Linden Ashby
A Biographical Sketch



(This is an unauthorized biographical sketch of the immensely talented American actor, Linden Ashby.  The information contain herein has been gleaned from various Internet, TV talk show, and/or published sources and is correct and current to the best of The Linden Ashby Fan Site’s knowledge as of the summer fall of 2007 . )


On 23 May 23, 1960, a baby boy was born to Eleanor and Clarence Linden Garnett Ashby II—known as Garnett—in Atlantic Beach, Florida.  The baby—Clarence Linden Garnett Ashby III—is none other than the incredibly talented American actor today known as Linden Ashby!  Linden, the only boy, is the youngest of the family’s three children.

Although the Ashby name shows up in other parts of the US, Linden’s own family appears concentrated in the south Georgia/north Florida area.  For all we know, Linden’s family may be descended from a member of the pre-revolutionary English penal colony that was once located in Georgia!  We have no idea when the family actually came to the United States—for  all we know, Linden’s family may be descended from a member of the pre-revolutionary English penal colony that was once located in Georgia—but a retired professor from Florida State University and Registrar General of the “National Society of Washington Family Descendants” (a genealogical society) has traced Linden’s family at least as far back as a great-grandfather of the first US president which would make Linden a first cousin (many times removed) of George Washington!  but the The Ashby name does appears in a number of Civil War documents—and with an old Southern sounding name like Clarence Linden Garnett Ashby III, we can easily imagine Linden dressed in a Confederate Army officer uniform—and this source also confirms that at least one of Linden’s ancestors served in the Confederate Army in J.E.B. Stuart’s cavalry.  
 
In terms of Linden’s more distant ancestry, there is Castle Ashby, located in NW Leicestershire, SSW of Northampton in the heart of England’s National Forest.  Castle Ashby dates from the 11th century, is presently owned by the 7th Marques of Northampton and is apparently now being run as a very upscale bed and breakfast.  Throughout its history, the Castle has been visited by many notable figures including Queen Elizabeth I, James I, Henry VII, Charles I and Mary Queen of Scots who visited twice, once in 1569 and again in 1586 while in confinement. 

Linden grew up in an affluent family in Atlantic Beach, Florida, which was then a small summer resort town just south of the better-known city of Jacksonville, Florida.  This area on the east coast of northern Florida is part of the “old South” and not to be confused with the better known parts of Florida that are several hundred miles further south and largely populated now-a-days by people who have relocated from other parts of the US and Canada. 

Linden’s father is the CFO of the privately held family-owned pharmaceutical company, the Monticello Drug Company, founded by Dr. T. S. Roberts, Pharmacist that has been producing over-the-counter preparations since it was incorporated in 1908.  Several of Linden’s cousins hold various management positions within the company as well.  Linden’s mother has been a civic organizer and retired as Executive Director of “Leadership Jacksonville” in 1998.  The family lived in “a big old house right on the beach”, but “had a ranch so I was split between being a beach bum and mucking out stables.” It was here that Linden developed his life long involvement with surfing—beginning to surf at nine years old. 

Despite the family’s financial well-being, however, Linden’s father believed in developing a serious work ethic in his children. "He would make me work these really hard and tough jobs. Hanging drywall, sheetrock, working in shipyards, digging ditches for a cable company. He wanted me to see how real people worked.  Try working outdoors and lifting heavy things.  That’s real work and it sucks!”  At some point during those years, Linden also worked as a lifeguard, both ocean and pool, at a large resort in Florida.  Linden attended the Bolles School, a private high school, in Jacksonville where he played soccer and surfed competitively. He was such an accomplished surfer that he was actually invited to the East Coast championships three times!

At 18, Linden left Florida and went away to school at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado where he majored in business and psychology.  Linden says that he went sight unseen because he liked the picture of a skier on the college brochure!  Linden ended up spending 100 days skiing his first year in Colorado.  He eventually both raced and taught skiing there as well as doing plays and becoming more and more involved in theater.  Despite what sounds like not having much time to hit the books, Linden was able to maintain a very impressive 3.5 GPA through his junior year when he dropped out of school and moved to New York City to pursue his acting career. 

