Island Life

JR: What inspired you to pursue a career in acting and how did your early experiences shape your journey?

JM: I knew I was going to wind up doing something artistic, it was just a matter of how to get started. I wrote, directed, and acted in my own movies in high school and wound up getting into the Carnegie Mellon School of Drama to study theater. Once that happened, I focused on that.

JR: : What role has been the most pivotal of your career and why?

JM: Alcide Herveaux on True Blood. It was the hottest show of its time and was a launching pad for me back into film. The industry watched it and because of that I was considered for all sorts of big film roles during its run. It also introduced me to a loyal fan base that have stuck with me over the years. It was my “big break,” my “pocket aces hand.”

JR: You are in the second season of DEAL OR NO ISLAND? Did you ever think you would be hosting a game show?

I always thought that if you were an actor, then you really weren’t supposed to be a host. I considered them different lanes and career paths and they shouldn’t intersect. But then again, when I got to LA in the year 2000, I was instructed to pick a lane in terms of TV or Film and be very clear to everyone I met about what one I was going to pursue. But things change. Actors also weren’t supposed to do commercials in the US but the perception of that changed too. Everything changed and im glad it did because I love hosting DONDI and I hope I get to do it forever. It’s a perfect job for me and is the vin diagram intersection of about six different and separate skills all of which, I do well. It wasn’t on my “career bingo card,” when I got started in the business but I’m so glad it is now because I find it hard to picture the rest of my life without being a host.

JR: What has been the most exciting thing about DEAL OR NO DEAL ISLAND?

JM: It’s teased in the trailer: Potentially, The Biggest Prize in Television History… HISTORY… drops mic…

JR:  What has surprised you the most about hosting a game show?

JM: How quickly I took to it and how much fun I have doing it. It’s the perfect job for me in terms of the job itself and the people I get to work with both on and behind the camera. It’s an all star cast and crew.

JR: You have been involved in numerous charitable activities, what motivates you to give back to the community?

JM: Most of the charity work I do is to help kids and the parents who take care of them while they are suffering. The two big ones for me are UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, and the Children of Armenia Fund. I am connected to both of those places very deeply and it’s easy to be passionate about helping them.

JR: If you could have dinner with any 3 people from history, who would they be and why?

JM: My Great-Grandmother Tervis who escaped the Armenian Genocide, her daughter, my Grandmother Sirarpi, and Joseph Campbell.
Campbell was a genius. He was after all of the secrets of the universe and spent his life in pursuit of The Truth. I’d want to spend a dinner with my Great-Grandmother and Grandmother talking about her faith, and resilience, and what it means to be human and beyond with the one person I can think of who could help me understand what we’re all doing here and how we’re all connected.

JR:  If you could change one thing about the current entertainment industry what would it be?

JM: I’d rather focus my energy on the things I have in my control, the things I’m currently creating rather than lament the things I think other people did wrong.

JR: What is one thing about you that your fans might be surprised to learn?

JM: My family tree is full of soldiers. I have two grandfathers who were in the US Army & Navy respectively during WWII, but on the other side I’ve got two great-uncles who fought for Germany during WWII & my Great-Grandfather fought for Germany in WWI. Their ancestors fought for the Kingdom of Wurttemberg prior to the unification of the kingdoms that became Germany during the Napoleonic Wars.
I also have a great-great-grandfather that left Ireland in 1861 and joined the Union Army and fought in The American Civil War.
And taking it back even further, my Fourth Great-grandfather fought for the Colony of Virginia in the American Revolution, and my Fifth-Great-Grandfather who was a freed African living in Massachusetts, fought under George Washington for the Colonies in the 3rd Massachusetts Regiment against the British… lots and lots of warrior’s.