| Dennis Quaid  Born: 9-Apr-1954
Birthplace: Houston, TX
Gender: Male
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Actor
Party Affiliation: Democratic Nationality: United States
Executive summary: Any Given Sunday Dennis Quaid came from a lower-middle class background, and was raised in Texas. He was drawn to drama in high school, and studied acting at the University of Houston, but not for long. His older brother Randy was having some success in Hollywood, and suggested that Dennis could get on-the-job training as an actor in L.A. In his film debut, Quaid played a bellhop in the Cloris Leachman film Crazy Mama. His first major role came in 1977's 9/30/55, mourning the death of James Dean alongside Richard Thomas and Tom Hulce. Quaid's breakthrough came in 1979, as the frustrated former high school quarterback in the charming Breaking Away.
Quaid met his first wife, actress P. J. Soles, when they both had small roles in Our Winning Season in 1979. He met longtime girlfriend Lea Thompson when they co-starred in Jaws 3D. He met his second wife, actress Meg Ryan, when they co-starred in Innerspace.
In the 1980 western The Long Riders, several famous Hollywood brothers played wild west brothers, including Dennis and Randy Quaid as Clell and Ed Miller. It is the only film the Quaid brothers have made together, though they worked together on Broadway in a mid-1980s production of Sam Shepard's True West.
Quaid played another quarterback in Any Given Sunday, and broke into the major leagues as a 35-year-old pitcher in The Rookie (Quaid himself was 45). He played Jerry Lee Lewis in Great Balls of Fire! and Gordon Cooper in The Right Stuff.
A lot of cocaine has gone up Quaid's nose, but he kicked his addiction in 1988. "I saw myself being dead in about five years if I didn't stop. So I went and got help. I went away for a month." He later joined Weight Watchers and lost 44 pounds for his role in Wyatt Earp (1994). Father: William Quaid ("Buddy", electrician, d. 1987, heart attack)
Mother: Nita Quaid (real estate agent)
Brother: Randy Quaid (actor)
Brother: Buddy Quaid (half-brother, actor, b. 26-Nov-1974)
Wife: P. J. Soles (actress, m. 25-Nov-1978, div. 23-Jan-1983)
Girlfriend: Lea Thompson (actress, cohabited 1983-87, broken engagement)
Wife: Meg Ryan (actress, dated 1987-91, m. 14-Feb-1991, div. 16-Jul-2001, one son)
Son: Jack Henry Quaid (b. 24-Apr-1992)
Girlfriend: Andie MacDowell (actress, together 2001)
Slept with: Shanna Moakler (actress, together 2001)
Wife: Kimberly Buffington (real estate agent, m. 4-Jul-2004, one son, one daughter)
Son: Thomas Quaid (twin via surrogate mother, b. 8-Nov-2007)
Daughter: Zoe Quaid (twin via surrogate mother, b. 8-Nov-2007)
High School: Bellaire Senior High School, Bellaire, TX (1972)
University: University of Houston (dropped out)
unknown detox facility
Risk Factors: Cocaine, Yoga
FILMOGRAPHY AS DIRECTOR
Everything That Rises (12-Jul-1998)
FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR
The Express (12-Sep-2008)
The Horsemen (14-May-2008)
Vantage Point (20-Feb-2008)
Smart People (20-Jan-2008)
Battle for Terra (8-Sep-2007) [VOICE]
American Dreamz (4-Mar-2006)
Yours, Mine and Ours (23-Nov-2005)
Flight of the Phoenix (17-Dec-2004)
In Good Company (6-Dec-2004)
The Day After Tomorrow (17-May-2004)
The Alamo (27-Mar-2004)
Cold Creek Manor (17-Sep-2003)
Far from Heaven (1-Sep-2002)
The Rookie (26-Mar-2002)
Dinner with Friends (11-Aug-2001)
Traffic (27-Dec-2000)
Frequency (28-Apr-2000)
Any Given Sunday (16-Dec-1999)
Playing by Heart (30-Dec-1998)
The Parent Trap (20-Jul-1998)
Everything That Rises (12-Jul-1998)
Savior (1-May-1998)
Switchback (31-Oct-1997)
Gang Related (8-Oct-1997)
Dragonheart (31-May-1996)
Something to Talk About (4-Aug-1995)
Wyatt Earp (24-Jun-1994)
Flesh and Bone (05-Nov-1993)
Undercover Blues (10-Sep-1993)
Wilder Napalm (20-Aug-1993)
Come See the Paradise (23-Dec-1990)
Postcards from the Edge (12-Sep-1990)
Great Balls of Fire! (30-Jun-1989)
Everybody's All-American (04-Nov-1988)
D.O.A. (18-Mar-1988)
Suspect (23-Oct-1987)
Innerspace (1-Jul-1987)
The Big Easy (27-Mar-1987)
Enemy Mine (12-Dec-1985)
Dreamscape (15-Aug-1984)
Bill: On His Own (9-Nov-1983)
The Right Stuff (9-Sep-1983)
Jaws 3-D (22-Jul-1983)
Tough Enough (20-May-1983)
Bill (22-Dec-1981)
The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia (29-May-1981)
Caveman (17-Apr-1981)
All Night Long (6-Mar-1981)
The Long Riders (16-May-1980)
Breaking Away (18-Jul-1979)
Our Winning Season (May-1978)
I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (29-Oct-1977)
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