Erik von Detten

Posted October 13, 201311 yr

Erik von Detten

Date of Birth

3 October 1982, San Diego, California, USA

Birth Name

Erik Thomas von Detten

Nickname

The Bear

Height

6' 1" (1.85 m)

Mini Biography

Possessing leading man good looks and undeniable charm, Erik von Detten has proven himself to be an actor of unquestionable talent. Having amassed an impressive resume of feature film and television credits running the gamut from comedy to drama, the young actor's career is certainly a notable one.

Von Detten's numerous television credits include series regular roles on ABC's half-hour comedy, "Complete Savages" (2004) (Produced by Mel Gibson), ABC's "Dinotopia" (2002/I), ABC's "Odd Man Out" (1999) and The Disney Channel's "So Weird" (1999). He has guest-starred on many popular television series, including ABC's "8 Simple Rules... for Dating My Teenage Daughter" (2002) in which he played the roommate to David Spade's character; an Emmy Award-winning episode of NBC's "ER" (1994) where he played a kid trapped in a storm drain; and NBC's "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (1999), in the role of a preppie murderer. He also appeared as a guest contestant on ABC's "The Mole: Episode #3.1" (2003/I).

His diverse telefilm credits include the lead role in the hit rollerblading movie, Brink! (1998) (TV), which was one of the first Disney Channel Original Movies; Replacing Dad (1999) (TV) with Mary McDonnell; a starring role opposite Robert Hays in The Family Channel's Christmas Every Day (1996) (TV); CBS' A Stranger to Love (1996) (TV) with Beau Bridges; the lead character of Danny in Disney's remake of Escape to Witch Mountain (1995) (TV) for ABC; CBS' A Season of Hope (1995) (TV) opposite JoBeth Williams; NBC's "In the Line of Duty: Kidnapped" with Dabney Coleman and Timothy Busfield; and the CBS drama Bitter Blood (1994) (TV), in which he played the young son to Keith Carradine's character.

Von Detten's feature credits include leading roles in Disney's The Princess Diaries (2001) where he played the object of Anne Hathaway's affections; and Universal's Leave It to Beaver (1997) in which he played Wally Cleaver opposite Christopher McDonald and Janine Turner.

He has also lent his voice to Disney's and Pixar's highly successful Toy Story (1995) in which he played Sid, the next-door neighbor toy torturer. Additionally, he has voiced characters for Disney's animated feature Tarzan (1999) and the television series "The Legend of Tarzan" (2001), the animated television series "Recess" (1997) and the feature versions Recess Christmas: Miracle on Third Street (2001) (V) and Recess: School's Out (2001).

Von Detten was born and raised in Southern California in a family of three sisters, which was a far different experience from that of his "Complete Savages" (2004) character. At the age of nine, Erik accompanied his sister to an agent meeting and was signed on the spot. Soon after, he landed his first professional role, that of a series regular on NBC's "Days of Our Lives" (1965), which he considers his training ground. After a two-year stint on the show, von Detten continued to amass an impressive list of film and television credits throughout his teenage years.

Aside from acting, von Detten's interests include classical piano, landscape photography and self-portraiture, and spending time on his classic 1969 sailboat which he bought at the age of twelve and has fully restored. During his free time, von Detten also enjoys hiking, surfing, tennis and rollerblading on the Venice Boardwalk with his Dalmation, Miles. He is also a Big Brother through the Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring program.

Trivia

Favorite Books: "Catcher in the Rye" & "James and the Giant Peach".

Parents' names: Susan and Volker.

Siblings: Dolly, Britta & Andrea.

He has German heritage (his father was born in Munich, Germany).

Currently (2007) resides in Venice, California.

Personal Quotes

In a girl I look for honesty above all, someone who I can carry on a conversation with, someone who has a good sense of humor, someone who's true to herself, and to top it someone who can get ready for a date in less than ten minutes.

Quote