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.

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. 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.

Smith performed live at the 1982 Miss Universe 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.

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.

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
• 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).
• 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.
• 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.

Discography

Albums

Year	Title	Label
1976	Rex	Columbia
1977	Where Do We Go from Here	Columbia
1979	Sooner or Later	Columbia
1980	Forever, Rex Smith	Columbia
1981	The Pirates of Penzance (Broadway Cast Album)	Elektra
1981	Everlasting Love	Columbia
1983	Camouflage	Columbia
1995	Sunset Boulevard (Original Canadian Cast Recording)	Polydor
1997	The Human Comedy (Original Broadway Cast Recording)	Kilmarnock Records
1999	The Scarlet Pimpernel: Encore! (1998 Broadway Revival Cast)	Atlantic
2000	Simply…Rex (re-titled You Take My Breath Away, 2006)	MCA/Universal

Singles

Year	Title	Notes
1979	"You Take My Breath Away"	U.S. Billboard #10, Cash Box #7
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	Frederic / Musical guest	The cast of The Pirates of Penzance
1983	The Pirates of Penzance	Frederic	Also on Broadway
1984	Street Hawk	Jesse Mach	Lead role (13 episodes)
1985	Faerie Tale Theatre	The Prince	"Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"
1986	Murder, She Wrote	Stew Bennett	"If a Body Meet a Body"
1987	Houston Knights	Jake Bodine	"Desperado"
1987	Shades of Love: The Ballerina and the Blues	Rick Peterson	TV movie
1988	Cagney & Lacey	Jerry Wickes	"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
1993	Silk Stalkings	Bob Johnson	"Night Games"
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	Direct-to-video
1998	Baywatch	Gavin	"Friends Forever"
1999	Malibu, CA	Jesse Mercer	"Jason's Song"
2000	The Norm Show	Pirate #1	"Norm vs. Jenny"
2002	Just Cause	Keith Temple	"Fading Star"
2006	Pope Dreams	Don

[ Source: Wikipedia ]