Simon Baker: Summary

Recent Role:: Patrick Jane on The Mentalist

Gender:: Male

Birthday:: 0-0-0

Birthplace:: Launceston, Tasmania, Australia

Birth Name:: Simon Baker-Denny

AKA:: Denny Baker, Simon Baker-Denny, Simon Baker-Denny, Simon Denny

Simon Baker was born to Catholic parents, high school English teacher Elizabeth Labberton and groundskeeper/mechanic Barry Baker, on July 30, 1969, in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia. His parents divorced while he was still young and his mother later remarried butcher Tom Denny. Simon also has a sister, currently a doctor in Australia, and three younger half siblings. By 1972, they had moved from Launceston, Tasmania to New Guinea, hoping to secure better paying jobs. In 1986, he graduated from Ballina High School.

Growing up, Simon took to surfing and water polo. He began surfing at age 8 and later became a state champion. He also dabbled with nursing when he was 17. He has also worked in a pub and as a bricklayer.

He entered the entertainment world, in 1991, with his appearance in a couple of music videos, including Melissa Tkautz's "Read My Lips" and Euphoria's "Love You Right." He then moved onto television series, working in E Street, Home and Away, and Heartbreak High. He has continued to work in various television series as of late, playing leads in The Guardian, Smith, and, in the upcoming Fall 2008 series, The Mentalist. He has held supporting and lead roles in the big screen as well, nabbing roles in L.A. Confidential (1997), Red Planet, The Affair of the Necklace (2001), Land of the Dead, Book of Love (2004), The Devil Wears Prada, Sex and Death 101, and Something New. Baker has also earned various accolades from various magazines for his looks and acting.

On a personal note, he has been married to Rebecca Rigg since 1998, a woman he met and began dating in 1991. They have three children, named Stella, Claude, and Harry. Since their move to the United States, they have spent time in Malibu, California, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and back again to Los Angeles. Simon Baker was born to Catholic parents, high school English teacher Elizabeth Labberton and groundskeeper/mechanic Barry Baker, on July 30, 1969, in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia. His parents divorced while he was still young and his mother later remarried butcher Tom Denny. Simon also has a sister, currently a doctor in Australia, and three younger half siblings. By 1972, they had...

Welcome to the TV.com Blog for Simon+Baker by SYS 06/16/2008 10:23am

Blog Spotlight: Crime & Punishment: The Mentalist
TV Verdict's Karen Miller ponders why The Mentalist works as a drama
- 01/22/09 12:52 PM
- 3 comments
TV.com Top 100 Everything of 2008: 11-20
New year, new batch of our top 100. We've only got 20 spots left to cover, and we're revealing half of those inside, which includes some great time jumps, our favorite convention, and an older gentleman in his underwear.
- 01/01/09 4:28 PM
- 42 comments
CBS' The Mentalist gets full-season pickup
I'll spare you the bad puns about The Mentalist "seeing" or "detecting" or whatever-ing a full-season pickup. Here it is in plain English: CBS has ordered a full season of The Mentalist. This marks the third new program this year to be spared its life.
- 10/15/08 5:45 PM
- 9 comments
Mentalist seeing signs of full-season pickup
CBS notices the little things… like Nielsen ratings that scream out "sure-fire hit." The network has asked for six more scripts of its shiny new series The Mentalist, a move that usually preempts a full-season pickup.
- 10/06/08 2:46 PM
- 34 comments
Cast updates: Kathie Lee back to daytime
Hostess returning joining Today next week; Deadwood's Swearengen in Kings.
- 03/31/08 3:52 PM
- 12 comments

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smartieplum
member since: Aug 8, 2009
Simon Baker is the perfect ten. A smashing actor, great looking and totally believable in all his roles. Glad to see that he is finally getting the success his talent deserves in The Mentalist. ...Continue »
I have watched him in a few films; devestatingly charming and funny in Something New, funny and sexy in Sex and Death 101 and also in Ride with the Devil, Sunset Strip and Affair of the Necklace. He was also terrific in The Guardian (shown in the early 2000s on TV). But he really is tailor made to play Patrick Jane in The Mentalist. You just cannot imagine anyone else playing this role. A show with a great ensemble cast, but is really is Simon Baker's show. There is something of the "old Hollywood" about him. Definitely one to watch.
11/02/09 02:24pm | report abuse
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casandra34
member since: Feb 20, 2009
Simon ...Continue »
Simon Baker is such an amazing good actor!
One of the main reasons why I got into the mentalist is because of Simon.
I absolutly love how he plays the charming, cute & a litlle arrogant Patrick Jane!
He plays a very convincing part as Patrick Jane!There's nobody who can do it better.

I absolutly love his storyline, It's so sad how he lost his wife & daughter. He really cares about them. I hope he finds who killed them.
I love his witty comments on people and his humor. & the tension between him and Lisbon

So as long as he's on the show I'll never stop watching! xD
10/16/09 04:55am | report abuse
10
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amk358
member since: Aug 18, 2009
Simon Baker is The Mentalist a witty, at times a little arrogant man who can read people like must of us read a book. ...Continue »
I have liked Simon Baker for a long time, I loved The Guardian in which he portrayed a deeply flawed but sensitive corporate lawyer. In the Mentalist we get to see his charismatic smile which is simply wonderful. He is an excellent actor and is very convincing as Patrick Jane who uses his skills of applied psychology, perception and hypnosis to help solve crime. He is a multi-faceted character who harbours a deep sense of self-loating beneath his cheerful demeanor. Simon has also appeared in an arrar of films, but nothing as yet that truly shows off his acting talent. He is also a devoted husband and father and despite his sex symbol status is modest and down-to-Earth. A truly lovely man, worthy of praise.
08/18/09 06:27am | report abuse
9.5
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Nano49
member since: Dec 15, 2006
Simon Baker -- Wow! ...Continue »
The first time I remember seeing Simon Baker was in La Confidential and I fell in love right at that moment. He pulled off his role as an aspiring actor who just happens to be homosexual, with flair. In his present role as Patrick Jane, the Mentalist, his sense of fun spiced with a "Mr. Know-it-all" attitude makes this TV drama sure to be around for awhile, at least I hope it will.

Mr. Baker's steely blue eyes and curly, blond hair make him especially attractive and when he turns on that Aussie accent -- oh my -- it's no wonder he's TV Guide's sexiest man!
03/17/09 03:13pm | report abuse
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sandbur
member since: Apr 28, 2008
If the eyes are truly the mirror to the soul then this actor IS soul! ...Continue »
Besides "The Mentalist", I have only ever seen Simon Baker in a movie called "Something New", but he certainly is/has a powerful draw.
The Mentalist initially interested me in the strength of his character and performance alone. Since then the other aspects of the cast and story have begun to develop nicely, but I doubt without Simon's presence I would have been around to see it.
He has an uncanny way of making this viewer at least, feel as though I'm an actual part of the proceedings and so the commercials often come as a surprise. And thats what good performance is all about!
I don't know what the future holds for his show next season, but his success in a performance career is a given, and many of us will be watching. Those eyes of his will accept nothing less...
10/30/08 08:53pm | report abuse