Michael O'Hare facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Michael O'Hare
O'Hare as Jeffrey Sinclair in Babylon 5
Born	Robert Michael O'Hare Jr. (1952-05-06)May 6, 1952 Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Died	September 28, 2012(2012-09-28) (aged 60) New York City, New York, U.S.
Education	Harvard University Juilliard School
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1972–2000
Spouse(s)	Ruth O'Hare ​ (m. 1998)​

Robert Michael O'Hare Jr. (born May 6, 1952 – died September 28, 2012) was an American actor. He acted in plays and on television. He was most famous for playing Commander Jeffrey Sinclair in the science fiction TV show Babylon 5. He left the show after the first season because of some serious health challenges.

Early Life and School

Robert Michael O'Hare Jr. was born in Chicago, Illinois. He grew up in Chicago Heights. His family came from Ireland and Italy. He went to Mendel Catholic Preparatory High School in Chicago. There, he played football. He did this even though his doctor said he couldn't play sports because of his asthma. He won awards and scholarships for his football skills and good grades.

Michael thought about joining the US Navy or playing football professionally. But he chose to go to Harvard University. He studied English literature and played on the Harvard Crimson football team. He also joined drama groups at the university. In 1972, he acted in "The Wrongway Inn" and in the musical Good News! He was part of the Harvard Glee Club during its world tour in 1973.

In 1974, he left Harvard to study acting at the Juilliard School of Drama. Later, in the mid-1980s, he took more acting lessons from Sanford Meisner.

Acting Career

O'Hare acted in many plays on Broadway and in other theaters. Some of his important roles included:

• Colonel Jessup in the play A Few Good Men
• Captain Solyony in Chekhov’s Three Sisters
• Alfred in Little Murders
• Jake in A Lie of the Mind
• John in Lips Together, Teeth Apart

He was the first white actor to be nominated for the AUDELCO Award for Best Actor. This award is given by the African-American theater community in New York. He was nominated for his role in the play Shades of Brown, which was about apartheid in South Africa.

In the late 1970s, he acted in the TV movie Marciano and a TV pilot called Keefer. In the 1980s, he appeared as a guest on many TV shows. These included Trapper John, M.D., T.J. Hooker, Kate & Allie, and The Equalizer. He also appeared in Tales from the Darkside.

In 1988, he played the main character in a short film called Short Term Bonds. This film won an award and was shown at the Sundance festival in 1989.

In 1992, he got the main role of Commander Jeffrey Sinclair in the science fiction TV show Babylon 5. He was in the pilot episode and all of the first season in 1994. He left the show for personal health reasons. But he came back for guest appearances in the second and third seasons.

After Babylon 5, he had a guest role on The Cosby Mysteries. He also appeared twice on Law & Order, with his last appearance in 2000. He did some voice acting for commercials. He also read a radio story called Think Like a Dinosaur for Seeing Ear Theater.

After 2000, he stopped acting. He rarely appeared in public after that time.

Health and Passing

After O'Hare passed away, the creator of Babylon 5, J. Michael Straczynski, shared that the actor had faced serious mental health challenges. During the first season of Babylon 5, O'Hare started having difficulties with his mind. These challenges became worse halfway through the season.

It became very hard for O'Hare to keep working. His behavior became unpredictable, and he often disagreed with his co-workers. Straczynski offered to stop filming for a few months so O'Hare could get help. However, O'Hare worried that stopping the show would put it at risk. He didn't want to cause problems for others' jobs.

Straczynski agreed to keep O'Hare's health condition a secret to protect his acting career. O'Hare agreed to finish the first season. But he would leave the show for the second season so he could get treatment. When he left, the news said it was a mutual and friendly decision, without giving more details.

His treatments helped, but not completely. He appeared briefly in season two. He then returned in season three for a two-part episode called "War Without End". This episode finished his character's story. At that time, Straczynski promised O'Hare to keep his condition a secret forever. But O'Hare told him to "keep the secret to my grave." He believed that fans deserved to know the real reason he left. He also hoped his experience could help people understand mental illness better.

He did not appear on Babylon 5 again. But he continued to support the show. He attended fan events and signing sessions until he stopped public appearances in 2000.

On September 28, 2012, Straczynski announced that O'Hare had a heart attack five days earlier. He had been in a coma until he passed away that day in New York City. Eight months later, Straczynski shared the full story of O'Hare's departure from Babylon 5 at an event called Phoenix Comicon.

Filmography

Film Roles

Television Roles

Broadway Plays

• Players (1978)
• Man and Superman (1979)
• A Few Good Men (1989)
• The Crucible (1991)

See also

In Spanish: Michael O'Hare para niños