{{Short description|American actor (born 1984)}} {{BLP sources|date=August 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2026}} {{Infobox person |image= |birth_date={{birth date and age|1984|07|07}} |birth_place=Redwood City, California, U.S. |birth_name=Ross Aaron Malinger |occupation={{hlist|Actor|salesman}} |years_active=1990–2006 }} '''Ross Aaron Malinger'''<ref name=filmr/> (born July 7, 1984) is an American former actor and automobile salesperson. He is best known for his roles as Jonah Baldwin in the 1993 movie ''Sleepless in Seattle'', starring Tom Hanks, and as Bobby Jameson in the 1997 Disney comedy film ''Toothless'', starring Kirstie Alley. He and Alley co-starred in the 1995 television film ''Peter and the Wolf'', where Malinger played Peter. He played Adam Lippman, the Bar Mitzvah boy who liked Elaine's "Shiksa appeal", in the ''Seinfeld'' episode "The Serenity Now". He was also the original voice of T.J. Detweiler on the Disney animated TV series ''Recess''.
==Early life== Ross Aaron Malinger was born on July 7, 1984, in Redwood City, California. He is the son of Laura, a producer, and Brian Malinger, a producer and sales representative.<ref name=filmr>[http://www.filmreference.com/film/19/Ross-Malinger.html Ross Malinger Biography (1984–)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> He also has a brother, Tyler Cole Malinger, and a sister, Ashley Malinger, who are also actors.<ref name=filmr/> He earned an Associate degree after graduating from Moorpark College.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/51752/where-are-they-now-19-child-stars-90s|title=Where Are They Now? 19 Child Stars of the '90s|date=May 15, 2013|website=www.mentalfloss.com|language=en|access-date=February 17, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/sleepless-seattle-cast-now-1092123/item/bill-pullman-sleepless-1092131|title=Bill Pullman as Walter – The Cast of 'Sleepless in Seattle,' Then and Now|website=The Hollywood Reporter|language=en|access-date=February 17, 2020}}</ref>
==Career== ===Guest appearances on television=== He began his acting career at the age of six, appearing as a guest star on a 1990 episode of the Fox teen drama series ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' as Elliott Brody. He then appeared on three episodes of the ABC sitcom ''Who's the Boss?'' in the same year. In 1991, he appeared on an episode of the sitcom ''Roseanne'' as Sammy Miller. He then appeared on an episode of the short-lived sitcom ''Davis Rules''. In 1992, Malinger appeared on an episode of the BBC1 series ''In Sickness and in Health'' as Michael. He then appeared as Nicky on the ABC sitcom ''Maybe This Time''. He appeared in two episodes of the CBS drama series ''Touched by an Angel'' in 1996 and 2001, respectively. In 1997, he made a guest appearance on the episode "The Serenity Now" on the NBC sitcom ''Seinfeld'' as Adam Lippman, a Bar Mitzvah boy who is the son of Mr. Lippman and likes Elaine's "Shiksa appeal". He then made a guest appearance on the NBC sitcom ''Suddenly Susan'' as Doug Naughton Jr. and in 1998, he appeared in the reality series ''The Simple Life'' as Will. He then appeared in the CBS legal drama series ''Family Law'' as Henry. In 2006, he made his final appearance on the CBS police procedural drama TV series ''Without a Trace'' as Jason McMurphy.
===Film starring and appearances=== Malinger's first film role was as Harvey in the 1990 action comedy film ''Kindergarten Cop'', directed by Ivan Reitman and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. He then appeared on the 1991 science fiction action thriller film ''Eve of Destruction'' as Timmy Arnold and appeared as young Donald Freeman on the science fiction drama film ''Late for Dinner''. He starred in the romantic comedy-drama film ''Sleepless in Seattle'' opposite Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan as Jonah Baldwin, Sam's eight-year-old son who calls in to a radio talk show in an attempt to find his father a new wife. He appeared in the 1995 romantic comedy film ''Bye Bye Love'' as Ben Goldman and was cast as Tyler McCord on the action thriller film ''Sudden Death'' in the same year. He starred in a lead role as Payton Shoemaker in the direct-to-video family film ''Little Bigfoot'' and starred as Bobby Jameson opposite Kirstie Alley in the television film ''Toothless'', both in 1997. He starred in the 1998 film ''Frog and Wombat'' as Steve Johnson. His final film appearance was in the 2000 romantic film 'Personally Yours' as Derek.
