A man’s man and an acting icon, Tom Selleck is one of our favorite Hollywood names. Ever since he took the role of Thomas Magnum in Magnum P.I he ensured his place in the film industry.

He started his career as a model who stole women’s hearts and signed for Twentieth Century Fox. This collaboration, however, only lasted until he was drafted to fight in the Vietnam’s war. When he recalls this period of his life, he says, “I am a veteran, I’m proud of it. I was a sergeant in the U.S. Army infantry, National Guard, Vietnam era. We’re all brothers and sisters in that sense.”

After the war ended, he started filming Magnum P.I and found himself into the spotlight once again.

Tom’s childhood was a happy one. He was born in Detroit, Michigan, but grew up in San Fernando Valley, California. His parents were strict but always very supportive of their four children. Tom’s father once told him how “a man is only as good as his word,” and that’s something Tom lived by all his life.

Tom’s acting career only went upwards in the years to come, and after eight seasons of playing detective Magnum, he received numerous awards, among which a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Series Drama in 1985. He was also nominated for an Emmy several years in a row.

“The luckiest thing that happened was that I didn’t get a real job until I was 35,” Tom explained.

“When I was 25, I looked 35 but sounded 15. There are a lot of very good actors who make it as younger leading men but don’t graduate — because the audience won’t accept them as grown up.”

Magnum P.I. came at the time when he was almost ready to give up chasing a career as an actor. “I think if Magnum hadn’t worked out, I’d never have worked again in this business,” he shared in an interview with Closer Weekly.

Back in 1971, Tom married model Jacqueline Ray and adopted her son while the two were still married. Their union didn’t last long and Tom blamed his career for the break-up. So when he married his second wive, dancer Jillie Mack, he promised himself he’d never put acting before his family ever again. And he kept the promise. After his daughter Hannah Margaret was born, he quit Magnum and devoted his time to his baby and his wife.

Ever since 2010, Selleck has been a co-star in the television series Blue Bloods where he plays Frank Reagan, the commissioner of the New York City Police Department. The show has been renewed for its 13th season.

Over the course of his career of many years, Selleck has done most of the stunts himself, but as it turns out, this decision has taken its toll and his body isn’t the way it was.

“My back’s kind of messed up,” Selleck shared.

“When you do stunts in movies—I do a lot of them—you’re taking a risk, but you’re also sitting around a lot. So you might do a fight scene, and then you sit in your chair, and it’s not like you have a personal trainer saying, ‘Okay, we’re ready to go, but Tom needs ten minutes of stretching and warm-up.’”

“And I think the price,” he added, “I see it with peers, I talk to them sometimes. You just see the price of all those stunts. They weren’t that hard, but I think it’s the stop-and-go of all that stuff.”

This awesome actor is an awesome human being too. He never considered himself superior over the ordinary people and was always there to offer a helping hand. Being concerned for what the young generations are turning into, he felt the urge to step in and be there for them. Tom founded the non-profit organization Character Counts! Speaking to New York Daily News, he said, “I’ve tried very hard to conduct myself in an ethical way because that’s important to my stability now.”

“I work with exceptional kids,” Tom said, “gang kids, deprived kids, enriched kids, and they all have an astounding sense of entitlement.” Time for Tom to change all that!