Kirk Cameron

Kirk Thomas Cameron (born October 12, 1970) is an American actor and evangelist. He first gained fame as a teen actor playing Mike Seaver on the ABC sitcom ''Growing Pains'' (1985–1992), a role for which he was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards.

Cameron made several other television and film appearances through the 1980s and 1990s, including the films '' Like Father Like Son'' (1987) and '' Listen to Me'' (1989). In the 2000s, he portrayed Cameron "Buck" Williams in the ''Left Behind'' film series and Caleb Holt in the drama film ''Fireproof'' (2008). His 2014 film, '' Saving Christmas'', was panned by critics and made the IMDb Bottom 100 List within one month of its theatrical release.

Cameron is an Evangelical Christian who partners with Ray Comfort in the evangelical ministry The Way of the Master and co-founded The Firefly Foundation with his wife, actress Chelsea Noble.

Early life

Cameron was born in Panorama City, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. His parents are Barbara (née Bausmith) and Robert Cameron, a retired schoolteacher. He has three sisters: Bridgette, Melissa, and actress Candace Cameron Bure, who is most notable for her role as D.J. Tanner on the television sitcom ''Full House''. He went to school on the set of ''Growing Pains'', as opposed to a "normal" public or private school with many other students. However, he went to some classes during production breaks and graduated with the class of 1988 at Chatsworth High School with honors.

Acting career

Early career

Cameron began acting at age nine, and his first job was in an advertisement for a breakfast cereal. His first starring role was at age 13, in the television series ''Two Marriages''. At this age, he appeared in several television shows and films. He became famous in 1985 after being cast as Mike Seaver in the ABC television sitcom ''Growing Pains''. In the series, Mike would eventually have a girlfriend named Kate MacDonald, played by Chelsea Noble, Cameron's future wife."End of the line Saturday winds up the week with series winding up their runs". Kogan, Rick, September 20, 1991, ''Chicago Tribune''."'Growing Pains' Pair A Couple Once Again". Slewinski, Christy, May 27, 1996, ''Chicago Tribune''. Cameron subsequently became a teen heartthrob in the late 1980s, while appearing on the covers of several teen magazines, including ''Tiger Beat'', ''Teen Beat'', '' 16'' and others. At the time, he was making $50,000 a week. He was also in a 60-second Pepsi commercial during Super Bowl XXIV.

Cameron also guest-starred in the 1988 ''Full House'' episode "Just One of the Guys", in which he played the cousin of D.J. Tanner, the role played by Cameron's sister, Candace.

Cameron went on to star in many films, including 1987's '' Like Father Like Son'' (a body-switch comedy with Dudley Moore), which was a box office success. His next theatrical film, 1989's '' Listen to Me'', performed poorly at the box office. When ''Growing Pains'' ended in 1992, Cameron went on to star in The WB sitcom ''Kirk'' which premiered in 1995 and ended two years later. In ''Kirk'', Cameron played Kirk Hartman, a 24-year-old who has to raise his siblings. Cameron and Noble also worked together on ''Kirk''.

2000–2010

Cameron mostly left mainstream film and television, though a decade after ''Growing Pains'' ended, he starred in a television reunion film, ''The Growing Pains Movie'', in 2000, and another one, '' Growing Pains: Return of the Seavers'', in 2004. Cameron reunited with the cast of ''Growing Pains'' for a CNN ''Larry King Live'' interview which aired on February 7, 2006, in conjunction with the Warner Bros. release of the complete first season of ''Growing Pains'' on DVD. Aside from this, Cameron has often worked in Christian-themed productions, among them the post-Rapture films '' Left Behind: The Movie'', '' Left Behind II: Tribulation Force'', and '' Left Behind: World at War'', in which he plays Cameron "Buck" Williams. Cameron's wife Noble also starred in the film series, playing Hattie Durham. Cameron has worked with Cloud Ten Pictures, a company which produces Christian-themed films, and has starred in several of their films, including ''The Miracle of the Cards''.

He also appeared in the 2008 drama film, ''Fireproof'', which was produced by Sherwood Pictures. The film was created on a budget of $500,000, with Cameron as the lead actor, portraying Captain Caleb Holt. Though it was a low-budget film, the film grossed $33,415,129 and was a box office success. It was the highest grossing independent film of 2008.

2010–present

In 2012, Cameron was the narrator and host of the documentary film '' Monumental: In Search of America's National Treasure''. On its opening day, March 27, 2012, ''Monumental'' grossed $28,340. The film stayed in theaters until May 20, 2012, grossing a total of $1.23 million.

In 2013, Cameron announced he would be the host of the film ''Unstoppable'' slated to premiere September 24, 2013. A trailer for the film was blocked on Facebook, with Cameron speculating that it was due to the film's religious content. Facebook subsequently removed the block, stating it was the result of a mistake by an automated system and a spam site previously registered at the same web address.

Cameron starred in and produced the 2014 family film ''Mercy Rule'', in which he plays a father who tries to save his small business from lobbyists, while supporting his son, who dreams of being a pitcher, in Little League Baseball

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