Gregory Jbara (; born September 28, 1961) is an American film, television, and stage actor, and a singer.

Early life and education

Jbara was born in Nankin Township (now

Westland Westland or Westlands may refer to: Places *Westlands, an affluent neighbourhood in the city of Nairobi, Kenya * Westlands, Staffordshire, a suburban area and ward in Newcastle-under-Lyme *Westland, a peninsula of the Shetland Mainland near Vaila ...

), Michigan, the son of an advertising office manager and an insurance claims adjuster. He is of Lebanese and

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

descent. After graduating from Wayne Memorial High School in

Wayne, Michigan Wayne is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 17,593 at the 2010 census. Wayne has a long history of automotive and transportation related manufacturing. Ford Motor Company currently has two plants in Wayn ...

, Jbara attended the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

from 1979 to 1981. He majored in Communication Studies and took classes in Theatre and Musical Theatre. He left Michigan to attend the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

's drama division (1982–1986, ''Group 15''), where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Both of Jbara's brothers also have careers in the entertainment industry. Mike, formerly President and CEO, WEA Corp., was named President of Alternative Distribution Alliance worldwide in June 2013. Brother

Dan Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), including a list of people with the name ** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark * Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa **Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivoi ...

has made his career primarily as a reality show producer.SonyPictures.com: Ripley's Believe It or Not: Production Bio
Jbara also has a sister, Judy, who is Director of Client Relations for Beer Financial Group.

Career

Jbara originated the role of "Jackie Elliot" (known as "Dad") in the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

production of ''

Billy Elliot the Musical ''Billy Elliot: The Musical'' is a coming-of-age stage musical based on the 2000 film of the same name. The music is by Elton John, and the book and lyrics are by Lee Hall, who wrote the film's screenplay. The plot revolves around Billy, a ...

'', which opened on November 13, 2008. For his portrayal of "Dad," Jbara received the

Outer Critics Circle The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town newspa ...

Drama Desk The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fol ...

, and

Tony Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

awards for Best Featured Actor in a Musical during the 2008-2009 Broadway awards season. On May 5, 2005, Sardi's caricatures of ''Dirty Rotten Scoundrels'' stars Butz, Gleason, Jbara and Scott were unveiled in a ceremony hosted by fellow co-star Sara Gettelfinger. (''Scoundrels'' star John Lithgow had already been caricatured at Sardi's.) In a 2008 ''

Grand Rapids Press ''The Grand Rapids Press'' is a daily newspaper published in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It is the largest of the eight Booth newspapers. It is sold for $1.50 daily and $7.99 on Sunday. AccuWeather provides weather content to the ''Grand Rapids ...

'' interview, Jbara (noting the importance of being caricatured at the landmark Broadway restaurant) said, "You don't remember a year later who won the Tonys, but that picture will be in Sardi's for the rest of my life." Jbara received the ''BackStageWest Garland 2000 Award'' for his performance in the West Coast premiere of

George Furth George Furth (born George Schweinfurth; December 14, 1932 – August 11, 2008) was an American librettist, playwright, and actor. Life and career Furth was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of George and Evelyn (née Tuerk) Schweinfurth. He was ...

's play ''Precious Sons'', co-starring

Nora Dunn Nora Dunn (born April 29, 1952) is an American actress and comedian. She was a cast member on the NBC sketch variety TV series '' Saturday Night Live'' from 1985 to 1990, Dr. Reynolds in ''The Nanny'' (1998-1999), and Muriel in '' Home Economic ...

, Michael Malota, Ginger Williams and

Adam Wylie Adam Augustus Wylie (born May 23, 1984) is an American actor, magician and a former Crayola spokesman. Wylie is known most for playing Zack Brock, the youngest son of Doctor and Sheriff Brock's children, on ''Picket Fences'' from 1992 to 1996. Ea ...

. In 2006, Jbara received a Special Award from the New England Theatre Conference for his achievement in theatre. Jbara appeared as TV Land's on-camera spokesperson in eight different spots featuring three generations sitting on a couch: grandpa (William Severs), father/ boomer (Jbara) and teenage son (Dylan Kepp). The spots focused, humorously, on the contrasts among those generations and were first shown on TV Land during the

TV Land Awards The TV Land Icon Awards was an American television awards ceremony that generally commemorates shows now off the air, rather than in current production as with the Emmys. Created by Executive Producer Michael Levitt, the awards were hosted and broa ...

broadcast on April 22, 2007. Jbara's most prominent TV roles to date have been as Dan O'Keefe in the

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

/ WB sitcom ''

Grounded for Life ''Grounded for Life'' is an American television sitcom that debuted on January 10, 2001, as a mid-season replacement on Fox. Created by Mike Schiff and Bill Martin, it ran for two seasons on the network until being canceled only two episodes into ...

