The Perfect Storm

Background:

American actor, producer, director and writer Joseph D. Reitman has acted in a number of movies and television projects since professionally entered the entertainment industry in the early 1990s. His film credits include 1995's “Clueless,” 1998's “Clay Pigeons,” 2001's “American Pie 2,” 2002's “Auto Focus,” 2003's “The Failures,” 2005's “Drop Dead Sexy” and 2006's “Bandidas.” He also had parts in the hit movies Wolfgang Petersen's “The Perfect Storm” (2000), Kevin Smith's “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” (2001) and M. Night Shyamalan's “Lady in the Water” (2006). He launched a career as a filmmaker in 2002 with the release of the short film “Survivin' the Island,” and has lent his producing talents for movies “Annie Duke Takes on the World” (2006, TV) and “Ten Inch Hero” (2007). On the small screen, Reitman has appeared as guest star in countless TV series, including “Beverly Hills, 90210,” “ER,”“The Pretender,” “The Drew Carey Show,” Jack & Jill,” “Charmed,” “CSI,” “Judging Amy,” “CSI: Miami” and “Close to Home.”

The multi-faceted artist wrote a story for Marvel Comic's Spider-Man Unlimited No. 14 called “ S.C.U.D.S,” which was published in the Spring of 2006.

Reitman has been separated from actress-wife Shannon Elizabeth since March 2005. After the split, he has a relationship with professional poker player Annie Duke, who was introduced to him through mutual friends. Reitman himself is an avid poker player. He has participated in the World Series of Poker twice and won a $1 Million Guaranteed Tournament held by a web site. Additionally, he has played in a number of charity tournaments.

Shannon's Ex

Childhood and Family:

Joseph D. Reitman, also known as Joe Reitman, was born on May 25, 1968, in Boston, Massachusetts. He studied theater at the Pitzer College in Claremont, California, and worked as a waiter/bartender at The Sidewalk Café in Venice Beach before gaining a break in acting.

On June 15, 2002, Joe married long time girlfriend and fiancee, actress Shannon Elizabeth (born September 7, 1973). The couple proclaimed their split up in March, 2005.

Survivin' the Island

Career:

Joseph D. Reitman was caught by the acting bug after going to London with a high school play. He then studied the craft at college and lived the life as a struggling actor in Los Angeles. While waiting for his break, he supported himself as a bartender/writer at The Sidewalk Café in Venice Beach. Reitman netted his first TV role in 1991 when he appeared as a Shrike member on the made-for-TV film “Blood Ties,” a vampire movie directed by Jim McBride. Several years later, he resurfaced with guest roles on “Beverly Hills, 90210” (1994), “ER” (1995) and “Married with Children” (1994-1995).

Subsequently, Reitman segued to the big screen with small roles in Amy Heckerling's “Clueless,” starring Alicia Silverstone, and the Billy Warlock-starring vehicle “Mr. Payback: An Interactive Movie” (both 1995). The same year, he also had a recurring role in the television series “Hudson Street,” as Ernie, and picked up his first regular gig in the following year with “Townies,” in which he was cast as Jesse. Still in 1996, the actor costarred opposite Wilson Cruz on the action movie “Beat the Bash.”

Reitman went on to appear in episodes of “Total Security,” “The Naked Truth,” “Arsenio,” “The Tony Danza Show,” “The Pretender” and “The Drew Carey Show” before scoring a supporting role as Stu in the short-lived drama “Significant Others” in 1998. He returned to the big screen later that same year to support Joaquin Phoenix in “Clay Pigeons.” Next, he acted in the TV film “Route 9” (1998) and the 15-minute short “Better Never Than Late” (1999).

Entering the new millennium, Reitman found himself in support of Hollywood's big names like George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Diane Lane in the box office hit “The Perfect Storm” (2000), directed by Wolfgang Petersen. In the Oscar-nominated adventure, he portrayed Douglas Kosco. His career received a significant boost after the performance, and Reitman could be seen in big projects like “Tomcats,” “American Pie 2” and Kevin Smith's “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” (all 2001). His wife Shannon Elizabeth starred in all the three movies. He kept on busy in 2002 by having four movies under his belt, namely “Rent Control,” with Melissa Joan Hart and Carmen Electra, Greg Kinnear's “Auto Focus,” “The Real Deal” and “Bum Runner.” It was also in 2002 that Reitman made his debut as writer-director with the short film “Survivin' the Island,” starring Jenna Lewis and Heather Ankeny.

Meanwhile, on the small screen, he appeared regularly as a guest in series like “Jack & Jill,” “Charmed,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and “Providence.”

2003 saw Reitman team with director Tim Hunter and actors Ashley Johnson and Chad Lindberg for the director's award-winning indie-comedy/romance, “The Failures.” He appeared as Sky in the boxing movie “Short Fuse” (2005), was cast opposite Jason Lee and Crispin Glover in the dark comedy “Drop Dead Sexy” (2005), had a small part in Chad McQuay's drama, “These Days” (2006), as Andrew, supported Penélope Cruz and Salma Hayek in the actioner “Bandidas” (2006), which were jointly directed by Joachim Roenning and Espen Sandberg. He also had a featured part as a Long Haired Smoker in M. Night Shyamalan's “Lady in the Water” (2006), starring Bryce Dallas Howard in the title role. He served as an executive producer of the TV film “Annie Duke Takes on the World” (2006) and an associate producer for the movie “Ten Inch Hero” (2007). Reitman has maintained his present on the small screen with his guest performances in shows such as “Judging Amy” (2005), “CSI: Miami” (2006), “The Shield” and “Close to Home” (both 2007).

Awards:
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