Mark Consuelos Facts: Celebrities Who Started on Soaps

Mark Consuelos is best known for his breakthrough role on All My Children, but the actor currently stars as Veronica Lodge’s twisted father, Hiram Lodge, on the hit CW show, Riverdale. He got his start on a soap.

Consuelos has also appeared on other primetime shows such as Pitch, American Horror Story, Hope & Faith, and Law & Order: SVU. From the job he had before becoming an actor to officiating a major wedding, here are five fast facts about the actor.

Who is Mark Consuelos?

Consuelos was born on March 30 in Zaragoza, Spain. His family moved to the United States when he was growing up and he lived in both Lebanon, Illinois and Brandon, Florida. He attended the University of Notre Dame before transferring to the University of South Florida and graduated with a degree in marketing.

Dancing Start
Before becoming an actor, Consuelos actually worked as a male exotic dancer in the Tampa Bay, Florida area. He specifically worked at a club called Stingers and his stage name was “Meat.”

Soap Beginnings
Consuelos was cast on All My Children as Mateo Santos in February 1995. He was on the show until 2001, but decided to leave when his wife, Kelly Ripa, got hired to take over for Kathie Lee Gifford as the host of Live! With Regis and Kelly. Their characters got that rare happy ending of leaving together.

Ordained Minister

Along with being an actor, Consuelos is also an ordained minister. In fact, he performed the marriage for Howard Stern and his wife, Beth Ostrosky, on October 3, 2008. Consuelos is good friends with Stern, which is why he asked the actor to perform the ceremony. The wedding was attended by major A-list stars such as Joan Rivers, Jimmy Kimmel, Billy Joel, Sarah Silverman, and many others.

Getting Personal With Mark Consuelos
As previously mentioned, Consuelos met Ripa on the set of All My Children in 1995. The two got married on May 1, 1996, and they have three children, Michael Joseph, Lola Grace, and Joaquin Antonio.