Biography
Ben Tinsley is a Texas actor, singer, and writer known for several film roles, including the drama teacher in 2024's Eve Was Star, the immigration attorney in 2020's Amaraica (streaming on HBO Max), and Professor Boa in 2020's Jackman. He wrote, directed, and conducted the interviews for his film, 2016's Heart Of Christmas: The Secret History Of The Littlest Wiseman.
Mr. Tinsley was born in Fort Worth, Texas, the son of two journalists - one of them a high-ranking editor at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He spent a great portion of his young life around his father's newsroom. However, at age 9, Tinsley's life took a drastic musical turn. At his mother's behest, he auditioned for the acclaimed Texas Boys Choir and was admitted as a second soprano. He was taught to read music, sing and dance. He trained several hours a day, five days a week. Tinsley was classically trained in music for over two years under notable musicians such as TBC Executive Director Jack Noble White. After his initial training was concluded, he toured the country performing at multiple venues with the TBC during the school year. Tinsley also trained and performed with TBC during a special retreat in Mexico. One of Tinsley's most bizarre performance experiences took place when he and his fellow choirboys appeared on the old Charlie Rose Show out of Fort Worth TV station KXAS. Tinsley and a small group of his brother choirboys were on the show to promote "Miracles" - a musical extravaganza composed for the TBC by Gian Carlo Menotti. Charlie Rose at the time (in the 1970s) was known for recording multiple episodes back-to-back. And the Texas Boys Choir appeared on one episode of Rose's show the same day George Hamilton interviewed on another in promotion of his movie "Love At First Bite." The choirboys were astounded to see Hamilton exit Rose's studio in full Dracula vampire regalia - classic black cape and all. Hamilton swept past the boys into a waiting limo and drove away without a word. The boys looked after the departing limo, waiting several seconds before they blinked. The music bug stayed with Tinsley for his entire life after that - even during the 30 years he spent as a news reporter before retiring to focus on acting and music. At age 17, this passion led him to form a punk rock band with his high school friend Jimmy Payne. The group was first called "The Defunctions" and later re-titled "Blind Concept." Tinsley and Payne only recorded a few songs, "Bad Night In San Salvador" and "I Love You, I Love You, I'll Kill You" before breaking up. (The studio time was a birthday present from Tinsley's father and mother.) Missing the influence and structure of the Texas Boys Choir, Tinsley veered back into singing and performing in the drama department of Tarrant County Junior College South Campus in Fort Worth. He performed in various plays and musicals there between ages 19 and 20. In 2008 Tinsley started a one-man group "Ben Tinsley Orchestra," or "Ben-Tee-Oh" for short. He paid two producers to help him compose and record a multitude of songs - and continues to do so to this day. Tinsley's most notable tunes to date are "Skit Skat Skat," "Dumb Ass Ben," and "Butterflies All Of The Time." As of 2016 he continues to compose, perform and record on his own as finances allow. The second biggest musical turning point for Tinsley to date was 2015. when he was invited by Gary Bryant McGrath (executive director) to join the Texas Boys Choir alumni group, the award-winning Texas State Men And Boys Choir. Their first year, this choir performed in The Littlest Wiseman annual nativity play at Scott Theatre in Fort Worth, Texas. It was there on the set of The Littlest Wiseman that Tinsley - who had long been working to transition into film journalism - made the decision to chronicle the history of the TLW play and its performers on film. Tinsley approached his friend and colleague, Texas Director Dan Millican, for advice on how to approach this task. Millican teamed him up with two of his young and talented film proteges, Alicia Pascual and Christine Copeland. Pascual became director of cinematography and Copeland became editor for Tinsley's film, "Heart Of Christmas: The Secret History Of The Littlest Wiseman." "Heart Of Christmas" has received high praise for its emotional core and attention to detail. It is a movie Texas reviewer Michael H. Price described as "a pageant in itself, a spoken-word scrapbook of reminiscences and observations." In April 2019, director Tim Sparks cast Tinsley as an Texan immigration attorney in the movie, "Amaraica: They Lost Our Baby." The movie, on HBO Max in September 2021, revolves around a young immigrant who tries to attain citizenship in the U.S. through a fraudulent marriage. The immigrant's ex-girlfriend shows up nine months pregnant claiming the baby is his. Tinsley's scenes were shot in downtown Fort Worth, Texas in the loaned offices of Tinsley's longtime friend and colleague, Immigration Attorney Francisco Hernandez.
