John Krasinski. Polish feature in Hollywood

‘Needless to say, that day was a watershed moment for me,’ confessed John Krasinski after his visit to Poland. The Hollywood star, known for his role as Jim in “The Office” and director of “A Quiet Place”, came to the country of his ancestors to explore his family roots with his father and wife.

Who is John Krasinski?

Krasinski was born on 20 October 1979 in Newton, Massachusetts. He is an American actor, director and producer. He is known for his role as Jim in the television series “The Office” and for directing the film “A Quiet Place”. John won two awards in 2007 and 2008 for Best Comedy Actor in a Drama Series for “The Office” from the Screen Actors Guild of America. He also won a Golden Saturn for his film “A Quiet Place”.

History of the Krasinski family

Krasinski has Polish ancestry on his father’s side and Irish ancestry on his mother’s. His family on his father’s side originates from the Mazowieckie Voivodeship, from the village of Świerczynek, where his great-great-grandfather was born. His great-grandfather, Władysław Krasinski, born on 6 June 1876 in Bytoń, was the actor’s last Polish-born ancestor. He moved to the United States, where he married Maria Tomajczyk. He settled in the Massachusetts area. His son Leo Krasinski settled in New Bedford.

John Krasinski in Poland

In 2012, together with his father Ronald Krasinski and wife Emily Blunt, he came to Poland to trace his roots. Once there, in Bytom, they were helped in uncovering their family history by Father Henryk Pałucki, who found the actor’s great-grandfather’s birth certificate in the archives of St Stanislaus the Bishop and Martyr parish. During their travels around Poland, accompanied by his father and wife, they visited not only the towns associated with their ancestors – such as Bytoń, Świerczynek and Popowiczki – but also other well-known cities, including Kraków, Warsaw and Zakopane.

Photos from the trip can be seen here: Tracing Roots: John Krasinski Heads to Poland

“It goes without saying that that day was a defining moment for me. Standing there with my father, a representative of the generation before me, looking at the history of the generations before him, was one of the most emotional experiences of my life.” – Krasinski concluded after the trip.

Sources:

https://parade.com/63847/parade/john-krasinskis-vacation-of-a-lifetime

Kwerenda na genealogiawarchiwach.pl

John Krasinski