# Jimmy McNichol
**Jimmy McNichol** (James Vincent McNichol; also cited as James Vincent McNichol III; born 1961) is an American actor, singer, and former [teen idol](https://www.edgepedia.org/teen-idol) who became one of the most visible young performers on American television in the late 1970s, and who left full-time acting at age 30 to work in real estate, environmental media, and entertainment production.[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-mcnichol-mn0001217114) He is the brother of actress [Kristy McNichol](https://www.edgepedia.org/kristy-mcnichol), a two-time Emmy winner, and the pair were among the best-known sibling acts in the industry of their era.[3](https://www.pr.com/press-release/424688)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1961, Los Angeles, California[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) |
| Family | Sister Kristy McNichol (born 1962), Emmy-winning actress; brother Tommy (born 1965)[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) |
| First work | A Band-Aids television commercial at age seven[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-mcnichol-mn0001217114) |
| Signature TV roles | Jack Fitzpatrick in *The Fitzpatricks* (1977–1978); *California Fever* (1979); Josh Clayton on *General Hospital* (1984–1985)[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) |
| Music | *Kristy & Jimmy McNichol* (RCA, 1978), a disco-flavored sibling duet album; one single reached number 70 on the Billboard chart[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-mcnichol-mn0001217114) • [1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) |
| Retirement from acting | Left professional acting at about age 30 after the 1991 TV movie *Reason for Living: The Jill Ireland Story*, with later guest appearances in 1995 and 2017[4](https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/actors/jimmy-mcnichol-net-worth/) |
| Later life | Environmental projects, real estate development, and the children's streaming platform Playground TV (co-founded 2018); lives in Durango, Colorado[4](https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/actors/jimmy-mcnichol-net-worth/) • [1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) |
## Early life and child acting
McNichol was born in Los Angeles to James McNichol, a carpenter, and his wife Carolyn, the eldest of three children. His parents divorced, and Carolyn raised Jimmy and Kristy as a single parent while serving as their business manager; the two began modeling and acting careers together, while their brother Tommy was raised separately by a grandparent in Burbank.[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html)
**Child work.** One of his first paying jobs was a television commercial for Band-Aids, at age seven; he spent time on studio lots with his mother and his sister, who was already working as a child performer.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-mcnichol-mn0001217114) He went on to many commercials and guest parts in series such as *Gunsmoke*, *Little House on the Prairie*, and *S.W.A.T.*[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-mcnichol-mn0001217114) An Apple TV profile dates his first film appearance to 1973, in *Sunshine*.[5](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/jimmy-mcnichol/umc.cpc.3sxvd5ehu5oplurjhtzug3wqq)
## Teen idol years
In the late 1970s and early 1980s McNichol was a teen singer and matinee idol with international appeal, mobbed by teenage fans; one retrospective compared his cultural position to a combination of [Justin Bieber](https://www.edgepedia.org/justin-bieber) and [Zac Efron](https://www.edgepedia.org/zac-efron).[6](https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/idol-find-pittsburgh-rapper-teams-up-with-dad-jimmy-mcnichol-for-new-show/) He starred as Jack Fitzpatrick in *The Fitzpatricks* (1977–1978) and in the mini-series *California Fever* (1979), and appeared in the 1980 TV movie *Blinded by the Light* and the 1979 film *Champions: A Love Story*.[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) • [7](https://flicklist.tv/people/jimmy-mcnichol) After *California Fever* ended he hosted the talk show *Hollywood Teen* and starred in *The Jimmy McNichol Special*; CBS built a variety special around him with the tagline "the face seen everywhere."[4](https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/actors/jimmy-mcnichol-net-worth/) • [3](https://www.pr.com/press-release/424688)
**Music.** In 1978 Jimmy and Kristy recorded a self-titled album on [RCA Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/rca-records) with disco-flavored tracks such as "Girl You Really Got Me Goin'", "Rock 'N' Roll Is Here to Stay", and "Box on Wheels", plus a sibling duet on "Boogie Oogie Oogie".[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-mcnichol-mn0001217114) Their version of a song reached number 70 on the Billboard chart.[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) He also wrote his own music and performed with his band, which backed major artists including [James Brown](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-brown) and [Stephen Stills](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-stills).[6](https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/idol-find-pittsburgh-rapper-teams-up-with-dad-jimmy-mcnichol-for-new-show/)
His best-known film role came in the 1981 cult feature *Night Warning* (also listed as *Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker*), opposite Academy Award-nominated actress [Susan Tyrrell](https://www.edgepedia.org/susan-tyrrell), whom McNichol described as "one of the best actresses I have worked with."
