Tahj Mowry
Tahj Dayton Mowry (/tɑːʒ ˈmɔːri/; born May 17, 1986) is an American actor and singer. He is the younger brother of identical twins Tia Mowry and Tamera Mowry and is known for his role on the show Smart Guy as the main character TJ on The WB, though the show gained later recognition on Disney Channel. Mowry was later cast as the voice of ten-year-old super genius Wade Load on Kim Possible as a nod to this role. He is also known for his role on Full House playing Michelle's best friend Teddy. Mowry also played Tucker Dobbs on Freeform's comedy show Baby Daddy.
Tahj Mowry | |
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Mowry in 2014 | |
Born | Tahj Dayton Mowry May 17, 1986 Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. |
Alma mater | Pepperdine University |
Occupation |
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Years active | 1990–present |
Relatives | Tia and Tamera Mowry (sisters) |
Early life
Tahj Dayton Mowry was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on May 17, 1986. His mother, Darlene Renée Flowers, managed her children's careers. His father, Timothy John Mowry, was in the U.S. Army and later became a custody officer/jailer with the City of Glendale Police Department when the family moved to California.[1][2]
His father has English and Irish ancestry, and his mother is of Afro-Bahamian descent.[3] His parents met in high school in Miami, Florida. Both joined the U.S. Army, and both eventually reached the rank of Sergeant.[4] His older twin sisters are Tia and Tamera Mowry and he also has a brother named Tavior. He played varsity football at Westlake High School in Thousand Oaks, California, and one season of football at Savannah State University and the University of Wyoming. He attended Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, where his sisters Tia and Tamera both graduated.
Career
Mowry starred and is perhaps best known as T.J. Henderson, a child prodigy, on the sitcom Smart Guy. He played Teddy on the sitcom Full House. He also appeared in Disney Channel movies such as Hounded and The Poof Point. He had a guest role on the Disney Channel Original Series, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and in a Star Trek: Voyager episode entitled "Innocence". Mowry appeared in the movie Are We Done Yet? as Danny Pulu and in Seventeen Again as Willie Donovan.[5] Mowry also had an appearance in one episode in the fourth season of Desperate Housewives. He also made a guest appearance on an episode of The Game as Melanie Barnett's brother (he's also the real brother of Melanie's portrayer Tia Mowry). Mowry performed the voice of Wade in the Disney Channel animated series Kim Possible.
Mowry sang "Shine Your Light On Me" for School's Out! Christmas, Circle of Life for the Disney Channel Circle of Stars recording of The Lion King which was included on the Platinum Edition DVD and was featured on a single called "Kick It Out" with Boom Boom Satellites and Flo Rida. He also appeared in an episode of Friends when Phoebe sings for kindergarten kids.
He also starred as Tucker Dobbs in the ABC Family sitcom Baby Daddy. The half-hour sitcom premiered on June 20, 2012. Mowry released his debut single called "Flirt" produced by Excel Beats in April 2015.[6] He released a six-song EP entitled, Future Funk, on August 4, 2015. The EP included "Bossy", "Dancing Alone" and "End of the Road" as stand out tracks.[7]
Mowry appeared on the daytime talk show The Real with his sister and co-host Tamera Mowry and also as a guest co-host for three episodes.
Personal life
Mowry dated actress Naya Rivera between 2000 and 2004, after working together on Smart Guy in the 1990s. Rivera remained close with Tahj and his sisters, Tia and Tamera, until her death, including helping the sisters find an apartment when they got kicked out of their house.[8]
On July 12, 2020, in an Instagram post, Mowry professed his love for Rivera, in a tribute posted while search operations were underway for her after she went missing while swimming on July 8 at Lake Piru in Southern California. Mowry wrote: "You were my first experience with everything; love, intimacy, heartbreak. No woman has ever measured up what you gave me or how you made me feel". He also said he never stopped loving her and "wished for the day where God would bring us back together to be what we dreamt we could have been".[9] Rivera was subsequently found the day after and pronounced dead.
