Thomas Haden Church

Thomas Haden Church
Church at the 2009 premiere of Don McKay
Born	Thomas Richard McMillen (1960-06-17) June 17, 1960 (age 56) Woodland, California, USA
Occupation	Actor, director, writer
Years active	1989–present
Spouse(s)	Mia Zottoli
Children	1

Thomas Haden Church (born Thomas Richard McMillen; June 17, 1960) is an American actor, director, and writer. After co-starring in the 1990s sitcom Wings, Church became known for his film roles, including his Academy Award-nominated performance in Sideways and his role as the Sandman in Spider-Man 3. He also made his directorial debut with Rolling Kansas.

Church was born in Woodland, California, the son of Maxine (née Sanders) and Carlos "Carl" Richard McMillen, who served for eight years in the Marines and saw action in the Korean War; after 1962, Carlos worked as a surveyor for Yolo County, California. Church's parents divorced and his mother moved to Texas. She remarried in 1969, to widower George A. Quesada, a veteran of an Army Air Forces reconnaissance unit which served in Guam in World War II. Church took his stepfather's surname for a time. He was raised in Texas: first in Laredo, then in Harlingen. He left high school in 1977 to work in the oil fields of Louisiana, but he returned to graduate from Harlingen High School in 1979. He attended the University of North Texas while living in Dallas.

Church started in the entertainment business as a radio personality and doing voice-over work. He changed his name to "Thomas Haden Church", taking "Haden" and "Church" from his ancestry. A part in an independent film convinced him to move to California to pursue an acting career. He played the part of slow-witted aircraft mechanic Lowell Mather for six seasons (1990–1995) on the NBC sitcom Wings.