Simon Baker

Simon Baker (born 30 July 1969) is an Australian actor. He is currently the star of the CBS television series The Mentalist. Simon Baker was born to a high school English teacher, Elizabeth Labberton, and a groundskeeper/mechanic, Barry Baker, on 30 July 1969, in Launceston, Tasmania. He was raised Roman Catholic. His parents divorced while he was still young. His mother later married Tom Denny, a butcher. Simon Baker also has a sister, currently a doctor in Australia, and one younger half brother. By 1972, they had moved from Launceston to Ballina, New South Wales, hoping to secure better paying jobs. In 1986, he graduated from Ballina High School after completing his primary school education at St. Francis Xavier Primary School, also in Ballina. Baker began acting on Australian television during the late 1980s using the name "Simon Baker Denny". He first appeared in music video clips for Melissa Tkautz ("Read My Lips") and Aussie dance outfit Euphoria ("Love You Right") in 1991 before appearing in the successful series E Street, Home and Away and Heartbreak High.