David Farrington Thornton (born June 12, 1953) is an American actor. He has appeared in John Q, Home Alone 3 as Earl Unger, Law & Order, The Notebook, and The Other Woman, among other roles. He is the husband of singer songwriter Cyndi Lauper.^[2]

Thornton was born in Cheraw, South Carolina. He is the son of professor Robert Donald Thornton (1917–2006),^[3][4] who taught English at Harvard University among other institutions, and Grace Ellen (née Baker; 1919–2019).^{[5][6][1][7][8]} He graduated from Hamilton College and Yale Drama School and studied at Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio.^[2]

Thornton met singer Cyndi Lauper on the set of the film Off and Running.^[2] They married in November 1991 and have a son, Declyn Wallace Thornton (born November 19, 1997).^[9]

In 2005, the New York Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Thornton in Thornton v. Baron, which is considered a landmark decision in the New York real estate industry, specifically dealing with rent stabilization in New York.^[10]