'' (2002–05), and as NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Public Information

Garrett Moore This is an overview of the regular, recurring, and other characters of the CBS TV crime drama series '' Blue Bloods''. Reagan family Family tree Frank Reagan Commissioner Francis Xavier Reagan, portrayed by former ''Magnum, P. ...

on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

drama '' Blue Bloods'' (2010–present).

Broadway credits

* "Dad" in ''

'' (2008) (originated role) * "André Thibault" in '' Dirty Rotten Scoundrels'' (2005) (originated role) * "Billy Flynn" in ''

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

'' (revival) * "Squash (Mr. Bernstein)" in ''

Victor/Victoria ''Victor/Victoria'' is a 1982 musical comedy film written and directed by Blake Edwards and starring Julie Andrews, James Garner, Robert Preston, Lesley Ann Warren, Alex Karras, and John Rhys-Davies. The film was produced by Tony Adams and sco ...

'' (1995) (originated role) * "Sohovik" in ''

Damn Yankees ''Damn Yankees'' is a 1955 musical comedy with a book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop, music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The story is a modern retelling of the Faust legend set during the 1950s in Washington, D.C., dur ...

'' (1994) (revival; originated role) * "Bellhop #1/Bootblack" in '' Born Yesterday'' (1989) with

Ed Asner Eddie Asner (; November 15, 1929 – August 29, 2021) was an American actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. He is best remembered for portraying Lou Grant during the 1970s and early 1980s, on both ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' a ...

and

Madeline Kahn Madeline Gail Kahn ('' née'' Wolfson; September 29, 1942 – December 3, 1999) was an American actress, comedian and singer, known for comedic roles in films directed by Peter Bogdanovich and Mel Brooks, including '' What's Up, Doc?'' (1972), ' ...

(Broadway revival) * "LIFFE Trader, John" in ''Serious Money'' (1988) with Alec Baldwin and

Kate Nelligan Patricia Colleen Nelligan (born March 16, 1950), known professionally as Kate Nelligan, is a Canadian stage, film and television actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1991 film ''The Prince of Tide ...

(Jbara's Broadway debut)

Other selected stage credits

* "Mr. Bunder" in the West Coast Premiere of

Michael John LaChiusa Michael John LaChiusa (born July 24, 1962) is an American musical theatre and opera composer, lyricist, and librettist. He is best known for musically esoteric shows such as '' Hello Again'', ''Marie Christine'', '' The Wild Party'', and '' See ...

's play, ''Little Fish'' (2007) starring

Alice Ripley Alice Ripley (born December 14, 1963) is an American actress, singer, songwriter and mixed media artist. She is known, in particular, for her various roles on Broadway in musicals, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning ''Next to Normal'' (2009 To ...

* "Vinnie" in the Geffen Playhouse Premier of

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

's ''Oscar and Felix'' (update to ''

The Odd Couple Odd Couple may refer to: Neil Simon play and its adaptations * ''The Odd Couple'' (play), a 1965 stage play by Neil Simon ** ''The Odd Couple'' (film), a 1968 film based on the play *** ''The Odd Couple'' (1970 TV series), a 1970–1975 televisi ...

'') * "Ike/Bess Truman" in the West Coast Premiere of

's play, ''First Lady Suite'' * "Clark Gable" in The Blank Theatre Company's ''The Living Room Series'' presentation of

Mark Saltzman Mark Saltzman is an American script writer who has written films, plays and musicals and for TV. He worked for several years for ''Sesame Street''. He has been given seven Emmy Awards for Best Writing for a Children's Show. TV and film work He g ...

's new play, ''Mr. Shaw Goes To Hollywood'' * "Chick Clark" in ''

Wonderful Town ''Wonderful Town'' is a 1953 musical with book written by Joseph A. Fields and Jerome Chodorov, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and music by Leonard Bernstein. The musical tells the story of two sisters who aspire to be a writer and act ...

'' (2000) for City Center Encores! * "Kevin Cartwright" in ''Privates On Parade'' (1989) with

Jim Dale Jim Dale (born James Smith; 15 August 1935) is an English actor, composer, director, narrator, singer and songwriter. In the United Kingdom he is known as a pop singer of the 1950s who became a leading actor at the National Theatre. In Britis ...

and Simon Jones * "Smudge" in ''

Forever Plaid ''Forever Plaid'' is an Off-Broadway musical revue written by Stuart Ross, and first performed in New York in 1989 and now performed internationally. Overview The show is a revue of the close-harmony "guy groups" (''e.g.'' The Four Aces, The ...

