1. Early life and background
Mathew St. Patrick's early life was marked by his upbringing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and a diverse range of work experiences before he transitioned into acting.
1.1. Childhood and education
St. Patrick was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father, Curtis St. Patrick, worked as a hot dog vendor, while his mother, Brenda (née Queen), was a grade school teacher. He was actively involved in athletics, participating in the varsity track team at Olney High School. He ultimately graduated in 1986 from the Scotland School for Veterans' Children in Scotland, Pennsylvania. This institution holds historical significance as the last remaining school in the United States specifically for children of military veterans.
1.2. Early career before acting
After completing his high school education, St. Patrick moved to New York and subsequently resided for eight years in the Chicago, Illinois area, specifically in Carol Stream, Illinois. During this period, he engaged in a variety of jobs to support himself. His employment history includes working as a delivery salesman for Coca-Cola in St. Charles, Illinois, a position at UPS, and a delivery driver for a furniture store called Zierks Furnishings, also in St. Charles, Illinois. Furthermore, he gained experience driving an 18-wheeled flatbed truck for Quikrete of Chicago and was involved in loading and unloading new cars and trucks for the Union Pacific Railroad at their West Chicago Yard.
2. Acting career
Mathew St. Patrick's acting career began with initial forays into the film and theater world, quickly transitioning into prominent roles in television, particularly in soap operas, before achieving widespread recognition for his work in critically acclaimed dramas and expanding into film and voice acting.
2.1. Early acting career and soap operas
In 1994, Mathew St. Patrick made the pivotal decision to relocate to Los Angeles, California, to pursue a career in acting. Initially, he worked as a personal trainer before joining the West Coast Theater Ensemble in 1996. His performance in his debut stage production, Full Court Press, caught the attention of an agent, leading to his first film role as a Navy serviceman in Steel Sharks (1997).
In 1997, St. Patrick took on the role of Detective Marcus Taggert in the soap opera General Hospital, replacing Réal Andrews. However, his tenure in this role was brief, as Andrews returned to the character in 1998. St. Patrick later expressed dissatisfaction with the character, describing Marcus as "one-dimensional." He subsequently joined another soap opera, All My Children, where he portrayed police lieutenant Adrian Sword. He remained with the series until 2000. For his performance as Adrian, St. Patrick received two consecutive NAACP Image Award nominations in 1999 and 2000. During this early period, he also made guest appearances in popular television series such as Beverly Hills, 90210, Diagnosis: Murder, and NYPD Blue.
2.2. Breakthrough and major television roles
Mathew St. Patrick achieved widespread recognition and critical acclaim for his role as Keith Charles in the HBO drama series Six Feet Under, which premiered in 2001 and concluded in 2005. His portrayal was particularly significant for its representation of a gay black man in a committed interracial relationship with David Fisher, played by Michael C. Hall. This role was lauded for its contribution to diversifying mainstream television narratives.
Alongside his fellow cast members from Six Feet Under, St. Patrick received five consecutive nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series from 2001 to 2005. The ensemble won this prestigious award in both 2002 and 2003, highlighting the collective strength and critical success of the series. St. Patrick continued to portray Keith throughout the entire run of the show, until its conclusion in 2005.
After the success of Six Feet Under, St. Patrick took on a leading role as Detective Kenneth Marjorino in the Fox drama series Reunion, which aired from 2005 to 2006 for 13 episodes.
2.3. Film and voice acting
In addition to his television work, Mathew St. Patrick has appeared in several films. He played an FBI agent named Wick in the 2007 film War. The following year, he starred as Seth Steadman in the science fiction horror film Alien Raiders (2008), and also appeared as Detective #1 in Sleepwalking (2008) and Louis Accord in Ball Don't Lie (2008).
St. Patrick has also contributed his voice talents to various projects. He was the initial voice of the character Skulker in the animated series Danny Phantom beginning in 2004. He also lent his voice to the preschool series Higglytown Heroes from 2005 to 2006. Furthermore, he provided the voice for an EMT in the "Mr. Mathers" skit featured on Eminem's 2009 album Relapse.
2.4. Later television appearances
Following the conclusion of Six Feet Under, Mathew St. Patrick continued to appear in a variety of television series, often in guest or recurring capacities. He had a guest role in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 2006 and appeared in the pilot episode of NCIS: Los Angeles in 2009, portraying Bobby J. Jenlow. He also guest starred in Private Practice in 2009 and NCIS in 2013, playing Metro Detective Bill Shard.
From 2009 to 2010, he had a role as Tom Harris in two episodes of Saving Grace. In 2014, St. Patrick took on a recurring role as Moses Cartwright during the final season of the acclaimed FX drama Sons of Anarchy. His later television appearances include an episode of Hawaii Five-0 in 2017.
3. Personal life
Mathew St. Patrick has a son. He is also known to read the Bible regularly.
4. Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | NYPD Blue | Rickie | Episode: "Unembraceable You" |
| 1996 | Moesha | Trainer | Episode: "The List" |
| 1997 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | Basketball Official | Episode: "Straight Shooter" |
| 1997 | Steel Sharks | Mattox | |
| 1997 | Diagnosis Murder | Howie Lanier | Episode: "Slam Dunk Dead" |
| 1997 | General Hospital | Marcus Taggert | |
| 1998 | NYPD Blue | Marvin | Episode: "You're Under a Rasta" |
| 1998 | Surface to Air | Quinland | |
| 1998 | Mike Hammer, Private Eye | Marcus Aurelis Sterling | 2 episodes |
| 1998-2000 | All My Children | Adrian Sword | 63 episodes |
| 2001-2005 | Six Feet Under | Keith Charles | 63 episodes |
| 2004 | Danny Phantom | Skulker | Voice role, 3 episodes; after St. Patrick's departure from the series, Skulker was voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson for the remainder of the series. |
| 2004 | Crossing Jordan | William Avery | Episode: "Justice Delayed" |
| 2005 | Tides of War | ||
| 2005-2006 | Higglytown Heroes | Policeman Hero | 2 episodes |
| 2005-2006 | Reunion | Detective Kenneth Marjorino | 13 episodes |
| 2006 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Roddy Franklin | Episode: "Class" |
| 2007 | War | Wick | |
| 2008 | Sleepwalking | Detective #1 | |
| 2008 | Ball Don't Lie | Louis Accord | |
| 2008 | Alien Raiders | Seth Steadman | |
| 2009 | Private Practice | Malcolm | Episode: "What You Do for Love" |
| 2009 | NCIS: Los Angeles | Bobby J. Jenlow | Episode: "Identity" |
| 2009-2010 | Saving Grace | Tom Harris | 2 episodes |
| 2013 | NCIS | Metro Detective Bill Shard | Episode: "Prime Suspect" |
| 2014 | Sons of Anarchy | Moses Cartwright | 3 episodes |
| 2014 | Campus Attack: The Kristy Revenge Squad | ||
| 2015 | Eddie and the Aviator | The Aviator | |
| 2017 | Hawaii Five-0 | John Berris | Episode: "Ka Laina Ma Ke One" |
| 2017 | Extinction | Agent Davidson | |
| 2018 | Doe | Carl | |
| 2019 | Ice Cream in the Cupboard | Dr. Derek Crowder |