Hollywood is a place where dreams come true, but only the most talented and fortunate can make it and stay there. A successful career in the film industry is rare, but Tom Selleck is one of those enduring stars who has graced our television screens for decades.
Tom Selleck’s big break came with his starring role as Thomas Magnum in “Magnum, P.I.,” earning him five Emmy Award nominations and one win in 1985. Before his rise to fame, Selleck had minor roles in films and TV shows, appeared in several advertisements, and even participated in “The Dating Game” twice, an experience he described as humiliating and embarrassing: “I lost. Twice. I wasn’t really funny or glib.” He then joined 20th Century Fox’s talent program, working there for about two years before leaving for six months of active military duty. Upon his return, he was dropped from the program, but this setback did not deter him.
Selleck reflected on his career with AARP, saying, “The luckiest thing that happened was that I didn’t get a real job until I was 35. When I was 25, I looked 35 but sounded 15. There are a lot of very good actors who make it as younger leading men but don’t graduate — because the audience won’t accept them as grown up.”
“Magnum, P.I.” came along just as Selleck was considering giving up acting. “I think if Magnum hadn’t worked out, I’d never have worked again in this business,” he told Closer Weekly.
Since 2010, Selleck has co-starred in the television series “Blue Bloods,” playing Frank Reagan, the commissioner of the New York City Police Department. The show has been renewed for its 13th season.
