Quick Facts
Biography
Matthew Douglas Salinger (/ˈsælɪndʒər/; born February 13, 1960) is an American actor and producer, known for his appearances in the films Revenge of the Nerds and Captain America. He is the son of author J. D. Salinger and psychologist Alison Claire Douglas.
Early life
Salinger was born February 13, 1960 in Windsor, Vermont, the son of author J. D. Salinger and psychologist Alison Claire Douglas. Salinger's maternal grandfather was British art critic Robert Langton Douglas. He has a sister, Margaret Salinger.
Salinger graduated from Phillips Academy Andover and attended Princeton University before graduating from Columbia University with a degree in art history and drama.
Career
Salinger made his film debut in 1984's Revenge of the Nerds. He played Captain America in the 1990 film Captain America.
Salinger subsequently appeared in films including What Dreams May Come and episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and 24.
Salinger has produced several independent films, including Let the Devil Wear Black and Mojave Moon. In 2000, he produced the off-Broadway play The Syringa Tree, which won a Drama Desk Award, the Drama League Award, the Outer Critic's Circle Award, and the Village Voice Obie Award for Best Play of the Year in 2001.
Unpublished works by J. D. Salinger
J. D. Salinger continued to write throughout his life, although he did not publish any works after 1965. His widow, Colleen O'Neill, and Matt Salinger prepared this work for publication after his death, announcing in 2019 that "all of what he wrote will at some point be shared", but that it was a big job and not yet ready.
Personal life
Salinger married jewelry designer Betsy Jane Becker in 1985. They live in Fairfield County, Connecticut, and have twin sons Gannon and Avery (born March 28, 1994).
In contrast to his sister, Margaret, who wrote a 1999 memoir about her childhood titled Dream Catcher, Salinger is a devoted protector of his father's privacy. A few weeks after Margaret's book was published, Salinger wrote a letter to The New York Observer, disparaging his sister's "gothic tales of our supposed childhood."