Mike Sorrentino

Michael “The Situation” Sorrentino was born in July 1982. As one of several Italian-American cast members on MTV’s reality show Jersey Shore, the self-proclaimed “Guido” was formerly stripper and an assistant manager at a fitness center in Staten Island, New York.

His confident and sometimes arrogant nature got him into trouble on the show, whether he was mocking fellow cast member Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi for her “rolls” or struggling to accept that Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola chose to hook up with castmate Ronnie Ortiz-Magro.

During the first season, he coined a number of phrases, such as “G.T.L. baby. Gym, Tan, Laundry.” His over-the-top persona spawned a number of parodies, most notably during a sketch on Saturday Night Live when Bill Hader made fun of his “back abs” in 2009.

Though the MTV series ended in 2012, he returned to the franchise in 2018 for Jersey Shore Family Vacation.

Sorrentino’s notoriety led to him competing on season 11 of Dancing With the Stars in 2010 and season 10 of Celebrity Big Brother in 2012. Alongside his various reality TV cameos, he tried his hand at acting through a guest-starring role on ABC’s Suburgatory.

In his personal life, the New Jersey native struggled with substance abuse before achieving five years of sobriety in January 2021. He also completed an eight-month prison sentence in September 2019 for tax evasion after failing to pay $8.9 million in taxes.

Sorrentino married his college sweetheart, Lauren Pesce, in November 2018. They announced in November 2020 that they were expecting their first child together.