Jerry verDorn 411

BIRTHDATE: November 23
BIRTHPLACE: Sioux Falls, SD
YEARS ON SHOW: 2005-present
MARITAL STATUS: Wed Beth on June 4, 1977
CHILDREN: Jake, born in December 1983, and Peter, born in December 1985

Jerry VerDorn was born in Sioux Falls, SD, but due to his father's job as a salesman, his family relocated often, settling in various parts of North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota. VerDorn attended Moorhead State University in Minnesota with intentions of becoming an English teacher. However, fate redirected him to the theater department and eventually to London, where he studied for a year at Studio 68, an acting academy founded by a group of British actors, including Sean Connery.

After graduation, verDorn was cast in a play called Black Elk Speaks. While performing in Washington, D.C., he was spotted by a manager who tried to talk him into moving to New York. The actor married his college sweetheart, Beth, on June 4, 1977, and the two made the move together.

Later in 1977, verDorn was invited to appear at Rutgers University in a production of Eric Bentley's play Are You Now or Have You Ever Been? After 11 weeks, the play moved, first to the off-Broadway Promenade Theater, and then to Broadway. At the same time, verDorn understudied George Grizzard in the lead role of George Bernard Shaw's Man and Superman at Circle in the Square and played matinee performances for three months. In 1979, GUIDING LIGHT casting directors discovered the actor and got him to join the show as Ross.

After 26 years as Ross and winning two Outstanding Supporting actor Emmys, GL bumped the actor to recurring status in the summer of 2005. Within a few days of being taken off-contract, verDorn was hired to play Clint on ONE LIFE TO LIVE.

The verDorns live in Northern New Jersey, a short drive from New York City and about a four-hour drive from their two sons, Jake and Peter, who both attend Ithaca College in upstate New York. His official Web site is www.jerryverdorn.com.

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