Taylor Kinney made headlines with his engagement to Lady Gaga, but you’ll never guess which
TV mom won his heart first.
Want to know more about this "Chicago Fire" fan favorite?
Stay tuned, we’re unraveling the mystery behind the man.
Taylor Kinney was born and raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and he maintains strong ties
there to this day.
He owns a stake in a small theater downtown called Zoetropolis, which screens a wide variety
of movies, hosts comedy shows, and schedules small concerts with local musicians.
In addition to a slate of current independent and foreign films, they also run different
film programs featuring movies from the past.
The Philosophy-Drink Film Series showcases more recent classics like "The Dark Knight"
and "Memento" and, according to their website, "combines thought-provoking films, spirited
conversation, and expertly crafted cocktails."
Those cocktails and spirits are provided by Lancaster Distilleries, which makes its own
craft gin, vodka, rum, and bourbon.
The distillery is part of the theater; they share the same building and ownership team.
Kinney isn't just a silent investor, though.
During the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown, local publication Lancaster Online spotted
him lending a hand with takeout orders and delivery.
The venue depended on food takeout and delivery to help it through the pandemic, and now thankfully
is fully open for business.
Being an investor for a restaurant isn't Taylor Kinney's only connection to the food world
— he loves to grill at home, and he even ropes his brothers into grilling competitions.
Kinney explained to Jimmy Fallon on "The Tonight Show" that he grew up on fish sticks and meatloaf.
During high school, he started working as a carpenter and roofer.
He was hungry when he got home, so he taught himself to grill.
Once he got the hang of grilling, he started experimenting with making his own marinades.
"It was like, 'Hey mom, like, you actually can make chicken that doesn't, you know, crack
and dry.'
This is delicious, it's kinda good."
As he got more and more creative with his recipes, he got his brothers, Adam and Trent,
into it, too.
The family started keeping track of their favorites, writing them down and then turning
them into fun, friendly competitions.
These days, when his family gets together, they always fire up a grill.
Kinney told Architectural Digest,
"We lived in separate parts of the country for quite a long time, so when we were all
home for birthdays or holidays, the one thing you could count on us doing was lighting up
the grill."
Taylor Kinney's date to the 2016 People's
Choice Awards was special: It was his mom, Pamela Heisler.
Kinney was engaged to Lady Gaga at the time, but she wasn't able to attend the ceremony
for scheduling reasons.
He was nominated for Favorite Dramatic TV Actor for his work as Lieutenant Kelly Severide
on "Chicago Fire," and he won.
In a heartfelt acceptance speech, he thanked his mom, saying,
"[My] mom's here tonight, so thanks for coming out, Mom.
Love you!"
He also thanked the cast and crew of "Chicago Fire," saying,
"I was lucky enough to be part of an amazing cast, an amazing crew, who have since become
family to me."
Kinney is clearly a family man — whether it's his biological family or his work family.
He explained Gaga's absence during his speech, then added,
"I love you babe.
Thank you for having my back and supporting me."
Sadly, the couple called off their engagement months later.
Taylor Kinney played the role of Navy SEAL Jared in the Oscar-winning drama "Zero Dark
Thirty," which told the story of the years-long search for Osama bin Laden.
The film shot for months in Jordan and India, and Kinney used his time off to travel around
the Middle East.
In an interview with People magazine, he explained that he was thrilled to have the chance to
see that part of the world, because it was an opportunity he never thought he'd have.
He said,
"Being there, I felt the need to take advantage of it, so I'm really glad I did."
He also went to Egypt to tour the famous pyramids, and visited Tel Aviv, Bethlehem, Jerusalem,
and the Red Sea.
Taylor Kinney took his older brother to the Super Bowl in 2018 to watch the Philadelphia
Eagles play the New England Patriots.
As a Pennsylvania native, Kinney is a lifelong Eagles fan.
He grew up watching games with his family and was incredibly excited for the chance
to watch his hometown team in the Super Bowl.
"I still remember as a kid laying on the, you know, laying on the floor with a pillow
watching football games."
Luckily for Kinney, the game went the way he wanted: The Philadelphia Eagles beat the
New England Patriots 41-33.
After cheering for the Eagles his whole life, he was thrilled and in shock, and he described
the experience of being at the game as, quote, "a little bit of an out-of-body experience."
Taylor Kinney's love of sports doesn't stop with football.
He also grew up a fan of Formula 1, and he still attends races.
In 2021, he even got to meet Ferrari team member Gino Rosato.
