Photo: Alan Light / CC BY 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
What I admire most about Ken Olin is the second act. He could have coasted on his heartthrob status from Thirtysomething, where his Michael Steadman earned him a Golden Globe nod, but instead he quietly slid behind the camera to direct and produce. That takes a rare kind of humility for an actor. To me, Olin represents the craftsman who cares more about the whole show than his own close-up. His Penn education seems to show in that big-picture instinct. He is a reminder that longevity in this industry often belongs to the people willing to give up the spotlight and build something larger than themselves.
Overview
Kenneth Edward Olin (born July 30, 1954) is an American actor, television director, and producer. As an actor, Olin is known for his role as Michael Steadman in the ABC drama series Thirtysomething (1987–1991), for which he received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor – Television Series Drama in 1990. Olin later began working behind the scenes, as a director and producer.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Ken Olin
- Name (Japanese)
- ケン・オリン
- Reading
- けん・おりん
- Born
- July 30, 1954 (age 71)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Leo / Horse
- Origin
- Chicago, Illinois, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- actor / film director / television actor / film actor / film producer
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- University of Pennsylvania
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Actor — see all → · Film director — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.