Jason Beghe

Jason Beghe (born March 12, 1960) is an American film and television actor and critic of Scientology. As a young man he attended the Collegiate School in New York City, where he became best friends with John F. Kennedy, Jr. and David Duchovny. Beghe is married and lives in Los Angeles, California. Beghe starred in the 1988 George A. Romero film Monkey Shines: An Experiment In Fear, playing a quadriplegic in a performance that was positively received. He appeared as a police officer in the film Thelma & Louise, and played Demi Moore's love interest in G.I. Jane. Beghe starred opposite Moira Kelly in the television series To Have & to Hold, and has had recurring roles on Picket Fences, Melrose Place, Chicago Hope, American Dreams and Cane, as well as parts on numerous other television programs. He began taking Scientology courses in 1994, and later appeared in a Church of Scientology advertising campaign and in promotional videos. According to Beghe, Church of Scientology head David Miscavige even referred to him as "the poster boy for Scientology". Beghe left Scientology in 2007 and began publicly speaking out about his experiences within the church in April 2008. An on camera interview with Beghe about his experiences in Scientology conducted by Xenu TV founder and journalist Mark Bunker was published to the video site YouTube and later Vimeo. Marina Hyde ofThe Guardian newspaper called Beghe a Scientology celebrity whistleblower for his actions. --- Beghe was born March 12, 1960 in New York City, and is one of four siblings. He attended the Collegiate School, a private preparatory school for boys located in New York City. While there, he became best friends with John F. Kennedy, Jr. and actor David Duchovny. Kennedy and Beghe often hung out together outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art and in Central Park, and were monitored by Kennedy's Secret Service detail. As a teenager, Beghe attended summer camp with Erik Rush, now a conservative columnist and author. Influenced by Beghe, Kennedy became involved in the theater program at Collegiate. Beghe later also persuaded Duchovny to pursue work in acting. Duchovny had planned to write and become a professor, but halfway through work on his Ph.D. dissertation, Beghe convinced him to audition for television commercials. Prior to his acting career, Beghe worked as a model in Europe. He had his feature film debut in the1985 film Compromising Positions, starring Susan Sarandon, and in 1986 had his first recurring role on television on the HBO situation comedy series 1st & Ten. He starred alongside O. J. Simpson and Sam J. Jones in HBO's sequel to 1st & Ten titled Training Camp: The Bulls Are Back, and John Voohees of The Seattle Times wrote: "The cast, which includes O.J. Simpson, Sam Jones and newcomer Jason Beghe, is first-rate." In 1988, he starred in the film Monkey Shines: An Experiment In Fear, directed by George A. Romero. He portrayed Allan Mann, a law student made quadriplegic when hit by a truck in the opening credits of the film. The Philadelphia Inquirer gave a positive review of Beghe's performance in Monkey Shines: "Acting only with his face and voice, Jason Beghe is terrific at conveying the mounting anger and rage of an active man made passive". David Foil of The Advocate described Beghe's performance as "remarkable simply for meeting the demands of the character". --- Beghe married his wife Angie in 2000. Beghe and David Duchovny remain close friends, and he was best man at Duchovny's wedding to actress Téa Leoni. He lives with his wife and family in Nichols Canyon, Los Angeles, California. Beghe's sister, Francesca Beghe, is a singer/songwriter who released a self-titled album in 1991 with SBK Records.