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| Zen Gesner is an American television and movie actor. He is most recognized for his roles as "Sinbad" in the syndicated television series The Adventures of Sinbad, and as a regular cast member on the ABC daytime drama All My Children. The son of Harry Gesner and stage actress Nan Martin, Zen Brant Gesner was born on June 23, 1970 in Van Nuys, California. His parents named him after the Japanese Buddhist sect that preaches enlightenment through meditation, and he had an older half-brother, Casey Martin Dolan, from his mother's first marriage to musician Robert E. Dolan.Zen Gesner was originally interested in music as a boy, and plays both the piano and trumpet. He became an aspiring actor while attending Santa Monica High School after landing a small part in the school's production of Hamlet, and went on to play leading roles in the school's rendition of "Nicholas Nickleby" and "The Sound of Music". Upon graduation, Gesner joined South Coast Repertory Theatre in Orange County, CA, performing in small roles and watching experienced actors ply their craft.After touring the audition circuit, Gesner sought admission to LAMDA's intensive summer program on Shakespeare and was accepted. Towards the end of the course, he was offered a position in the general three-year programme at the Academy, whose American alumni include such actors as Alexis Denisof, John Lithgow and Donald Sutherland.As a student at LAMDA, Gesner not only performed in such plays as Richard III, The Cherry Orchard and Anything Goes, but also studied everything from poetry to archery to fire-blowing. He especially excelled in fencing and during his second year, earned an advanced certificate from The Society of British Fight Directors. Post-graduation from the Academy, the actor worked as Assistant Fight Director to the Royal Opera House, London.
Seeking to progress his acting career, Zen Gesner moved back to the States, where he met and married his wife Cynthia Farrelly Gesner (sister of the writer-directors Peter and Bobby Farrelly) in 1995. They moved to Hollywood, where Gesner worked part-time in construction while auditioning for television and movie roles. It was during this time that Gesner made his feature film debut in Dumb & Dumber and put his real-life surfing skills to use as a surfer in the Chris Isaak music video, "Somebody's Crying."After four auditions and a screen test, Gesner won the title role in the syndicated fantasy-action series, The Adventures of Sinbad. The series was filmed in Cape Town, South Africa, and involved heavy stuntwork and use of special effects. Between shoots, Gesner added to his physical performance skills by picking up tricks from a local circus troupe, such as tightrope walking, inverted rope-climbing, kicking/flipping up from the ground (known as "kipping"), and stunt flips. Although listed on the fall lineup for a third season, the well-rated series ended its run after the second season due to contract disputes between the production company and series distributors.Since the conclusion of Sinbad in 1998, Zen Gesner has appeared on television series such as Friends and All My Children. He played the role of David Patrick in the 2005 movie The Ringer, a film about the Special Olympics. He was also the spokesperson for Chicken Of The Sea's 2005 "What Women Want" marketing campaign. Gesner and his wife Cynthia have three sons: Finn, Rory, and Tuck.Gesner is brother-in-law to the Farrelly Brothers, and has received several small roles in Farrelly Brothers movies, including Dumb & Dumber, Fever Pitch, Kingpin, Me, Myself & Irene, Osmosis Jones, Shallow Hal and There's Something About Mary. |
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The Adventures of Sinbad
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|  Zen Gesner Information: | Birth Name: Zen Brant Gesner
Zen’s name is derived from the Japanese religious sect that preaches enlighte n
ment through meditation. Before he was born, his father and mother visited Japan and became enamored by the country’s architecture and its religion. They decided to name their son Zen, but to give him the more conventional middle name of Brant, should
their son decide it did not suit him. But Zen stuck.
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| Notable feature(s):
- Earned an advanced certificate from the Society of Fight Directors, has a pilots license.
| Education: Santa Monica High School, Santa Monica, California
London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA), London, England, acting | Family:
- Father: Harry Gesner
- Mother: Nan Martin (actress, b. 15-Jul-1927)
- Wife: Cynthia Farrelly Gesner ( 1995, three sons)
- Son: Finn Harry Gesner (b. 24-Jul-1997)
- Son: Rory Gesner
- Son: Tuck John Gesner (b. 11-Jul-2003)
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| Personal interests/hobbies:
- sword-fighting
- surfing
- archery
- rollerblading
- skiing
- rock climbing and skateboarding.
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 On his role as Sinbad:  ything I had inside of me to make him incredible. When I realized I was playing this legendary, almost mythical, character, I put a lot of pressure on myself to live up to the expectations and vision of what I had always had of this guy. Turned out, I had the time of my life shooting this show. As hard as the work was, it was like being a kid again.
Jumping off buildings, flipping through the air, sword fighting...sometimes I couldn’t believe I was getting paid for this."
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Interested in music as a boy, Zen Gesner, who was directed by mother in a short film when he was 5 years old, found his passion in acting after landing a small par t in his high school's production of “Hamlet.” He went on to play leading roles in the school's rendition of "Nicholas Nickleby" and "The Sound of Music."
"They were looking for a trumpet player and I played the trumpet. That’s when I was bitten by the bug. ‘Hamlet’ had it all -- swordfighting, action and high drama. By my senior year, I was performing in major roles in plays such as ‘Nicholas Nickleby’ and ‘The Sound of Music.’" Zen Gesner.
I have always been fascinated with historical fighting. Swordplay is very much like dance. Distinctive forms of fighting and weapon types have evolved that are unique to different regions of the world. It’s something that has always appealed to me.
- 1996 Played a surfer in Chis Isaak music video, "Somebody's Crying"
- Performed in a radio broadcast of Leocadia.
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NaWiaposted 148 days ago
