Jon Bon Jovi

John Francis Bongiovi Jr. (born March 2, 1962), known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was formed in 1983. He has released 16 studio albums with his band as well as two solo albums.

In the 1990s, Bon Jovi started an acting career, starring in the films Moonlight and Valentino, The Leading Man, Little City, Homegrown, Pay It Forward, U-571 and Cry Wolf and appearing on television in shows such as Sex and the City, 30 Rock, Ally McBeal, and The West Wing.

Bon Jovi was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009. In 2012, he ranked number 50 among Billboard magazine's "Power 100", a ranking of "The Most Powerful and Influential People in the Music Business".

Bon Jovi is a founder and former majority owner of an Arena Football League team, the Philadelphia Soul.

John Francis Bongiovi Jr. was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. His father John Francis Bongiovi Sr. (born 1930) was a barber and a former Marine. His mother Carol (née Sharkey; 1940–2024), also a former Marine, was a florist and Playboy Bunny. His father was of Italian and Slovak ancestry: his great grandmother Alžbeta Jacko hailed from Košická Belá in present-day Slovakia and the name Bongiovi comes from Sciacca, Sicily. His mother was of German and Russian descent. In an interview about his family tree, Bon Jovi stated, "I'm not a blood relative of Frank Sinatra, but I've always loved that rumour. Who wouldn't want to be related to the man?"

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.