'' * "Gunther, Wotan, Hagen, Dwarf, Giant" in ''Das Barbecü'' (Goodspeed Opera House,

East Haddam, Connecticut East Haddam is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut. The population was 8,875 at the time of the 2020 census. History Until 1650, the area of East Haddam was inhabited by at least three Indigenous peoples: the Wangunk, the Mohegan and the N ...

) * "The Frankenstein Monster" in ''Have I Got A Girl For You!'' (Jbara's Off-Broadway debut)

Selected TV credits

* Bartender in ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It premiered on September 16, 1993, and ended on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee (as Grub ...

'' episode, "Shutout in Seattle: Part 2" * " DCPI Garrett Moore" (recurring role) in '' Blue Bloods'' * "Mr. Finn" in ''

Nurse Jackie ''Nurse Jackie'' is an American medical comedy-drama television series. It premiered on Showtime on June 8, 2009, and its seventh and final season premiered on April 12, 2015. The series finale aired on June 28, 2015. The show stars Edie Fal ...

'' episode, "Game On" * "Oscar Newton" in '' Law & Order'' episode, "Brilliant Disguise" * "Stan Lawrence" in ''

Monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

'' episode, "Mr. Monk Gets Lotto Fever" * "German General," "German Soldier," and "German Priest" in '' Family Guy'' episode, "

Road to Germany "Road to Germany" is the third episode of the seventh season and the fourth episode in the '' Road to...'' series of the American animated television series ''Family Guy''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 19 ...

" * "Col. Roger Bright" in ''

The Unit ''The Unit'' is an American action-drama television series created by David Mamet that aired on CBS from March 7, 2006, to May 10, 2009 with the total of four seasons and 69 episodes. The series focuses on a top-secret military unit modeled ...

'' episode, "Paradise Lost" * "Judge Herman Zemit" in ''

Conviction In law, a conviction is the verdict reached by a court of law finding a defendant guilty of a crime. The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal (that is, "not guilty"). In Scotland, there can also be a verdict of " not proven", which is cons ...

'' episode, "True Love" * "The Tree Trimmer Hero" (voice) in ''

Higglytown Heroes ''Higglytown Heroes'' is an American CGI-animated children's television series produced by Wild Brain that aired on the Playhouse Disney block on Disney Channel in the United States. The show's characters are shaped like Russian nesting doll ...

'' episode, "Kip Gets Swing Fever" 2005 * "Himself/Narrator" in '' Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' 2000-2003 * "Dan O'Keefe" (recurring role) in ''

'' (Seasons 2-5) * "George Haan" in '' Century City'' episode, "Sweet Child of Mine" * "Gene Lester" ("Pyramid" contestant) in '' Friends'' episode, "

The One Where the Stripper Cries The tenth and final season of '' Friends'', an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, premiered on NBC on September 25, 2003. ''Friends'' was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. T ...

" * "Congressman Segal" in ''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White Hous ...

'' episode, " Angel Maintenance" * "Rev. Compton" in '' Ally McBeal'' episode, "Reach Out and Touch" * "Mike" in '' Malcolm in the Middle'' episode, "New Neighbors" * "Jo Jo Regosi" (recurring role) in '' That's Life'' * "Scott Morgan" in ''

Touched by an Angel ''Touched by an Angel'' is an American fantasy drama television series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994, and ran for 211 episodes over nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and executive produced ...

'' episode, "At the End of the Aisle" * "Director Greg" in ''

Come on Over ''Come On Over'' is the third studio album by Canadian country music singer Shania Twain. It was released on November 4, 1997, by Mercury Records. Produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange, the album became the best-selling country album, the best ...

'' episode, "Welcome to the Theatre"

Selected film credits

* "Les Hirsch" in '' Remember Me'' (2010) (with Robert Pattinson) * "Jack" in
Out of Step
' (written and directed by Eileen Connors) * "Jerry Yarbro" in ''

Exit Speed ''Exit Speed'' is a 2008 action film by Sabbatical Pictures. The film was directed by Scott Ziehl, and stars Desmond Harrington, Julie Mond, Lea Thompson, Alice Greczyn, David Rees Snell and Fred Ward. The 90-minute action film was shown at Canne ...

'' (with

David Rees Snell David Rees Snell (born August 20, 1966) is an American actor known for his roles as Detective Ronnie Gardocki on the crime drama ''The Shield'', Detective John Burrows in '' S.W.A.T.'' (2018–present), and Paul in '' The Beacon'' (2009). Caree ...

