Walt Willey
ON SOAP OPERA DIGEST AND WEEKLY ONLINE
SOAP STAR STATS
Walt Willey (Jackson, AMC)
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Waly Willey (Jackson, AMC)
— ABC
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Vital Statistics
- Birthday:
- January 26
- Birthplace:
- Ottawa, Illinois
- Marital Status:
- To Marie since July, 1994
- Children:
- Son Chance, born 5/95, and daughter Merit, born 11/25/98
The 411
Walt Willey landed his first contract with AMC as Jackson in 1987 after deciding at the age of 30 to pursue his dream of a show business career. He now splits his time between New York, where the show tapes, and New Mexico, where he and his wife own and operate a bed-and-breakfast called Crystal Mesa Farm. In addition to his frequent stand-up comedy appearances across the country, the actor is an accomplished cartoonist whose work has appeared in Soap Opera Weekly, among other publications. A practicing Buddhist, Willey founded the WilleyWorld Endowment Fund, which gifts children's charities and services.
Et Cetera
—Was parodied by the late Phil Hartman on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE
—Was in contention for the job hosting the syndicated version of WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE?
—majored in sculpture at Southern Illinois University
—earned the on-set nickname Big Daddy from Kelly Ripa (ex-Hayley, AMC)
Career Highlights
Other Soap Roles
Jim LaRusso, ANOTHER WORLD, 1986
Joe Novak, RYAN'S HOPE, 1986-87
numerous bit parts on AMC before the role of Jack came along
Theater Roles
Appeared off-Broadway in Dust Off with Dan Lauria
Memorable Quotes
"The old cocaine-and-white-wine diet was working for me for a while!" — on his previous fitness regimes, Soap Opera Digest, 8/17/04
"I developed a kind of defense mechanism when I was a kid because I stuttered very badly. They're not going to make fun of you if you're already laughing." — on the origin of his sense of humor, Digest, 10/10/92
"For every success story, there are still a hundred people trying to get themselves out of the morass of drugs...We ought to be making human chains to try to drag others out." — on his recovery from cocaine addiction, Digest, 7/12/88
OFFICIAL WEB SITE
www.willeyworld.com
