Mike Delfino (James Denton) Bio

Character Bio

Mike Delfino. All the ladies love him and all the guys want to be him. Well, at least, all the ones we know. Mike first rolled into town under the guise of your hunky neighborhood plumber. His presence was enough to make any desperate housewife clog a drain or burst a pipe.

The women of Wisteria Lane were quickly hooked by Mike’s rugged looks. We were, too. But Mike wasn’t looking for love when he first arrived. He was trying to track down his missing ex-girlfriend, Deirdre, on orders from her dying dad. He ultimately discovered the truth behind Deidre’s death as well as being introduced to the son he never knew he had. But Mike’s life changed forever once he met Susan Mayer.

We like to describe Mike and Susan’s relationship as having all the unwavering stability of a runaway roller coaster. Mike didn’t like it when Susan drove away his creepy son, Zach. Susan was a tad put off when Mike couldn’t remember their relationship after coming out of a coma. And she really shouldn’t have gotten engaged to that dashing Brit, Ian. But once Mike got his memory back, Ian was sent packing.

Mike and Susan eventually got married and had a baby. Mike was injured while working hard to support his growing family. He became addicted to pain killers. It put a serious strain on the marriage. A tragic car accident that happened during the five-year time gap ultimately led to the end of their union. Yeah, we were shocked, too. We loved when Mike and Susan first fell in love but our hearts broke whenever they fell apart.

About James Denton 

Currently starring as Mike Delfino in the Golden Globe and SAG Award-winning "Desperate Housewives," Nashville native James Denton recently completed filming the feature film "Tortured" with Laurence Fishburne. Other recent projects include the highly rated Lifetime movie "Custody," with Rob Morrow, and the feature film "Wanted: Undead or Alive," with "Saturday Night Live's" Chris Kattan.

Denton, who originally attended college on a basketball scholarship, wasn't bitten by the acting bug until he was 28. He landed the role of George Gibbs in a Nashville production of "Our Town," got fine reviews, but thought there was a more solid career in selling advertising, which he did in Tennessee and in North Carolina for four years before taking off for Chicago to become a professional actor.

He soon was accepted as one of Chicago's brightest stars. After earning a key casting when the "Untouchables" series came to town to film, Denton was drawn to Los Angeles, where his strong theatre reputation had preceded him, and he locked in choice turns in film, on TV and on the stage. He started building his big screen profile with performances in such films as "Primary Colors," "Face/Off" and "That Old Feeling," but soon off-beat roles in adventurous TV series were claiming his time. In 1997 Denton landed the role of the eerily sociopathic Mr. Lyle on NBC's hit drama "The Pretender," which was followed by roles in the television films "Pretender 2001" and "Pretender: The Island of The Haunted." 

In 2001 he was cast by ABC to star opposite Kim Delaney in Steven Bochco's short-lived series, "Philly," but his growing reputation quickly led to a new series, "Threat Matrix," as Special Agent Jon Kilmer.

Denton's first Chicago stage role was as Stanley Kowalski in "A Streetcar Named Desire," and his last was the terrorist on the French farce, "Lapin, Lapin." He was a company member of the Griffin Theatre and at the Strawdog Theatre Ensemble, was one of the leads in the world premiere of "Flesh and Blood," performed in and composed the music for "The Night Hank Williams Died," and portrayed Kentucky preacher C.C. Showers in "The Diviners," which earned him a Joseph Jefferson Best Actor nomination. In Los Angeles he appeared in the premieres of "Asylum" at the Court Theatre, "Locked Up Down Shorty's" at the Powerhouse Theatre and "In Walked Monk" at the Hudson Theatre.

In addition to his series starring roles on TV, his guest appearances include "JAG," "Slider," "Dark Skies," "Two Guys and a Girl," "Ally McBeal" and "The West Wing." In January 2006 James Denton hosted the prestigious Miss America Pageant on the CMT Network.

Denton, who lives with his family in Los Angeles, became part owner of the Orange County Flyers baseball team in 2007.

Source: CTV, ABC