Seacoast celebrity watch: Meet famous entertainers with local ties
You never know when you might run into a famous person with local ties in New Hampshire's Seacoast and southern Maine. Some studied and played here, others were born here, became famous and then came home. Many vacation or perform here in the summer.
Here are some celebrities from the entertainment world you might just catch a glimpse of on the Seacoast when you least expect it:
Tom Bergeron
Celebrity TV host, producer and actor Tom Bergeron, who was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, has a home in Lee, New Hampshire. Best known for hosting “Dancing with the Stars,” “America’s Funniest Home Videos” and “Hollywood Squares,” he started out early in his career living in Portsmouth and working as a deejay at WHEB-FM in Portsmouth.
He later worked in television in New Hampshire and Boston in the 1980s and 1990s. One of his first jobs on television was as host of the local game show, “Granite State Challenge,” on New Hampshire Public Television. He was hired to host “America’s Funniest Home Videos” in 2001 and “Dancing With The Stars” in 2005. Bergeron parted way with “Dancing with the Stars” after 15 years in 2020.
Over the years, he has often been seen around the Seacoast. In 2018, he visited Portsmouth City Hall and saw his friend, then-Mayor Jack Blalock, who told a reporter Bergeron stops at his restaurant, the Old Ferry Landing, three or four times each summer. Bergeron has appeared at the New Hampshire Film Festival in Portsmouth most Octobers, often participating in the annual Comedy Panel event. He emceed the Portsmouth 400th birthday dinner for 900 on Congress Street in summer 2023.
In 2012, Bergeron won an Emmy in the Host of a Reality Competition Program category. It was the first prime-time Emmy award for Bergeron, who has been nominated seven times. He previously won a daytime Emmy for his work as host of "Hollywood Squares.”
Patrick Dempsey
Patrick Dempsey, who grew up in Lewiston and has a home in Kennebunkport, came to fame on the TV hit “Grey’s Anatomy,” playing the role of Dr. Derek Shepherd, and was nicknamed “McDreamy.” As a real-life race car driver, he stars in the recent film “Ferrari.” He was named Sexiest Man Alive by People magazine in 2023.
Dempsey has driven in several professional races, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and is part of the Wright Motorsports racing team, according to its website.
He also founded the Dempsey Center, a Maine-based organization that provides care and resources for cancer patients, in honor of his late mother.
After the mass shooting in Lewiston in October 2023, he wrote on Instagram, “I am shocked and deeply saddened by last night’s tragedy in my hometown. Maine’s great strength is its sense of community, and how we are being asked to come together to support everyone that has been devastated by this senseless act. My family and I are heartbroken for the victims, their family and the community.” A few weeks later, he played in a fundraising softball tournament to raise money for the shooting’s victims.
Kara DioGuardi
Former "American Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi, who is one of the most sought-after pop songwriters, has a home in York Harbor, Maine. Her first No. 1 single — “Spinning Around,” performed by Australian singer Kylie Minogue — came out in 2000. In 2007, performing rights organization BMI named her Pop Music Songwriter of the Year, because her songs had more airplay than any other songwriter. People she’s written for or collaborated with include Jessica Simpson, Ernique Iglesias, Celine Dion, Pink, Natasha Bedingfield, Kelly Clarkson, Ashlee Simpson, Gwen Stefani, Christina Aguilera, to name just a few. In 2009, she was asked to be a judge on “American Idol,” joining Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul. She was on “American Idol” for two season. She’s written or co-written more than 300 songs that have been released on major labels, including 50 that landed on the Billboard singles chart, and more than 1,000 songs in all.
Jennifer Lee
Oscar-winning director Jennifer Lee graduated from the University of New Hampshire in Durham in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in English. She was the first woman to direct a film for Disney when she directed the Oscar-winning animated film “Frozen.” She also served as a writer for the film and voiced the Queen, according to IMDb.
In addition to winning in the Best Animated Feature category in 2014 it also won an Oscar for best achievement in music written for motion pictures, original song, for "Let it Go.”
Later that year, Lee was the commencement speaker at UNH’s graduation ceremony.
Most recently, she was the executive producer for the 2022 Oscar-nominated animated films "Encanto" and "Raya and the Last Dragon." At the 94th Academy Awards, "Encanto" won best animated film.
There's going to be a 'Frozen 4' now?: Disney CEO reveals second new sequel underway
Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird gave birth to the comic empire when they were roommates living on 28 Union St. in Dover in 1983. The first copies of the original comic book arrived at their home on April 16, 1984 and Mirage Studios was born. That first comic book would eventually lead to TV and films, and popularity that has lasted for decades.
More: "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" birthplace in Dover enshrined with marker, manhole
Tyler McLaughlin
Tyler McLaughlin of Rye joined the cast in the second season of the hit reality fishing show “Wicked Tuna” in 2012. He competed with his crew — first mates Adam Moser and Alex Whitney — on board his boat, the Pin Wheel. At 25, McLaughlin was the youngest captain on the show at the time.
