Christian LeBlanc

Christian Jules LeBlanc (born August 25, 1958) is an American television actor. He is best known for playing the role of Michael Baldwin on ''The Young and the Restless'' (1991 to 1993, 1997 to present). He has received nine Daytime Emmy Award nominations and three wins for his work on ''The Young and the Restless''.

Early life

LeBlanc was born in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. His father is retired Major Andre Victor LeBlanc, a decorated veteran and winner of the Bronze Star. He is the second of eight children. He was raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, in a renovated plantation house on the banks of the Mississippi River. While researching his family's genealogy, LeBlanc found that his grandmother was legally a slave and his mother was Creole.

He began acting in high school, when a girl talked him into auditioning for a school production of ''West Side Story''. He was cast as a Shark. He then played a beggar in ''Fiddler on the Roof,'' where his classmate, future New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, also had a role.

He graduated with honors from Tulane University, majoring in ancient history and pre-med.

Career

While in college, LeBlanc was noticed by a photographer while swimming at a pool, which led to modeling and acting opportunities. He worked at a variety of jobs to support himself early in his career, including as a busboy at Helmsley Palace, where his boss was Leona Helmsley. He also had jobs as a teacher and a caterer.

He was offered a role in a PBS series, ''Edit Point.'' He was then cast as Kirk McColl on the CBS soap opera ''As the World Turns'', playing the role from 1983 to 1985. After leaving ''As the World Turns'', he had a regular role on '' In the Heat of the Night''. He guest-starred on '' E.A.R.T.H. Force'', ''Cheers, Riptide'', ''Hotel'', and '' Gabriel's Fire''.

LeBlanc was cast on ''The Young and the Restless'' as Michael Baldwin in 1991 and played the role until 1993. After a short absence, he returned in 1997 and has been with the show ever since. He also played Michael in crossover episodes on ''As the World Turns'' in 2005. He has been nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for the role nine times, and won for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 2005, 2007, and 2009.

In 1993, he appeared in a ''Perry Mason'' TV Movie. He was also cast in the Showtime late-night cable TV series ''Red Shoe Diaries'', and reprised the role for a video movie.

LeBlanc starred on stage in ''Ladies in Retirement'' at the Coconut Grove Playhouse in 1995, co-starring with Julie Harris. The play was directed by Charles Nelson Reilly, who was also his acting coach. His other theater credits include productions of ''No Orchids for Miss Blandish'', ''The Catonsville Nine'', and ''Appearances to the Contrary''.

In 2000, LeBlanc produced and acted in a short film, ''Puppy Love'', co-starring with Grace Zabriskie. The film won Outstanding Short Film at the Los Angeles and New York International Short Film Festivals.

LeBlanc appeared alongside his ''The Young and the Restless'' wife, Tracey E. Bregman, in the video for '' I Keep On Loving You'' by Reba McEntire in 2010. From 2011 to 2014, he played Jake on the web series '' Venice: The Series.''

LeBlanc acted in and produced the 2013 film ''Grave Secrets'', co-starring with Diane Ladd and Ashley Jones. A television episode version of the film aired as part of Nickelodeon's '' Deadtime Stories'' on Halloween. LeBlanc's role was edited out of the television version.

In 2022, he starred Off-Broadway in ''Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' at Theatre at St. Clements, co-starring with Sonoya Mizuno and Matt de Rogatis. In March 2024, LeBlanc and de Rogatis reprised their roles, bringing the production to the 2024 Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival.

Personal life

LeBlanc's art work has been displayed in Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Washington, D.C.

He is not related to actor Matt LeBlanc, who played Joey Tribbiani on the sitcom ''Friends''.

On June 20, 2021, he revealed on Maurice Benard's Youtube series ''State of Mind'' that he is gay and has been married to his husband since 1993.

In October 2023, LeBlanc announced that he had been diagnosed with Multiple myeloma in June of that year and that the cancer was in remission. He had first noticed symptoms on the set of ''The Young and the Restless'' and took time off while receiving treatment.

Filmography

Film

Television

Web series

Awards and nominations

References

External links

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Christian LeBlanc's Official Site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leblanc, Christian
1958 births
Living people
Male actors from New Orleans
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors
American male television actors
American male soap opera actors
Daytime Emmy Award winners
Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series winners
American gay actors
LGBTQ people from North Carolina
People from Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Tulane University alumni
21st-century American LGBTQ people
American people of French descent
American male stage actors
Actors from Louisiana
American artists