Jesse L. Martin

Jesse L. Martin
Martin at the PaleyFest Fall TV Previews 2014 for The Flash
Born	Jesse Lamont Watkins (1969-01-18) January 18, 1969 (age 48) Rocky Mount, Virginia, U.S.
Residence	Manhattan, New York
Other names	Jesse Lamont Martin
Occupation	Actor, singer
Years active	1993–present

Jesse L. Martin (born Jesse Lamont Watkins; January 18, 1969) is an American actor and singer. He is best known for originating the role of Tom Collins on Broadway in the musical Rent and his television roles as NYPD Detective Ed Green on Law & Order and Detective Joe West on The Flash.

Martin, the third of four sons, was born in Rocky Mount, Virginia. His father, Jesse Reed Watkins (1943-2003), was a truck driver, and his mother, Virginia Price, a college counselor; the two divorced when he was a child. His mother eventually remarried and Martin adopted his stepfather's surname.

When Martin was in grade school, the family relocated to Buffalo, New York, but Martin began to dislike speaking because of his Southern accent and was often overcome with shyness. A concerned educator and mentor influenced him to join an after-school drama program and cast him as the pastor in The Golden Goose. Being from Virginia, the young Martin played the character the only way he knew how: as an inspired Southern Baptist preacher. The act was a hit, and Martin emerged from his shell. Martin attended high school at The Buffalo Academy for Visual and Performing Arts, where he was voted "Most Talented" in his senior class. He later enrolled in New York University's Tisch School of the Arts' Theatre Program and while at NYU he was also the popular President of Rubin Dorm, the former domain of Mark Twain. He also has a niece named Daisia Martin born by his youngest brother David Martin