Shaun Cassidy

Shaun Paul Cassidy (born September 27, 1958) is an American singer, actor, writer and producer. Cassidy starred in the television series The Hardy Boys Mysteries (1977–1979), Breaking Away (1980–1981) and a stint on the daytime soap General Hospital (1987). In the 1980s and 90s, Cassidy worked almost exclusively as an actor in the theater, performing on Broadway and in the West End of London. Since the mid-1990s, Cassidy has been a writer and producer in television, creating and producing a number of television series, including American Gothic, Roar and Invasion. He is currently the consulting producer on NBC's medical drama New Amsterdam. Cassidy is the eldest son of Academy Award-winning actress Shirley Jones and Tony Award-winning actor Jack Cassidy. His older half-brother was David Cassidy.[1]

For the Canadian illustrator, see Sean Cassidy.
For the album, see Shaun Cassidy (album).
Shaun Cassidy
Birth nameShaun Paul Cassidy
Born (1958-09-27) September 27, 1958
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
GenresPop rock
Occupation(s)Singer, actor, writer, producer
InstrumentsGuitar, piano
Years active1976–present
LabelsWarner Bros. (USA)
Associated actsUtopia

Career
Cassidy (right) with Parker Stevenson in The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries

While still in high school, Cassidy signed a contract with Mike Curb's division of Warner Bros. Records and began recording music. He scored a couple of hit singles in several countries, leading to an American release of his first solo album, Shaun Cassidy, in 1977. The multi-platinum album netted him a number-one U.S. single with "Da Doo Ron Ron" and a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist.[2][3] The Eric Carmen–penned "That's Rock 'n' Roll" (which had already been a hit in Australia and Europe) was the follow-up single and peaked at No. 3. His popularity continued with the concurrent arrival of his television series, The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, which also starred Parker Stevenson.

Cassidy's next album Born Late netted the hit "Hey Deanie" (#7), also written by Carmen, and a remake of The Lovin' Spoonful's "Do You Believe in Magic?" became a moderate hit for Cassidy, peaking at No. 31.

Cassidy had released two successful albums, but by the release of his third album, 1978's million-seller Under Wraps, AM radio had dramatically changed formats and his teen-star appeal had begun to fade. His next album, Room Service, failed to chart on the US Billboard 200. Cassidy tried a different musical approach for his final release, 1980's Wasp. This album was more rock/pop-oriented and produced by Todd Rundgren with the group Utopia as the backing band. It featured songs written by Rundgren, Cassidy, and cover versions of songs including David Bowie's "Rebel, Rebel" and The Who's "So Sad About Us" among others.

Cassidy concentrated on stage acting for most of the 1980s and early 1990s. He appeared on Broadway and West End productions such as Mass Appeal and Bus Stop, as well as the American premiere of Pass/Fail at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles. Cassidy won a Dramalogue award for his work in Mark Sheriden's Diary of a Hunger Strike at the L.A.T.C., and his final stage appearance was opposite his half-brother David in the Broadway production of Blood Brothers (which successfully ran for over a year on Broadway, landing Cassidy on the cover of “People” magazine for the third time). It was during this production that Cassidy wrote his first television pilot, American Gothic, opening the door to a long-term contract with Universal Television.

From the late 1990s, Cassidy created, wrote, and produced numerous shows for network and cable including American Gothic, Roar (starring Heath Ledger), Cover Me, Invasion, Ruby & the Rockits, Emerald City and more recently, New Amsterdam (starring Ryan Eggold).

Personal life

Cassidy grew up in Los Angeles and New York City, attending boarding school in Bucks County, Pennsylvania at the Solebury School in Newtown, and graduating from Beverly Hills High School. In addition to an elder half-brother, David Cassidy, he has two younger brothers, Patrick and Ryan Cassidy.[4]

Marriages and children

Cassidy has been married three times and has eight children. His first wife was Ann Pennington, a model and former Playboy playmate; she and Cassidy married in 1979 and divorced in 1993. From this marriage Cassidy has a daughter, Caitlin (b. 1981); a son, Jake (born 1985); and a stepdaughter, Jessica (born 1970).[5]

He married actress Susan Diol in 1995. They have one daughter, Juliet (born 1998), and divorced in 2003.[6]

He has been married to producer Tracey Lynne Turner since 2004. They have four children: Caleb (born 2005), Roan (born 2006), Lila (born 2008), and Mairin (born 2011).[7]

Discography

Albums

Compilations

Soundtrack appearances

Other album appearances
  • 1991: The Christmas Album... A Gift of Hope – Benefitting Hospitals for Children (track: "Silver Bells" with Shirley Jones)

Singles
Shaun Cassidy singles
Year Title US Billboard
[8]		 US Cash Box US AC
[9]		 CAN RPM 100 CAN AC AUS
[10]		 NZ GE
[11]
1976 "Morning Girl"[12] — — — — — — — 40
"Hey There Lonely Girl"[13] — — — — — 5 — —
1977 "Be My Baby" [14] — — — — — — — 39
"Da Doo Ron Ron" 1 1 33 1 39 — 36 19
"That's Rock 'n' Roll" 3 4 — 1 — 2 — 11
"Hey Deanie" 7 21 — 23 — — — —
1978 "Do You Believe in Magic" 31 37 — 39 — — — —
"Our Night" 80 — — — — — — —
"Hard Love" — — — — — — — —
"Midnight Sun"[15] — — — — 32 — — —
1979 "You're Usin' Me" — — — — — — — —
1989 "Memory Girl" — — — — — — — —

Filmography

Actor

Writer

Producer
  • 1995: American Gothic (supervising producer; producer for pilot)
  • 1997: Roar (executive producer)
  • 1998: Hollyweird (executive producer)
  • 2000–01: Cover Me: Based on the True Life of an FBI Family (executive producer)
  • 2001–03: The Agency (executive producer)
  • 2003: Cold Case (executive producer)
  • 2004–05: The Mountain (executive producer)
  • 2005–06: Invasion (executive producer)
  • 2008: Inseparable (executive producer)
  • 2009: Ruby & The Rockits (executive producer)
  • 2011–12: Blue Bloods (consulting producer)
  • 2012: The Frontier (executive producer)
  • 2014: Hysteria (pilot; executive producer)
  • 2016: Emerald City (executive producer)
  • 2018: New Amsterdam (consulting producer)

References
  1. "Shaun Cassidy: Biography". Television Show. Retrieved December 23, 2011.
  2. "WB Rides Sizzling Singles Sales". Billboard. December 10, 1977. Retrieved January 30, 2012.
  3. "Grammy Rewind: 20th Annual Grammy Awards". Grammy.com. January 17, 2012. Retrieved January 30, 2012.
  4. "Cassidy on Staying Grounded". Oprah.com. Retrieved December 23, 2011.
  5. Allis, Tim (November 1, 1993). "The Boys Are Back". People.com.
  6. "Episode 388: Shaun Cassidy". Rocksolidpodcast.com.
  7. Shannon, Gary. "Where Are They Now? Shaun Cassidy." 92.9thelake.com.
  8. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 – ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  9. Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 45.
  10. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  11. "Suche - Offizielle Deutsche Charts". Offiziellecharts.de.
  12. Steffen Hung. "Shaun Cassidy – Morning Girl". Hitparade.ch. Archived from the original on 2016-04-06. Retrieved 2016-10-12.
  13. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  14. "Suche – Offizielle Deutsche Charts". Offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 2016-10-12.
  15. Canada, Library and Archives (July 17, 2013). "Image : RPM Weekly". Bac-lac.gc.ca.
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