Chi McBride Biography American actor Chi McBride was a latecomer onto the acting scene, not stepping in front of the camera until he was almost thirty. Since then, he has had successful stints with The John Larroquette Show, Boston Public, and Pushing Daisies.
Kenneth McBride, known popularly as Chi McBride, was born September 23, 1961 in Chicago, Illinois. (The nickname is in homage to his place of birth.) McBride was born into a family of devout Seventh Day Adventist. To that end, he attended the religious school Shiloh Academy. Graduating at the age of sixteen, McBride first set his sights on music. When that career failed to produce results, he relocated to Atlanta, Georgia where he found work as a telephone operator. Never letting go of his love for music, however, McBride’s first foray into the limelight came with his song “He’s the Champ.” The song humorously dealt with the marriage of Robin Givens and Mike Tyson. The success of the song earned McBride a deal with Esquire Records. Shortly after, he became a part of the band “Covert.”
Deciding he wanted to venture into acting as well, McBride relocated to Los Angeles. By 1992, he made his onscreen debut in Revenge of the Nerds III: The Next Generation. Robert Carradine, Curtis Armstrong, Gregg Binkley, and others starred. Earning more and more roles, McBride appeared the following year in the Tina Turner biopic What’s Love Got to Do With It. McBride shared the screen with Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne. Becoming increasingly involved in the acting business, his first major exposure came in 1993 when he became a series regular on The John Larroquette Show. Liz Torres, Daryl Mitchell, Lenny Clarke, Elizabeth Berridge, and Gigi Rice rounded out the cast. He was with the program until 1996. He continued his exposure in 1998 with Mercury Rising opposite Bruce Willis, Alec Baldwin, and Miko Hughes. 2000 brought another blockbuster role with Gone in Sixty Seconds. Stars included Nicolas Cage, Giovanni Ribisi, Angelina Jolie, and others. But it was also 2000 that offered McBride his most notable role to date. In that year, he auditioned for and landed the role of Steven Harper in the David E Kelley television series Boston Public. Proving a hit for all involved, it ran to positive reviews until 2004. The rest of the cast included Anthony Heald, Loretta Devine, Sharon Leal, Jeri Ryan, Michael Rapaport, and others.
Translating his fame into film success as well, McBride took the role of Mulroy in Steven Spielberg’s The Terminal starring Tom Hanks, Catherine Zeta Jones, Stanley Tucci, and Diego Luna. Always returning to the small screen, however, McBride could be seen on the short-lived Killer Instinct and The Nine with Tim Daly, Jessica Collins, Scott Wolf, and others. Most recently, McBride landed a role on the hit series Pushing Daisies with Lee Pace, Anna Friel, Swoosie Kurtz, and Kristin Chenoweth. In his personal life, McBride is married to Julissa Marquez. | 
