Michael Boatman
Encyclopedia
Michael Patrick Boatman (born October 25, 1964) is an Image Award-nominated American
actor
and writer
. He is best known for his roles as U.S. Army
Specialist
Samuel Beckett in the ABC
drama series China Beach
, as New York City
mayoral aide Carter Heywood in the ABC
sitcom Spin City
, and as sports agent
Stanley Babson in the HBO comedy series Arli$$
.
, the son of Gwendolyn Boatman Pugh, a job supervisor for the handicapped, and Daniel Boatman, an army
officer. He was raised in Chicago
. Boatman is a graduate of Western Illinois University
and received its "Alumni Achievement Award" in 1997.
Boatman studied acting at Western Illinois, where he played a variety of roles including Oberon
in A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Purlie in Purlie Victorious. He was a member of the student sketch comedy troupe Shock Treatment, which performed at local bars and nightclubs. During his senior year Boatman won the prestigious Irene Ryan
theater award for best supporting actor, during the finals competition at the Kennedy Center.
. That same year he appeared in Running On Empty with River Phoenix
, and The Trial of Bernard Goetz for the PBS American Playhouse
series. In 1988, he auditioned for the pilot episode of the Vietnam era television drama, China Beach
. He went on to play Samuel Beckett, the mortician in the China Beach mortuary, for the next three seasons. He later co-starred on The Jackie Thomas Show with Tom Arnold
, and the short-lived WB series Muscle. In 1996, he landed a role on the ABC sitcom, Spin City
, playing "Carter", the irascible, openly gay minority affairs liaison. For his work on Spin City he was nominated for five NAACP Image Awards for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy. He also won the GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Association Against Defamation) award for Best Actor.
At the same time he was on Spin City, Boatman played the role of "Stanley Babson", the anal-retentive Chief Financial Officer on the HBO original series Arliss
and starred on both series simultaneously until they were canceled in 2002. For his work on Arliss Boatman was nominated for four Image Awards, also for Best Supporting Actor. He played the lead role in the critically acclaimed Charles Burnett drama, The Glass Shield
. Later, he appeared in the feature films The Peacemaker, with George Clooney
and Nicole Kidman
, and Woman Thou Art Loosed, and in several made-for-TV movies. Michael Boatman also narrated in the WPA slave narratives in the HBO film Unchained Memories
, in 2003. In the 1930s about 100,000 former slaves during the Great Depression of which 2,300 were interviewed part of the Federal Writers' Project. Transcripts of the Slave Narratives collection of the Library of Congress is a record of slavery, bondage and misery.
In 2007, Boatman co-starred in the feature films, The Killing of Wendy (2008), American Summer and My Father's Will. He has had many notable guest appearances, including five episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
, Less Than Perfect
, Yes, Dear
, Scrubs
, CSI: Miami
, Hannah Montana
and Grey's Anatomy
.
Boatman guest starred in the mystery/drama Warehouse 13
, in July 2009. He also played a serial killer named William Harris on the episode 'Soul Mates' on Criminal Minds
.
In 2009, he joined the cast of the Lifetime comedy series, Sherri, starring Sherri Shepherd
. The series is based on Shepherd's life experiences as a divorced single mom, actress and stand up comedian. Boatman plays 'Doctor Randy Gregg', Sherri's son's pediatrician and Sherri's love interest. Most recently he has appeared as attorney Julius Cain in the CBS drama, The Good Wife. In 2010, Michael began personal training with martial arts master David Falcon at Condition X Athletics.
In September 2011, Boatman appeared on the red carpet and in the audience (though not on stage) for the Comedy Central Roast
of former Spin City costar Charlie Sheen
.
In 2011, Boatman will guest-star as Russell Thorpe on Gossip Girl
, along with Tika Sumpter
, who will play his daughter Raina.
horror genre, which is characterized by an extreme gore and violence as well as a wicked sense of humor. In one of his stories, the protagonist rises from the dead to avenge his death and kills an assailant with an eyeball flying out of his socket. In another story, a character is described as "meaner than a Republican with a snake up his dickhole." That same story has the line "the mattress smelled like the septic tanks behind the Mexican abortion clinic at high tide" - a sentence that David J Schow cited as particularly disturbing and poetic. Splatterpunk
is a divisive genre which offends as much as it entertains. Joe Lansdale praised his first collection with ""Michael Boatman writes like a visitor from hell. Someone out on short term leave for bad behavior. I love this stuff. He's one of the new, and more than promising, writers making his mark, and a dark and wonderful mark it is." However, one critic stated that his book was "a heinous little collection of short stories that manage to both confuse and disgust."