Lea Thompson Lea Katherine Thompson (born May 31, 1961) is an American actress and director. She is best known for her role as Lorraine Baines-McFly in the ''Back to the Future'' film trilogy (1985–1990) and Beverly Switzler in '' Howard the Duck'' (1 ...

, and

Fred Ward Freddie Joe Ward (December 30, 1942 – May 8, 2022) was an American actor and producer. Starting with a role in an Italian television movie in 1973, he appeared in such diverse films as '' Escape from Alcatraz'', ''Southern Comfort'', '' The R ...

) * "Hank Messinger" in ''

The First $20 Million Is Always the Hardest ''The First $20 Million Is Always the Hardest'' is a 2002 film based on the novel of the same name by technology-culture writer Po Bronson. The film stars Adam Garcia and Rosario Dawson. The screenplay was written by Jon Favreau and Gary Tieche. ...

'' (2002) (with Adam Garcia,

Enrico Colantoni Enrico Colantoni (born February 14, 1963) is a Canadian actor and director, best known for portraying Elliot DiMauro in the sitcom ''Just Shoot Me!'', Keith Mars on the television series ''Veronica Mars'', Louis Lutz on the short-lived sitcom ''H ...

and

Ethan Suplee Ethan Suplee (; born May 25, 1976) is an American film and television actor. He is best known for his roles in the films '' American History X'', '' Remember the Titans'', ''John Q'', '' The Wolf of Wall Street'', ''Without a Paddle'', and sever ...

) * " Snug the Joiner" in '' A Midsummer Night's Dream'' (1999) (with Kevin Kline) * "Edward" in '' The Out-of-Towners'' (1999) (with

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...

and

Goldie Hawn Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born November 21, 1945) is an American actress, dancer, producer, and singer. She rose to fame on the NBC sketch comedy program ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (1968–1970), before going on to receive the Academy Award and Go ...

) * "Walter Brackett" in '' In & Out'' (1997) (with Kevin Kline) * "Angelique Marcangelo" in '' Jeffrey'' (1995) (with

Steven Weber Steven Robert Weber (born March 4, 1961) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Brian Hackett on the television series ''Wings'' which aired from April 1990 to May 1997 on NBC, as Sam Blue in '' Once and Again'', and ...

and

Patrick Stewart Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor who has a career spanning seven decades in various stage productions, television, film and video games. He has been nominated for Olivier, Tony, Golden Globe, Emmy, and Screen Actors ...

) * ''

Home on the Range "Home on the Range" is a classic cowboy song, sometimes called the "unofficial anthem" of the American West. Dr. Brewster M. Higley (also spelled Highley) of Smith County, Kansas, wrote the lyrics as the poem "My Western Home" in 1872 or 1873 ...

'' (2004) as Chrous/The Willie Brother #3’s singing voice * ''

Broken City ''Broken City'' is a 2013 American neo-noir crime thriller film directed by Allen Hughes and written by Brian Tucker. Mark Wahlberg stars as a police officer turned private investigator and Russell Crowe as the mayor of New York City who hires ...

'' (2013) * ''The Mice War'' (2018) as General Kan (voice)

Miscellaneous credits

* "

Audio-animatronic Audio-Animatronics (also known as simply Animatronics, and sometimes shortened to AAs) is the registered trademark for a form of robotics animation created by Walt Disney Imagineering for shows and attractions at Disney theme parks, and subsequent ...

Radio Newscaster" for Spaceship Earth (The Age of Information scene; character announces Amelia Earhart's flight across the Atlantic) * "Husband out dancing with wife" in multi-media ad campaign for Caduet which launched April 2008 (internet, television, print) * "Dad of college student" in TV ad fo
Olive Garden Mezzalunas
Mention in Broadway.com interview
/ref>

References

External links

Official Site: GregoryJbara.com

Broadway.com: Backstage at Billy Elliot With Billy's Dad Starring Gregory Jbara
* *
Voice Actor Profile: VoiceChasers.com

Gregory Jbara
at the

Internet Off-Broadway Database The Internet Off-Broadway Database (IOBDB), also formerly known as the Lortel Archives, is an online database that catalogues theatre productions shown off-Broadway. The IOBDB was funded and developed by the non-profit Lucille Lortel Foundatio ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jbara, Gregory 1961 births Living people People from Westland, Michigan American people of Lebanese descent Male actors from Michigan American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American male television actors American male voice actors American people of Irish descent Drama Desk Award winners Juilliard School alumni University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumni Tony Award winners