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The most recent Adrian Pasdar biography is published on the main page.
 

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Biography #2 (for Mysterious Ways)

Adrian Pasdar portrays a charismatic professor of anthropology whose deep fascination with mystical phenomena is constantly getting in the way of his real job in PAX TV's original weekly series Mysterious Ways. With the help of a hospital psychiatrist, Peggy Fowler (Rae Dawn Chong) and his teaching assistant Miranda (Alisen Down), Declan embarks each week on a powerful drama that will take them closer to discovering if miraculous phenomena are real or not.

Pasdar was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and raised in a Philadelphia suburb where his high school football prowess led to a scholarship at the University of Florida. Early on in his college career, a football mishap left him badly injured. However, it was that misfortune that led Pasdar to rediscover a childhood interest in writing and acting. Pasdar left school and joined a theater group in his hometown, where he worked on sound, lighting and set construction. Soon after, he began taking classes at the famous Lee Strasberg Theater Institute.

At the age of 19, Pasdar auditioned for a role in the blockbuster film Top Gun. Director Tony Scott was so impressed that he wrote the part of Chipper just for him. This led to starring roles in Streets of Gold and Kathryn Bigelow's 1987 cult vampire movie Near Dark. Other major acting projects include Vital Signs, Torn Apart and the critically acclaimed Obie winner Avenue Boys. In 1992 Pasdar left Hollywood and returned to New York, where he concentrated on character roles, including Frankie in Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way. Another major break came in 1995 when Pasdar was cast as the title character on the Fox series Profit, a critical favorite.

Pasdar is good at juggling his busy schedule -- he has to be. He has added directing to his already impressive body of work by writing and directing the short film Beyond Belief and the feature film Cement, which won Best Picture awards on the film festival circuit. "I love directing. It's a different level of focus and a real mental challenge," says Pasdar. When he's not acting or directing, Pasdar is busy reading books, writing films and researching additional projects.

Pasdar is married to Natalie Maines, a member of the popular recording group the Dixie Chicks. This year they became the proud parents of a son, Jackson Slade.

Bio courtesy PAX for "Mysterious Ways" (11-Jan-2003)