He was so excited he took to Instagram to document the moment.
Sharing a photo of them together, he wrote in the caption,
"Being a kid watching #formula1, then growing up to be the same kid watching the damn thing!
Lots of love!"
In a 2019 "Joyride with Jeff" segment for Fox Sports at the Chicagoland NASCAR race,
Kinney got to ride along in a Toyota race car with decorated NASCAR driver Jeff Burton.
Burton and Kinney went around one lap while cameras rolled inside the car.
As Burton drove, Kinney laughed and was at a loss for words until they finished the lap.
"Did you ever think it would feel and sound like that?"
"No, it's way faster than my mom's station wagon."
Taylor Kinney is clearly a big sports fan, so it's not surprising that he's an accomplished
athlete himself.
In high school, he played volleyball, and he was such a good player he won Section Two
Volleyball Player of the Year, per TV Guide.
Later, as a college student, he started boxing.
His grandfather was a big fan of the sport and would watch matches with Kinney.
Those matches inspired Kinney to try boxing himself, and he was immediately struck by
how difficult the sport is, telling Assignment X,
"When I started boxing, I started out doing three-minute rounds and by the end of that
third round, you could barely put your hands up."
Kinney's background in sports influenced his training and preparation for "Chicago Fire."
He and the cast participated in ride-alongs with first responders and trained at the firefighter
academy with fire simulations.
He watched firefighter training, and he felt confident giving it a go himself.
However, it wasn't until he put on the 65-pound gear that he understood just how difficult
it was.
Taylor Kinney attended West Virginia University
for two years before dropping out as a junior.
That's when he moved to Hawaii and learned to surf, according to USA Today.
While he only lived in Hawaii for a year before moving to Los Angeles to pursue acting, the
time he spent there ignited a lifelong love of surfing.
Even though he lives in Chicago, Kinney still makes time to get to California and to surf
in San Diego.
In fact, he enjoys surfing so much that, for a time, he owned a house in San Diego.
But in an eerie incident, the bungalow caught fire.
Kinney told the scary story in an interview with "The Jam TV Show."
Apparently a man walking past his house noticed the blaze and knocked on the window, telling
the actor that it was on fire.
"And sure enough the whole top of, the roof, it was… it was ridiculous."
Luckily, no one was hurt.
On "The Kelly Clarkson Show," Taylor Kinney told host Kelly Clarkson a story about how
playing a firefighter on TV got him out of a ticket.
A long-time motorcycle rider, Kinney was riding his motorcycle one day in terrible weather,
and he found himself totally stuck in Chicago gridlocked traffic.
He cut over and started riding in the bus lane to pass the traffic jam.
A police officer saw Kinney on his motorcycle, turned his lights on, and pulled him over.
When Kinney took his helmet off, the officer immediately recognized him from his work on
"Chicago Fire."
The officer called him a "fake firefighter."
The officer and Kinney laughed, and after talking for a bit, the officer let him go.
"He just said, get home safe, don't do that again, and, uh, I like the show."
Not too bad for a fake firefighter!
Taylor Kinney returned to Season 10 of the series, which began filming in 2021 after
a prolonged break due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Per Deadline, Kinney and co-star Jesse Spencer signed two-year contract extensions in 2019.
The current status of Kinney's contract appears to be unknown, although he, of course, has
continued working on the show.
Notably, Spencer left the series in the middle of Season 10, after the 200th episode, saying,
"It was a difficult decision because I've loved the show from the start."
Spencer had been working on network television for 18 years straight with his run on "House"
immediately preceding his work on "Chicago Fire."
By all accounts, Kinney enjoys playing Lieutenant Kelly Severide.
In 2021, he shared via Hollywood Outbreak,
"I don't feel like there's a lack of stories to tell with this character [...] he's a resilient
guy."
Fans of the show will just have to wait and see what happens!
After his public relationship and breakup with Lady Gaga, Taylor Kinney has kept the
details of his dating life out of the public eye.
But in an interview for TV Guide with his "Chicago Fire” co-stars, he confessed to
his first celebrity crush: Peggy Bundy!
Peggy Bundy was the fictional wife of Al Bundy on the popular sitcom "Married... With Children,"
which ran from 1987 to 1997.
Played by Katey Sagal, the mom from the show is a bit unconventional for a celebrity crush,
given the character's bad habits of being lazy and spending too much money.
But Kinney stood by his charmingly odd choice.
"I never understood why Al didn't want to sleep with her!"
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