» Born in Port Arthur, Texas. (King declined to give his age, saying: “How old do I seem? It’s a professional decision, not vanity.”)
» n As a boy, went to bed with the radio, and mimicked the voices he heard at his after-school job selling shoes at the local J.C. Penney.
» Attended the University of Texas on scholarship.
» In 1964 performed his first professional role at the Alley Theater in Houston — Fedotik in Chekhov’s “The Three Sisters.”
» Received a B.S. in speech from Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas.
» Came to D.C. in 1980 to perform two small roles in Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew” for the Folger Theatre Group.
» Received his first Helen Hayes Award in 1989. He has won more Helen Hayes Awards (four) and nominations (15) than any other male actor.
» Has performed in 32 of Shakespeare’s 37 plays.
» Said his favorite recent role was playing Hector, a teacher who is a pedophile, in “The History Boys” last spring at Studio Theatre. “Shakespeare is about exceptional people. Though his life was ordinary, Hector wasn’t an ordinary person. And the character went through so much.”