Many multi-author anthologies feature at least one of his short stories. They include Sick Things: An Anthology of Extreme Creature Horror, Until Someone Loses an Eye, Sages and Swords and Badass Horror. He has also been published in Weird Tales
, Horror Garage and Red Scream. He introduced Cyber-Pulp Halloween 3.0 which was published by Cyber-pulp Books.
His first collection of short stories, God Laughs When You Die, was published by Dybbuk Press on October 23, 2007. His humorous horror novel, The Revenant Road, was published by Drollerie Press in 2009.
His influences include Joe Lansdale and Edward Lee
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
. He is best known for his roles as U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
Specialist
Specialist (rank)
Specialist is one of the four junior enlisted ranks in the U.S. Army, just above Private First Class and equivalent in pay grade to Corporal. Unlike Corporals, Specialists are not considered junior non-commissioned officers...
Samuel Beckett in the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
drama series China Beach
China Beach
China Beach is an American dramatic television series set at an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War. The title refers to My Khe beach in the city of Da Nang, Vietnam, which was nicknamed "China Beach" by unknown foreigners, most likely Americans...
, as New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
mayoral aide Carter Heywood in the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
sitcom Spin City
Spin City
Spin City is an American sitcom television series that aired from September 17, 1996 until April 30, 2002 on the ABC network. Created by Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence, the show was based on a fictional local government running New York City, and originally starred Michael J. Fox as Mike...
, and as sports agent
Sports agent
A sports agent procures and negotiates employment and endorsement contracts for an athlete.In return, the sports agent generally receives between 4 and 10% of the athlete's playing contract, and 10 to 20% of the athlete's endorsement contract, though these figures vary...
Stanley Babson in the HBO comedy series Arli$$
Arliss
-Criticism:This show, which ran for seven seasons, is a prime example of how HBO differs from traditional networks due to its nature as a network its viewers specifically pay to be able to watch. Arliss was cited by so many viewers as the sole reason that they paid for the network that its...
.
Biography
Michael Boatman was born in Colorado Springs, ColoradoColorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. Colorado Springs is located in South-Central Colorado, in the southern portion of the state. It is situated on Fountain Creek and is located south of the Colorado...
, the son of Gwendolyn Boatman Pugh, a job supervisor for the handicapped, and Daniel Boatman, an army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
officer. He was raised in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Boatman is a graduate of Western Illinois University
Western Illinois University
Western Illinois University is a public university founded in 1899 as Western Illinois State Normal School. Like many similar institutions of the time, Western Illinois State Normal School focused on teacher training for its relatively small body of students. As the normal school grew, it became...
and received its "Alumni Achievement Award" in 1997.
Boatman studied acting at Western Illinois, where he played a variety of roles including Oberon
Oberon
Oberon is a legendary king of the fairies.Oberon may also refer to:-People:* Merle Oberon , British actress* Oberon Zell-Ravenheart , Neopagan activist-Media and entertainment:* Oberon...
in A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Purlie in Purlie Victorious. He was a member of the student sketch comedy troupe Shock Treatment, which performed at local bars and nightclubs. During his senior year Boatman won the prestigious Irene Ryan
Irene Ryan
Irene Ryan was an American actress, one of the few entertainers who found success in vaudeville, radio, film, television and Broadway....
theater award for best supporting actor, during the finals competition at the Kennedy Center.
Acting Career
In 1986, Boatman moved to Chicago, where he studied acting with Jane Brody, a popular acting teacher and casting director. Later that same year, he auditioned for and won the role of "Motown" in the critically acclaimed Vietnam action drama, Hamburger HillHamburger Hill
Hamburger Hill is a 1987 American war film about the actual assault of the U.S. Army's 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, part of the 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division 'Screaming Eagles', on a well-fortified position, including trenchworks and bunkers, of the North Vietnamese Army on Ap Bia...
. That same year he appeared in Running On Empty with River Phoenix
River Phoenix
River Jude Phoenix was an American film actor, musician, and teen icon. He was the oldest brother of fellow actors Rain, Joaquin, Liberty, and Summer Phoenix.Phoenix began acting at age 10 in television commercials...