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1991 | Rappin' N' Rhymin' | Himself | |
1994 | Disney Sing Along Songs : Let's Go to the Circus | Himself | |
1999 | We Wish You a Merry Christmas | Ollie | |
2000 | Seventeen Again | Willie Donovan | |
2001 | Hounded | Jay Martin | |
2001 | The Poof Point | Eddie Ballard | |
2003 | Kim Possible: A Sitch in Time | Wade Load | Voice |
2005 | Kim Possible: So the Drama | ||
2007 | Are We Done Yet? | Danny Pulu |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1990 | Who's the Boss? | Greg | Episode: "Who's Minding the Kid?" |
1991–1995 | Full House | Teddy | 14 episodes |
1992–1993 | Out All Night | Shavon | 5 episodes |
1993 | Where I Live | Jimmy | Episode: "The Terminator" |
1995–1998 | Sister, Sister | Cousin Tahj Sammy T.J |
4 episodes |
1994 | Sonic the Hedgehog | Young Sonic (voice) | 2-part episode: "Blast to the Past" |
1994–1995 | Aladdin | King Mamoud Tanti |
3 episodes |
1995 | What-a-Mess | Additional Voices | Season 3 |
1996 | Star Trek: Voyager | Corin | Episode: "Innocence" |
1996 | Minor Adjustments | Kenny | Episode: "A Christmas Story" |
1996 | Friends | Kid | Episode: "The One After the Superbowl (Part one)" |
1997–1999 | Smart Guy | T.J. Henderson | Main Role |
2001–2005 | Express Yourself | Himself | Interstitial series |
2002–2007 | Kim Possible | Wade Load (voice) | Main role; 86 episodes |
2006 | The Suite Life of Zack & Cody | Brandon | Episode: "Scary Movie" |
2007 | Desperate Housewives | Matt | Episode: "Smiles of a Summer Night" |
2012–2017 | Baby Daddy | Tucker Dobbs | Main role; 100 episodes |
2015 | The Real | Himself | Guest Co-Host |
Awards
Awards | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Result | Award | Category | Nominated Work |
1992 | Nominated | Young Artist Awards | Exceptional Performance by a Young Actor Under 10 | Full House |
1998 | Nominated | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a TV Comedy Series: Leading Young Performer | Smart Guy |
Nominated | YoungStar Awards | Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Comedy TV Series | ||
1999 | Nominated | Image Awards | Outstanding Youth Actor/Actress | |
2000 | Nominated | Image Awards | Outstanding Youth Actor/Actress | |
2001 | Nominated | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a TV Movie (Comedy): Supporting Young Actor | Seventeen Again |
2013 | Nominated | Teen Choice Awards | Scene Stealer: Male | Baby Daddy |
2014 | Nominated | Teen Choice Awards | Scene Stealer: Male |
References
- "Tahj Mowry Biography (1987-)". Advameg, Inc. Retrieved 4 May 2014.
- "Tia and Tamera Interview". Archived from the original on October 19, 2009. Retrieved 4 May 2014.
- During an appearance on The Wendy Williams Show in 2010, it was stated that for years that the Mowrys believed they had Italian ancestry on their father's side. However, after researching their family tree on Ancestry.com, they discovered that their father has English ancestry.
- Double Devotion – Today's Christian. Web.archive.org (January 9, 2008). Retrieved on 2011-07-05.
- "Tahj Mowry". IMDb.
- Monaé, Ashley (April 29, 2015). "Tahj Mowry Wants To 'Flirt' With You (Video)". Vibe.
- Shine on Media (July 2, 2015). "Tahj Mowry Talks New Music, "Babby Daddy" & "Fuller House"". Youtube.
- Alexander, Bryan. "'Rest sweet Naya': Ricky Martin, 'Glee's Lea Michele, more stars react to Naya Rivera's tragic death". USA Today. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
- Gariano, Francesca (July 11, 2020). "Tahj Mowry says Naya Rivera was his 1st love in heartbreaking tribute". Today. Retrieved July 12, 2020.
External links
- Tahj Mowry at IMDb
- TahjDMowry at YouTube
- the TahjMowry blog at Tumblr