Mark Harmon: Biography

Actor Mark Harmon is the son of football great Tom Harmon and 1940s film star Elyse Knox; he is the brother of Kris Harmon -- ex-wife of Ricky Nelson -- and uncle of Kris and Ricky's actress daughter Tracy Nelson; and finally, Harmon is the husband of Mork and Mindy star Pam Dawber. Harmon emulated his dad by playing football at UCLA, then followed in mom's footsteps by turning to acting; his first movie was 1978's Comes a Horseman. Most of Harmon's starring film appearances are easy to take but unmemorable, such as his lackadaisical high-school teacher in Summer School (1988). A baseball fan, Harmon was once part-owner of the minor-league San Bernardino Spirit, a team which figured prominently in his 1988 film vehicle Stealing Home. Harmon is best known for his work on 1980s series TV: he has co-starred in Flamingo Road and Moonlighting, and played the lead role of AIDs-stricken Dr. Bob Calswell on St. Elsewhere. In mid-1995, promotional ads on the NBC television network proudly trumpeted that "Mark Harmon is back!" for a tire-screeching private eye series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide