Profile Text
VENICE, ITALY – 8 SEPTEMBER: Noonan during the 72nd Venice Film Festival 2015 in Venice, Italy, Denis Makarenko /Bigstock.com
Birth Name: Thomas Patrick Noonan
Date of Birth: April 12, 1951
Place of Birth: Greenwich, Connecticut, U.S.
Date of Death: February 14, 2026
Place of Death: Englewood, New Jersey, U.S.
Ethnicity: *75% Irish *25% German
Tom Noonan was an American actor, director, and screenwriter. His roles included the films Gloria (1980), Wolfen , Eddie Macon’s Run , Easy Money , F/X , Manhunter , The Monster Squad , Collision Course (1989), Mystery Train , RoboCop 2 , Last Action Hero , Heat (1995), Phoenix (1998), The Astronaut’s Wife , The Pledge (2001), Knockaround Guys , Eight Legged Freaks , The Roost , Seraphim Falls , Snow Angels , Synecdoche, New York ; The Alphabet Killer , The House of the Devil , Follow the Prophet , Anomalisa , and Wonderstruck (2017); the series Monsters , which he also wrote and directed for; North and South , The X-Files , The Beat , Damages , Hell on Wheels , 12 Monkeys , Horace and Pete , and Quarry ; and many works on stage. He directed, wrote, and starred in the films What Happened Was (1994), based on his play, and The Wife (1995). He was 6′6″.
He was the son of Rita, a mathematics teacher, and John F. Noonan, a dental surgery doctor and jazz musician. His brother was actor, playwright, and screenwriter John Ford Noonan. Tom had two children with his former wife, actress Karen Young.
Tom’s paternal grandfather was named Patrick J. Noonan. Patrick was Irish.
Tom’s paternal grandmother was named Delia Ford/Forde. Delia was Irish.
Tom’s maternal grandfather was named Robert Emmett McGannon (the son of Anna). Robert was born in New York, to an Irish father and a mother also of Irish parentage. He was deputy fire chief of the City of New York.
Tom’s maternal grandmother was Minnie Marguerita/Marie Christine Schnutt (the daughter of Ferdinand Schnutt and Anna Cuver/Kuver). Minnie was born in New York, to German parents, from Hanover. Ferdinand was the son of Heinrich/Henry Schnutt and Margaretha/Margaret Ottens. Anna was born in Neuenkirchen, the daughter of Hinrich Kuven and Christine Brandt.
Sources: Marriage announcement of Tom’s parents – https://www.nytimes.com
Tom’s father on the 1910 U.S. Census – https://www.familysearch.org
Tom’s mother on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://www.familysearch.org
Obituary of Tom’s maternal grandfather, Robert Emmett McGannon – https://www.nytimes.com
Death record of Tom’s maternal grandmother, Minnie Marguerita/Marie Christine (Schnutt) McGannon – https://www.familysearch.org