Of course you might wonder if a guy as good-looking as Linden has ever done any modelling.  Actually, Linden did work briefly as a model for a department store in Jacksonville, FL appearing in print ads for men’s clothing: “I have never done any serious modelling. When I was in college, I did pictures for the May Company in Florida. It paid $40 bucks an hour and I thought it was amazing. I was working in construction making $5 bucks and then I modelled and got $40 and it ruined my perspective. I said, ‘I can do this, just stand here and smile’." 
 
Linden studied with Sanford Meisner at The Neighborhood Playhouse in New York for two years.  Parts in local theater productions of “The Sorrows of Fredricks”, “Rags to Reubens” and “Three-Handed Hearts” soon led to parts in the off-Broadway productions of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and “But Mostly Because It's Raining”.  Linden was directed in a number of off-Broadway productions by the noted actress/director Joanne Woodward, including “Battle for New Orleans”, “Waiting for Lefty”, “Echos”, and “Nuptial Song”, and also did a few TV commercials—one for HBO where he ate Chinese food and watched TV, one where he sold Arrid Extra Dry, an underarm deodorant, with dialogue decrying “women who sweat”. 

On becoming an actor, Linden has said: “I don't think you decide to become an actor, at least I don’t think you should.  I think it should be something that you need to do—that you won't be happy doing anything else—because the reality of the business is too tough to do unless you have a passion for it and unless you can't be happy doing anything else. So I didn't choose it, it chose me.” 

In 1983, Linden had a “day job” on the New York based ABC-TV daytime soap opera “Loving”.  Although they had never spoken, Linden’s wife, actress Susan Walters, says the first time she saw him she told her makeup artist, “That’s the man I’m going to marry!” Three years later Linden became a regular on “Loving” where he worked for about a year and a half playing Susan’s cousin.  One night in the fall of 1985, soon after Linden returned to “Loving”, Susan, accompanied by fellow actor John Allen Nelsen, went to a party at Linden’s apartment.  Linden and Susan began dating, moved in together after dating three days, and got married on April 19, 1986, five months after their first date!

In 1987, Linden and Susan moved to California to pursue their careers.  Linden soon landed a role in the TV miniseries “Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story”, starring Farah Fawcett.  Linden was rather naïve then to the ways of Hollywood:  “This was, honest to God, two to three weeks after I got to town.  My first day of work, my only other job on TV was a soap opera and they just do ‘five, four, three’ and you act.  The first thing I filmed on this miniseries is I dive into the pool, swim across and get out and eat breakfast.  They said ‘rolling’ and I dived in.  The director said ‘Next time, wait until I say action!’” 
Despite a great performance as the adult Lance, Barbara Hutton’s son, Linden didn’t work that steadily for the next few years. Instead, he spent most of his time between the years 1989 to 1991 playing guitar, writing songs, and being the lead singer in a California rock band called “The Loners” which had a simple, Buddy Holly-like quality.  (If you connect to the Loners website you can actually listen to Linden singing good old-fashion American rock-and-roll, and, if you like the music, you can purchase a copy online.)

But he did continue to work at his craft.  He had a small role in the pilot movie for “Werewolf” in 1987, and guest appearances in a number of TV series: “China Beach” in 1988, “Hardball” in 1989, “MacGyver” in 1990.  In 1990, Linden also starred in the horror movie “Night Angel” (released in the UK as “Hellborn”) and is credited as being in the movie “Mr. and Mrs. Bridge” starring his “old friend from his NYC days” Joanne Woodward and her husband Paul Newman. (Despite multiple viewings, however, we have never been able to spot Linden in “Mr. and Mrs. Bridge”, though there is one scene filmed in heavy shadow where one of the voices sounds like it could be his.)  Linden then starred in the TV movie “The Perfect Bride” in 1991 and made a guest appearance on the TV series “Equal Justice”. Linden did a failed TV pilot, “New Year”, and three movies in 1992: “Into the Sun”, the Showtime TV movie short “Fifteenth Phase of the Moon”, and the “Tango” segment of the Playboy video “Inside Out III”.  And, then, in January 1993 Linden made two guest appearances on “Melrose Place”, playing Charles Reynolds, the abusive alcoholic ex-husband of Jo Beth Reynolds, series regular Daphne Zuniga.

