Jason Priestley

Infobox actor
name = Jason Priestley

---

birthname = Jason Bradford Priestley
caption =
birthdate =birth date and age|1969|8|28
location = Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
height = 5 ft 6 in (168cm)
spouse = Naomi Lowde-Priestley (May 14, 2005 - present)
Ashlee Petersen (February 2, 1999 – January 2, 2000) (divorced)
notable role = Brandon Walsh in "Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990 - 1998)"

Jason Bradford Priestley (born August 28, 1969) is a Canadian-born American actor and film director. He is best known as the virtuous Brandon Walsh on the television series "Beverly Hills, 90210", a role which catapulted him to fame in the early 1990s.

Biography

Early life

Born Jason Bradford Priestley on August 28, 1969 in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Priestley became a naturalized American in 2007. [ [http://www.historicracing.com/top100.cfm?driverID=7953&fromrow=2372 Top 100 ] ] He is a graduate of Argyle Secondary School in North Vancouver.He has a sister, Justine, and two step siblings, Karin and Kristi. He is of half-Irish and half-Scandinavian ancestry.

Career

In 1990, Priestley was chosen as Brandon Walsh on the hit series "Beverly Hills, 90210". He also directed nineteen of the show's episodes. He remained on the show until 1998, when Brandon moved to Washington, DC. Brandon was the last Walsh to leave the show, however, Priestly would continue to serve as an executive producer until the show's cancellation in 2000.

Priestley joined the cast of "Tru Calling" as Jack Harper from 2004-2005. He was also a regular on the 2006 program "Love Monkey". His television work also includes the 1989 series "Sister Kate", the WB show "What I Like About You", and a February 2006 appearance on "Without a Trace". Priestley has also made several films, his most notable role perhaps being in 1997's "Love and Death on Long Island", in which he played a teen idol struggling to be taken seriously as an actor. He directed the nineteenth episode in the final season of "7th Heaven". He also directed an episode of The Secret Life of the American Teenager "Slice of Life"and "Just Say No". They appeared on August 26, 2008 and September 9, 2008 on ABC Family.

On July 15, 2007 he returned to series television as one of the lead males in Lifetime Television's comedy-drama "Side Order of Life".

Personal life

Between 1992–1997, Priestley lived with actress Christine Elise, who had a recurring role on "Beverly Hills, 90210". In 1999, he married make-up artist Ashlee Petersen, whom he met on the set of "Beverly Hills, 90210". They divorced in 2000. In 2005, he married make-up artist Naomi Lowde.

On July 2, 2007, he became a father to daughter, Ava Veronica, with his wife Naomi. The baby weighed 7 lbs, 4 oz at birth.cite web|url=http://usmagazine.com/cover_story_5|title=Jason Priestley: First Look at My Daughter "Took My Breath Away"|work=USmagazine.com|accessdate=2007-07-25]

On July 9, 2007, he revealed on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" that he had become an American citizen several weeks prior.

Priestley has a twin sister, Justine Priestley, who is also an actress. He tried to get her to audition for the role of Brenda Walsh on "Beverly Hills 90210", and although this never came to pass she did appear in a couple of episodes on the "90210" spin-off show "Melrose Place" in 1996.

Race car driving

His hobbies include race car driving. He rallied a Toyota Celica All-trac ST185 in the SCCA Pro Rally Series. He has provided commentary and interviews of racers for ABC's television coverage of IndyCar racing. In 1999 he participated in the first Gumball 3000 rally, driving a Lotus Esprit V-8. On August 11, 2002, he was seriously injured during a practice run at the Kentucky Speedway when his Indy Pro Series car crashed into a wall at nearly 180 miles per hour. He made a quick and full recovery. Priestley and his girlfriend at the time of the crash, Naomi Lowde, married in May 2005, on Paradise Island in the Bahamas.

According to a January 2008 Associated Press article, it was announced that Priestley would become a joint owner in a new IndyCar Series team. The new team will be known as the Rubicon Race Team managed by co-owner Jim Freudenberg. They will initially enter a car in the Indianapolis 500 in May 2008. Car number 28 will be built by the Indianapolis-based Sam Schmidt Motorsports. The driver will be Max Papis. [ [http://www.motorsport-total.com/usracing/news/2008/03/Papis_wieder_beim_Indy_500_08030410.html www.motorsport-total.com] , March 04, 2008]

In the article, Jason was interviewed and said, "I'm excited to be able to spend the month of May in Indy with my good friends and be a part of the greatest open wheel race," "It's been more than five years since my accident, and it's going to be so good to get to see everyone." [Herman, Steve. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22770269/ Actor Jason Priestley to become joint owner in new IRL race team] , Associated Press, January 21, 2008]

Promotional activity for Barenaked Ladies

Priestley is a big fan of the band Barenaked Ladies and went to many of their California concerts in the early to mid-1990s. He eventually met the band and in his desire to help them succeed, suggested that he direct the music video for "The Old Apartment", [ [http://www.canada.com/tvtropolis/story.html?id=1c04a8de-b6f3-4018-a155-b27bb0fffb01 Jason Priestley - Beverly Hills 90210 ] ] and used his fame to persuade American stations to air it. He did just that, and also invited the band to play at the "Peach Pit After Dark" on an episode of "90210". [ [http://music.yahoo.com/ar-259099-bio--Barenaked-Ladies Barenaked Ladies Biography on Yahoo! Music ] ] Lead singer, Ed Robertson, continues to cite him as being instrumental in their American success. His final notable contribution to the band came when he directed a feature-length documentary about the band's 1999 whirlwind of success entitled "Barenaked in America", intending to capture on film the fun he had while riding around on the tour bus with the band. [ [http://www.citypaper.com/film/review.asp?rid=6895 Review: Barenaked in America directed by Jason Priestley ] ]

Filmography

Awards & Nominations

Gemini Awards
*2003: Nominated, "Best Performance or Host in a Variety Program or Series" - "The True Meaning of Christmas Specials" (shared w/co-stars)

Golden Globe Awards
*1993: Nominated, "Best Performance by an Actor in a TV-Series (Drama)" - "Beverly Hills, 90210"
*1995: Nominated, "Best Performance by an Actor in a TV-Series (Drama)" - "Beverly Hills, 90210"

Young Artist Awards
*1990: Nominated, "Best Young Actor Supporting Role in a Television Series" - "Sister Kate"

References

External links

*imdb name|id=0000594|name=Jason Priestley
*tvtome person|id=31902|name=Jason Priestley
* [http://www.officialjasonpriestley.com/ Official Jason Priestley Website]
* [http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/video.php?id=1705 Jason Priestley Interview] on The Hour with George Stroumboulopoulos