Tom Selleck says fatherhood is the “most important” role he has ever played

Having served in the military and gained international recognition for his work in TV and film, it’s safe to say Tom Selleck has had one busy life.Yet whilst it’s impressive that he’s managed to retain the respect and love of the masses throughout the entirety of his career, arguably an even greater feat is that he’s kept his family life private over the years. The Magnum P.I. actor has faced some serious challenges across the decades, but his golden rule has always been to put his family first. It’s no surprise, then, that Selleck admitted, as per CBS Local in 2012, that fatherhood is the most important role he’s ever had to play. Selleck and his wife, fellow actress Jillie Mack, welcomed their daughter Hannah Magaret to the world in 1988. For Selleck, it was a day that changed everything.

The actor even moved his family to a ranch in Ventura County, California, as he believed it would give them the best shot at raising Hannah out of the searing spotlight of Hollywood. “I quit Magnum to have a family,” Selleck explained to People back in 2012. “It took a long time to get off the train, but I try very hard to have balance, and this ranch has helped me do that.” Fast forward to now and that’s a choice that certainly seems to have paid dividends.Not only was Hannah given a safe, rural environment in which to grow up, but living on the ranch brought her closer to the animals that would shape her own career: horses. The now 36-year-old forged a career as a world-class equestrian, winning laurels and fame in her own right along the way. “As a kid [my parents] tried to raise me as normally as possible given my dad’s line of work,” she told The Epoch Times.“Those horses have been a great way for me to have my own accomplishments outside of whatever my parents had done.” Hannah started horse-riding at the tender young age of 4 and there’s been no looking back since.”