a talented actor underrated, and handsome man , so I hope for him, something more well written than Jackson Braddock's role...he deserves better than to be naked and said stupid lines.

Anonymous said...

Always great to read about Gale... cant wait for his return this Sunday.

TheTVObserver said...

Hi Guys. Appreciate all the thoughtful comments. Gale is truly a star and we are also very happy to have him on StarSpread.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the terrific write-up on Gale Harold. He was sorely missed on DH and I hope to see him continue on in Season 6.

Emma H. said...

Thanks for this. I think all of Gale's fans, including myself, really appreciate the fact that someone like yourself would do a write-up on him. I'm delighted that he is now fully recovered and back in Desperate Housewives. Thanks again!!

Unknown said...

Wow what a great article, it's about time people truly appreciated Gale & his talent, not just his handsome face.

I'll never forget Brian Kinney, but I hope we get to see lots more of Jackson, I'll watch what ever TV show he's in, he's a wonderful actor & I can't wait until May 3rd.

Thanks once again, loved all the BK comments to, I remember them all!!

Later guys.

Tami said...

Thanks for featuring Gale! He is such an amazing actor! I can't wait to see him back on DH on Sunday!

BTW, Gale hasn't called Toronto his home since QAF ended. He now lives in Los Angeles :-)

TheTVObserver said...

Hi Tami. Please note that we have fixed it. Thanks again. We really appreciate your visit and hope that you keep visiting TheTVObserver.

And Jackie, after what we have observed from this talented actor. It's safe to say, any show or film with Gale is worth watching.

It would be great if we see more of his acting talents on DH or in other roles on other TV shows. He is a real star, not just a pretty face.

We wish him well and hope that he recovered fully without any lasting damage. He needs to burn that motorcycle. We can't loose such a great actor.

Thanks again for visiting TheTVObserver

Anonymous said...

Wow! I never knew these things about Gale Harold. He's a terrific actor and he really deserves to be commended.

CF said...

I agree with all the nice previous comments: he's really underrated and deserves a much better role. But due to his accident, I'm now grateful because they reserved his spot on the show and, hopefully, he'll move on to much better things... soon. Thank you so much for featuring him, there are many pictures I haven't seen before. I know he's much more than a pretty face but I can't help but melt when I see him. Thank you again.

Anonymous said...

I wish there were more articles like yours on Gale. He is a great talent...I hope to see him on the big screen with another well known actor, one day soon! Cannot wait until Sunday, May 5!! I hope he stays on for all the following seasons!!

Anonymous said...

It is always so thrilling to read an article about Gale. He really is so talented. I am happy that DH is giving him more exposure so that more and more people can hear about him. We now need Marc Cherry to bring him back next season.

Anonymous said...

i want to thank you for this article. we're grateful that he'll finish out the season.

Galine said...

Un grand merci pour toutes ces belles photos et tous ces commentaires sur Gale ma Star préféré et oui même en France il est connu et il a de nombreux fans dont moi une inconditionnelle..
Il est tout simplement magnifique de par sa beauté et de par son jeu d'acteur, il est touchant avec ces mimique adorables, il joue divinement bien,
Alors donnez nous encore & encore & toujours du Gale, il mérite réellement des rôles à sa hauteur, je trouve qu'il n'est pas assez reconnu par la profession il est digne des plus grands acteurs
Merci à toi Gale de nous faire vibrer et rêver
Et j'espère qu'il va nous revenir dans DH saison 6 et que Marc Cherry va donner beaucoup d'importance à son rôle et qu'il sera en premier plan