Chad Allen (born June 5, 1974) is an American

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

and retired actor. Beginning his career at the age of seven, Allen is a three-time

Young Artist Award The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...

winner and

GLAAD Media Award The GLAAD Media Award is an accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their live ...

honoree. He was a

teen idol A teen idol is a celebrity with a large teenage fan base. Teen idols are generally young but are not necessarily teenagers. An idol's popularity may be limited to teens, or may extend to all age groups. By region Asia East Asia possess ...

during the late 1980s as David Witherspoon on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

family drama '' Our House'' and as Zach Nichols on the

sitcom ''

My Two Dads ''My Two Dads'' is an American sitcom television series that was produced by Michael Jacobs (producer), Michael Jacobs Productions in association with TriStar Television, Tri-Star Television (later Columbia Pictures Television) and distributed b ...

'' before transitioning to an adult career as Matthew Cooper on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

western drama '' Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman''. He announced his retirement from acting in April 2015.

Early life

Allen was born Chad Allen Lazzari on June 5, 1974, in

Cerritos, California Cerritos (Spanish for "Little hills") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, and is one of several cities that constitute the Gateway Cities of southeast Los Angeles County. It was incorporated on April 24, 1956. As of 20 ...

, and grew up in Artesia. He has a twin sister named Charity and a brother named Steve Lazzari who works for

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

. Allen is of predominantly

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

origin, with a "dose" of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

origin. He was raised in a "strict"

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

household and regards himself as being a "deeply spiritual person" because of his upbringing. Allen attended St. John Bosco High School in

Bellflower, California Bellflower is a city located in southeast Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It was founded in 1906 and municipal corporation, incorporated on September 3, 1957. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total popu ...

Career

Allen guest-starred on several

prime time Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...

series, including an early episode of ''

Airwolf ''Airwolf'' is an American action military drama television series that centers on a high-technology military helicopter, code-named ''Airwolf'', and its crew. The show follows them as they undertake various exotic missions, many involving esp ...

'' for which he was nominated as "Best Young Actor: Guest in a Series" at the 6th Youth in Film Awards and '' St. Elsewhere'', in which he played

autistic The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

child Tommy Westphall (1983–88). The series final episode, " The Last One", ends with the indication that all of its storylines occurred in Tommy's imagination. In 1983, he appeared on ''

Cutter to Houston ''Cutter to Houston'' is an American medical drama starring Shelley Hack, Jim Metzler, and Alec Baldwin that aired on CBS on Saturday night from October 1 to December 31, 1983 at 8 p.m Eastern time. The series was created by Sandor Stern. Synops ...

'', playing "a kid who got hurt and had to be given mouth-to-mouth and carried to the waiting chopper by Dr. Hal Wexler (

Alec Baldwin Alexander Rae Baldwin III (born April 3, 1958) is an American actor, comedian, and producer. In his early career, Baldwin played both leading and supporting roles in a variety of films such as Tim Burton's ''Beetlejuice'' (1988), Mike Nichol ...

)". "I thought it was the greatest job I had ever gotten," he later stated. Allen's first regular role was as David Witherspoon on '' Our House'' (1986–88). In 1989–90, he had a recurring role as Zach in ''

''. Allen's next contract role was Matthew Cooper in ''

Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman ''Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman'' is an American Western drama television series created and executive produced by Beth Sullivan and starring Jane Seymour, who plays Dr. Michaela Quinn, a physician who leaves Boston in search of adventure in the O ...

'' alongside

Jane Seymour Jane Seymour (c. 150824 October 1537) was List of English consorts, Queen of England as the third wife of King Henry VIII of England from their Wives of Henry VIII, marriage on 30 May 1536 until her death the next year. She became queen followi ...

(1993–98). During the final season of his run on ''St. Elsewhere'', Allen was teamed with his sister Charity Allen on an episode of NBC's Saturday morning children's game show ''

I'm Telling! ''I'm Telling!'' is an American television game show, which ran from September 12, 1987 to March 5, 1988 on NBC Saturday mornings and was hosted by Laurie Faso with Dean Goss announcing. The show is essentially a children's version of ''The Newl ...

''. Starting with '' Third Man Out'' (2005), Allen stars as Donald Strachey, a gay private detective in a

monogamous Monogamy ( ) is a form of Dyad (sociology), dyadic Intimate relationship, relationship in which an individual has only one Significant other, partner during their lifetime. Alternately, only one partner at any one time (Monogamy#Serial monogamy, ...

relationship, in a series of

television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

s for the

here! Here TV is an American premium television network targeting LGBT audiences. Launched in 2002, Here TV is available nationwide on all major cable systems, fiber optics systems, and Internet TV providers as either a 24/7 premium subscription channe ...

network based on novels by Richard Stevenson. The

sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...

, '' Shock to the System'' (2006), was followed by ''

On the Other Hand, Death ''On the Other Hand, Death'' is a 2008 gay-themed mystery film. It is the third film adaptation of a Richard Stevenson novel featuring fictional detective Donald Strachey. The film was screened at several LGBT film festivals, including the New Yo ...

'' (2008) and ''

Ice Blues ''Ice Blues'' is a 2008 gay-themed mystery television film starring Chad Allen and Sebastian Spence, and directed by Emmy-nominated Canadian-born director Ron Oliver. featuring fictional detective Donald Strachey. It is the third adaptation of a ...