, and The Trial of Bernard Goetz for the PBS American Playhouse
American Playhouse
American Playhouse is an anthology television series periodically broadcast by Public Broadcasting Service in the United States.It premiered on January 12, 1982 with The Shady Hill Kidnapping, written and narrated by John Cheever and directed by Paul Bogart...
series. In 1988, he auditioned for the pilot episode of the Vietnam era television drama, China Beach
China Beach
China Beach is an American dramatic television series set at an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War. The title refers to My Khe beach in the city of Da Nang, Vietnam, which was nicknamed "China Beach" by unknown foreigners, most likely Americans...
. He went on to play Samuel Beckett, the mortician in the China Beach mortuary, for the next three seasons. He later co-starred on The Jackie Thomas Show with Tom Arnold
Tom Arnold (actor)
Thomas Dwaine "Tom" Arnold is an American actor and comedian. He has appeared in many films, perhaps most notably True Lies . He was the host of The Best Damn Sports Show Period for four years.-Early life:...
, and the short-lived WB series Muscle. In 1996, he landed a role on the ABC sitcom, Spin City
Spin City
Spin City is an American sitcom television series that aired from September 17, 1996 until April 30, 2002 on the ABC network. Created by Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence, the show was based on a fictional local government running New York City, and originally starred Michael J. Fox as Mike...
, playing "Carter", the irascible, openly gay minority affairs liaison. For his work on Spin City he was nominated for five NAACP Image Awards for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy. He also won the GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Association Against Defamation) award for Best Actor.
At the same time he was on Spin City, Boatman played the role of "Stanley Babson", the anal-retentive Chief Financial Officer on the HBO original series Arliss
Arliss
-Criticism:This show, which ran for seven seasons, is a prime example of how HBO differs from traditional networks due to its nature as a network its viewers specifically pay to be able to watch. Arliss was cited by so many viewers as the sole reason that they paid for the network that its...
and starred on both series simultaneously until they were canceled in 2002. For his work on Arliss Boatman was nominated for four Image Awards, also for Best Supporting Actor. He played the lead role in the critically acclaimed Charles Burnett drama, The Glass Shield
The Glass Shield
The Glass Shield is a 1995 crime drama film starring Ice Cube, Michael Boatman and Lori Petty, directed by Charles Burnett.-Plot:Deputy John Johnson is a rookie in the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department and the first black deputy at the station to which he is assigned...
. Later, he appeared in the feature films The Peacemaker, with George Clooney
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, he has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award...
and Nicole Kidman
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...
, and Woman Thou Art Loosed, and in several made-for-TV movies. Michael Boatman also narrated in the WPA slave narratives in the HBO film Unchained Memories
Unchained Memories
Unchained Memories is a 2003 documentary films about the stories of former slaves interviewed during the 1930s as part of the Federal Writers' Project. This HBO film interpretation directed by Ed Bell and Thomas Lennon is a compilation of slave narratives, narrated by actors, emulating the...
, in 2003. In the 1930s about 100,000 former slaves during the Great Depression of which 2,300 were interviewed part of the Federal Writers' Project. Transcripts of the Slave Narratives collection of the Library of Congress is a record of slavery, bondage and misery.
In 2007, Boatman co-starred in the feature films, The Killing of Wendy (2008), American Summer and My Father's Will. He has had many notable guest appearances, including five episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...
, Less Than Perfect
Less Than Perfect
Less Than Perfect is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from October 1, 2002, to June 6, 2006. The show was about a young female office employee and her co-workers...
, Yes, Dear
Yes, Dear
Yes, Dear is a television sitcom that aired from October 2, 2000, to February 15, 2006, on CBS. It starred Anthony Clark, Jean Louisa Kelly, Mike O'Malley and Liza Snyder....
, Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
, CSI: Miami
CSI: Miami
CSI: Miami is an American police procedural television series, which premiered on September 23, 2002 on CBS. The series is a spin-off of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation....
, Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana is an American television series, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on the Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a double life as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real...
and Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
.
Boatman guest starred in the mystery/drama Warehouse 13
Warehouse 13
Warehouse 13 is an American fantasy television series that premiered on July 7, 2009 on the Syfy network.Executive-produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins, the dramatic comedy from Universal Media Studios has been described as borrowing much from 1980s television series Friday the 13th: The...
