Biography

Michael Wiseman is likely best known for playing Mafia boss "Johnny Rizzo" on the TV Series Vegas (2012). Born on April 12, 1967, he grew up in Lafayette, California, where his mother taught at their local elementary school for 35 years and his grandfather owned a local restaurant.

From an early age, he knew he wanted to be an actor - even listing it as his stated goal in his Jr. high school yearbook. Days after graduating high school, Michael moved south-determined to achieve his dream. He began a rigorous intro to the arts in college-where he studied dance (Ballet and Jazz), singing, stage design, lighting, and acting. He then went on to attend Robert F Lyons Acting Academy in Los Angeles with focuses on Scene Study, Cold Reading, and extensive Improvisation. He began performing at several Los Angeles theaters while continuing to study under Robert F, including taking his Masterclass for 5 years.

A first job in Los Angeles working for Joel Silver at Silver Pictures on the Warner Bros lot led to many connections and insights about the business while picking up or delivering scripts to studios such as Fox, Disney, Sony, and Paramount. Out of that, he met director Stephen Hopkins who changed his course by getting him a line in the movie Predator 2 (1990)-earning him his SAG card and sending him on his way.

From there, his acting career began to take shape. A first TV role on Cheers (1982) was followed by a part in Judgment Night (1993), along with guest roles in Melrose Place (1992), Renegade, and Walker, Texas Ranger (1993).

His first big break came when he was cast for a 3-episode arc in NYPD Blue (1993), playing Tommy Richardson. He landed a stream of guest star and recurring roles in other popular shows including Diagnosis Murder (1993), Nash Bridges, The Pretender (1996), JAG (1995), Star Trek: Voyager (1995), The X-Files (1993), Judging Amy (1999), CSI: Miami (2002), Cold Case (2003), The Closer (2005),Nip/Tuck (2003), Prison Break (2005), The Mentalist (2008), and Lie to Me (2009), along with supporting roles in the feature films Rancid (2004) and The Wicker Man (2006).

After a brief lull which left him questioning whether it was time to move on, Wiseman landed the role of the suave but hotheaded Chicago mobster Johnny Rizzo, a character who spanned 10 episodes, on Vegas (2012).

Since Vegas (2012), he has continued to act in such shows as NCIS (2003) and Scorpion (2014), and in such feature films as Running Wild (2017), Pray for Rain (2017), and In Search of Fellini (2017).

He enjoys skiing, golf, spending time with his family, and doing as much yoga as time permits. He has been married to actress and Emmy-nominated makeup artist Caroline Keenan-Wiseman since 2001. They have two children.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Rachel Kuchar (updated by R.M. Sieger)