Vincent Van Patten
 |
| Country (sports) |  United States |
|---|---|
| Born | October 17, 1957 Bellerose, New York |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Turned pro | 1978 |
| Retired | 1987 |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| Prize money | $433,522 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 109–116 |
| Career titles | 2 |
| Highest ranking | No. 26 (2 November 1981) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| French Open | 1R (1981, 1985) |
| Wimbledon | 3R (1985) |
| US Open | 3R (1982, 1983) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 43–72 |
| Career titles | 1 |
| Highest ranking | No. 24 (15 September 1986) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| French Open | QF (1981) |
| Wimbledon | 3R (1984) |
Vincent Van Patten | |
|---|---|
| Occupation(s) | actor; tennis player |
| Years active | 1970 – present |
| Spouse(s) | Eileen Davidson (2003 - present) 1 child Betsy Russell (1989 - 2001) (divorced) 2 children |
Vincent Van Patten (born October 17, 1957) is an American actor, former tour professional tennis player, and the commentator for the World Poker Tour. He is the son of late longtime Hollywood actor Dick Van Patten.
Personal life
Van Patten was born in Bellerose, New York as the youngest son of actor Dick Van Patten and his wife, Pat, née Poole, a former June Taylor dancer. He is of Dutch, English, and Italian descent on his father's side. Van Patten was first urged into show business at age nine by his father’s agent. Van Patten acted in more than thirty commercials, including Colgate toothpaste, before his father was cast in the TV series, Arnie, and moved his family from Long Island to Los Angeles.
From his first marriage to Betsy Russell he has two sons: Richard and Vince. His second marriage, on April 15, 2003, was to The Young and the Restless actress Eileen Davidson; they have one child together.
Vince is related to several other well-known actors, actresses, and singers through blood and by marriage. Vince is brother of James Van Patten and Nels Van Patten, nephew of actress Joyce Van Patten, nephew of Timothy Van Patten, and cousin of actress Talia Balsam.
Acting
Throughout the 1970s, child actor Vincent 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, Wonder Woman and a variety of television movies. At the age of sixteen, he was cast in Apple's Way, a CBS drama series in which he played the son of an architect who leaves the big city to rear his family in rural Appleton, Iowa.
In the fall of 1975, Van Patten, at eighteen, appeared in the role of John Karras in a 12-week CBS drama series Three for the Road, with Alex Rocco as his father, Pete Karras, and Leif Garrett as his younger brother, Endy Karras. The story line is that of a father and two sons, grief-stricken over the death of their wife and mother sell their house, buy a recreational vehicle, and roam throughout the United States.[1]
Three years later, Van Patten co-starred in The Bionic Boy, a two-hour ABC attempted spinoff of the popular Lee Majors vehicle, The Six Million Dollar Man that never went to series. In 1978, he starred in the cult film classic, Rock 'n' Roll High School. He starred in several other films in the 1970s and 1980s, including the 1979 action thriller Survival Run (aka Spree) with Peter Graves and Ray Milland, Yesterday as a Vietnam war veteran with Cloris Leachman and Eddie Albert, and costarred with Linda Blair in the slasher film Hell Night. He starred, wrote and produced in The Break distributed by Lions Gate with Martin Sheen, and directed the feature film The Flunky with Farrah Fawcett.
He is the host and commentator of the World Poker Tour for Fox Sports and the host of Celebrity Tennis for the Tennis Channel.
Tennis
Van Patten was also a professional tour tennis player who in 1979 was awarded the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Rookie of the Year award. The highlight of his career came in 1981 when he defeated John McEnroe and two other top ten world ranked pros to win the Seiko World Super Tennis tournament in Tokyo. His career high ranking in singles was World No. 26, reached on February 11, 1982.
In singles, Van Patten reached the third round of the US Open twice, in 1982 and 1983, and Wimbledon once, in 1985. In doubles his best Grand Slam event result was reaching the quarter-finals of the French Open in 1981, partnering with Mel Purcell. His highest doubles ranking was World No. 24, reached in September 1986.
Grand Prix Championship Series singles finals
Wins (1)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1981 | Tokyo |  Mark Edmondson |
6–2, 3–6, 6–3 |
Poker
Van Patten learned to play poker from his father, actor Dick Van Patten, at age 14. Vincent has played in some of the biggest cash games in the world. He finished in the money at the 2010 World Series of Poker main event. He finished 481st in a pool of 7,319 entrants and received winnings totalling $27,519. (This amount was awarded to finishers 460th thru 531st.)[2] He was crowned "king of the Hollywood home games"[citation needed]
Van Patten has been a long-time commentator of the World Poker Tour, for which he is now in his thirteenth season alongside Mike Sexton. The first four seasons were broadcast on Travel Channel; seasons five and six on Game Show Network, and from the seventh through to the current thirteenth season, airs on Fox Sports Networks.
Van Patten has been a fixture for the last fifteen years in advertising for Milwaukee's Potawatomi Bingo Casino, along with the WPT World Poker Room at Foxwoods Casino in Ledyard, Connecticut.[citation needed]
With Robert J Randisi, Van Patten has written The Picasso Flop (ISBN 0892960701), a novel about Vegas poker.[3]
References
- ^ "Three for the Road". Internet Movie Data Base. Retrieved March 16, 2011.
- ^ "Event #57: No-Limit Hold'em Championship". World Series of Poker website. November 9, 2010. Retrieved December 27, 2012.
- ^ "The Books: The Picasso Flop by Vince Van Patten and Robert J. Randisi". Hachette Book Group USA. Retrieved 3-8 2009.
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External links
- Vincent Van Patten at the Association of Tennis Professionals
- {{ITF profile}} template using deprecated numeric ID.
- Vincent Van Patten at IMDb
- Vince Van Patten biography
- World Poker Tour profile
- PokerListings.com Player profile
- InsidePoker magazine interview
- 1957 births
- Living people
- Male actors from New York
- American people of Dutch descent
- American people of Italian descent
- American male film actors
- American male tennis players
- American sports announcers
- American male television actors
- People from Bellerose, New York
- Poker commentators
- Tennis people from New York
- American male child actors
- American poker players
- 20th-century American male actors
- Writers from New York
- American people of English descent
- Male actors of Italian descent