[3](https://www.pr.com/press-release/424688) • [7](https://flicklist.tv/people/jimmy-mcnichol)
## Later acting and departure
From 1984 to 1985 McNichol played Josh Clayton in 26 episodes of the soap opera *General Hospital*.[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) He retired from professional acting after the 1991 TV movie *Reason for Living: The Jill Ireland Story*, in which he played Valentine McCallum, but made occasional returns: a 1995 guest role as Brandon Sands on *V.R. Troopers* and, in 2017, the Son of Dracula in five episodes of the web series *Decker*.[4](https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/actors/jimmy-mcnichol-net-worth/) • [1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html)
## Life after Hollywood
McNichol left the entertainment industry at age 30, describing himself as burnt out, and built a quiet life with his wife and children on a ranch in Colorado while working as a real-estate developer, home renovator, and philanthropist.[6](https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/idol-find-pittsburgh-rapper-teams-up-with-dad-jimmy-mcnichol-for-new-show/) He launched the ecological education website ECOTV in 1998 and wrote, directed, and executive produced the 2013 film *Planet View*, described as an IMAX-style nature and adventure film on global environmental issues.[4](https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/actors/jimmy-mcnichol-net-worth/) In 2018 he co-founded Playground TV, a multilingual streaming platform powered by 18 children's channels and 140 animated shows, with a mission to educate and entertain children worldwide.[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html)
**Residence.** The date his family moved from California to [Durango, Colorado](https://www.edgepedia.org/durango-colorado) is reported differently: TV Banter places the relocation in 2006, while Celebrity Net Worth gives 2016.[1](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html) • [4](https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/actors/jimmy-mcnichol-net-worth/)
## Family and Kellee Maize
McNichol married Renée in 1997; their son Nash was born in late 1997 and their daughter Ellis in late 1998.[8](https://www.dkscore.com/viewprofile/mcnichol-jimmy-18576) In 2010 he learned he had a third child, the [Pittsburgh](https://www.edgepedia.org/pittsburgh) rap artist and entrepreneur Kellee Maize, born in 1980 and raised by adoptive parents in Pennsylvania; the two established a relationship that was profiled by [Oprah Winfrey](https://www.edgepedia.org/oprah-winfrey) in 2014.[8](https://www.dkscore.com/viewprofile/mcnichol-jimmy-18576) Pittsburgh Magazine documented the discovery in detail in 2016: Maize's research led to a phone call, DNA confirmation by cheek swab, and a first meeting in San Francisco, and father and daughter went on to develop a television series, *Finding Family: Search Angels*, about helping adoptees find their birth parents.[6](https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/idol-find-pittsburgh-rapper-teams-up-with-dad-jimmy-mcnichol-for-new-show/)
## References
1. [Update on Jimmy McNichol, TV Banter (September 20, 2023)](https://www.tvbanter.net/2023/09/update-on-jimmy-mcnichol.html)
2. [Jimmy McNichol Biography, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-mcnichol-mn0001217114)
3. [Actor Jimmy McNichol is 51 Years Old & Back, PR.com (2012)](https://www.pr.com/press-release/424688)
4. [Jimmy McNichol Net Worth, Celebrity Net Worth](https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/actors/jimmy-mcnichol-net-worth/)
5. [Jimmy McNichol Movies and Shows, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/person/jimmy-mcnichol/umc.cpc.3sxvd5ehu5oplurjhtzug3wqq)
6. [Idol Find: Pittsburgh Rapper Teams Up with Dad Jimmy McNichol for New Show, Pittsburgh Magazine (2016)](https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/idol-find-pittsburgh-rapper-teams-up-with-dad-jimmy-mcnichol-for-new-show/)
7. [Jimmy McNichol, FlickList.tv](https://flicklist.tv/people/jimmy-mcnichol)
8. [McNichol Jimmy profile, DKScore](https://www.dkscore.com/viewprofile/mcnichol-jimmy-18576)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames Mc to Mi*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license