===Television performances=== His first main role was in the CBS sitcom ''Good Advice'' as Michael DeRuzza, the son of Susan (played by Shelley Long). He appeared as Steven Myers on the CBS Western drama series ''Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman''. From 1996 to 1997, he appeared in The WB television sitcom ''Nick Freno: Licensed Teacher'' as Tyler Hale. He appeared in a recurring role on the Fox teen drama series ''Party of Five'' as Jamie Burke, a friend and later love interest of Claudia Salinger (played by Lacey Chabert).
===Voiceover roles in film, television, and television specials=== His first voice role was as Peter in the 1995 animated TV special ''Peter and the Wolf'' on ABC. He also portrayed the character in the live-action scenes in the special. He then provided the voice of Spike on the 1996 adventure comedy film ''Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco''. In 1997, he provided additional voices in the radio series ''Adventures in Odyssey: In Harm's Way''. Malinger then began voicing gang leader T.J. Detweiler on the Disney animated TV series ''Recess'' in the same year. After voice acting on the series' second season 1998 episode "Outcast Ashley", he quit the role due to his voice getting too low. He was then succeeded by Andrew Lawrence for the remainder of the series. He reprised his role in ''Recess Christmas: Miracle on Third Street'' and ''Recess: All Growed Down''.
===Retirement from acting and new career=== Malinger has since retired from acting, and has worked at a series of car dealerships in the Greater Los Angeles area.
==Filmography== *''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (1990) – Elliott Brody *''Kindergarten Cop'' (1990) – Harvey *''Who's the Boss?'' (1990–1991) – Travis, Wild Kid #1, Rory *''Eve of Destruction'' (1991) – Timmy Arnold *''Late for Dinner'' (1991) – Little Donald Freeman *''Roseanne'' (1991) – Sammy Miller *''Davis Rules'' (1991) – *''In Sickness and in Health'' (1992) – Michael *''Sleepless in Seattle'' (1993) – Jonah Baldwin *''Good Advice'' (1993–1994) – Michael DeRuzza *''Bye Bye Love'' (1995) – Ben Goldman *''Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman'' (1994–1995) – Steven Myers *''Sudden Death'' (1995) – Tyler McCord *''Peter and the Wolf'' (1995) – Peter (voice) *''Maybe This Time'' (1996) – Nicky *''Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco'' (1996) – Spike (voice) *''Touched by an Angel'' (1996, 2001) – Jesse Bell, Nick Albright *''Nick Freno: Licensed Teacher'' (1996–1997) – Tyler Hale *''Little Bigfoot'' (1997) – Payton Shoemaker *''Toothless'' (1997) – Bobby Jameson *''Seinfeld'' (1997) – Adam Lippman *''Suddenly Susan'' (1997) – Doug Naughton Jr. *''Adventures in Odyssey: In Harm's Way'' (1997) – Additional voices *''Recess'' (1997–1998) – T.J. Detweiler (voice) *''The Simple Life'' (1998) – Will *''The Animated Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1998) – Tom Sawyer (voice) *''Club Vampire'' (1998) – Max *''Party of Five'' (1998) – Jamie Burke *''Frog and Wombat'' (1998) – Steve Johnson *''Family Law'' (1999) – Henry *''Personally Yours'' (2000) – Derek *''Recess Christmas: Miracle on Third Street'' (2001) – T.J. Detweiler (voice) *''Recess: All Growed Down'' (2003) – Older T.J. Detweiler (voice) *''Without a Trace'' (2006) – Jason McMurphy
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{IMDb name|0539678|Ross Malinger}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Malinger, Ross}} Category:1984 births Category:20th-century American male actors Category:21st-century American male actors Category:American male child actors Category:American male film actors Category:American male voice actors Category:Living people Category:Male actors from San Mateo County, California Category:People from Redwood City, California