Michelle Brancewicz
Michelle Bancewicz came to fame when a video of her reeling in an 800-pound tuna went viral. That caught the attention of the reality fishing show “Wicked Tuna” and soon she found herself joining its cast in its 12th season in 2023. Bancewicz with first mate Lea Pinaud are the first all-female fishing crew on the show. She began fishing in the 1980s on her dad’s boat in Hampton Harbor. She has worked on the crews of large party and fishing boats over the years and got her captain’s license in 2015. She got her own boat, No Limits, in 2019.
Matty Cardarople
Actor and comedian Matty Cardarople was born and raised in Exeter. His most famous role so far was playing the role of Keith in the Netflix hit show "Stranger Things.”
Cardarople has performed roles in many films and TV series. He was the “Hench Person of Indeterminate Gender” in the movie "A Series of Unfortunate Events." He's been in episodes of "NCIS," "NCIS: LA," "Scrubs" and "Ray Donovan." He was in "Jurassic World" and "Dumb & Dumber To" as well as "New Girl," "You're The Worst," "Selfie," "Angie Tribeca," "Comedy Bang! Bang!" and "Chasing Life.” He has also voiced Apple in the Cartoon Network's "Apple & Onion" and Preston in the new DreamWorks Jr. and Netflix animated series, "Archibald's Next Big Things."
He credited his long-term pal, Melissa Villasenor, with teaching him a strong work ethic and confidence along with Exeter teachers Tyler Poelle and Adam Korsen in a 2019 Seacoastonline interview before appearing at a signing at Krypton Comics in Exeter.
Chris Stinson and Amy Greene
Film producers Chris Stinson and Amy Greene live in the South End of Portsmouth, and have rubbed elbows often in recent years with actors, directors and film producers making movies that have gotten a lot of Oscar attention.
They both were producers on “The Holdovers” which received five Academy Award nominations this year, with Da’Vine Joy Randolph winning the Oscar for Best Support Actress.
Starring Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Paul Giamatti, "The Holdovers" was nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor (Giamatti), Best Supporting Actress (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing at the 96th Academy Awards. They also worked on the film “Sound of Metal,” which was nominated for six Academy Awards in 2021, and won the Oscars for film editing and sound. The two also worked as production supervisors on the star-studded “Knives Out,” which was shot in Massachusetts, and was nominated for an Academy Award and several Golden Globes in 2020.
While Stinson was born and raised in Concord, after college he moved to Los Angeles for 20 years, then moved back to Portsmouth. He and Greene founded Live Free or Die Films in 2005.
Stinson also won the Van MacLeod Award, which honors New Hampshire natives and residents who have made a significant contribution to the film and television industry, at the New Hampshire Film Festival in 2011.
More: Portsmouth couple celebrates 'The Holdovers' success at 2024 Oscars
Jackson Nicoll
Jackson Nicoll grew up in Seabrook and still works on the Seacoast for his family’s business, Al Gauron Deep Sea Fishing & Whale Watching. The child movie star serves on the crew of the Northern Star. As a child actor, Nicoll starred in most famously “Bad Grampa” as the main character’s grandson in the Johnny Knoxville prank comedy.
He also worked with Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale in his role as Little Dicky in the 2010 blockbuster "The Fighter." As a youngster, he acted in "Fun Size,” “Staten Island Summer” and “The Book of Henry,” among other films.
Sally Struthers
Actress Sally Struthers of “All in the Family” and “Gilmore Girls” fame has spent many of her recent summers in Maine, performing in Ogunquit Playhouse productions. She won two Emmys for her performance in the role of Stivic, the daughter of Archie and Edith Bunker, on “All In The Family.” Her TV career has spanned decades and her recent work has been mostly in the theater.
Rae Dawn Chong
Acclaimed actress, director and producer Rae Dawn Chong, the daughter of Tommy Chong, one half of the comedy duo Cheech and Chong, has frequented the Seacoast arts scene in the last couple decades. She starred in “Commando” with Arnold Schwarzenegger, “The Color Purple” with Oprah. She began acting at 11 and her career has spanned decades on film and TV. She was a longtime member of the Board of Directors for the New Hampshire Film Festival, and participated in many festivals.
Mike O’Malley
Actor, writer and TV producer Mike O’Malley was raised in Nashua, and graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1988. He is best known for his role as Jimmy Hughes on “Yes, Dear,” a CBS series which aired from 2000 to 2006. He was nominated for an Emmy Award for his role as Burt Hummel on the Fox series “Glee." O'Malley has also guest-starred in series including My Name Is Earl, Raising Hope, Parenthood and Parks and Recreation, and has appeared in films including 28 Days, Deep Impact, Leatherheads, Eat, Pray, Love, R.I.P.D., Concussion and Sully. Most recently, he created the sitcom “Extended Family,” which just debuted on Peacock. O’Malley returned to UNH in 2006 to deliver the commencement speech and he received an honorary degree.