Linden probably first went “big league” when he was cast as Morgan Earp, Kevin Costner’s youngest brother, in the 1994 western “Wyatt Earp”.  In his typical self-effacing manner, Linden described the rehearsal period as “mortifying”.  He said: “You walk into the room and realize that you’re the only person you’ve never heard of.  All my actor’s insecurities came out.  I kept thinking than any second they’re going to walk up and say to me, ‘We tried to make it work, but it was a really big mistake, and we’re going to have to replace you.’  I really don’t know how I made it through that rehearsal week.  It was the most stressful week of my life.” 

At the time, director Lawrence Kasdan said he was looking for “someone who was charming with a youthful recklessness, and Linden embodied these qualities.  He’s lively with a winning personality.  He’s open and energetic, ready to learn.  He’s athletic, which is a big part of American movie acting.  It’s hard to tell what’s ahead for him, but he’s certainly in a good place for a career in American movies.  He’s the kind of guy we’ve generally been drawn to as leading men, with sweetness and sex appeal.”

Linden also had a small part in 1994’s “8 Seconds” (aka “The Lane Frost Story”) where he played the old flame of the lead character’s wife, another a small part in “Slaughter of the Innocents”, where he played a cop who responses to a distress call and was in a TV movie/TV pilot called “Green Dolphin Beat” (aka “Green Dolphin Street”).  

Still, the role Linden remains most identified with, at least for now, is 1995’s “Mortal Kombat”.  Linden has been a student of martial arts “on and off” since he was 21 “with a lot of time off”.   He’s mostly studied “Karate, with some Taw Kwon Do, and some Chinese styles thrown into the mix”.  His current favorite style is Wing Chong.  (Incidentally, the actor who played Scorpion in the film happens to be Linden’s real life martial arts instructor.)  "But once I got the part, they put me with [fight choreographer] Pat Johnson for two solid months of intensive training. And it wasn't just your typical martial arts movie moves. Since each character in the Mortal Kombat video game has his own special moves, I had to become very adept at Johnny Cage's—the shadow kick and the split. So, I practiced day in and day out, and by the time we started shooting, I could do those moves in my sleep.” In spite of all this training, Linden still says, with Johnny Cage style self-depreciating humour: “I’m a good movie martial artist.  It’s so much better when you know the person is going to hit you—and they’re being paid to let you hit them.  It works better that way.”

In 1996, Linden starred as the hero in “Blast”, who, using his martial arts skills, saves an Olympic swim team held hostage, and played the police detective partner to the starring Eric Roberts in the made for FOX-TV movie, “Dark Angel”. 

Linden had a very busy year professionally in 1997.  Not only did he have his own, unfortunately short-lived, TV series, “Spy Game” that combined a terrific “tongue-in-cheek” quality with lots of martial arts, Linden also starred in a two movies: an HBO movie made by Playboy called “The Beneficiary” and a theatrical film called “Cadillac Ranch”, and had a supporting role in “Shelter” starring his old friend John Allen Nelson.  Linden plays very different characters in each of these films, clearly demonstrating both his impressive ability and his amazing versatility as an actor.

Then, while on a surfing trip to Costa Rica with a long time friend, Linden called home to check on Susan and his daughters (Grace, born in June ’91, and Savannah, born in November ’92).  “So we were down there surfing and I called back home to check in and Susan said, ‘Aaron Spelling offered you a job to do 10 episodes on “Melrose”.’ It was kind of a bad connection, and I said, ‘I'll deal with it when I get back.’ When I got back, an even better offer was waiting for me! Being out of the country and out of communication is the best negotiating tool I've ever used in my life.”

“Melrose Place” was not a great experience for Linden or for his fans who watched faithfully each week during the 1997-1998 TV season as Linden valiantly tried to make a poorly written and unfocused character work.  As Linden himself said: “They didn't know what to do with Coop. He was good; he was bad; he was manipulative; he was the victim. Coop didn't really ever fit in. He was all over the place. Of the 32 or so shows I did, I felt that maybe five made sense to me. The whole thing spiraled into absurdity. They finally got me with Megan and that was a lot of fun. But by the time the writers got a real handle on who Coop was, the decision was already made [to write out the character]."  Regarding the sub-plot written to eliminate Linden’s character at the end of the season, Linden says, “People came up to me and said ‘I would have bet a million dollars that your character wouldn't have done that’."  (By the way, for you MP fans out there, Linden’s favorite episode is #6-18, titled “Mama Mia”.)

