Taran Noah Smith
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| Taran Noah Smith | |
 Smith in the late 1990s |
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| Birth name | Taran Noah Smith |
| Born | April 8, 1984 (age 23) San Francisco, California, USA |
| Other name(s) | Taran Smith, TNS |
| Spouse(s) | Heidi Van Pelt (April 27, 2001 - Feb 2, 2007) |
| Notable roles | Marcus "Mark" Jason Taylor in Home Improvement |
Taran Noah Smith (born April 8, 1984) is an American actor, most notably played Marcus "Mark" Jason Taylor on the sitcom Home Improvement. He has also appeared on two of the four seasons of the Nickelodeon hit-game show, Figure It Out (1997-1999), from 1997-1998.
He was born to David Smith and Candy Bennici in San Francisco, California. He has an older sister (he is younger by 7 years) named Ariandrea "Aria" Hilary Smith, who is an international model. (born 1977). He was named for the main character in Lloyd Alexander's "Chronicles of Prydain" series of novels for young adults. He is half-Italian (from his maternal side), a quarter Scottish, and a quarter Irish (both from his paternal side). His mother is older than his father by 9 years, and his parents have been married since 1975.
At 18 he gained control of his US$1.5 million trust fund, which he accused his parents of squandering.[1]
On April 27, 2001, shortly after his 17th birthday, Smith married Heidi Van Pelt, who is 16 years his senior (born 1968). He and his wife started a vegan and organic restaurant called Playfood in Studio City, California. He is currently working as a vegan caterer there. He has also reconciled with his parents. He has one son with Heidi, Nolan Eric Smith, born on October 16, 2005.
Smith stands at 6' 0" (1.83 m), and although his nickname is TNS, he goes by Prancing Futuro.
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[edit] Awards
[edit] Won
- 1992, Young Artist Award, Home Improvement, Exceptional Performance by a Young Actor Under Ten
- 1994, Young Artist Award, Home Improvement, Outstanding Youth Ensemble in a Television Series (shared with Zachery Ty Bryan and Jonathan Taylor Thomas)
[edit] Nominations
- 1993, Young Artist Award, Home Improvement, Outstanding Actor Under Ten in a Television Series
- 1999, Young Artist Award, Home Improvement, Best Performance in a TV Drama or Comedy Series - Leading Young Actor
[edit] Filmography
[edit] TV Series
- Home Improvement (September 17, 1991 - May 25, 1999) - as Marcus "Mark" Jason Taylor
[edit] Films
- Ebbie (December 4, 1995) - Tiny Tim
- Little Bigfoot 2: The Journey Home (1997) - Brian Ferris
- Speedball: The Movie (2002) - David Zoran
[edit] Commercials
- Product - Merwyn
[edit] Other Appearances
- Kids Choice Awards (May 20, 1995)
- Bill Nye the Science Guy (September 9, 1995)
- Politically Incorrect (October 17, 1996)
- Hollywood Christmas Parade (December 1, 1996)
- E! Behind the Scenes (March 9, 1997) - Episode "Home Improvement"
- The Today Show (July 2, 1997)
- Figure It Out (August 21, 1997 - May 3, 1998) - Panelist
- 7th Heaven (September 22, 1997) - Episode [2.02] "See You In September", as Peter McKinley
- Nickelodeon's Big Help-A-Thon (October 18, 1997)
- The Pet Shop (1998)
- FX Collectibles (1998)
- The Charlie Horse Music Pizza (January 6, 1998) - Episode [1.02] "My Dog Has Fleas", as Boy at Beach
- VIBE (May 1, 1998)
- VIBE (July 3, 1998)
- The Big Help (October 17, 1998) - Presenter
- The Howie Mandel Show (January 19, 1999)
- Donny & Marie (May 7, 1999)
- Live with Regis and Kathie Lee (1999)
- Batman Beyond (November 20, 1999) - Episode [2.09] "Rats", as Patrick / Rat Boy
- TVography: Home Improvement - A Half Hour Of Power (2002)
- Celebrities Uncensored (February 25, 2004) - Episode [2.03]
- 20/20 (April 29, 2005) - Episode 49
- The E! True Hollywood Story (December 18, 2005) - Episode 144 "Home Improvement"
- Child Star Confidential (May 6, 2006) - Episode [1.04] "The Kid's Table"
[edit] Trivia
- Pastimes include paintball, rollerblading, fencing, mountain biking, motorcycling, sailing, and especially flying in family's two-seater airplane.
- Taught himself to play the drums.
- Graduated from high school early, and has attended USC.
- Was accepted to USC's Film School, but dropped out shortly after beginning classes.
- Favorite subjects are math and art.
- Favorite color is red.
- Enjoys Cheerios
- Loves to eat Thai food.
