Jeff Conaway facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jeff Conaway
Conaway in 1998
Born	Jeffrey Charles William Michael Conaway (1950-10-05)October 5, 1950 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	May 27, 2011(2011-05-27) (aged 60) Encino, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1971–2011
Spouse(s)	Unknown (m. 1971; ann. 1971) Rona Newton-John ​ ​ (m. 1980; div. 1985)​ Kerri Young ​ ​ (m. 1990; div. 2000)​

Jeffrey Charles William Michael Conaway (October 5, 1950 – May 27, 2011) was an American actor. He portrayed Kenickie in the film Grease and had roles in two television series: struggling actor Bobby Wheeler in Taxi and security officer Zack Allan on Babylon 5. Conaway was featured in the first and second seasons of the reality television series Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.

Early life

Conaway was born in Manhattan, New York, and raised in the Astoria, Flushing and Forest Hills neighborhoods of Queens.

His father, Charles, was an actor, producer, and publisher. His mother, Helen, an actress who went by the stage name Mary Ann Brooks, taught music at New York City's Brook Conservatory. They divorced when he was three, and Conaway and his two older sisters lived with their mother.

He also spent time living with his grandparents in South Carolina, which gave him enough of a Southern accent that when he accompanied his mother to a casting call for director Arthur Penn's Broadway play All the Way Home, a story set in Knoxville, Tennessee, the 10-year-old Conaway landed a featured role as one of four boys. The 1961 Pulitzer Prize-winning play was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Play and ran 333 performances and one preview from November 29, 1960, to September 16, 1961. Conaway remained for the entire run, then toured with the national company of the play Critic's Choice.

Conaway worked as a child model, and attended high school at the Quintano School for Young Professionals. After playing with the rock band 3 1/2 beginning at age 15, he attended the North Carolina School of the Arts and later transferred to New York University.

Career

While at NYU, Conaway appeared in television commercials and had the lead in a school production of The Threepenny Opera. He made his film debut in the 1971 romantic drama Jennifer on My Mind, which also featured future stars Robert De Niro and Barry Bostwick.

Grease and Taxi

The following year, Conaway appeared in the original cast of the Broadway musical Grease, as an understudy to several roles including that of the lead male character, Danny Zuko, and eventually succeeded role-originator Barry Bostwick.

He played the role for 2 1/2 years while his friend John Travolta, with whom he shared a manager, later joined the show, playing the supporting role of Doody. The two would reunite in the 1978 motion picture musical Grease, in which Travolta played Zuko and Conaway his buddy Kenickie.

Conaway as Bobby Wheeler in Taxi

After breaking into series television in 1975 with Happy Days, followed by guest spots in several other TV shows, and three more films including Grease, he was cast as aspiring actor Bobby Wheeler on Taxi, which premiered in fall 1978.

Conaway left Taxi after the third season. Conaway was reported at the time to find the nature of the role repetitive.

After Taxi

Conaway starred in the short-lived 1983 fantasy-spoof series Wizards and Warriors. He made guest appearances on such shows as Barnaby Jones, George & Leo, and Murder, She Wrote. He appeared in films such as Jawbreaker, Elvira: Mistress of the Dark, and Do You Wanna Know a Secret?

From 1989 to 1990, he played Mick Savage on The Bold and the Beautiful. In 1993, he appeared onstage in Real Life Photographs. From 1994 to 1999, he played Sergeant, later promoted to Security Chief, Zack Allan on Babylon 5. In 2010 he provided voice-over for the English version of the animated short film Dante's Hell Animated (released in 2013), in which he is credited as "Hollywood legend Jeff Conaway".

Music career

In addition to acting, Conaway dabbled in music. In the mid-1960s, he was the lead singer and guitarist for a rock band, The 3 1/2, which recorded four singles for Cameo Records in 1966 and 1967:

• "Don't Cry to Me Babe" / "R & B In C" (Cameo 425, 1966)
• "Problem Child" / "Hey Mom Hey Dad" (Cameo 442, 1966)
• "Hey Gyp" / "Hey Kitty Cool Kitty" (Cameo 451, 1967) (This single was produced by Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits, who also wrote the B-side. The A-side is a song by Donovan.)
• "Angel Baby (Don't You Ever Leave Me)" / "You Turned Your Back on Love" (Cameo 485, 1967)

In 1979, Conaway recorded a self-titled debut album for Columbia Records. "City Boy" was released as a single. Bruce Springsteen's manager, Mike Appel, produced the album. In 2000, he released the album It Don't Make Sense You Can't Make Peace on the KEGMusic label.

Personal life

Marriages

Conaway was married three times. His first, short-lived marriage (when he was 21) was to a dancer he had been seeing for two years. It was annulled. His second marriage, from 1980 until their divorce in 1985, was to Rona Newton-John, elder sister of his Grease co-star, Olivia Newton-John. His stepson, Emerson Newton-John, is a race car driver. His third marriage was to Kerri Young from 1990 to 2000.

Health problems

Conaway suffered a back injury earlier in his career on the set of Grease while filming the "Greased Lightning" scene, which had been exacerbated recently by lifting boxes in his home, and he used various medications to manage the pain.

With John Travolta's support, Conaway took courses and auditing from the Church of Scientology to cope with his depression, although he did not intend to become a Scientologist.

In August 2009, Conaway was interviewed by Entertainment Tonight. In the interview, the actor claimed he was much better after a fifth back operation, and that he had yet to use painkillers again. He also discussed unscrupulous doctors and enablers.

Death

On May 11, 2011, Conaway was found unconscious and was taken to Encino-Tarzana Regional Medical Center in Encino, California, where he was listed in critical condition. After initial reports, Drew Pinsky said the actor was suffering from pneumonia with sepsis, for which he was placed into an induced coma.

On May 26, 2011, Conaway's family took him off life support after doctors determined they could do nothing to revive him.

An autopsy performed on Conaway revealed that the actor died of various causes, including aspiration pneumonia and encephalopathy.

Awards

Golden Globe Award

• 1978 nomination, Best Supporting Actor, Comedy or Musical Series (for Taxi)
• 1979 nomination, Best Supporting Actor, Comedy or Musical Series (for Taxi)

Filmography

Film

Television

See also

In Spanish: Jeff Conaway para niños