Blast From The Past: Ted McGinley

As I mentioned above, reading Marshall's memoir had me thinking about those men of Milwaukee I watched as a kid. Besides Scott Baio, a certain blonde Adonis also caught my attention. Now I don't think actor Ted McGinley never wrote a book but he certainly gets written about a lot. McGinley unfairly has been dubbed by some as the patron saint of the jumping the shark phrase used for when television shows begin to go downhill. Granted, McGinley has a pattern of joining many already established shows (Married With Children, Dynasty) and some of them are already passed their prime (Happy Days, The Love Boat)but the quality of these shows cannot be laid the beautiful feet of McGinley.

The model turned actor obviously has an appeal producers must feel might extend their runs by another season or two. In many cases (whether you think it good or bad), his arrival may actually have temporarily have saved off cancellation for a brief time. Besides the shows already mentioned, Ted has also been apart many other successful shows from The West Wing, Sportsnight, Dream On, Hope & Faith and a slew of guest shots on other shows. He also has an extensive film resume in films you may remember (Revenge Of The Nerds) to roles you may have forgotten (Pearl Harbor).

Above: Early Modeling shot


Below: Not the Happy Days cast most remember, but the one I first began watching in the 80's.

Above: With Billy Warlock & Henry Winkler


McGinley's first break in acting came in the early 80's after being spotted as a model in an issue of GQ. This led directly to his role on Happy Days. This quickly led to big screen roles in Revenge Of The Nerds and Young Doctors In Love.


Below: With Crystal Bernard for an US Magazine Swimsuit Preview (If anyone has more from this shoot, please shoot me a line)

The actor takes his jumping the shark role in stride and so he should. Even with the label, McGinley has worked steadily the past 30 years and although many may not really remember his role as Rodger Philips on Happy Days, you don't see Potsie or Ralph Malph on television much these days. McGinley's pretty boy looks did not detract from him becoming a pretty decent actor with each new project he took on. He has excelled in both dramatic and comedic roles. Although he may be the butt of a few shark jokes, Ted McGuinley really is having the last laugh.

Above: Getting a little victory kiss from Hotel's Michael Spound after winning the swimming relay on Battle Of The Network Stars (1985) Youtube Link

Above: Playing lifeguard on an episode of Happy Days

Ted McGinley: Actors & SKIN

I don't think I've ever done an Actors & SKIN piece before that didn't include at least a little bit of nudity.  But.. since the category is skin, not nudity, I thought Ted's body of work deserved a little attention.   

After some encouragement from his high school girlfriend, the actor decided to give modeling a go.  He moved to New York and quickly began getting regular work.  It was after a casting agent saw him GQ, that McGinley was approached about taking on the role of Roger Phillips on Happy Days.

Ted started his shirtless streak early in High School.  The shot above is Ted in the late 1970's with his teammates on the Polo team at Newport Harbor High School in Orange County.

The shirtless streak continues, sitting with Michael Spound (Hotel) during a break from shooting Battle of the Network Stars.

McGinley's handsome face and great body made him visually appealing, enabling to slide into established shows without ruffling many feathers.  It's no surprise that all of those shows managed to get him out of his shirt as fo

Happy Days

The Love Boat

Dynasty

Married With Children

I read on-line that some claim they saw the actors balls in this Married With Children scene, but despite my giving the scene quite a bit of attention, I sadly, could not.  It's obvious though, the actor wasn't wearing much when he shot this scene.

Like the undies he's wearing, McGinley's time was brief in 1989's Physical Evidence.  He did however, make the most of his brief appearance as Theresa Russell's boyfriend in the Burt Reynolds crime drama.

Physical Evidence (1989)

Nerd or Not?

'These nerds are a threat to our way of life.  Soon we'll be up to our asses in nerd shit.'

Seth Gable

Over the summer, motivated oddly by the Titan submersible disaster, I took a look back at the actors from 1984's Revenge of the Nerds.  I thought I was finished.  After featuring actors Robert Carradine, (HERE:) and actor Anthony Edwards, (HERE:) I thought the theme was done.  It led to a few spin-off posts featuring actors from ER, but as far as those adorable nerds were concerned, I thought my job was done.

Then, two things happened.  First off, I saw the image at the top of this piece of actor Ted McGinley in his spandex for Circus of the Stars.  Although McGinely's character Seth Gable was a jock, not a nerd, that tight red glittery ensemble was certainly giving off some strong nerdish vibes.   Secondly, I caught a few minutes of the actor on Dynasty.   

I'd been watching the show off and on since I found it on one of my retro channels, but got bored and stopped really watching after season 4.  I was surprised how hot and attractive I thought the actor looked in his series of shirtless scenes.  I've known who the actor was for years, but when I was younger, I never really saw him as attractive.  Sure, I knew he was good looking, but maybe a little too good looking for my tastes.

I also bought into the hype that McGinley was sort of the nerd of series television.  He was known for showing up on shows mid-way through their runs, and not really adding much to the shows he was on. A pretty face, but not really a stand out.  I never really saw most of the actors work.  I never saw him on Happy Days or The Love Boat, and never really watched more than an episode or two of Married With Children and totally skipped the sit-com Hope and Faith.  

For some reason though, after seeing a few minutes of him on Dynasty, I wanted to see more.  I went back and re-watched some of his scenes in Revenge of the Nerds, and he was really quite good as the hot jock out to bully and belittle the nerds.  I then decided my Nerds theme needed to be a trilogy.

As far as nude scenes go, the only nude scene officially credited to McGinley is the mooning scene below from Revenge of the Nerds.  It's a purdy butt, but given the way the scene is cut, I'm sort of wondering if it was McGinley or a body double.  I'm hoping it's him, as given the actor wasn't really a big name in 1984, not sure why they would bother hiring a body double for a brief butt flash.

Although McGinley didn't have any other nude scenes, he did have his fair of shirtless scenes, and even a brief scene in a small pair of bikini briefs.  Check out more of Ted on the NEXT PAGE HERE: & HERE:

The Best Of Ted McGinley

Hope & Faith (2003-2006)

Although this collection of scenes is but a small part of Ted McGinley's acting resume, they show how physically, over the last 30 years or so, the shark has beautifully not jumped an inch!

Married With Children (1989-1997)

The above scene is on Youtube HERE:

Physical Evidence (1989)

Dynasty (1986/1987)

Whose hair feathers the best, Catherine, Heather or Ted???



Happy Days (1989-1984)

Above with Anson Williams & Scott Baio in Where The Guys Are (Season 11, Episode 3)

Revenge Of The Nerds (1984)