Kevin Bacon is an American actor, producer, and musician born on July 8, 1958. He is famous for his diverse roles in both leading and supporting parts. He has won several prestigious awards including a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award and has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.
Bacon began his film career with a role in National Lampoon’s Animal House in 1978. He rose to fame with his breakout role in the musical drama Footloose in 1984. He has since appeared in many acclaimed films such as “Diner,” “JFK,” “A Few Good Men,” “Apollo 13,” “Mystic River,” and “Frost/Nixon”. Some of his other notable movies include “Friday the 13th Tremors,” “The River Wild,” “The Woodsman,” “Crazy Stupid Love,” “X-Men: First Class,” and “Patriots Day”. Bacon has also directed films like “Losing Chase” and “Loverboy”.
On TV, Bacon won a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award for playing Lt. Col. Michael Strobl in HBO’s “Taking Chance”. He starred in Fox’s “The Following” from 2013 to 2015 and played the lead in Amazon Prime’s “I Love Dick” from 2016 to 2017 earning a Golden Globe nomination. From 2019 to 2022 he was a star on Showtime’s “City on a Hill”.
The Guardian recognized Bacon as one of the top actors who hasn’t yet received an Oscar nomination. In 2003, he earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Kevin Bacon’s extensive career across various genres has led to his association with the idea of interconnectedness among people inspiring the trivia game “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon.” He’s also a brand ambassador for the UK mobile network EE and has appeared in their commercials. Kevin Bacon is married to actress Kyra Sedgwick.
| Full Name | Kevin Bacon |
| Date of Birth | July 8, 1958 |
| Place of Birth | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Occupation | Actor, producer, musician |
| Height | 5 feet 10 inches (178 cm) |
| Spouse | Kyra Sedgwick |
| Children | Travis and Sosie Bacon |
| Net Worth | $45 million |
Kevin Bacon’s Early Life and Education
Kevin Bacon grew up in a close-knit family in Philadelphia as the youngest of six siblings. His mother Ruth Hilda was an elementary school teacher and a liberal activist while his father Edmund Bacon was a respected urban planner and the head of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. Edmund even wrote the influential book Design of Cities. Bacon attended Julia R. Masterman School in Philadelphia’s Spring Garden area for his middle and high school years.
At 16, Kevin’s life took a pivotal turn in 1975 when he earned a full scholarship to the Pennsylvania Governor’s School for the Arts at Bucknell University. This five-week summer program where he studied theater under Glory Van Scott deepened his love for acting and set the stage for his future career in the arts.
Career
Kevin Bacon left his home at 17 to chase his dream of acting in New York City. His early experiences at theater school made a big impact on him. He later reflected that the arts were highly valued while business was seen as less important. His strong ego also pushed him towards acting.
Kevin’s first big movie National Lampoon’s “Animal House” in 1978 didn’t make him famous right away. He went back to waiting tables and auditioning for small theater roles in New York. He got brief parts in soap operas like “Search for Tomorrow” and “Guiding Light” in the early 1980s.
In 1980, he starred in “Friday” the 13th a horror film. He also performed in stage plays like “Getting Out” and “Flux” in New York. His role in “Forty Deuce” won him an Obie Award in 1982 and he made his Broadway debut in “Slab Boys” with Sean Penn and Val Kilmer.
But it was his role in the movie “Diner” in the same year that got people talking. Critics and viewers loved his performance and it opened doors for him. This led to his iconic role in “Footloose” in 1984 where he played a rebellious teen named Ren McCormick. Kevin even went back to high school to get a feel for the character.
After Footloose Kevin was typecast in similar roles for a while. He struggled to break free from this image until he started taking on more diverse roles. He began to see himself more as a character actor than a leading man in big-budget films.
In the 1990s, Kevin took on challenging roles in films like “Tremors,” “Flatliners,” and “JFK”. He also ventured into directing with the TV film Losing Chase in 1996. His versatility showed as he played different characters in films ranging from dramas to comedies.
Kevin continued to act in a variety of roles throughout the 2000s and 2010s gaining acclaim for his performances in “Mystic River,” “The Woodsman,” and “Taking Chance”. He also appeared in popular films like “X-Men: First Class” and “Patriots Day”.
In March 2012, Kevin Bacon acted in a play called “8” written by Dustin Lance Black. The play reenacted a real trial that led to the overturning of California’s ban on same-sex marriage. Bacon played the role of Attorney Charles J. Cooper in this performance at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre. The show was also streamed on YouTube to raise funds for the American Foundation for Equal Rights.
From 2013 to 2015, Bacon starred as Ryan Hardy in the TV series “The Following” on FOX. His performance earned him a Saturn Award for Best Actor on Television in 2013. In 2015, he appeared in the crime movie “Black Mass” alongside Johnny Depp.
In a 2015 interview with the Huffington Post, Bacon expressed interest in returning to the Tremors movie series. However, he did not appear in “Tremors 5: Bloodline”. Instead, he starred in “Patriots Day” in 2016 a film about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
Net Worth
Kevin Bacon has an estimated net worth of $45 Million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. The main source of Kevin Bacon’s net worth comes from his successful acting career in movies and television. He has starred in numerous hit films such as “Footloose,” “A Few Good Men,” and “Mystic River.”
In addition to acting, he has earned money from directing, producing, and his work in commercials. Kevin also formed a music band called The Bacon Brothers with his brother Michael, contributing to his earnings. Despite facing financial setbacks due to a Ponzi scheme, his long-lasting career in entertainment has significantly contributed to his net worth.
Personal life
Kevin Bacon has been married to actress Kyra Sedgwick since September 4, 1988. They first met while working on a PBS production of the play Lemon Sky by Lanford Wilson. Bacon has mentioned that meeting Kyra and starting a family were bright spots during a tough period in his life. They have two children together Travis born in 1989 and Sosie Ruth born in 1992. The family lives in the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
Before marrying Kyra Bacon was in a relationship with actress Tracy Pollan in the 1980s. He has been vocal about his support for the separation of church and state and has stated that he does not personally believe in God although he is not against religion.
Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick have appeared in several films together including “Pyrates,” “Murder in the First,” “The Woodsman,” and “Loverboy”. They also faced financial loss due to Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme.
In a surprising discovery on the PBS show Finding Your Roots they learned they are ninth cousins once removed. They have also supported causes like the “Bill of Reproductive Rights” advocating for women’s rights to choose and access birth control. They appeared in a video supporting this initiative.
Additionally, they appeared in will.i.am’s music video “It’s a New Day” celebrating Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential victory.
Other ventures
Kevin Bacon alongside his brother Michael founded a band called The Bacon Brothers in 1995. They’ve released seven albums together. Besides music, Kevin has shown his vocal talents in various ways: from serenading his goats on Instagram to performing with the band Old 97’s in The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.
Since 2012, Kevin Bacon has been part of a major advertising campaign for EE in the UK focusing on the Six Degrees concept tied to his diverse film roles. In 2015, he became a spokesperson for the US egg industry.
Kevin Bacon is famously associated with the trivia game “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” which highlights how closely connected actors are in Hollywood movies. Initially unsure about the game Bacon eventually embraced it and launched SixDegrees.org a platform connecting people with charitable causes.
In pop culture, the “Bacon number” measures an actor’s closeness to Kevin Bacon based on their movie connections. Google once featured a tool to find an actor’s Bacon number but it’s no longer active.
Similar to the Bacon number mathematicians have the Erdős number which measures proximity to mathematician Paul Erdős based on co-authored papers. Combining the Bacon and Erdős numbers creates the Erdős–Bacon number reflecting both Hollywood and mathematical connections.
