David Chisum
ON SOAP OPERA DIGEST AND WEEKLY ONLINE
SOAP STAR STATS
David Chisum (Miles, OLTL)
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— DONNA SVENNEVIK/ABC
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Vital Statistics
- Birthday:
- February 5
- Hails From:
- Fullerton, CA
- Star Sign:
- Aquarius
- Years On Show:
- February 2007-present
- Marital Status:
- Wed Aishah on July 16, 2000, at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge, CA.
- Children:
- Zoie (b. April 2001), Aiden (b. 2004)
THE 411
Born in Livonia, MI, and raised in Fullerton, CA, David Chisum came from what he describes as "humble roots, hardworking people." His parents, Linda and Ray, met in the second grade in the small town of Altus, OK, married and had their first child (his sister, Carol) at age 17. They both attended college and his father worked two jobs while playing football on a scholarship. "They had a mattress, no bed and a box to sit on," marvels the actor. But Chisum's father soon worked his way up the ranks at General Motors to become the youngest executive in the company's history. After two job transfers, the Chisum brood finally settled in Fullerton, where the actor attended Sunny Hills High School and reveled in everything from surfing to football to drama club.
After more than a decade of working odd jobs while acting on the West Coast, Chisum literally uprooted his life and family in 2007 when he won the contract role of Miles Laurence. The actor had been working steadily on television and prime-time since 1995, but never seriously considered a role on daytime. "I used to tell my managers and agents I didn't want to do soap operas," he admits. "I was naive, overconfident.... I didn't know anything about the genre." And even though he did brief spots on YOUNG AND RESTLESS and SUNSET BEACH, he says he felt his heart wasn't in it. That is, until he had the opportunity to audition for GENERAL HOSPITAL Casting Director Mark Teschner. The audition was a bit of a letdown for Chisum, who says he was thrown by being allowed only one take, but when OLTL sent him to New York for the second time to screen-test for Miles, he was determined to get the role. "I made up my mind then and there that I was going to get this part," he recalls.
And Chisum couldn't be happier to be playing Miles. The only drawback at first was being without his family for four months, but in April, they packed up their Tahoe and drove across the country in five days with their 85-pound boxer, Buster. "That was an interesting trip," he laughs. The Chisums are now living on Long Island, NY, and the actor is enjoying every bit of the soap opera world. "I'm so pleased," he smiles, "to have fan support and an interesting character to play.... Everything is just falling into place, and I feel really, really blessed."
ET CETERA
Five Random Facts
— Chisum has screen-tested with OLTL co-star Christina Chambers (Marty) twice: once for the part of Miles, and once for a part on SUNSET BEACH when she played Maria.
— While attending New Mexico State University on a football scholarship, Chisum broke the record for the most sacks of any quarterback in Division 1. "It's a horrible thing," he laughs. "So my dad and I are like, 'We're proud of that. It's tough!' "
— Speaking of tough, Chisum has broken his nose six times on the basketball court.
— Long before Chisum and Melissa Archer (Natalie) became co-stars, his wife, Aishah, worked with Archer at a M.A.C counter in the Glendale Galleria in California.
— The actor's father and sister both have retinitis pigmentosa, a degeneration of the rods and cones in the retina. The disease has no cure, but Chisum hopes to raise money for research like many of his colleagues have done for other causes and health conditions.
OTHER ROLES
Former Soap Roles
SUNSET BEACH (Bret, 1999)
Guest-Starring TV Roles
THE BAD GIRL'S GUIDE (Nick, 2005)
COLD CASE (Dennis Hargrove, 2005)
LAS VEGAS (Craig Katz, 2004)
24 (Reporter, 2004)
THE DISTRICT (Officer Loman, 2004)
DRAGNET (Ted Willis, 2003)
THE PRACTICE (Public Counsel Jack Pope, 2003)
JAG (P.O. Dott, 2003)
S CLUB 7 IN HOLLYWOOD (Jeffrey Swinger, 2001)v
BECKER (2001)
CHARMED (Micah, 2000)
3RD ROCK FROM THE SUN (Chip Caswell, 1999)v
MELROSE PLACE (Jim Rogers, 1999)
USA HIGH (Wallace, 1997)
SLIDERS (Paramedic, 1997)
NED AND STACEY (Ted, 1995)
TV Movie Roles
ANGEL IN THE FAMILY (David, 2004)
A CAROL CHRISTMAS (Frank, 2003)
Film Roles
Dark Mirror (Jim Martin, 2008)
The Untitled Onion Movie (2007)
Flight of the Living Dead: Outbreak on a Plane (Truman Burrows, 2007)
Home (Matty Oaks, 2003)
My Life as a Troll (2001)
12 Bucks (Cheesy, 1998)
MEMORABLE QUOTES
"I have energy like an Energizer Bunny and so I'm always getting my big nose in the way!" — On breaking his nose on the basketball court, Soap Opera Digest, 8/28/07
"Anything to do with syringes or draining people's gasoline.... I don't want my kids siphoning gas out of somebody's car." — On when his wife has to pull the kids away from watching OLTL, Digest, 7/3/07
"Some people would do a double take and then stare at the ground immediately, in hopes that they didn't make me uncomfortable." — On wearing Miles's "deformed" makeup outside the studio, Digest, 5/8/07
