Tony Shalhoub

Anthony Marc Shalhoub, better known as Tony Shalhoub, was born on October 9, 1953, in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and grew up in a large Lebanese-American family. Like many, his upbringing was filled with both familial challenges and familial joy, and these experiences played a crucial role in shaping his outlook on life and the person he is today, a humble and amazing actor with a successful film career.

Growing Up in a Busy Immigrant Household

Tony Shalhoub was the second youngest of the 10 children of Joe and Helen Shalhoub. Shalhoub’s father, Joe, immigrated to the United States from Lebanon when just a small boy. Joe’s parents had died, and Joe traveled with his siblings to live with relatives in Green Bay, a place that was very different from his homeland, both in culture and temperature. But he found his footing in this new world and did everything he could to raise and provide for a family.

“My father came to the US from Lebanon in 1920 when he was eight without knowing a word of English,” Shalhoub recalls. “He traveled to Green Bay, Wisconsin, married, bought a house, and he and my mom, Helen, raised 10 kids. Everything depended on his one-man business driving a truck.”

According to Shalhoub, his father became a meat peddler. He would drive a refrigerated truck to the lakefront town of Sheboygan to purchase the meat, and then he would drive around the region selling it. “He was a terrific salesman,” Shalhoub remembers. “People loved and trusted him, and he never let anyone down.”

With 10 children, life in the Shalhoub household was understandably chaotic but rich in culture and family connections. The Shalhoubs lived in a three-story house on Doty Street in Green Bay. Privacy and space in general were not easy to come by. Tony often shared a bed with a brother, but the advantage of being a younger member of the family was that his often got “upgraded” to better rooms when older brothers and sisters left for college or started their own families. “Growing up in our house was fun,” Shalhoub says. “I never wanted for playmates or an audience.”

“My mom was funny and nutty. I suppose she had to be to survive raising 10 kids,” Shalhoub says in reflection. “She kept us buoyant and harmonious, though she wouldn’t let us express anger, which later landed me in therapy—but it also made it easier for me to play laid-back, measured roles.”

Early Inspirations and Support from a Sister

It didn’t take long for Tony’s love of performance to blossom. When he was just six years old, he made his stage debut in The King and I. It was a high school production, but his older sister Susan enlisted him to fill a child role. “In her style, she told me—didn’t ask me—that I was going to be in the play,” Shalhoub jokes. “So I went along, being the obedient younger brother that I was.” The experience was exhilarating for little Tony and certainly light the thespian spark within him. “I had a costume and a couple of serious lines that got a laugh. I loved the feeling.”

As a young boy, Tony Shalhoub often entertained his older siblings with creative sketches or routines he invented or copied from TV shows. “Performing felt natural,” he explains.

In high school, Tony had friends who were “cool.” “They weren’t interested in anything to do with school,” he said. But Tony loved the theater and has support from Susan, who became a Broadway actress.

Starting the Journey

Shalhoub attended the University of Southern Maine and planned to become a teacher. But a drama class changed his focus entirely and he decided to pursue acting. After graduation, Shalhoub joined a local theater company and eventually applied to the Yale School of Drama. He had never previously acted in a competitive environment, and he remembers the experience as “exciting and a little scary.”

Although Shalhoub likely had vulnerable moments at Yale, he discovered that he really did belong there as an actor. “I realized I could compete on this level,” he said, “and I got to know what life was going to be like as an actor.” After earning his MFA in 1980, Shalhoub spent four years touring the United States, Europe, and even the Middle East with the American Repertory Theater. He described the experience as “very satisfying.”

But not everything worked out. When Shalhoub discovered that he had been cast in Heartburn, starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson, he was overjoyed and told everyone he knew. But then one day he was informed that he had been cut. “It was very hard to call up 200 people and say that I was not in the movie,” he recalls. “I just had to eat crow.”

While that experience was humbling, Shalhoub didn’t let it bring him down too low, and the loving support of his family helped him to keep his chin up. “My family was really there to support me, to encourage me, to remind me of what was really important. Without that, the stress and negativity would’ve probably consumed me.”

Reaching “Outstanding Lead Actor” Status

Shalhoub’s biggest fans know that the star’s big break came when he became a featured actor in the television series Wings, in which Tony Shalhoub played the lovable Italian cab driver Antonio Scarpacci. He gave such an outstanding performance that many people thought he really was Italian and that the accent was real. Naturally, his talent was quickly recognized and he began to land more roles. “Luckily, the public sees me as a character actor,” Shalhoub said. “Certainly, the acting world does.”

Next came big roles in Paulie, Galaxy Quest, Thirteen Ghosts, and Spy Kids, among others.

But Shalhoub’s career really skyrocketed with his role as detective Adrian Monk in the critically acclaimed police drama/comedy series Monk. For his performance as the obsessive-compulsive detective, Tony Shalhoub won three Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, a Golden Globe Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and an Online Film & Television Association Award.

Although Monk ended in 2009, Tony Shalhoub reprised his role as Adrian Monk in the TV movie Mr. Monk’s Last Case, which aired on Peacock in 2023.

Despite his success on the big screen and the television screen, Tony Shalhoub continued to perform on the stage and keep his theatrical roots alive, demonstrating that he was a thespian through and through. “I hoped to work in all three mediums—it’s doable, and I managed to eventually do it somehow,” he reflects.

More recently, Tony Shalhoub has earned praise for his supporting role as Abe Weissman in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, again reminding us all that he has enormous talent.

Tony Shalhoub Built His American Dream on Family

Of course, Tony Shalhoub is where he is because he’s a hardworking, phenomenal actor. But Shalhoub has humbly and adamantly put his family at the foundation of his professional success. Shalhoub’s immigrant parents were resilient and resourceful. They were given no shortcuts to take and found success only after patient perseverance.

Despite some early setbacks, Shalhoub remained committed to his American Dream, and for good reason. His parents never gave up. His father took what many might consider a lowly profession and made it a reflection of his honor and outstanding character. And his mother successfully raised 10 children, with all the chaos it surely brought.

Shalhoub’s father was actually a bit dubious at first about his son’s pursuit of acting—as most parents would be. He gained his success through simple but straightforward physical labor. But navigating an acting career can be anything but straightforward. Eventually, Joe Shalhoub came around after seeing Tony perform on stage. “After my performance and our dinner,” Tony reflected, “he said he was so pleased and happy to see that I was doing what I loved and that I wasn’t afraid of working hard.”

Tony Shalhoub married actress Brooke Adams in 1992, and the couple are the parents of two adopted daughters. Now a grandparent, Shalhoub continues to inspire with his talent and dedication. Shalhoub’s career and character serve as a reminder to us all that the American Dream is not merely about achieving success despite challenges. At its core, it’s about recognizing that our successes are because of the trailblazers who came before us and those who supported us all along the way, especially our families. And for Tony Shalhoub, it’s especially about staying connected to them.