Vincent Van Patten
Vincent Van Patten | |
|---|---|
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Spouse(s) | Betsy Russell (divorced) Eileen Davidson |
Vincent Van Patten (born on October 17, 1957, in Brooklyn, New York), is an American actor.
He is the youngest son of actor Dick Van Patten and his wife, Pat, née Poole, a former June Taylor dancer. Van Patten was first urged into showbusiness at age nine by his father’s agent. A commercial for Colgate toothpaste was followed by more than thirty other commercials before his father was cast in the TV series, Arnie, and moved his family from Long Island to Los Angeles. Through the 1970s, the child actor Van Patten guest-starred in over three dozen classic television series including Bonanza, The High Chaparral, Medical Center, Adam 12, The Courtship of Eddie's Father and a variety of television movies. At age 16 he was cast in Apple's Way, a CBS series in which he played the son of an architect who leaves the big city to raise his family in small-town Appleton, Iowa. Three years later Van Patten co-starred in The Bionic Boy, a two-hour ABC spinoff of the popular Lee Majors vehicle, The Six Million Dollar Man. In 1978 he appeared in the cult classic, Rock 'n' Roll High School.
Van Patten was also a professional tennis player who in 1979 was awarded the ATP Rookie of the Year award. The highlight of his career came in 1981 when he defeated John McEnroe and two other top seeded pros to win the Seiko World Super Tennis tournament in Tokyo, Japan.
He is currently co-host and commentator for the weekly World Poker Tour television program. Also in the poker world, he has endorsed the online poker Website Hollywood Poker with actor James Woods. Van Patten regularly plays at Hollywood Poker and contributes content to the site. He also appears in commercials for Milwaukee's Potawatomi Bingo Casino.
From his first marriage, to Betsy Russell, he has two sons, Richard and Vince. His second marriage, on April 15, 2003, was to Eileen Davidson, by whom he has one child.
He is related to several other actors: he is brother of James Van Patten and Nels Van Patten, nephew of Joyce Van Patten, half-nephew of Timothy Van Patten, and cousin of Talia Balsam.