What happened to Brian Bonsall and where is he now? Wiki Bio
Brian Eric Bonsall was born in Torrance, California USA, on 3 December 1981, so his zodiac sign is Sagittarius and he holds American nationality. He is a former child actor, guitarist and rock musician, possibly still best known for having starred as Andrew ‘Andy’ Keaton in the family comedy series “Family Ties”, which aired from 1982 to 1989, while Brian was appearing in it from 1986 to 1989. It also starred Michael J. Fox, Michael Gross, and Meredith Baxter and followed the married couple Elyse and Steven Keaton and their four children. The series won 22 awards including a Golden Globe, and was nominated for 43 other awards.
Posted by Brian Bonsall on Thursday, March 2, 2017
Brian is no longer acting, but is rather focused on his career as a rock singer and guitarist.
Childhood and education
Brian was raised in Torrance by his father Garth Bonsall, who was a factory worker, and his mother Kathleen who was a lawyer – both were very supporting of Brian’s acting career as they drove him to the sets of his movies and TV series as well as paid for his acting classes.
He attended Boulder High School where he was a member of the school’s drama club, and appeared in most of the plays performed there. He also played a variety of sports such as football and soccer, and learnt to play the guitar. Upon matriculation in 1999, he enrolled at Missouri Military Academy in Mexico, Missouri, but stayed there for only a year before quitting to focus on his acting and singing career.
His parents divorced, and in 1995 at the age of 14 Brian began living with his mother and her new husband.
Career as an actor
Towards the end of his involvement in “Family Ties”, Brian appeared in the special broadcast “Mickey’s 60th Birthday” in 1988, followed by his supporting role as Zack in the comedy drama movie “Go Toward the Light” and his guest starring role as Andrew ‘Andy’ Keaton in the episode “Trading Places” of the sitcom “Day by Day” in the same year.
1989 saw Brian star in the drama movie “Do You Know the Muffin Man?”, which also starred Pam Dawber, John Shea and Stephen Dorff, and which followed a married couple who find out that there has been molestation at the day care which their son is attending; the movie was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards.
In the same year, Brian guest starred in single episodes of several series such as the crime drama “Booker”, the sketch comedy show “On the Television”, and the drama series “The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!”
In 1990, he was invited to play the recurring character Michael in the musical film “Mother Goose Rock ‘n ‘ Rhyme”, before starring in the thriller film “Angel of Death”, with Jane Seymour and Gregory Harrison, and which follows a convict who escapes from prison and who becomes obsessed with a woman and her young son. In the same year, he appeared as Brian in the episode “To Live and Drive in LA” of the sitcom “Married People”.
Brian was cast to appear in three series in 1991, including the western “The Young Riders” and the crime drama “Shades of L.A.”, while he was also cast in the drama movie “False Arrest”, which won an ASC Award for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Mini-Series.
From 1992 to 1994, Brian portrayed the recurring character Alexander Rozhenko in seven episodes of the science fiction series “Star Trek: The Next generation”, and concurrently starred as Mikey Holt in the psychological slasher film “Mikey” in 1992, and as Alex Sullivan in the German-American thriller movie “Desperate Motive” in 1993.
Some of his later roles were in the comedy movie “Blank Check” in which he portrayed the main character Preston Waters, in the comedy film “Father and Scout” in which he starred as Michael, and the drama family film “Lily in Winter” in which he played the lead character Michael Towler all in 1994.
Awards and accolades
In 1988, Brian was awarded the Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Under Ten Years of Age in Television or Motion Pictures for his performance in “Family Ties”, and then in 1989 was awarded the Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Under Nine Years of Age for “Family Ties as well.
In 1990, he was nominated for a Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Starring in a TV Movie, Pilot or Special for his performance in “Do You Know the Muffin Man?”, and then won a Young Artist Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor Under Nine Years of Age for “Family Ties”.
Career as a musician
In 1998 Brian founded the rock band Late Bloomers, with some of his friends from school, then after the band split he joined Thruster, and later The Light on Adam’s Stereo.
In 2016, he was invited to serve as the second guitar for the famous rock band The Ataris and went on tour with them across the US. He is currently playing with the rock band Sunset Silhouette.
Problems with the authorities
In 2001, Brian was convicted of driving while intoxicated, and was arrested again in 2004 after a police officer thought he was driving while intoxicated, but Brian wasn’t convicted. In 2007, he was arrested for assaulting his girlfriend, falsely imprisoning her, but didn’t appear at court on 7 December 2009. He subsequently admitted to the charges of third-degree assault, while other charges were then dropped he was put on two years probation.
He was arrested for using marijuana in February 2010, and was then sentenced to an additional two years of probation in April 2010. In 2016, Brian stated how he had been clean since he was arrested in 2010.
Love life and relationships
Brian met his future wife Courtney Bonsall in early 2014 while he was playing with his band at a pub in Boulder, Colorado, and they started dating the same night. After over four years of being together, they married in a small ceremony attended by only their closest friends and family on 21 October 2017. Courtney gave birth to their son Oliver in August 2019, and the family of three is currently living at their home in Boulder.
A rumor has it that Brian was dating many girls while attending high school, and later when he became popular for his acting career. It is believed that none of these relationships lasted for long, as he was actually looking for a girl with whom he could have a long-term relationship – this changed after he met Courtney as he felt he had finally met ‘the one’.
I got married to my best friend, accomplice and lover. Life is good and now we’re off to Ireland 🇮🇪 Love Love Love pic.twitter.com/r7pHqDo89L
— Brian Bonsall (@mrbrianbonsall) October 23, 2017
Hobbies and other interests
Brian is a fan of tattoos, and on his 18th birthday, he paid for his first tattoo which is a black armband. He is a philanthropist as he has donated many things to actor and comedian Rocky Stone, who passes on the things he receives to less fortunate children. Brian enjoys reading in his spare time, and his favorite writers are Anthony Burgess and Agatha Christie, while some of his favorite books are “A Clockwork Orange” and “Death on the Nile” among others.
He likes to watch movies too, with his favorite being the adventure comedy “The Goonies”, which follows a group of boys who call themselves The Goonies and who, after finding an ancient map, set out to find a legendary lost treasure. He also likes to watch TV series, with his favorite being the comedy series “Seinfeld” which follows the stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld and his friends living in New York City.
Appearance and net worth
Brian is 38 years old. He has short brown hair and blue eyes, is 5ft 9ins (1.75m) tall, and weighs around 150lbs (68kgs). As of May 2020, his net worth is estimated by sources at close to $1 million.