Nationality American Role Actor Name Richard Jenkins | Years active 1974–present Occupation Actor | |
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Full Name Richard Dale Jenkins Spouse Sharon R. Friedrick (m. 1969) Children Sarah Pamela Jenkins, Andrew Dale Jenkins Parents Dale Stevens Jenkins, Mary Elizabeth Jenkins Movies and TV shows Similar People |
Richard jenkins
Richard Dale Jenkins (born May 4, 1947) is an American actor. Jenkins began his acting career in theatre at the Trinity Repertory Company and later made his film debut in 1974. He has worked steadily in film and television since the 1980s, mostly in supporting roles. His first major role did not come until the early 2000s, in which he played the deceased patriarch Nathaniel Fisher on the HBO funeral drama series Six Feet Under. Jenkins was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for The Visitor and won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for Olive Kitteridge.
Contents
- Richard jenkins
- Step brothers the best of richard jenkins
- Early life
- Theatre
- Film
- Television
- Personal life
- Awards and honors
- Filmography
- References

Step brothers the best of richard jenkins
Early life

Jenkins was born and raised in DeKalb, Illinois. His mother, Mary Elizabeth (née Wheeler; 1914-2003), was a housewife, and his father, Dale Stevens Jenkins (1916-1997), was a dentist. He attended DeKalb High School. Before he was an actor, Jenkins drove a linen truck (his boss was actor John C. Reilly's father). Jenkins earned a degree in drama from Illinois Wesleyan University before relocating to Rhode Island.
Theatre

Jenkins worked with the Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, Rhode Island, while breaking into film with a bit part in Feasting with Panthers (1974), a television film about Oscar Wilde. Jenkins was given the option of joining the Screen Actors Guild. Knowing that it was not that easy to join, Jenkins immediately accepted the offer. He continued as a member of Trinity's resident acting company and served as its artistic director from 1990-94.
Film

Since his film debut in the television movie Feasting with Panthers (1974), Jenkins has been working steadily in film. His earlier film credits include Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), The Witches of Eastwick (1987), Sea of Love (1989), How to Make an American Quilt (1995), Flirting with Disaster (1996), and Snow Falling On Cedars (1999).
He has worked with the director siblings the Farrelly brothers in There's Something About Mary (1998), Outside Providence (1999), Me, Myself, & Irene (2000), Say It Isn't So (2001), Hall Pass (2011) and the 2012 Three Stooges remake. He has also appeared in three Coen Brothers movies: The Man Who Wasn't There (2001), Intolerable Cruelty (2003), and Burn After Reading (2008). He is in North Country (2005), has three memorable scenes as FBI Director James (Robert) Grace in The Kingdom (2007), and Step Brothers (2008).
Although primarily known for supporting parts, Jenkins had a lead role in The Visitor (2008) for which he was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award and an Academy Award for Best Actor. Jenkins won the International Press Academy's Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture.
Jenkins costarred in Dear John, as the father of John Tyree (Channing Tatum), and in Joss Whedon/Drew Goddard's horror film The Cabin in the Woods (2012). Jenkins also co-starred with Julia Roberts and Javier Bardem in Eat Pray Love.
Television
Jenkins is perhaps best known for playing Nathaniel Fisher in the HBO drama series Six Feet Under. His character is the deceased patriarch of the Fisher family, and regularly appears to his family as a ghost or in dreams. He played the role for the show's entire run. He and his castmates received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 2002. Jenkins portrayed a DEA agent in one episode of Miami Vice and a mob boss in a later episode. In 2015, Jenkins won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for his performance as Henry Kitteridge in the HBO miniseries Olive Kitteridge.
Personal life
Jenkins and his wife, Sharon R. Friedrick, were married on August 23, 1969. They have two children, son Andrew Dale and daughter Sarah Pamela, and reside in Cumberland, Rhode Island.
Awards and honors
In 2014, Jenkins and his wife Sharon received the Pell Award for Lifetime Achievement from Trinity Repertory Company in Providence.