Who is Willie Garson?

Celebrity Q&A
on August 29, 2012
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What can you tell me about the actor who plays Mozzie on “White Collar”?
—Myrle Brown, Mesa, Ariz.

That would be Willie Garson, 48, who is also well known as Carrie’s best friend Stanford Blatch on “Sex and the City” and Henry Coffield on “NYPD Blue.”

Born in Highland Park, N.J., Garson took acting classes at The Actors Institute in New York when he was only 13. Even though he seemed to know what he wanted to do with his life at a young age, he had a backup plan and majored in both theater and psychology at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn. After graduation, he decided to pursue a career in acting instead of psych. Since then, he has acquired more than 250 TV credits, including roles on “Cheers,” “Family Ties,” “Thirtysomething,” “L.A. Law,” “Just Shoot Me,” “Spin City,” “Ally McBeal,” “The Practice,” “Stargate SG-1,” “Star Trek: Voyager,” “The X-Files,” “Medium” and “Pushing Daisies.”

His film credits include both “Sex and the City” movies, as well as “Kingpin,” “There’s Something About Mary,” “Fever Pitch,” “Soapdish,” “Mars Attacks” and “Being John Malkovich.”

In addition to acting, Garson has found success as a celebrity poker player. In 2003, he won the very first episode of Texas Hold ‘Em on Bravo’s “Celebrity Poker Showdown.” He continues to play in tournaments worldwide.

The single dad says that of all the characters he has played, “Mozzie is the closest to myself—other than the international con-man part—although that might be a con in and of itself, me saying that. Mozzie has a lot of my sense of humor, some of my worldviews, and he basically talks a lot in my speech patterns.”

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