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His daughter's success is no fluke.
By Bernadette Giacomazzo — Written on Apr 10, 2021
Billie Eilish's parents, dad Patrick O'Connell and mom Maggie Baird, aren't strangers to the spotlight.
Her dad is an actor with a bit of a career of his own. Though he's by no means an "A-lister," he's found himself in more than a few A-list releases, including "Iron Man" and "The West Wing."
He has proud Irish roots, though he was born in the United States. And he's stayed steadily working as an actor for many years.
Yet, these days, he's known more for the rousing success of his daughter and her brother, songwriter Finneas O'Connell.
And that's quite the testament to how successful Patrick truly is, indeed.
Who is Billie Eilish's dad, Patrick O'Connell?
Patrick O'Connell was born on July 7, 1957, in Norwalk, Connecticut, as Patrick Mead O'Connell. O'Connell is a Cancer.
O'Connell is said to be of Irish descent.
1. He's in the entertainment industry.
Even though the "popular" story about Billie Eilish is that she rose out of obscurity to become a beloved pop superstar, the reality is she had a few metaphorical legs up when it comes to the "head start" of her career.
Her father, Patrick O'Connell, is an actor with a long resume that includes roles in "Iron Man," "Baskets," and "The West Wing."
His longtime wife, Maggie Baird, is also an actress and producer known for "Bones," "The X-Files," and her appearance on "Friends." She also edited the music video of her daughter's song "Six Feet Under."
His son, Finneas, is a Grammy-winning songwriter and musician.
So, the O'Connell family had more than their fair share of connections in the entertainment industry to get their daughter to the right places and in front of the right names.
2. O'Connell has been married to the same woman for 25 years.
O'Connell married the love of his life, Maggie Baird, on August 6, 1995. The two love birds will celebrate 26 successful years of marriage this August!
3. O'Connell has two children with his wife.
After two years of marriage Maggie Baird and Patrick O'Connell welcomed their first child together, a boy they named Finneas who grew up to be an award-winning songwriter. He was born on July 30, 1997, making him a Leo.
A few years later, and the happy couple gave birth to their second child, a girl they named Billie who grew up to be a music sensation. She was born on December 18, 2001, making her a Sagittarius.
4. O'Connell and Baird homeschooled Eilish and her brother.
When Eilish was born, O'Connell and Baird decided it was prudent to homeschool both her and her brother Finneas. As a result, this homeschooling allowed them both to pursue creative pursuits in music.
And, based on his Instagram page, it seems like he's got some interest in music, as well!
5. O'Connell taught his daughter how to build things.
Eilish had nothing but good things to say about her parents' decision to homeschool her.
"I learned how to do math by cooking with my mom …I learned, like, how to build s**t from my dad. What I'm saying is I learned s**t in life …I feel like when you're sat down and somebody's like shoving things in your throat, you're not gonna want to eat them," she said about her homeschooling experience.
6. O'Connell was the inspiration for his daughter's stage name.
The pronunciation of the name Eilish is a nod to O'Connell's Irish roots.
Although Eilish has both Irish and Scottish roots, O'Connell is an American of Irish descent. Eilish is so proud of this heritage, in fact, that she says the correct pronunciation of her stage name is "Eye-Lish," so that it sounds like "Irish," and not — as is commonly thought — "Aye-Lish."
7. O'Connell and Baird used a fertility clinic to have Eilish.
In an interview with Eilish's mom, the question of how to "produce a Billie Eilish" came up by shock jock Howard Stern. But Baird's answer was just as shocking as the question: it turns out that Eilish was conceived with the help of a fertility clinic.
Baird even said that O'Connell needed to be "in a dark room, by himself" when Eilish was conceived.
8. O'Connell and Eilish are very similar.
Eilish revealed in an interview that one of her childhood and longtime friends Zoe Donahoe pointed out how similar Eilish was to her father,
“Me and my dad are very, very similar. One of my best friends, Zoe, who I grew up with since we were three, told me that she did not understand my dad for years and years. Then, one day, she was ‘Oh, he’s you!’ And immediately it was, ‘Oh, we know him.’ She said to me that I am my dad. And we are very similar.”
Like father, like daughter, no?
9. Eilish credits her parents for her success.
Regardless of how she got to the top, Eilish credits her parents for getting her there.
Eilish has frequently credited her parents — Baird and O'Connell — for helping her get to where she is today.
What's more, she continues to work with her brother, who is her primary songwriter, and through it all, she says she takes none of it for granted. "People ask me what I want to have accomplished in 10 years. What I say is, I don’t want to have taken all of this for granted," she said in an interview.
Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, publicist, and photographer whose work has appeared in Teen Vogue, People, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, BET.com, and more.