Stephen Collins Biography

Stephen Weaver Collins (born October 1, 1947) is an American actor, writer, and musician, perhaps best known for playing Eric Camden on the long-running television series 7th Heaven. He is also known for the roles of Captain Will Decker in Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and more recently as Dr. Dayton King on the short-lived ABC TV series No Ordinary Family.

Early life

Collins was born in Des Moines, Iowa, the son of Madeleine (née Robertson) and Cyrus S. Collins, an airline executive. Collins is the great-great-grandson of General James Baird Weaver, the 1880 Greenback Party presidential candidate and the 1892 Populist Party ("People's Party") candidate for president. Collins was raised with his two older brothers in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York and attended Amherst College, graduating cum laude. He played bass guitar and rhythm guitar in a number of rock and roll bands at Amherst, including Tambourine Charlie & The Four Flat Tires, The Naugahyde Revolution (with Jim Steinman, then a fellow student, on keyboards), and The Flower & Vegetable Show (he has played his guitar on 7th Heaven, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and in the 2007 romantic comedy Because I Said So).

Career

Collins' Broadway credits include his 2008 role as King Arthur in Spamalot and prior appearances in Moonchildren, The Ritz, The Loves of Anatol, and No Sex Please, We're British; Off Broadway he appeared opposite Sigourney Weaver in Christopher Durang's Beyond Therapy, as Macduff to Christopher Walken's Macbeth at Lincoln Center, and as husband to Julie Andrews (with whom he shares a birthday) in the Stephen Sondheim revue, Putting It Together at Manhattan Theatre Club in 1993.

Collins probably is best known for his role as the Reverend Eric Camden in more than 200 episodes of the television series 7th Heaven, though he also notably portrayed Captain/Commander Willard Decker in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Reverend Camden's wife, Annie, is played by fellow Star Trek alum Catherine Hicks (she played Dr. Gillian Taylor in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home). Additional television credits include Jake Cutter in the cult favorite Tales of the Gold Monkey and Tattingers, as well as guest appearances in The Waltons, Barnaby Jones, Charlie's Angels, and numerous miniseries and made-for-television movies. He was nominated for an Emmy Award for his work opposite Ann-Margret in the minseries The Two Mrs. Grenvilles and he played John F. Kennedy in the miniseries A Woman Named Jackie, which won the Emmy for Best Miniseries. He also played the lead role opposite Lauren Hutton in the made-for-TV movie, "The Rhinemann Exchange," based on Robert Ludlum's bestselling novel.

Collins has co-starred with Diane Keaton in two movies: The First Wives Club (1996) and Because I Said So (2007). He has co-starred with Meredith Baxter in three films, All the President's Men (film), A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story, and Her Final Fury: Betty Broderick, the Last Chapter, the latter two being made-for-TV movies broadcast on CBS in 1992.

Collins appears as a series regular in the ABC series No Ordinary Family. Collins also appeared as a potential love interest/boyfriend for Ron Rifkin's character Saul Holden, on ABC's Brothers & Sisters, in fall of 2010. He also appeared in the eighth season of The Office playing Andy Bernard's dad in the episode "Garden Party".

Personal life

Collins was married to Marjorie Weinman from 1970 to 1978. He married actress Faye Grant on April 21, 1985 and they have a daughter, Kate (born in 1989). On May 7, 2012 Collins filed for divorce from Grant.

Collins is an Episcopalian as well as a practitioner of Transcendental Meditation and has taken part in the advanced TM Yogic Flying technique since 1980. He is a national co-director of the Committee for Stress-Free Schools, which advocates practicing TM in schools and funds TM research.

Filmography

Television

• 1975: The Waltons "The Abdication"
• 1976: Brinks: The Great Robbery; Agent Donald Nash
• 1977: The Rhinemann Exchange (miniseries); David Spaulding
• 1978: Charlie's Angels "Angel Come Home"
• 1980: The Henderson Monster; Pete Casimir
• 1981: Looking Back; Morton Fullerton
• 1981: Summer Solstice; young Joshua Turner
• 1982: Tales of the Gold Monkey; Jake Cutter
• 1984: Threesome; Peter Hatten
• 1984: Dark Mirror; Dr. Jim Eiseley
• 1983: Chiefs (miniseries); Billy Lee
• 1986: Hold the Dream; Shane O'Neill
• 1987: The Two Mrs. Grenvilles; Billy Grenville Jr.
• 1988: Weekend War; Captain John Deason
• 1989: Tattingers; Nick Tattinger
• 1990: Working It Out; David Stuart
• 1991: A Woman Named Jackie (miniseries); John F. Kennedy
• 1992: A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story; Dan Broderick
• 1992: Her Final Fury: Betty Broderick, the Last Chapter; Dan Broderick
• 1992: My New Gun; Gerald Bender
• 1993: Remember; Clee Donovan
• 1993: The Disappearance of Nora; Jack Fremont
• 1994: Scarlett (miniseries); Ashley Wilkes
• 1995: A Family Divided; Roger Billingsley
• 1995"96: Sisters; Dr. Gabriel 'Gabe' Sorenson
• 1996: On Seventh Avenue; Tom Aiken
• 1996: The Babysitter's Seduction; Bill Bartrand
• 1996"2007: 7th Heaven; Rev. Eric Camden
• 1996: An Unexpected Family; Sam
• 1998: An Unexpected Life; Sam
• 1999: As Time Runs Out; Dan Carlin
• 2001: Jumping Ship; Gardner
• 2005: Celebrity Poker Showdown (qualified for the first tournament)
• 2006: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia; Bruce Mathis
• 2008: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit "Trade"
• 2008: Every Second Counts; Joe Preston
• 2009"11: Private Practice (4 episodes); The Captain
• 2010: No Ordinary Family; Dr. Dayton King
• 2010: Brothers & Sisters "A Righteous Kiss"
• 2011: The Office "Garden Party"
• 2013: Falling Skies; President Benjamin Hathaway
• 2013: The Fosters; Rev. Adams; "I Do"
• 2013: Devious Maids; Philippe Delatour
• 2013: Revolution

Films

• 1976: All the President's Men; Hugh W. Sloan, Jr.
• 1977: Between the Lines; Michael
• 1978: Fedora; Young Barry
• 1979: The Promise; Michael Hillyard
• 1979: Star Trek: The Motion Picture; Captain/Commander Willard Decker
• 1980: Loving Couples; Greg
• 1985: Brewster's Millions; Warren Cox
• 1986: Choke Canyon; Dr. David Lowell
• 1986: Jumpin' Jack Flash; Marty Phillips
• 1989: The Big Picture; Attorney
• 1990: Stella; Stephen Dallas
• 1992: My New Gun; Gerald Bender
• 1995: A Family Divided; Roger Billingsley
• 1996: The First Wives Club; Aaron Paradis
• 1999: Drive Me Crazy; Mr. Maris
• 2003: The Commission; Joseph A. Ball
• 2006: Blood Diamond; Ambassador Walker
• 2007: Because I Said So; Joe Dresden
• 2008: Hole in the Paper Sky; Mr. Benson
• 2012: The Three Stooges; Mr. Harter

Discography

• 1993: Sondheim: Putting It Together (Off Broadway cast recording)
• 2003: Stephen Collins
• 2005: The Hits of Rick Nelson

Books

Collins is the author of two novels: Eye Contact (1994) and Double Exposure (1998).