Matthew Ashford

Matthew Ashford
Matthew Ashford
Born Matthew Nile Ashford
January 29, 1960 (1960-01-29) (age 51)
Davenport, Iowa, U.S.
Occupation Actor
Years active 1982–present
Spouse Christina Saffran (1987-present)

Matthew Nile Ashford (born January 29, 1960) is an American actor best known for the long running role of Jack Deveraux on the NBC soap opera Days of our Lives.

Contents

Biography

Personal life

Ashford, the sixth of eight children, was born in Davenport, Iowa, the son of Patricia, an executive secretary, and Cecil Ashford, a civil engineer.[1] He graduated with a B.F.A. in Theater from the North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem.

Ashford has been married to singer-actress Christina Saffran Ashford since June 6, 1987. They have two daughters, Grace (born in 1992) and Emma (born in 1997). In 1997, four-month old Emma was diagnosed with a rare form of childhood eye cancer, Retinoblastoma. The disease was treated with surgeries to remove the maligant tumors in her eyes and chemotherapy. At the age of five, tumors recurred in Emma's left eye, and it was removed and replaced with a prosthetic. Today Emma is healthy and cancer-free. Ashford has been instrumental in raising funds and awareness for this disease. He is the spokesperson for the Retinoblastoma International Foundation.


Trivia

In May 2010, while on tour in Toronto, Canada, he obtained a US/Canada dual citizenship. Matthew's father was born in Canada, therefore making him and his siblings eligible to become Canadians, without relinquishing their American citizenship.

Acting roles

After graduation, Ashford moved to New York City, where he was cast as Drew Ralston on One Life to Live, a role he played from 1982 to 1983. He also appeared on Search for Tomorrow as Cagney McCleary from 1984 to 1986, as Tom Hardy Sr. on General Hospital from 1995 to 1997, and the serial killer Dr. Stephen Haver on One Life to Live from 2003 to 2004 and also played Roger in WB hit series Charmed.

He is best known for playing Jack Deveraux on the NBC soap opera, Days of our Lives. Ashford has had several stints playing Jack, a conflicted character who descended into darkness after raping the woman who married him in order to give him reason to fight his illness. After a lengthy struggle with his guilt over his dark deeds, Jack finally was able to get back on track and allow himself to love his soulmate Jennifer who pursued him relentlessly. Ashford's pairing with Melissa Reeves' Jennifer was wildly popular (winning the 7th Soap Opera Digest award for favorite super couple) and the couple is considered a supercouple, by soap opera standards. Jack also became integrated into his biological family. Ashford's initial run was from 1987 to 1993. He returned from 2001 to 2003, but was written off as part of a controversial storyline where nearly a dozen residents of the fictional town of Salem appeared to have been murdered. (The complex plot had them alive and held hostage in another country.)

He returned to the show in 2004, but had spent much of his time since on the back burner, and was off-screen for large portions of 2005 and 2006. In July 2006, it was announced that Ashford, a fan favorite, had again been let go from the Days of our Lives cast roster, a story confirmed in the July 25, 2006 edition of industry magazine Soap Opera Digest. Ashford's last day on Days of our Lives was on September 21, 2006. Jack and Jennifer bid Salem farewell as they headed off, young son in tow, to live and work in London. Ashford made a brief appearance as Jack in April 2007.

Ashford is part of a production company (NGM Productions). They have just produced a movie entitled The Unlikeleys. In it, he plays the most famous soap star in the world and his exact look-alike. Ashford's production company has also produced a movie entitled The Exorcism of Tina Miller, and they are currently working on the distribution details.

Ashford also appeared with Scott Bakula in a production of 'No Strings' in May 2007.

From February to June 2010, he played 'Bill" in the North American tour of Mamma Mia!. The final performances were cut short due to security concerns with the G20 Summit in Toronto, Canada. The summit location was two blocks away from the theatre.

Currently, he is playing Steve Jenson on the soap web series "The Bay", along with his former Days of Our Lives co-star, Mary Beth Evans.

In May 2011, it was announced that Ashford would be reprising the role of Jack Deveraux on Days of our Lives later in the summer.

Awards and recognition

Filmography

See also

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ashford, Surrey — Ashford is a town almost entirely in the Surrey borough of Spelthorne in England, with a small part falling within Greater London. It is a suburban development situated 15 miles (24 km) west south west of Charing Cross in London and forms part of …   Wikipedia

  • Matthew Caffyn — (christened October 26, 1628 buried June 1714) was a British General Baptist preacher and writer.[1][2][3][4] Contents 1 Early life …   Wikipedia

  • Matthew Turner — (mort en 1788), un médecin de Liverpool, est considéré (par exemple par David Berman en 1990) comme l auteur ou le co auteur du pamphlet de 1782, Answer to Dr. Priestley s Letters to a Philosophical Unbeliever (« Réponse aux lettres du… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Matthew Arnold School, Staines — The Matthew Arnold School Established 1975 Type Comprehensive Headteacher Mrs J M Pearson Chairman Mr I Denison Specialism Business Enterprise Location …   Wikipedia

  • Ashford Council election, 2003 — Elections to Ashford Council were held on 1 May, 2003. The whole council was up for election with boundary changes since the last election in 1999 reducing the number of seats by 6. The Conservative party gained control of the council from no… …   Wikipedia

  • Ashford, Connecticut — Infobox Settlement official name = Ashford, Connecticut settlement type = Town imagesize = image caption = |pushpin pushpin label position =left pushpin map caption =Location within the state of Connecticut pushpin mapsize = |mapsize = map… …   Wikipedia

  • Ashford (Surrey) — 51.432166666667 0.45694444444445 Koordinaten: 51° 26′ N, 0° 27′ W …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Ashford Council election, 2007 — Elections to Ashford Council were held on 3 May, 2007. The whole council was up for election and the Conservative party held on to overall control of the council.Election ResultElection Summary Party party = Conservative Party (UK) seats = 28… …   Wikipedia

  • Matthew Arnold School (Staines) — The Matthew Arnold School is a British co educational secondary school in Staines, a suburb of London, taking pupils from the age of 11 ( Year 7 ) to 16 ( Year 11 ). The school is a specialist Business and Enterprise College.Catchment AreaMatthew …   Wikipedia

  • Noir d'Ashford — Schéma d Ecton Hill employant du noir d Ashford. Le noir d Ashford, ou marbre noir d Ashford, est un calcaire sombre, couleur café brûlé[1], issu de mines situées près d Ashford in the Water, dans le Derbyshire, en Angleterre. Il présente, une …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”