Biography
Actor Neil Flynn first discovered his comic talents on the Chicago improv circuit before landing recurring roles as the vengeful Janitor on "Scrubs" ( NBC , 2001-10) and dependable father Mike Heck on "The Middle" (ABC, 2009-). Born in Chicago, IL in 1960, Bradley University graduate Flynn initially pursued a career as a dramatic actor, winning a Joseph Jefferson Award for his performance in a production of "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe" at his hometown's Absolute Theatre Company. But after spending several years trying and failing to break through to Hollywood, a spontaneous visit to Chicago's ImprovOlympic inspired him to change direction. Flynn subsequently became a regular at the venue and at the Second City, later forming his own award-winning improv ensemble, Beer Shark Mice, with Pat Finn and David Koechner. Flynn made his small screen debut in a 1987 episode of anthology series "CBS Summer Playhouse" ( CBS , 1987-89) and quickly made the leap to the big screen with minor roles in sports comedies "Major League" (1989) and "Rookie of the Year" (1993). Flynn then played police figures in Harrison Ford thriller "The Fugitive" (1993), family comedies "Baby's Day Out" (1993) and "Home Alone 3" (1997) and action drama "Chain Reaction" (1996), as well as in one-off appearances in "Seinfeld" (NBC, 1989-1998) and sci-fi fantasy "Sliders" (Fox, 1995-2000). Following a blink and you'll miss it cameo in Paul Thomas Anderson's acclaimed mosaic drama "Magnolia" (1999), Flynn played Max in noirish thriller "The Right Temptation" (2000) and added "Family Law" (CBS, 1999-2002), "The District" (CBS, 2000-04) and "Norm" (ABC, 1999-2001) to his list of guest spots. But his big break arrived in 2001 when he joined the cast of medical sitcom "Scrubs" (NBC, 2001-10) as the unnamed Janitor, a pathological liar who makes it his mission to torment and harass Zach Braff's lead character, J.D. During his nine season stint on the show, Flynn also appeared in two episodes of Superman origins drama "Smallville" (The WB, 2001-2011) and "Friends" (NBC, 1994-2004) spin-off "Joey" (NBC, 2004-06), played father figures in teen comedy "Mean Girls " (2004), family adventure "Hoot" (2006) and political satire "Wild Girls Gone" (2007). Following roles as Dr. Callahan in coming of age film "5-25-77" (2007) and Simon Baker's best friend Zack in darkly comic sci-fi "Sex & Death 101" (2007), Flynn appeared as suspicious FBI agent Smith in "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" (2008). A year later, he landed his second major recurring gig when he was cast as Mike Heck, the deadpan but devoted head of the household, in under-rated family sitcom "The Middle" (NBC, 2009-). Following guest spots on "Newsreaders" (Adult Swim, 2013-), "Surviving Jack" (Fox, 2014) and "Undateable" (NBC , 2014-), Flynn joined up with cast mates Charlie McDermott and Eden Sher in the freshman comedy "ImagiGARY" (2015) and played Samson in the monster mockumentary "Nigel and Oscar vs. The Sasquatch" (2015).