'' (2008). Allen noted that Strachey is the first gay character he had ever played outside of theater and that, though his career is "different" since coming out, he finds it "more interesting and fun for me than it has ever been." When Allen was cast as real-life

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

Nate Saint Nathanael Saint (30 August 19238 January 1956) was an evangelical Christian missionary pilot who, along with four others, was killed in Ecuador while attempting to evangelize the Huaorani people through efforts known as Operation Auca. Earl ...

in the

docudrama Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television and film, which features dramatized re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of documentary and drama and "a fact-based representation of real event". Docudramas typic ...

'' End of the Spear'' (2006) some conservative Christians lashed out at producers for casting an openly gay man in the role. In 2007, Allen starred in the film '' Save Me''. Developed and produced by Allen, the film was directed by Robert Cary and written by

Robert Desiderio Robert Desiderio (born September 9, 1951) is an American actor best known for his roles on television. Life and career Desiderio was born in The Bronx, the son of Mary (née Demattia) and Anthony J. Desiderio. He and actress Judith Light marrie ...

. ''Save Me'', a film exploring the

ex-gay The ex-gay movement consists of people and organizations that encourage people to refrain from entering or pursuing same-sex relationships, to eliminate homosexual desires and to develop heterosexual desires, or to enter into a heterosexual relat ...

movement, premiered at the 2007

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

and was later picked up for distribution by independent studio

Fine Line Features Fine Line Features (often spelled as FineLine Features) was the specialty films division of New Line Cinema. From 1991 to 2005, under founder and president Ira Deutchman, Fine Line acquired, distributed and marketed films of a more "indie" flav ...

. From June through August 2008, Allen appeared with

Valerie Harper Valerie Kathryn Harper (August 22, 1939 – August 30, 2019) was an American actress. She began her career as a dancer on Broadway, making her debut as a replacement in the musical ''Li'l Abner''. She is best remembered for her role as Rhod ...

in ''Looped'', a play based on the life of

Tallulah Bankhead Tallulah Brockman Bankhead (January 31, 1902 – December 12, 1968) was an American actress. Primarily an actress of the stage, Bankhead also appeared in several prominent films including an award-winning performance in Alfred Hitchcock's ''Lif ...

, at the

Pasadena Playhouse The Pasadena Playhouse is a historic performing arts venue located 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California, United States. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engage ...

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

. Starting on September 23, 2008, Allen portrayed the love interest of Dr. Kyle Julian for five episodes of the

SOAPnet serial '' General Hospital: Night Shift'', a spin-off of the

ABC Daytime ABC Daytime (sometimes shortened to ABC-D or ABCD) is a division responsible for the daytime programming block on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC Network and syndicated programming. The block has historically encompassed soap operas, game ...

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the list of longest-running television shows by category, longest-running American soap opera in pro ...

''. In April 2015, Allen confirmed in a YouTube video that he had quit his acting career to become a clinical psychologist.

Personal life

In 1996, at age 21, Allen was

outed Outing is the act of disclosing an LGBT person's sexual orientation or gender identity without that person's consent. It is often done for political reasons, either to instrumentalize homophobia in order to discredit political opponents or to com ...

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

when the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

tabloid '' The Globe'' published photos of him kissing another man in a hot tub at a party. The photos were sold by someone who claimed to be a friend of the couple. Allen has since become an activist for the

LGBT community The LGBT community (also known as the LGBTQ+ community, GLBT community, gay community, or queer community) is a loosely defined grouping of lesbian, gay men, gay, bisexuality, bisexual, transgender, and other queer individuals united by a comm ...

in addition to his continuing acting and producing career. On January 17, 2006, Allen appeared on

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

's ''

Larry King Live ''Larry King Live'' was an American television talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was the channel's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly. Mainly aired from CNN's Los Angeles s ...

'' with

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

mayor

Gavin Newsom Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman who has been the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California fr ...

to represent his viewpoint in a debate over

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

. Allen thanked Newsom for his attempts to legalize same-sex marriage in the city. Allen has been featured in '' The Advocate'' magazine multiple times and has appeared on three of its covers. In November 2006, ''

The Los Angeles Daily News The ''Los Angeles Daily News'' is the second-largest-circulating paid daily newspaper of Los Angeles, California. It is the flagship of the Southern California News Group, a branch of Colorado-based Digital First Media. The offices of the ''Da ...

'' wrote in passing that Allen's partner,

Jeremy Glazer Jeremy Glazer (born November 1, 1978) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the films '' Letters from Iwo Jima'', '' Save Me'', ''On the Ride'' and '' Rust Creek''. Glazer's performances include big-budget blockbusters and inde ...

, was also in the film ''Save Me''. In a September 2008 interview with

Out.com ''Out'' is an American LGBTQ news, fashion, entertainment, and lifestyle magazine, with the highest circulation of any LGBTQ monthly publication in the United States. It presents itself in an editorial manner similar to '' Details'', ''Esquire'' ...

, Allen stated that he was currently in a three-year relationship and had been

sober In cryptography, SOBER is a family of stream ciphers initially designed by Greg Rose of QUALCOMM Australia starting in 1997. The name is a contrived acronym for ''S''eventeen ''O''ctet ''B''yte ''E''nabled ''R''egister. Initially the cipher wa ...

for eight years. In October 2008, AfterElton.com stated his boyfriend to be Glazer. In May 2009, Allen was the recipient of a

: the Davidson/Valentini Award. In his acceptance speech he said he had met Glazer, his partner, exactly four years earlier. They broke up in 2015. Allen graduated from

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

in June 2015 with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in Psychology. He graduated from the Psy.D. Program in Clinical Psychology at Antioch University, New England in 2020.

Filmography

References

External links