, in July 2009. He also played a serial killer named William Harris on the episode 'Soul Mates' on Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime...
.
In 2009, he joined the cast of the Lifetime comedy series, Sherri, starring Sherri Shepherd
Sherri Shepherd
Sherri Evonne Shepherd is an American comedienne, actress, and television personality. She is one of five co-hosts on the ABC daytime talkshow, The View, as well as being the current host of the Newlywed Game and having a recurring role as Angie Jordan on the NBC series 30 Rock...
. The series is based on Shepherd's life experiences as a divorced single mom, actress and stand up comedian. Boatman plays 'Doctor Randy Gregg', Sherri's son's pediatrician and Sherri's love interest. Most recently he has appeared as attorney Julius Cain in the CBS drama, The Good Wife. In 2010, Michael began personal training with martial arts master David Falcon at Condition X Athletics.
In September 2011, Boatman appeared on the red carpet and in the audience (though not on stage) for the Comedy Central Roast
Comedy Central Roast
The Comedy Central Roasts are a series of celebrity roast specials which air on the Comedy Central cable network.-History:Between 1998 and 2001, Comedy Central produced and televised the annual roasts of the New York Friars' Club. After the original five-year agreement expired, the network began...
of former Spin City costar Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen
Carlos Irwin Estevez , better known by his stage name Charlie Sheen, is an American film and television actor. He is the youngest son of actor Martin Sheen....
.
In 2011, Boatman will guest-star as Russell Thorpe on Gossip Girl
Gossip Girl (TV series)
Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007...
, along with Tika Sumpter
Tika Sumpter
Euphemia "Tika" Sumpter is an American actress.Sumpter is known for her role as Layla Williamson on One Life to Live.-Private Life:...
, who will play his daughter Raina.
Writing
Boatman is also a screenwriter and novelist. He sometimes writes in the splatterpunkSplatterpunk
Splatterpunk—a term coined in 1986 by David J. Schow at the Twelfth World Fantasy Convention in Providence, Rhode Island—refers to a movement within horror fiction distinguished by its graphic, often gory, depiction of violence and "hyperintensive horror with no limits." It is regarded as a revolt...
horror genre, which is characterized by an extreme gore and violence as well as a wicked sense of humor. In one of his stories, the protagonist rises from the dead to avenge his death and kills an assailant with an eyeball flying out of his socket. In another story, a character is described as "meaner than a Republican with a snake up his dickhole." That same story has the line "the mattress smelled like the septic tanks behind the Mexican abortion clinic at high tide" - a sentence that David J Schow cited as particularly disturbing and poetic. Splatterpunk
Splatterpunk
Splatterpunk—a term coined in 1986 by David J. Schow at the Twelfth World Fantasy Convention in Providence, Rhode Island—refers to a movement within horror fiction distinguished by its graphic, often gory, depiction of violence and "hyperintensive horror with no limits." It is regarded as a revolt...
is a divisive genre which offends as much as it entertains. Joe Lansdale praised his first collection with ""Michael Boatman writes like a visitor from hell. Someone out on short term leave for bad behavior. I love this stuff. He's one of the new, and more than promising, writers making his mark, and a dark and wonderful mark it is." However, one critic stated that his book was "a heinous little collection of short stories that manage to both confuse and disgust."
Many multi-author anthologies feature at least one of his short stories. They include Sick Things: An Anthology of Extreme Creature Horror, Until Someone Loses an Eye, Sages and Swords and Badass Horror. He has also been published in Weird Tales
Weird Tales
Weird Tales is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine first published in March 1923. It ceased its original run in September 1954, after 279 issues, but has since been revived. The magazine was set up in Chicago by J. C. Henneberger, an ex-journalist with a taste for the macabre....
, Horror Garage and Red Scream. He introduced Cyber-Pulp Halloween 3.0 which was published by Cyber-pulp Books.
His first collection of short stories, God Laughs When You Die, was published by Dybbuk Press on October 23, 2007. His humorous horror novel, The Revenant Road, was published by Drollerie Press in 2009.
His influences include Joe Lansdale and Edward Lee
Edward Lee
Edward Lee may refer to:* Edward Lee , American horror writer* Edward Lee , Archbishop of York, 1531–1544...
.