Inside the life of Mark Harmon from famous family to NCIS cast clashes and his heroic act

Mark Harmon is at the heart of the NCIS universe as Agent Leroy Gibbs and, with the drama’s return, fans are eager to know more about the veteran star.

NCIS season 22 is set to debut on Monday, October 14, followed by the premiere of the prequel NCIS Origins which will delve into Gibbs’ early career as an agent in 1991.

And ahead of both of the CBS dramas, here’s all there is to know about Mark Harmon’s personal life.

Famous Family

Mark Harmon is the son of actress, model and fashion designer Elyse Knox, and American football player, pilot, actor and sports broadcaster Tom Harmon.

He is one of three siblings, with his sister Kelly also an actress who has starred in Battlestar Galactica, CHIPS and Bay City Blues.

Meanwhile, his late sister Kristi, who died of a heart attack, was an actress and painter married to actor and musician Ricky Nelson.

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Happy marriage

Mark is married to Mork And Mindy actress Pam Dawber, after meeting in the mid-1980s through a mutual friend who set them up on a group date.

The pair got married in 1987 and now have two sons, Sean and Ty, with the former now working as a producer on NCIS Origins.

Mark and Pam also appeared on screen together in season 19 with his wife portraying investigative journalist Marcie Warren.

NCIS arguments

Mark and co-star Michael Weatherly initially didn't see eye-to-eye when they first worked together on NCIS, according to the Tony DiNozzo actor.

He told The Futon Critic in 2020: “Mark Harmon and I were on different poles. I was Antarctica, he was the North Pole and we were just looking down there going, 'What is up with your polarity? What's going on? The water goes down the drain the other way for me.'

"He was confused by my presence right from the get-go.

“When CNN Showbiz Today or one of those things asked what was the best part about doing the pilot when we were doing the upfronts, I said, 'I got a rubber gun and I got a fake badge.'

"Harmon looked at me like, 'That is your CNN answer?' [Laughs.] And I was like a little kid who had one too many bowls of Count Chocula."

Thankfully, Harmon and Weatherly were able to find their footing but things didn’t end so well with him and Abby Sciuto actress Pauley Perrette.

The two stars allegedly fell out behind the scenes in 2016 after Harmon brought his dog to set which bit a crew member who needed 15 stitches.

Executive producer Charles Floyd Johnson shared: “Pauley was a huge, huge SPCA [Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals] animal person.

“And then the dog kept coming with Harmon, and she felt it wasn't safe for the show.

"By the end of that year, she just felt like it wasn't working for her anymore, and it was time to move on."

Pauley went on to work on the CBS series Broke but after its cancellation, she decided to retire from acting.

Harmon’s heroic act

What some NCIS fans may not know is that in 1996, Mark saved a 16-year-old from a burning car.

A teen, who was driving the car, managed to escape but his friend and passenger, Colin Specht, also 16, was unable to get out.

After seeing what was going on not too far from his home in Brentwood, Mark smashed the windows of the car with a sledgehammer and pulled the teen to safety.

At the time, spokesman of the Los Angeles Fire Department Brian Humphrey commented: "The youths owe their lives to the action of Mr. Harmon."

It was years later that Colin spoke of the incident with CBS, commenting that he “would not be alive” if it wasn’t for the actor.

NCIS season 22 and NCIS Origins premiere on Monday, October 14, on CBS.