Michael Kenworthy (born August 18, 1975) is an American
actor
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...
who has been acting since the age of 5 He is most well known as the Commercial Kid, having done over 135 commercials and building a huge fan base in Canada as "Righty" of the Shreddies Gang whose 19 commercials aired for 20+ years due to revival of the classic spots in the early 2000s. Equally underreported he starred in 14 pilot sitcoms that never made it to broadcast along with innumerable guest appearances on other TV shows of the day that did air.
In addition he had a notable theatre career in independent films such as "The Giving Tree". Industry insiders remembered him for turning down two of the most successful sitcoms in TV history, the first being the Ben Seaver role in Growing Pains because his parents thought it would be too much of a commitment for him so the producers made him the next door neighbor instead. Secondly, and by far most notably, Michael Kenworthy was the first child actor and one of the only actors to turn down Aaron Spell!ng.
Michael was originally cast to play Brian Austin Green's part in Beverly Hills 90210 and had accepted the role for over 6 weeks only to change his mind at the last minute deciding that he wanted to go to college instead. On hearing this, Aaron Spelling attacked Kenworthy and effectively ended his career.
Career
Michael is the younger brother of
Michelle Kenworthy, who appeared with him on the game show ''
I'm Telling!
''I'm Telling!'' is an American television game show, which ran from September 12, 1987 to March 5, 1988 on NBC Saturday mornings and was hosted by Laurie Faso with Dean Goss announcing.
The show is essentially a children's version of ''The Newl ...
''.
Kenworthy was offered one of the 5 male leads on the debut season of ''
Beverly Hills, 90210
''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to by its short title, ''90210'') is an American teen drama television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling under his production company Spelling Television. The series ran for ...
'' (1990). He declined because his family was urging him to attend college. Producer
Aaron Spelling was uncharacteristically flustered by this; he warned Kenworthy that "You walk out now, and you'll never work in Hollywood again!" Michael took numerous theater/film-production courses at two separate universities...but even after getting his second degree, "I felt like I still didn't know anything. On the other hand, should
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, dark humor, non-linear storylines, cameos, ensembl ...
call me in, I'm there." His best known role is that of "Jesse," from 1988's
horror-spoof ''
Return of the Living Dead Part II
''Return of the Living Dead Part II'' is a 1988 American comedy horror film written and directed by Ken Wiederhorn, and starring Michael Kenworthy, Marsha Dietlein, Dana Ashbrook, Thom Mathews, James Karen, and Phil Bruns. It is the first of ...
''; Kenworthy also appeared in a series of toy commercials for "Mad Scientist (TOO GROSS!)".
Michael cites
Shawnee Smith
Shawnee Rebecca Smith (born July 3, 1969) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her portrayal of Amanda Young in the ''Saw'' franchise (2004–2010), which established her as a " scream queen" and as an influential figure in popula ...
, with whom he co-starred in the 1988 movie ''
The Blob
''The Blob'' is a 1958 American science fiction horror film directed by Irvin Yeaworth, and written by Kay Linaker and Theodore Simonson. It stars Steve McQueen (in his first feature film leading role) and Aneta Corsaut and co-stars Earl Rowe ...
'', as his first crush. "She and I hit it off pretty well. Whenever she went to hug me, I'd give her the hug plus a kiss. That ''always'' made her blush!"
Personal
Kenworthy graduated from:
*Crespi Carmelite High School (Class of 1993);
*Loyola Marymount University (Class of 1996); and
*California State University, Northridge (Class of 1997).
Michael holds degrees in theater arts, telecommunications and broadcasting. Currently self-employed, he works with
Wal-Mart
Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarter ...
on developing novelty items for young people including books and non-electronic gaming systems. Also, in more recent years, he has been supporting his elder sister Michelle through cancer treatments.
Filmography
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kenworthy, Michael
1975 births
American male film actors
American male child actors
Living people