Profile of the Day: Daniel Radcliffe

Happy birthday to Daniel Radcliffe! Today the Harry Potter star turns 30.

Image: Daniel Radcliffe / Gage Skidmore, (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Radcliffe was born on July 23, 1989 in London England to Alan George Radcliffe, a literary agent, and Marcia Jeannine Jacobson, a casting agent. Before he landed the role of a lifetime as Harry Potter, Radcliffe made his acting debut at the age of 10 in the BBC’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’ novel David Copperfield. His performance caught the eye of director Chris Columbus, who was looking for a young unknown actor to take on the role of Harry Potter in the big screen adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s beloved book series. He would star in all 8 films in the series, which would become one of the most successful movie franchises in history.

Recently, Radcliffe appeared on BBC One’s latest season of Who Do You Think You Are? where he learned about the tragic death of his great grandfather, Samuel Gershon. Gershon and his brother owned a jewelry shop that was burglarized in 1936. However, the police refused to pursue an investigation, suspecting the heist was staged to claim an insurance payment. Left destitute, Gershon took his own life at the age of 42, five months after the robbery. Did you catch the emotionally moving episode?

Explore Daniel Radcliffe’s family tree on Geni and discover how you’re connected to the Harry Potter star!