Paris Themmen
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Paris Themmen (born June 25, 1959) is an American actor who started his career as a child actor. He is best known for his role as Mike Teevee in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. After leaving acting, he worked in business as a real estate broker and casting director.
Early life
Themmen was born on June 25, 1959, in Boston, Massachusetts, to Ivana Marburger Themmen and Harold B. Themmen, both classical musicians.<ref>Fanfare Magazine, Volume 6, Issues 3-4, 1983 page 276</ref> Themmen's mother was a composer for orchestras in the late 20th century.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>American Woman Composers News, Volume 1, Issues 2-3</ref> A guitar concerto of hers was in final contention for the 1982 Kennedy Center Friedheim Award.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Themmen's father, a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music, was a clarinetist and librarian for the American Ballet Theatre, and also played for the Boston Pops Orchestra.<ref>Teck, Catherine. Music for the Dance: Reflections on a Collaborative Art. Greenwood Press, 1989, page 108</ref>
Career
Child actor
Themmen appeared in radio and TV commercials, voice-overs and theater performing on Broadway in Mame with Ann Miller in 1967 and in The Rothschilds in 1970. In 1971, aged 11, he got his breakthrough role in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory as Mike Teevee.
Business careers
Declaring a hiatus from acting at age 14 to "just be a kid," Themmen went on to receive a B.F.A. in theatre from New York University. He founded Access International, a travel service that arranged Europe-bound charter flights for backpackers.
Following brief stints in real estate, film production, commercial casting, business representation at Walt Disney Imagineering, and a few other ventures, he now signs autographs at movie conventions, runs a photography business, and makes sporadic appearances in commercials, plays and TV shows.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Film appearance
Themmen's adult acting appearances include "Virtuoso", a 2000, sixth-season episode of the TV series Star Trek: Voyager,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> as a fawning fan. He was billed as a "former child star" in two 2008 episodes of the American game show Duel.<ref>Duel April 18, 2008</ref><ref>Duel, July 4, 2008, broadcast</ref>
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On May 4, 2011, Themmen appeared on the British television morning show Daybreak, alongside the other child actors from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory: Peter Ostrum (Charlie Bucket), Julie Dawn Cole (Veruca Salt), Denise Nickerson (Violet Beauregarde) and Michael Böllner (Augustus Gloop). They made an additional 40th Anniversary reunion appearance on NBC's Today Show eleven days later.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite AV mediaTemplate:Cbignore</ref> He reunited with the partial Wonka cast again on the program in 2015.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
On January 23, 2015, Themmen appeared on Ken Reid's TV Guidance Counselor Podcast. The episode was recorded live in Wilmington, Massachusetts during North East ComicCon.<ref>Template:Cite podcast</ref>
Themmen was a Jeopardy! contestant on March 13, 2018, finishing in second place.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His wife, Nikki Grillos, previously appeared on the program in 2015, returning twice as a champion before being defeated on her third appearance.<ref name="Nikki Grillos"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Personal life
Themmen has been married to Nikki Grillos since 2014.<ref name="Nikki Grillos"/> Together, the couple currently reside in Los Angeles, California.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Themmen's sister Allegra Themmen-Pigott (1967–2019) was a coloratura soprano opera singer and music therapist.<ref>Themmen-Pigott, Allegra. Life in the Key of Allegra: A Personal and Professional Journey with the Healing Powers of Music. 2019</ref> His sister Tania Themmen is married to voice actress and voice director Susan Blu.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory | Mike Teevee |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | The Rock 'n' Fun Magic Show | Himself | |
| 1994 | Macross Plus | Additional Voices | TV mini-series |
| 1999 | Screenplay | Mail Room Clerk | TV movie |
| 2000 | Star Trek: Voyager | Fawning Fan | Episode: Virtuoso |
| 2003 | After They Were Famous | Himself | Documentary |
| 2011 | Daybreak | 1 episode | |
| Pure Imagination: The Story of 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory | Documentary | ||
| Top Chef: Just Desserts | Episode: Pure Imagination<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | ||
| 2011; 2015 | Today | 2 episodes | |
| 2012 | Beyond the Marquee | Episode: Meet the Wonka Kids<ref>Template:Cite video</ref> | |
| Men with No Lives | Episode: Who Is Hugh Jardon? Stan Lee's Comikaze Special | ||
| 2016 | Cake Wars | 1 episode<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| LeagueOne: In the Spotlight! | Episode: Child Star Remembers Gene Wilder! | ||
| 2018 | Jeopardy! | 1 episode<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| 2021 | To Tell the Truth | 1 episode<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
Film work
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Until the End of the World | Production Assistant | Uncredited |
| 2005 | Citizen Candy Man: A Chocumentary | Special Thanks | |
| 2011 | Something Borrowed | Production Assistant | |
| 2012 | The Owner | First Assistant Director |
Theatre
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Mame | Performer | |
| 1970–1971 | The Rothschilds | Young Jacob Rothschild | Broadway |