Rex Smith

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For the baseball player, see Rex Smith (baseball). For the American football player, see Rex Smith (American football).

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Rex Smith
Born (1955-09-19) September 19, 1955 (age 68)
Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.
Genres Soft rock, pop
Occupation(s) Actor, singer
Instruments Vocals, guitar
Years active 1972–present
Labels Columbia
Associated acts REX
Website www.rexsmith.com

Rex Smith (born September 19, 1955, Jacksonville, Florida) is an American actor and singer.[1] Smith made his acting debut in the Broadway play Grease in 1978. He is noted for his role as Jesse Mach in the 1985 television series Street Hawk, as well as being a singer and stage actor. During the late 1970s, Smith was popular as a teen idol. Because of his good looks, he was featured regularly in 16 Magazine and Tiger Beat. He also had a gold Top 10 single, "You Take My Breath Away" in 1979.

Career

Music

In the early 1970s, Smith was the lead singer for a band from Athens, Georgia named Phaedra. Smith next sang vocals in a pop rock band called Rex. The other band members were Mike Ratti on drums and percussion, Lou Van Dora on guitar and background vocals, Orville Davis on bass, and Lars Hanson on guitar and background vocals.[citation needed]

The demo disc included the following songs:[citation needed]

  • "Trouble"
  • "Ten Seconds of Love"
  • "Feeling Better"
  • "Call Her 'Easy'"

In 1979, he had a hit single from the television movie Sooner or Later, entitled "You Take My Breath Away", which reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.[2] It is on the platinum-selling album Sooner or Later, which is also named for the movie. The music for this song was written by Stephen J. Lawrence and the lyrics were written by Bruce Hart. For many years, it was a staple on the play lists of FM radio stations with a soft rock or "lite" format.

In 1981, Smith hit the top 40 again with a remake of "Everlasting Love", in a duet with singer Rachel Sweet. Peaking at No. 32, the song is Smith's last charting hit to date. The song also became Smith's only hit on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at No. 35.[3]

Smith performed live at the 1982 Miss Universe beauty pageant main event night, held in Lima, Perú.

His latest album was released in 2000 and entitled Simply...Rex. It was re-released in 2006 and re-titled You Take My Breath Away.

Television

Smith is best known for his role as motorcycle police officer Jesse Mach in the short-running 1985 television series Street Hawk, but he has also made guest appearances on a variety of television shows, such as The Love Boat, Baywatch, Caroline in the City and JAG. Smith has been a celebrity spokesperson for a number of corporate entities.[4]

Also in 1982, Smith replaced Andy Gibb as a host on the music variety show, Solid Gold.

In 1989, Smith played Daredevil a.k.a. Matt Murdock in the television movie, The Trial of the Incredible Hulk. This was as a backdoor pilot for an ongoing Daredevil television series.

From 1990 through 1992, Smith was a contract player on the CBS daytime drama, As the World Turns, in the role of Darryl Crawford.

Stage

In 1978, he made his Broadway debut in the musical Grease in the lead role of Danny Zuko.

Smith also starred as Frederic in the New York Shakespeare Festival's Central Park production of The Pirates of Penzance. In 1981, Smith won the Theatre World Award for his role in Pirates. Smith reprised the role of Frederic in the 1983 film adaptation, along with fellow Broadway cast members Kevin Kline as the Pirate King and Linda Ronstadt as Mabel.

Smith has appeared in other Broadway and Off-Broadway productions, including The Scarlet Pimpernel, Grand Hotel, The Human Comedy, and Annie Get Your Gun. He played Joe Gillis opposite Diahann Carroll as Norma Desmond in the 1995 Canadian production of Sunset Boulevard.

Smith also starred as Fred Graham/Petruchio in the 2001–02 national tour of Kiss Me, Kate.

In 2005, Smith again starred in The Pirates of Penzance, this time playing the role of the Pirate King.[5]

More recently, Smith appeared as the Captain in The Sound of Music at the Ogunquit Playhouse, in 2010.

Personal life

Smith has been married four times:

  • His first marriage was to a Playboy bunny named Lois in the late 1970s. They were married only briefly.
  • Jamie Buell, married on February 28, 1987 and divorced in 1995. The couple had two daughters, Meagan Elizabeth (born 1987) and Madison Marie (born 1990).[6]
  • Courtney Schrage, married in 1998 and divorced a few years later. She later became her husband's manager. The couple have a son, Gatsby Richard (born 1999), and a daughter, Savannah.[6]
  • Dr. Tracy Lin, a doctor in Orange County, CA, whom he married on September 28, 2009

Smith also has a son by Karen Lakey, a record-company representative with whom he had a weekend affair. The son, Brandon, was born in 1980. Father and son met for the first time in 1997, during Smith's appearance in the musical "Sunset Boulevard" when he was signing autographs.[6]

Smith is the brother of Michael Lee Smith, who was the singer of 1970s hard rock band Starz.

Discography

Albums

Year Title Label
1976 Rex Columbia
1977 Where Do We Go from Here Columbia
1979 Sooner or Later Columbia
1980 Forever, Rex Columbia
1981 Pirates of Penzance (Broadway cast album) Elektra
1982 Everlasting Love Columbia
1983 Camouflage Columbia
1997 Sunset Boulevard (Original Canadian Cast recording)
1997 Human Comedy (Original Broadway Cast)
1999 The Scarlet Pimpernel: Encore! (1998 Broadway Revival Cast)
2000 Simply…Rex (re-titled You Take My Breath Away, 2006)

Singles

Year Title Notes
1979 "You Take My Breath Away" U.S. #10
1979 "Simply Jessie"
1979 "Never Gonna Give You Up"
1980 "Forever"
1980 "Let's Make a Memory"
1981 "Everlasting Love" (with Rachel Sweet) U.S. #32, UK #35
1981 "Love Will Always Make You Cry"

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1979 Sooner or Later Michael Skye TV movie
1980 The Love Boat Mark Redding "Vicki's First Love"
1980 Headin' for Broadway Fast Eddie
1980 Saturday Night Live Frederick / Musical guest The cast of The Pirates of Penzance
1983 The Pirates of Penzance Frederick Also on Broadway
1984 Street Hawk Jesse Mach Lead role (13 episodes)
1985 Faerie Tale Theatre The Prince "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"
1987 Shades of Love: Ballerina And The Blues Rick Peterson Lead role
1988 Murder, She Wrote Jerry Wickes "If a Body Meet a Body"
1988 Cagney & Lacey Stew Bennett "Old Flames"
1989 The Trial of the Incredible Hulk Matt Murdock/Daredevil TV movie
1990 Perry Mason: The Case of the Silenced Singer Andy Sacks TV movie
1991–93 As the World Turns Darryl Crawford Daytime serial
1994 Once in a Lifetime Jeffrey Fields TV movie
1994 A Passion To Kill Ted
1997 JAG Sgt. Max Frankl "The Court-Martial of Sandra Gilbert"
1997 Caroline in the City Dr. David Engel "Caroline and the Free Cable"
1998 Richie Rich's Christmas Wish Rudy Video
1998 Baywatch Gavin "Friends Forever"
2006 Pope Dreams Don

References

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External links

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