5 lesser-known facts about Neil Patrick Harris
Neil Patrick Harris, best known for his role as Barney Stinson in the CBS series How I Met Your Mother, is a multi-talented actor who is equally adept at hosting, singing, and writing. Harris is set to star in Uncoupled, the upcoming Netflix romcom series created by Darren Star and Jeffrey Richman, which will be released on July 29. Directed by Andrew Fleming, the eight-episode series will revolve around Harris' Michael Lawson, a New York City real estate agent in his 40s, who finds himself single after he gets dumped by his long-term partner of 17 years.
Before you catch Harris playing the role of a newly single middle-aged gay man, forced to start over and explore the dating scene in Uncoupled, check out these lesser-known facts about The Matrix Resurrections actor.
5 facts about Neil Patrick Harris that you might not know
1. He earned a Golden Globe nomination at the age of 15.
Neil was discovered by Mark Medoff, a playwright, while he was attending a drama camp. Medoff cast him in Clara's Heart, a movie adaptation of Joseph Olshan's novel of the same name. Neil starred alongside Whoopi Goldberg in the film and earned himself a Golden Globe nomination at the young age of 15 for his performance as David Hart.
2. He can also perform magic.
It was not by chance that Harris' Barney Stinson was a fan of magic on How I Met Your Mother, and that his characters in both American Horror Story: Freak Show and Glee could perform magic. Neil is an amateur magician who has been performing magic since he was a kid. He showed off his magic skills on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in 1990.
Harris served as the President of the Board of Directors of Hollywood's Magic Castle from 2011 to 2014. He also won Tannen's Magic Louis Award in 2006 and hosted the 2008 World Magic Awards on October 11, 2008.
3. He is the author of a young adult novel series.
Neil Patrick Harris is the proud author of a four-book young adult novel series called The Magic Misfits. Published in 2017, the series tells the story of a group of six magicians-in-training consisting of Carter Locke, Leila Vernon, Ridley Larsen, Theo Stein-Meyer, and twins Izzy and Olly Golden.
In 2018, Neil also published his memoir, Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography, which is a one-of-a-kind memoir formatted as a Choose Your Own Adventure style book.
4. He became the first openly gay man to host the Academy Awards.
Neil came out as openly gay on November 4, 2006, by stating:
“I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest and feel most fortunate to be working with wonderful people in the business I love.”
He met his partner David Burtka in 2004. In October 2010, they became parents via surrogacy to their twins, son Gideon Scott and daughter Harper Grace. Harris and Burtka married in 2014 in Italy after the passage of the Marriage Equality Act in New York on June 24, 2011. The marriage was officiated by Pamela Fryman, the long-time director of How I Met Your Mother. Harris' close friend Elton John, the iconic openly gay singer, performed at their wedding.
After this, Neil Patrick Harris became the first openly gay man to host the 87th Academy Awards in 2015.
5. He won awards for hosting.
Apart from being an astounding actor, Neil Patrick Harris is also a brilliant host who has hosted a number of award shows. He hosted the Primetime Emmy Awards twice in 2009 and 2013 and the Tony Awards four times, in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013. He won four Primetime Emmy Awards for hosting the Tony Awards, one for each of the years he hosted.
Don't forget to stream Neil Patrick Harris' new Netflix series, Uncoupled, on July 29.
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Shreya Das