Vince Vaughn

October 9, 2009 – 12:19 am

Vincent Anthony “Vince” Vaughn (born March 28, 1970) is a film actor and comedian with dual citizenship in both Canada and the United States of America. He began acting in the late 1980s, appearing in minor television roles before experiencing wider recognition with the 1996 movie, Swingers. He has since appeared in a number of Hollywood comedies.

Early life

Vaughn was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the son of Vernon Lindsay Vaughn, a salesman for a meat company, and Sharon Eileen (née DePalmo), a Canadian-born real estate agent and stockbroker once ranked as one of the United States’ top money managers by Bloomberg Wealth Manager magazine. He has two older sisters, Valerie and Victoria. He was raised “both Protestant and Catholic” by his Catholic mother and Protestant father. He has Italian, Irish, English, German and Lebanese ancestry. His parents divorced in 1991. He grew up in Buffalo Grove, Illinois where he played football and wrestled. He then moved to Lake Forest, Illinois, where he graduated from Lake Forest High School in 1988, with award winning writer Dave Eggers, sports agent Rob Pelinka (represents stars such as Kobe Bryant), fellow actor Don Tiffany. He developed an interest in theater at a young age. He decided to become an actor in 1987, after being involved in a car accident which derailed his chance at athletic success.

Career

In 1988, Vaughn was cast in a Chevrolet television commercial, and subsequently moved to Hollywood, where he became in contact with the inspiration for all of his work. Although he appeared in the 1989 season of the television series, China Beach and in three CBS Schoolbreak Specials (in 1990), he was a struggling actor and faced many rejections. His first film role was 1993’s Rudy, but Vaughn did not receive wider success until his role in 1996’s Swingers with Jon Favreau. Swingers was released in July 1996, and became a successful independent film.

Afterwards, director Steven Spielberg cast Vaughn in the blockbuster The Lost World: Jurassic Park, which gave him increased exposure. From there, Vaughn went on to appear in several films of varied success, including playing Norman Bates in the 1998 remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. In 2000, he starred in The Cell with Jennifer Lopez, and in 2001, appeared in Made, another film penned by Favreau. Vaughn also appeared in Dwight Yoakam’s directorial debut movie South of Heaven, West of Hell.

Since Vaughn’s role in the successful 2003 comedy, Old School, his profile skyrocketed, and his notoriety improved. In 2004, he appeared alongside Ben Stiller in the hit films Starsky & Hutch and Dodgeball, and had roles in 2005’s Be Cool, Thumbsucker and Mr. & Mrs. Smith.


Vaughn at the London premiere of The Break-Up, 2006

Also in 2005, Vaughn starred alongside Owen Wilson in the comedy Wedding Crashers, which grossed over $200 million at the United States box office. After this series of roles, Vaughn was dubbed one of the Hollywood Frat Pack, a group of actors who frequently co-star in film comedies. In 2006, Vaughn starred with Jennifer Aniston in the comedy-drama The Break-Up (also with Favreau).

In 2007, Vaughn also starred in a comedy called Fred Claus, in which he played the sarcastic, wild-at-heart older brother of Santa Claus (Paul Giamatti). Fred Claus was directed by David Dobkin, who previously directed Vaughn in Wedding Crashers, and co-starred Elizabeth Banks and Kevin Spacey. Next, he momentarily moved from comedy to drama in Sean Penn’s critically acclaimed film Into the Wild, a film about the adventures of Christopher McCandless, which was also a best-selling book by Jon Krakauer. He played the role of Wayne Westerberg opposite Emile Hirsch as McCandless.

On October 15, 2008, TV Guide reported that Vaughn has signed on to co-star in Couples Retreat, a comedy chronicling four couples who partake in therapy sessions at a tropical island resort. Malin Akerman will play his wife.

Personal life

Vaughn dated two of his The Break-Up co-stars: actress Joey Lauren Adams during the filming of 1999’s A Cool, Dry Place and Jennifer Aniston between 2005 and 2006. His relationship with Aniston began the summer after her separation from husband Brad Pitt. Due to the media firestorm surrounding it, along with Pitt’s relationship with Angelina Jolie, Vaughn and Aniston’s relationship was showered with tabloid attention. Rumors about the relationship included the couple moving to Australia, and a possible engagement. In the fall of 2006, Vaughn filed a lawsuit against three tabloid magazines, accusing them of falsely claiming that he had been unfaithful to Aniston, thus tacitly confirming their relationship. By December 2006, both Vaughn’s and Aniston’s reps confirmed that they had broken up. On March 5, 2009, it was announced that Vaughn and Canadian realtor Kyla Weber are engaged. Weber’s father confirmed the story.

Vaughn is also an avid fan of the Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Bears and Chicago Cubs and the University of Notre Dame, all of which are featured prominently in his film The Break-Up. Similarly, Vaughn played a small part in the movie Rudy.

Vaughn is part of the U.S.O. tour. He has visited soldiers all over Afghanistan, Kuwait, and Iraq. He lives in Los Angeles.

Awards

2006

  • People’s Choice Awards, USA Favorite On-Screen Match-Up for: Wedding Crashers (2005) Shared with: Owen Wilson
  • MTV Movie Awards Best On-Screen Team for: Wedding Crashers (2005) Shared with: Owen Wilson
  • Teen Choice Awards Movies - Choice Chemistry for: The Break-Up (2006) Shared with: Jennifer Aniston
  • ShoWest Convention: Special Award - Comedy Star of the Year (2006)

2007

  • 33rd People’s Choice Awards: Favorite Leading Man
  • Spike TV’s First Annual “Guys Choice” Guy Movie Hall of Fame” for Swingers along with Jon Favreau

Filmography

Year Title Role Gross
1993 Rudy Jamie O’Hara US$23 Million
1994 At Risk Max Nolan  
1996 Swingers Trent Walker US$7 Million
1997 The Lost World: Jurassic Park Nick Van Owen US$619 Million
The Locusts Clay Hewitt  
1998 Psycho Norman Bates  
Clay Pigeons Lester Long  
A Cool, Dry Place Russell Durrell  
Return to Paradise John ‘Sheriff’ Volgecherev  
2000 The Cell FBI Agent Peter Novak US$104 Million
The Prime Gig Pendelton “Penny” Wise  
South of Heaven, West of Hell Taylor Henry  
2001 Domestic Disturbance Rick Barnes  
Zoolander Luke Zoolander US$60 Million
Made Ricky Slade US$5 Million
2003 I Love Your Work Stiev  
Old School Bernard “Beanie” Campbell US$74.5 Million
Blackball Rick Schwartz  
2004 Starsky & Hutch Reese Feldman US$170 Million
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy Wes Mantooth US$85.3 Million
Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie Wes Mantooth  
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story Peter La Fleur US$114 Million
2005 Thumbsucker Mr. Geary  
Mr. & Mrs. Smith Eddie US$478 Million
Wedding Crashers Jeremy Grey US$285 Million
Be Cool Randolph “Raji” Lowenthal US$56 Million
Paparazzi Actor  
2006 The Break-Up Gary Grobowski US$202 Million
2007 Into the Wild Wayne Westerberg US$52 Million
Fred Claus Frederick “Fred” Claus US$72 Million
2008 Wild West Comedy Show Himself  
Four Christmases Brad (A.K.A Orlando) US$170 Million
2009 Couples Retreat Dave  

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