Lin-Manuel Miranda is an American actor, songwriter, composer and playwright mostly known for creating and starring in the Broadway musicals Hamilton and In the Heights. He has won a Pulitzer Prize, two Grammy Awards, an Emmy, a MacArthur Fellowship and five Tony Awards.
With Puerto Rican cultural roots, born and raised in the New York neighborhood of Washington Heights, Miranda has become a benchmark of Latino culture in the United States. The smash success of Hamilton pushed his fame into greater heights.
Lin-Manuel’s birthday is January 16, 1980. His zodiac symbol is Capricorn.
Lin-Manuel is a Democrat. During the run-up to the 2016 presidential election Miranda demonstrated his support for the Democratic candidate on various occasions. Once he edited the lyrics of “Stronger Together”, from the award-winning musical Hamilton, to make a call to citizens to vote for Clinton. (1)
The song was performed alongside actress Renée Elise Goldsberry during the “Stronger Together” fundraiser held at the Saint James Theater in New York.
After Puerto Rico suffered from Hurricane Maria in 2017, Miranda had harsh words for President Donald Trump.
You’re going straight to hell, @realDonaldTrump.
No long lines for you.
Someone will say, “Right this way, sir.”
They’ll clear a path. https://t.co/xXfJH0KJmw— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) September 30, 2017
“She [the mayor of San Juan] has been working 24/7. You have been GOLFING,” Miranda said in a later tweet. “You’re going straight to hell. Fastest golf cart you ever took.”
Although he grew in a Catholic family, he doesn’t consider himself a religious person.
I’m not particularly religious, but the notion of a world where everyone feels safe is calling me right now.
— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) July 7, 2016
When asked if he would have a question to ask Jesus Christ, Lin-Manuel remarked, “Oh, I have so many questions for Jesus. Listen, I grew up Catholic, so I just want to separate what really happened versus what grown-ups are saying. I have so many questions…I feel like He’d know.” (2)
Among the lobbies Lin-Manuel likes there is a particular one.
“I’m a biography buff. My favorite book growing up was ‘Chuck Amuck,’ by Chuck Jones. I think I bought it as a kid because of the included flip-book: flip the pages, and Wile E. Coyote chases the Roadrunner down the margins of the page. But it’s also one of the most beautiful books about the creative process I’ve ever read.” (3)
He also enjoys novels, and has several favorite authors.
“I’m most in awe of novelists, who move sets, lights, scenery, and act out all the parts in your mind for you. My kind of writing requires collaboration with others to truly ignite. But I think of Dickens, or Cervantes, or Márquez, or Morrison, and I can describe to you the worlds they paint and inhabit. To engender empathy and create a world using only words is the closest thing we have to magic.” (3)
Miranda married Vanessa Adriana Nadal, a lawyer, in 2010. The couple have two children.
His parents are Luz and Luis Miranda. Lin-Manuel’s father was a consultant for DemocraticNew York City mayor Ed Koch in the 1970s.
Lin-Manuel has an older sister, Luz.
Sources:
1: Billboard
Photo by Disney / ABC Television Group. Used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic licence.