Joe Flanigan is an American writer and actor, best known for his portrayal of the character Major/Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard in Stargate Atlantis.
Background
Flanigan was born Joseph Dunnigan III in Los Los Angeles He has said that his father left his mother, Nancy, soon after he was born and that his surname was changed to Flanigan after he was adopted by his stepfather, business executive John Flanigan.
Education
From the age of 14, Flanigan attended a boarding school in Ojai, California, where he appeared in the school production of A Streetcar Named Desire.
Career
When he was six years old, his family moved to a small ranch near Reno, Nevada. He later earned a history degree at the University of Colorado where he appeared in the play Coriolanus. On the advice of a friend, he took acting to overcome his shyness but did not plan to pursue a career in acting.
As part of the Junior Year Abroad program, Flanigan spent a year studying at the Sorbonne in Paris, where he learned French.
After graduation, he pursued a writing career. He worked on Capitol Hill and then briefly for several New York City publications, including Town & Country and Interview magazine.
He additionally wrote for the series and created the stories for the Stargate Atlantis second season episode "Epiphany" and the fourth season episode "Outcast". In September 2007, scifi.com"s SciFi Wire service reported that, "Talent agency UTA filed suit on September
24 against Stargate Atlantis star Joe Flanigan in Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming that the actor owes $99,225 in commissions, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Flanigan"s manager, John Carrabino, told the trade paper about the lawsuit: "I had no idea they did this. This is the first time I"m hearing about this."" UTA filed a similar lawsuit against actor Wesley Snipes who was equally surprised. This suit was settled in December 2008.
Flanigan appears in Brooks Institute photographer John A. Russo"s upcoming book About Face.
Participant of the proceeds are to be donated to Smile Train.