Dorchester Illustration of the Day no. 1750

Mark Wahlberg was born in Dorchester, on June 5, 1971, to Edward Wahlberg and Alma Elaine Donnelly. His paternal grandfather, Axel Simon Wahlberg, was of Swedish descent, while the remainder of his ancestry is Irish.  He graduated from Copley Square High School on Newbury Street in Boston.

Wahlberg first came to fame as the younger brother of Donnie Wahlberg of the successful bubblegum pop group New Kids on the Block. Mark had been hired as an original member of the group but quit before it became a success.  When the New Kids' success finally ended, Mark began recording as Marky Mark & the Funky Bunch, earning a hit with Good Vibrations from the album Music for the People. The record was produced by his brother Donnie.

Wahlberg was also known for his impressive physique. He first displayed it in the Good Vibrations music video and most prominently in a series of underwear ads for Calvin Klein shot by Herb Ritts. He also made a workout video entitled The Marky Mark Workout: Fitness, Form, Focus

He then began an acting career, making his debut in the 1993 TV movie The Substitute. He earned positive reviews and appeared in a number of successful movies like Boogie Nights, Three Kings, The Perfect Storm, Four Brothers, and The Italian Job.  Wahlberg starred in the football drama, Invincible, based on the true story of Vince Papale. He is also the executive producer of the HBO series Entourage which is loosely based on his experiences in Hollywood. He appeared as a Massachusetts State Police detective in Martin Scorsese's thriller, The Departed in 2006.  These are only a few examples of his work.  One of his more recent movies was The Fighter in 2010 where he portrayed "Irish" Micky Ward from Lowell, MA.