Nevertheless, Linden said upon leaving Melrose:  "I made over a million dollars last year on that show and hey that's a lot of f—ing money. I'd still come back and tie up the character if they asked me. There are a lot of good people there. I have no complaints. That show allowed me to be in a position to take the jobs I want."

In 1998, Linden did three TV movies, “The Lake”, a sci-fi movie with Yasmine Bleeth (there had been talk at the time of turning this one into a weekly series), “Beauty”, a re-working of the classic “Beauty and the Beast”, and “Murder She Purred: A Mrs. Murphy Mystery”, for “The Wonderful World of Disney”.  In addition, Linden made a guest appearance on the TV series “The Love Boat: The Next Wave” playing a World War II pilot who had been lost in the Bermuda Triangle for nearly sixty years!

Linden also appeared on the cover of the May 1998 “Playgirl Magazine”.  The interview of the “Melrose Place mega-hunk” was 6 pages long and although Linden didn’t like the cover photo (on close inspection it becomes obvious that the photo was reversed!), the article did include 6 other really good photos.  In response to the question “What did your mother think about your appearance on the cover of “Playgirl”, Linden said: “Well, she was happy to hear that I was on the cover and not nude inside. She cut out the pages that I was on and threw out the rest of the magazine.”

There was also some other interesting information in the article. For instance, the interviewer stated “You’re in great shape” and asked Linden, “standing tall at 5'11" and exceptionally fit at 165 pounds”, “What are your secrets for staying in condition?”  Linden replied: “I exercise three times a week, using a mix of machines and free weights. I work different parts of the body every day but I try to do something stomach-related every day.  I'll run a few times a week but I'll usually cut my run short and go on a two-mile loop to Starbucks. I run to food…it's the only way I'll run. I've got to have food at the end, like a rat in a maze. I also work out on a heavy bag, throw some kicks and punches, just to stay loose. I don't do as much martial arts as I would like to right now. It's just a question of finding time. Unemployment is good for my martial arts. I surf all the time, play a little golf and a bit of tennis. I snow ski, rock climb, fly my own plane (a six-seat, single-engine Piper Lance with retractable gear). Basically, do anything that will give me an adrenaline rush.” 

Linden also responded to a question as to whether he had ever gotten sexually aroused while doing a love scene, by saying “Of course. Like that famous line goes: ‘Forgive me if I do and forgive me if I don't’. I don't know how to fake it like that. Some people can separate the two, but if you're kissing somebody and being intimate with them, then what happens, happens.”

What is always evident when Linden is not in character, whether he’s being interviewed live or in print, is how warm and funny, committed to his wife and kids, self-depreciating, charming and totally unimpressed with himself he truly is. Regarding what he considers the best part of being married since 1986, he replied: “The partnership. It's the being together and the day in, day out love. It's having and building a family. It's sharing. It's not unconditional love, but it's pretty damned close.” 

During 1999, a number of Linden’s movies were released: “Where the Truth Lies”, a TV movie where Linden plays a District Attorney who had previously been romantically involved with the defense attorney, “The Time of Her Time”, though made in 1997, this art-house movie based on the Norman Mailer story about sexual coming of age during the 50's, wasn’t released until 1999, “Judgment Day”, a doomsday thriller where Linden plays a captured scientist with the answer to saving the planet, and “Dangerous Attraction”, an erotic thriller where Linden truly displays his acting ability playing twins (hey, the guy is a Gemini, after all), one a mild mannered geek, the other a hot, sexy psychopath. 

Another short-lived TV series followed in 2000, “The War Next Door”, an incredibly clever and funny half-hour sci-fi comedy that sadly did not find its audience quickly enough to satisfy the network suits.  In this venture, Linden got to display both this comedic and his martial arts talents!  Susan Walters co-starred as the wife of Linden’s character.  Linden also starred in “Tick Tock” a suspense thriller with both extremely clever plot twists and a clever time-shift filming technique as well as making a guest appearance on the TV series “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation”.

