Born:
April 23, 1939
in
Michigan
Best Known For:
The Six Million Dollar Man.
Early-life:
Born Harvey Lee Yeary on April 23, 1939, in Michigan, USA. Both his parents had been killed in separate accidents by the time he was two. Lee moved to Kentucky after being adopted by his uncle and aunt, and at school became a star athlete in track, basketball, and American football. He then won an athletic scholarship to Indiana University, but a back injury sustained while playing American football prompted him to try acting. He made his stage debut in the play Seven Husbands with then-wife, Kathy.
Career:
Majors made a string of appearances in TV shows and films such as Will Penny, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour and The Virginian. He spent four years in Western show The Big Valley, but it was The Six Million Dollar Man that made him a star in 1973. The series ran until 1978, and spawned spin-off The Bionic Woman, as well as a range of merchandise. Majors reprised the role of Steve Austin in 1987 for the first of three bionic-themed TV movies. He scored another small-screen hit in 1981 as crime-busting stuntman Colt Seavers in The Fall Guy and has since appeared in such movies as Scrooged and Big Fat Liar, and sitcom The Game.
Quote:
"I was never into my looks. What's important to me is my health and family."
Trivia:
In 2003, Majors had heart bypass surgery.