More Answers From Mike: Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 | Page 7 | Page 8 | Page 9 | Page 10 | Page 11 |
Q: Where are you from?
A: I was born and raised in Baltimore, Md., a beautiful, dirty town.
Q: Where do you currently live?
A: I live in San Francisco — sunnier than Baltimore, but just as dirty.
Q: What did you study in school?
A: I graduated from Towson State University in Maryland. I studied history, English, communications, speech, music, drama and a bit of philosophy.
I'm an excellent
Trivial Pursuit partner, but qualified to do very little.
Q: How did you start out acting and on television?
A: I started as a stage actor, with no aspirations at all for television. I was doing a production of
Tosca with the Baltimore Opera, and walked across the street with a buddy for a quick beer during intermission. (It's fun to drink while singing Puccini.) There was a TV in the bar turned to QVC, and the host said they were hiring new talent. My friend bet me $100 I couldn't get a callback.
Two days later, I crashed an audition and got hired on the spot. I figured I'd work for a few months, pay a few bills and get back to serious acting later. I wound up staying there for three years, got fired and rehired several times and learned more than I ever wanted to know about Hummels and fake diamonds.
When they finally fired me for real in 1993, I embarked on a freelance career and vowed to never hold a real job again. So far, so good.
Q: What has been the most exciting experience you have had thus far working with Discovery Channel?
A: In December 2004, Discovery sent me to Alaska to work on a king-crab boat during the filming of
Deadliest Catch, a series based on the most dangerous job in the world. That was exciting.
When I returned, I was sent to Egypt, and a little slice of heaven called The Sands of the Dead, where I spent three weeks underground, opening tombs in the Valley of the Golden Mummies on Discovery's
Egypt Week Live! That was also exciting.
As a reward, I've been given
Dirty Jobs, and all the excitement I can stand.
Q: Do you have any hobbies/interests/activities that you pursue in your free time?
A: What free time?