In 2001, Linden starred in “Facing the Enemy” with Alexandra Paul and made a guest appearances on both Canada’s “Men on Woman” and “Table for Two” followed by three films in 2002:  “Whacked!” with Carmen Electra, “Sniper 2” with Tom Berenger, and “Fits and Starts” with Holland Taylor as well as making two guest appearances on the TV series “The Agency” playing the estranged husband of one of the series’ regulars.

Three movies followed in 2003:  “A Woman Hunted”, as a police detective investigating Alexandra Paul, “Shrink Rap”, in a great comedic turn playing an alcoholic soap opera star, and “The Company You Keep”, playing a world-weary career criminal masquerading as a priest who takes to the road with an escaped convict and the convict’s jailbait girlfriend.  Then, on 21 November 21, 2003, Linden began a limited time story arc on the CBS-TV daytime soap opera “The Young and the Restless”, appearing in a total of 60 episodes, the last of which aired on 12 August 12, 2004.

During 2004, “Wild Things 2” was released with Linden in a supporting role as a police detective.  Linden also filmed “Sub Zero”, a doomsday thriller set on top of a snow covered mountain as a group of rock climbers try “to recover the one item that can prevent mankind’s certain annihilation”, and “Wild Things 3” where Linden’s role as “Detective Morrison” was greatly expanded both in importance and in screen time from the previous film.

So far this year, In 2005, “Wild Things 3”—released as “Wild Things: Diamonds in the Rough”—premiered in February, Linden had a guest role on “Eyes” (a short lived TV series) in April (and appeared in two additional unaired episodes), and “A Killer Upstairs”, a made-for-TV movie, premiered in May. , and a made-for-Canadian-TV movie, “Last Exit” with Linden’s “Dangerous Attraction” co-star Andrea Roth, was filmed in August (premiered 9 July 2006) followed by a guest appearance on “CSI: Miami” in October 2005. 

In 2004, Linden was quoted in several articles saying that he had signed for “Mortal Kombat 3” and would be reprising his role as Johnny Cage—to the best of our knowledge this information is still true although there has not yet been any official announcement that the movie has begun filming.

At the end of 2005, “Dead Mule Suitcase”, with Robin Shou directing/producing/and staring as Jack Lam in a tale of a rogue DEA agent whose partner disappears while working undercover in Thailand was announced for release in 2007 (although there is no additional information as of this writing).  Linden plays a character named Harvey, who becomes “a mentor to Jack, essentially replacing his missing partner”.  Reportedly, Linden’s role is “pretty substantial with lots of action” (quotes attributed to Robin Shou).

2006 began with the debut of “Maid of Honour” on 2nd January  on Lifetime-TV with Linden portraying the lusted after object of the title character’s obsession, followed by the long awaited official release of “Shrink Rap” on DVD in March.  Linden played the husband of one of the principals in “Last Exit”, a tale of road rage in a large Canadian city, which premiered on Lifetime-TV on 9th July, followed by another made-for-Lifetime-TV, “The Rival”, on 9th October, with Linden as the male lead in a tale of surrogacy gone wrong.

In April 2006, it was announced that Linden would have a small part in “Rambo 4”—playing a character named Col. Dwyer—although subsequent information stated that the original script had been jettisoned, so Linden’s participation in this film is unclear at this point.  This movie is now scheduled for release on 25 January 2008.

“Mortal Kombat 3” which was expected to begin production in Louisiana in 2005, was again postponed following the devastating hurricane that ravaged that area in the fall of that year.  And, around the middle of 2006, Robin Shou’s official website announced that MK3 was now going to be filmed as a prequel to the original film and that none of the original actors would be in the movie.  Subsequently, the IMDb removed MK3 from Linden’s filmography.

Meanwhile, a low budget indie called “Plot 7” (formerly know as “Woodland Drive”) has been completed and is scheduled for release in early 2008.  Linden plays the lead in this horror/ psychological thriller which involves an aspiring author and “murderous paranoia”.  Also completed filming in the summer of 2006 was “Resident Evil: Extinction”.  Linden plays a “cowboy named Chase” in this film—the third in the “Resident Evil” series—which was released theatrically on 21 September 2007. 

