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| © Paramount Pictures |
By Sven Gustafson, Autoblog
[post_ads]First burgers, now Chevys. Actor Mark Wahlberg is getting into the auto-sales game, announcing that he's opening his own Chevrolet dealership in Columbus, Ohio, with a partner who owns several Detroit-area franchises.
Wahlberg, 47, will take over the Columbus dealership previously known as Bobby Layman Chevrolet along with Jay Feldman, who owns eight Chevy dealerships in southeast Michigan. The new showroom is called Mark Wahlberg Chevrolet.
"I am continuously looking for ways to innovate my brand and engage in businesses I am passionate about," Wahlberg said in a statement. "I love cars and the chance to work with an experienced, proven dealer-operator like Jay and represent an iconic brand like Chevrolet inspired me to get involved."
It's the latest entrepreneurial twist in the winding career arc for the star of films including "Boogie Nights" and the "Transformers" franchise. The Boston native overcame a troubled upbringing — he served prison time for a brutal, racially tinged assault and only received his high-school diploma in 2013 — to go on to become a sought-after Hollywood star and executive producer of four HBO series including "Entourage" and "Boardwalk Empire." He is also co-owner, along with his brothers Donnie and Paul, of the Wahlburgers restaurant chain, which is now franchised in 14 states and Canada.
Wahlberg got his start as a member of the boy band New Kids on the Block, along with his older brother Donnie, but made his name as the head of the mostly forgotten Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, appearing shirtless in a role that seems to have laid the template for Justin Bieber and, like the Beebs, landing a lucrative Calvin Klein underwear endorsement deal. Wahlberg also owns a movie production company, a health and wellness company, and a water line.
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Though his face already adorns the dealership website, we suspect Wahlberg won't be spending much time there hawking Camaros and Equinoxes to prospective buyers. Wahlberg and Feldman said they began searching for their first dealership early last year and plan to open more dealerships together in the future.
"The Wahlberg brand is all about America," Feldman said. "Joining forces to sell and service Chevrolets with the magnetic draw of the Mark Wahlberg name allows us to do something special for the state of Ohio and the greater Columbus area."
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