Michael Lorenzo Urie was born on Aug. 8, 1980 in Dallas, TX. He attended Plano Senior High School in Plano, TX, where he played in the marching band and was heavily involved in his school’s Speech and Drama program. After a starring role in the school’s production of William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Urie fell head over heels in love with theater. Shortly after high school, he trained at the prestigious Quad C Theatre, where he appeared in student productions of “Sylvia” in 1998 and “Locked Away” in 1999. While attending the famed Juilliard School, he starred in the world premiere of “Love and Happiness” in 2001, portraying a 16-year-old who plots to get rid of his mother’s lover. Before his 2003 graduation, Urie received many honors while attending Juilliard, including The John Houseman prize for excellence in classical theatre and The Laura Pels award for a career in theatre. He also won a Dramatic Interpretation award at the National Forensic League National Tournament in St. Louis, MO in 1998 for “Confessions of a Nightingale.”

The actor’s first TV appearance was on MTV’s provocative and hormonally-charged nighttime series “Undressed” (1999-2002), on which he played a character named Justin during the show’s sixth and final season. In 2005, Urie starred in the stage play “WTC View,” a story about a young New Yorker living in SoHo who undergoes emotional struggles in the weeks following the World Trade Center terrorist attacks. Two years later, Urie was back on the theater stage, playing Horatio in a summer production of “Hamlet” by the South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, CA.

Not wasting any time making a name for himself, Urie joined the cast of “Betty” – inspired by a Spanish-language “telenovela” and produced by Salma Hayek – during its premiere season as a recurring character; becoming a series regular not long after. His character Marc was the fashionable assistant to the show’s resident bitch, Wilhelmina Slater (Vanessa Williams). Urie and Williams shared plenty of screen time together, resulting in classic and hilarious diva cattiness not seen since the golden days of primetime soaps like “Dynasty” (ABC, 1981-89) and “Dallas (CBS, 1978-1991).

Urie enjoyed working behind the scenes as well. He made a short documentary film titled “Two Down” in TK. It dealt with High School Speech and Debate Tournaments – something Urie had much experience in as a teen. He was also on the board of Plum Productions, where he served as a casting director. He produced and appeared in the productions of “Prachtoberfest” and “lowbrow (and a little bit tacky);” as well as produced “Like The Mountains,” and directed “The Fantasticks” – all for Plum Productions.

After the incredible overnight success of “Betty” and his inevitable fame, Urie’s sexuality was scrutinized by the media. An article in the December 2006 issue of dot GLBT newsmagazine reported that Urie was openly gay. However, a May 2007 article in USA Today quoted Urie as saying, “It’s not black and white… I’m not going to lie, but I’m not going to talk about it.” Urie stressed, however, that it was important that his character inspired and helped viewers who have dealt with sexuality issues, including “coming out” to their families.