Vincent Anthony "Vince" Vaughn (born March 28, 1970) is an American
film actor and
comedian. He began acting in the late 1980s, appearing in minor television roles before experiencing wider recognition with the
1996 movie,
Swingers. He has since appeared in a number of Hollywood
comedies.
Early life
Vaughn was born in
Minneapolis, Minnesota, the son of Vernon Lindsay Vaughn, a
salesman for a meat company, and Sharon Eileen (
née DePalmo), a
Canadian-born
real estate agent and stockbroker once ranked as one of the United States' top money managers by
Bloomberg Wealth Manager magazine.
["Rush & Molloy" (column), "Vince Had to Deal with Mother of All Swindles". New York Daily News, June 16, 2006.] He has two older sisters, Valerie and Victoria. He was raised "both Protestant and Catholic" by his
Catholic mother and
Protestant father.
[Washingtonpost.com: Live Online] He has
English,
German,
Italian,
Irish, and
Lebanese ancestry.
His parents divorced in 1991. He grew up in
Buffalo Grove,
Illinois where he played football and wrestled.
He then moved to
Lake Forest,
Illinois, where he graduated from
Lake Forest High School in 1988, with award winning writer
Dave Eggers, sports agent Rob Pelinka (represents stars such as Kobe Bryant), fellow actor Don Tiffany. He developed an interest in theater at a young age. He decided to become an actor in 1987, after being involved in a car accident which derailed his chance at athletic success.
Career
In 1988, Vaughn was cast in a Chevrolet television commercial, and subsequently moved to
Hollywood, where he came in contact with the inspiration for all of his work. Although he appeared in the 1989 season of the television series,
China Beach and in three
CBS Schoolbreak Specials (in 1990), he was a struggling actor and faced many rejections.