Linden, who played the role of Morgan Earp in 1994’s “Wyatt Earp”, participated in a commemorative celebration of the 125th anniversary of the “Gunfight at the OK Corral” in Tomstone, AZ in the fall of 2006 and while he was there he gave an on-camera interview for an as of yet unsold TV pilot called “History on a [sic] Iron Horse”.

In the spring of 2007, Linden and Susan sold their home in Sherman Oaks, CA and relocated with their two daughters to a suburb of Atlanta, GA, the area that Susan is originally from.  Linden also starred in another made-for-Lifetime movie, which premiered in June 2007, titled “My Neighbour’s Keeper” playing the on-again/off-again suspect in his wife’s murder and completed production of a direct-to-video movie title “Breaking Point” which is scheduled for release in 2008.


Titbits/Miscellaneous Quotes:

Favorite beverage: “Well, beer.  And I can think of a trillion reasons why.”

Favorite food: Sushi

Favorite snack: “Gummi Bears.  Oh, and cigarettes and beer.  Actually, they all go together very well.”

Brand of cigarettes: Marlboro Lights.  (At least that’s what he smoked in 1994, and, although Linden apparently still smokes, there hasn’t been a more recent mention of a specific band.)

Favorite colour:  There are a lot of photos around of Linden over the years in blue shirts—especially blue denim shirts in varying degrees of "fade". 

Boxers or Briefs: Boxers

Bed Clothes: “I wear nothing to bed.  It makes it a little dicey during an earthquake when you have to run out naked, but I can’t sleep with clothes on.” 

Music: “I love Bob Marley.” 

Favorite TV: Has satellite, watches “a ton of movies and sports.  Hey, I’m a guy!” 

Favorite Actresses: Alfre Woodard, Lena Olin

Favorite Place: “My favorite place is the beach.  Give me a good beach with good waves and I am a happy camper.”  

Favorite Beach for Surfing: “Zeroes”, just south of the county line near LA.

Sports/Thrill Seeking: Snow skiing, motorcycling, surfing, rock climbing, tennis, golf, martial arts, water skiing, flying.  “Thrills are an important part of life.  They make you feel alive."
  
On Flying: “I’ve been doing some surfing and this afternoon I feel like flying and I’m hungry, so I’m going to fly my plane to Santa Barbara for a hamburger.”  Linden also says he enjoys the freedom to surf in the morning and then fly to the mountains and ski in the afternoon!  (In an interview in June 2002, however, Susan stated that Linden no long has the plane.)

In “CB” days of old:  Linden’s handle was “Prairie Dog”

Enjoy Acting?: “I do, I don’t necessarily get joy out of show business, but I do out of acting.” 
Alternate Career Choice: Veterinarian 

Philosophy: “I get a joy out of getting up in the morning.  It is a one way ticket and we have a limited amount of time here and you should make the most of it.” And, "Susan and I worked all summer. So, now I've been hanging with the kids, doing a lot of stuff around the house. I love my life. I have a beautiful wife, two beautiful kids and I get work in a very tough business."

Future Action Roles?: “Absolutely, I think I am going to go in that direction.  I enjoy the physicality of it.  You can go to work and come home sore.  Better than digging ditches.”

Favorite Social Causes:  Linden is a member of the “Surf Rider Foundation” an ecology focused group that works to maintain the cleanliness of surfing spots and of oceans in general.  He is also involved, although not as much as Susan is, with “Thursday’s Child” which offers help to troubled teens.
Random Observations: (1) With few exceptions, Linden always wears a wristwatch in every scene—even in bed, in the shower, or in the pool, (2) he also always wears a simple gold wedding band off-camera.

About Lindens’ lack of a Southern accent:  Although Linden worked diligently to erase any trace of his “Southern drawl”, he has appeared in a number of movies playing characters with a Southern accent such as “Cadillac Ranch”, “Dangerous Attraction”, “Shelter, “8 Seconds”, “Where the Truth Lies”, and “Tick Tock”, and “Resident Evil: Extinction.

Dog: Charlie, a mutt from the Animal Shelter

Home Address: Sherman Oaks, CA   a suburb just outside of Atlanta, GA

To Contact Linden, write to: Linden Ashby
    c/o Metropolitan Talent Agency
    4526 Wilshire Boulevard
    Los Angles, California 90010
    USA
   








(28/7/04)
Updated:
22/6/05
29/11/07
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