Michael Paul Chan (born June 26, 1950) is an American actor.
He is known for his role as Lieutenant Michael Tao on the
TNT
Troponin T (shortened TnT or TropT) is a part of the troponin complex, which are proteins integral to the contraction of skeletal and heart muscles. They are expressed in skeletal and cardiac myocytes. Troponin T binds to tropomyosin and helps ...
series ''
The Closer
''The Closer'' is an American police procedural television series starring Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Los Angeles Police Department Chief of police#United States, deputy chief. A CIA-trained interrogator originally from Atlanta, G ...
'' and ''
Major Crimes''. Chan also acted in ''
U.S. Marshals'', playing an assassin.
Early life and education
A third-generation Chinese American, Chan was born in
San Francisco, California
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
. His brother was the late
Jeffery Paul Chan, an author and academic.
Chan is a graduate of
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University (San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Francisco, California, United States. It was established in 1899 as the San Francisco State Normal School and is ...
and the
American Conservatory Theater
The American Conservatory Theater (ACT) is a nonprofit theater company in San Francisco, California, United States, that offers both classical and contemporary theater productions. It also has an attached acting school.
History
The American ...
.
He is a founding member of the
Asian American Theater Company.
Career
Chan's television work has included roles such as Judge Lionel Ping on ''
Arrested Development
''Arrested Development'' is an American satire, satirical television sitcom created by Mitchell Hurwitz. It follows the Bluths, a formerly wealthy, dysfunctional family and is presented in a Serial (radio and television), serialized format, inco ...
'', Detective Ron Lu on ''
Robbery Homicide Division'', the voice of Jimmy Ho on ''
The PJ's'', Mr. Chong on ''
The Wonder Years
''The Wonder Years'' is an American coming-of-age comedy television series created by Neal Marlens and Carol Black. It ran on ABC from January 31, 1988, until May 12, 1993. The series premiered immediately after ABC's coverage of Super Bowl X ...
'', a Japanese investor in the 1990 ''
Northern Exposure
''Northern Exposure'' is an American comedy-drama television series about the eccentric residents in the fictitious town of Cicely, Alaska, that originally aired on CBS from July 12, 1990, to July 26, 1995, with a total of 110 episodes. It rec ...
'' episode "Dreams, Schemes and Putting Greens", an agent of the Chinese Intelligence Agency on a 2011 episode of ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'', and roles on ''
Bones
A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, an ...
'', ''
Babylon 5
''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Tel ...
'', ''
Nash Bridges'', and ''
The Young and the Restless
''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in the fictional Genoa City (named after the real-life Genoa City, Wiscon ...
''.
One of Chan's more notable film roles was as the Korean convenience-store owner in the 1993 film ''
Falling Down
''Falling Down'' is a 1993 American crime drama film directed by Joel Schumacher, written by Ebbe Roe Smith, and starring Michael Douglas and Robert Duvall.
Set in Los Angeles, the film tells the story of William Foster, a disgruntled, une ...
'', where he refused to give a discount to
Michael Douglas
Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944) is an American actor and film producer. He has received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and the ...
' character when he attempted to purchase a can of soda to get change for the pay telephone outside the store. Another was as Data's father in ''
The Goonies
''The Goonies'' is a 1985 American adventure comedy film directed and co-produced by Richard Donner from a screenplay by Chris Columbus based on a story by Steven Spielberg and starring Sean Astin, Josh Brolin (in his film debut), Jeff Cohen ...
''. Chan appeared in both of
Joel Schumacher
Joel T. Schumacher (; August 29, 1939 – June 22, 2020) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Raised in New York City by his mother, Schumacher graduated from Parsons School of Design and originally became a fashion designe ...
's Batman movies, in two different roles - a Wayne Enterprises executive in ''
Batman Forever
''Batman Forever'' is a 1995 American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Batman by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. It is the third installment of the ''Batman'' film series, acting as a standalone sequel to ''Batman Returns''. Directe ...
'', and Dr. Lee in ''
Batman & Robin''. Other films in his filmography include ''
Americanese'', ''
Megiddo: The Omega Code 2'', ''
U.S. Marshals'', ''
Spy Game
''Spy Game'' is a 2001 action thriller film directed by Tony Scott and written by Michael Frost Beckner and David Arata. The film stars Robert Redford and Brad Pitt as CIA operatives entangled in a covert rescue mission during the final day ...
'', ''
The Protector'', ''
Quicksilver'', ''
The Joy Luck Club'', ''
The Insider'', and ''
Thief
Theft (, cognate to ) is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal short ...
''.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chan, Michael Paul
1950 births
Living people
Male actors from San Francisco
American male film actors
American male actors of Chinese descent
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors
San Francisco State University alumni
American Conservatory Theater alumni
American male stage actors
American male television actors