Jon Rineman
Jon Rineman grew up in North Hampton and is a 2001 Winnacunnet High School graduate who spent nine years writing for “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” and “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.”
He is one of the creators of the board game Anti-Social Skills, where players read cards that put them in ridiculous situations and the cards prompt players to choose from a number of possible hilarious responses they can read off, written by a premium team of writers. He has taught a course at Emerson College on late-night comedy writing. He also has worked on the creative team for WWE’s "Monday Night Raw."
Trish Regan
Emmy-nominated journalist Trish Regan grew up in Hampton. She attended Hampton Academy, Marston School and Sacred Heart School. As an elementary school student, she was a correspondent for the Hampton Union. She graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy. In 1993, she became Miss New Hampshire. She earned the Bernard Wayne Award after competing in the Miss America pageant. The award is giving to the contestant with the most promise in the performing arts. Regan was an opera singer.
She turned down job singing regularly at an opera house in Germany to study finance at Columbia University and went to work for Goldman Sachs. She decided to pursue financial journalism and went on to work for CBS, CNBC and Bloomberg Television before going to Fox in 2015.
In 2018, she became the anchor of “Trish Regan Primetime” on Fox Business News. She parted ways with the network in March 2020. She hosts a podcast “The Trish Regan Show” on the Salem Podcast Network.
Victoria Arlen
ESPN host and gold medal-winning U.S. Paralympian Victoria Arlen was born and raised in Exeter. At age 11, Arlen was diagnosed with two rare conditions; transverse myelitis, inflammation of the spinal cord, and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, swelling of the brain. She soon lost the ability to speak, eat, walk and move. She was in a vegetative state for four year. She recovered, but was paralyzed from the waist down and in a wheelchair. In June 2012, she gave a record-breaking performance at the 2012 Summer Paralympics U.S. swimming trials. Arlen qualified for the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London and won four medals: one gold and three silver. She regained her ability to walk in 2016. She competed on “Dancing With The Stars” in 2017. She was nominated for an ESPY for her Olympic swimming achievement and was later hired by ESPN as its youngest on-air personality. She still works at the network.
In May 2023, she suffered a relapse of the disease that paralyzed her as a teen, according to a people.com article, but quick treatment and physical therapy helped her avoid paralysis and she returned to her work at ESPN in just three weeks.
Juston McKinney
Comedian Juston McKinney grew up in Portsmouth and Kittery, and now lives in Newmarket. He graduated in 1988 from Traip Academy and attended Southern Maine Community College. He became a York County deputy sheriff. In 1997, he headed to New York to start his comedy career. He became a regular doing standup at the city’s comedy clubs, signed development deals for several sitcoms and began acting, appearing in “Here Comes The Boom,” “Zookeeper” and one episode of “The King of Queens” in 2004. He has made numerous appearances on Comedy Central, on "The Tonight Show" with Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien and in a Showtime Special with Rob Gronkowski. He travels the country doing standup. He’s best known on the Seacoast for his Year in Review comedy shows each December at The Music Hall.
Al Barr
New Hampshire native Al Barr, who was born in Hanover, has been the lead singer of the Dropkick Murphys since 1998. Ten years earlier, the Portsmouth High School graduate helped form The Bruisers in Portsmouth. That band had played many shows with the Dropkick Murphys so when their lead singer Mike McColgan quit in 1998, they asked Barr to join the band as lead singer. The first album with Barr singing lead vocals is 1999’s "The Gang’s All Here." In 2022, Barr had to take a leave of absence from the band to take care of his mother who had Lewy body dementia. Ken Casey has taken over full-time vocals while Barr is on hiatus.
Marcy Carsey
Emmy-winning television producer Marcy Carsey graduated from the University of New Hampshire in Durham in 1966 with a degree in English. She began her show business career as an NBC tour guide in 1966. She moved up to working on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. In 1974, she moved to ABC as a comedy programming executive. While there, she developed the sit coms “Happy Days,” “Mork & Mindy,” and “Soap.” She then worked her way up to general program executive for comedy programming at ABC-TV in 1974.
In 1980, Carsey went out on her own to pursue independent production and started Carsey Productions in 1982.
In 1983, she partnered with Tom Werner to form Carsey-Werner Productions. Together they produced “The Cosby Show,” “A Different World,” “Roseane,” “Grace Under Fire,” “Third Rock from the Sun,” “That ‘70s Show,” among others
In 2002, she gave UNH $7.5 million to create the Carsey Institute. In 2013, she gave UNH $20 million to support the creation of the Carsey School for Public Policy.
She was recognized by the N.H. Film Festival in 2023 with the Van McLeod Award.
Information in this story is compiled from Seacoastonline.com archives and publicly available information, as well as Associated Press reports.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Seacoast celebrity watch: Famous entertainers you're likely to meet
