Portrait of Joe Morton

Birthday profile

Joe Morton

Joe Morton, American actor

Born
October 18, 1947
Age in 2026
79
Zodiac sign
Libra
Birth year
1947

About Joe Morton

Joseph Thomas Morton Jr. (born October 18, 1947) is an American actor. Known as a character actor for his numerous roles on stage, television and film, he has received several awards including a Primetime Emmy Award as well as a nomination for a Tony Award. He has collaborated with film director John Sayles three times, acting in his films The Brother from Another Planet (1984), City of Hope (1991) and Lone Star (1996). Other films he has appeared in include...And Justice for All (1979), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Of Mice and Men (1992), Speed (1994), Apt Pupil (1998), Blues Brothers 2000 (1998), What Lies Beneath (2000), Ali (2001), Paycheck (2003), Stealth (2005), American Gangster (2007), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), Justice League (2017), and Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021). His television work includes his role as Eli Pope, Olivia Pope's father, in Scandal, for which he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 2014, and the role of Henry Deacon on the TV series Eureka. On stage, Morton made his Broadway debut in Two Gentlemen of Verona (1971). He received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his role in the musical Raisin (1973). He made his West End debut portraying Colin Powell in the David Hare play Stuff Happens (2004). He has appeared in over 70 films, including John Sayles' The Brother from Another Planet (as The Brother), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (as Dr. Morton was raised Catholic and attended a Catholic military school for a time.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Joe Morton was born

Joe Morton was born in 1947. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1947

  • #1 song"Near You" – Francis Craig
  • Top movieMiracle on 34th Street
  • Top TV showHowdy Doody
  • Best-selling bookThe Diary of a Young Girl – Anne Frank

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentJackie Robinson breaks baseball's color barrier
  • Top headlineJackie Robinson breaks Major League Baseball's color barrier
  • Technology milestoneTransistor invented at Bell Labs
  • Defining fadFlying saucer mania
  • Notable inventionPolaroid instant camera
  • World population2.47 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderHarry S. Truman
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • Also wonPhiladelphia Warriors (BAA)
  • U.S. population144.1M

1947 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Joe Morton's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19472026
Gas$0.23$3.45/gal
Average home$7,800$435,000
Average income$4,700$67,500
Minimum wage$0.40$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.40$11.95
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population144.1M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, IMDb. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.