Jeffrey Daniels was born on February 19, 1955, in Athens, Georgia. His father was a lumber merchant who moved the family to Chelsea, Michigan, when he was very young, and it was there that he grew up. As a child he was interested in both acting and writing, and he went on to major in English at Central Michigan University. Upon his graduation he began looking for work as a stage actor, and his solid, patient approach to his craft soon started attracting good reviews. His performance in The Shortchanged Review attracted critical notice in New York and led to him being approached about television work.
Daniels' early television appearances included a role in Hawaii Five-O, alongside Jack Lord and James MacArthur. This provided a stepping stone toward TV movies and a part in Milos Forman's New York drama Ragtime, with James Cagney and Brad Dourif, but the performance that really made his name was as the actor Gil Shepherd and his character Tom Baxter, opposite Mia Farrow in Woody Allen's classic The Purple Rose of Cairo. With the complex double role really showing off his range, offers soon began pouring in. He worked for Allen again in Radio Days, with Julie Kavner and Seth Green, then went on to star alongside Kelly McGillis, Mandy Patinkin, and Jessica Tandy in McCarthy era drama The House on Carroll Street. Later career highlights included Arachnophobia, with John Goodman and Julian Sands; Speed, with Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper, and Sandra Bullock; Pleasantville, with Tobey Maguire and Reese Witherspoon; and Good Night, and Good Luck, with David Strathairn and Alex Borstein. His films often carried strong political undertones, but he also established a popular following with comedies like Dumb and Dumber, with Jim Carrey and Lauren Holly.
It was while he was assisting with the final mix of 2001's Escanaba in da Moonlight, which he both starred in and directed, that Daniels was persuaded by his colleague Steve Curran to try recording some of the songs he had been writing since his youth. Daniels had always enjoyed playing music and had already arranged to perform at a benefit gig for the Purple Rose Theatre, which he founded and helped to build with materials from his father's lumber yard, but he feared that as an actor turned musician he'd be a bit of a joke. In anticipation of this, having been persuaded to try it anyway, he began with a song entitled "If William Shatner Can, I Can Too." To his surprise, his music proved to be very popular, and he has since recorded two albums, with all profits going to the theater. Though he has continued to act he now considers that his primary career is as a musician.
In 1979, Daniels married his high school sweetheart, Kathleen Treado. They have three children: Benjamin, Lucas, and Nellie. They continue to reside in Chelsea, where Daniels is an avid fan of the Detroit Tigers.
YUDDY
