During
his teen years, Clay remembers sitting in his room looking at a poster
of John Wayne and listening to his favorite country song or some "Oldies"
tune wondering what it would be like to be an actor. You see, Clay was
an avid movie watcher, whether it was on TV or at the theater. Clay's
favorite actor was John Wayne and his favorite movies were "The
Longest Day", "The Sands of Iwo Jima"
and "Flying Leathernecks". Well, here it is years
later and he is an Actor.
It all started to unfold when
Clay, sitting in a small coffee bistro, began reflecting upon his first
career with the military and now with his
second career with Federal Civil Service nearing an end, he was wondering
what to do next. As he browsed through a local art rag, he noticed an
ad "How would you like to be an Actor?" . Clay
had never known what it took to become an actor. He had always believed,
like many, that you were just "discovered". Not even his family
had known that he wanted to be an actor. The class was scheduled to start
on 9/11. Needless to say, it was postponed for two weeks. Clay realized
that it took more than just being "discovered" to be an actor.
Clay's hard work and dedication showed in a final performance
with
his class at their Coffee Cake Playhouse. After the final curtain call,
Susan Beach of Actor's Central
offered him a contract. Clay was honored and signed on with their agency.
The next day, Clay was on his way
to Wilmington, N.C. He went to the Fincannon casting office to introduce
himself. Clay, realizing the importance of continuing his training, asked
Mark Fincannon who he would recommend. Mark gave him the name of Tammy
Arnold, a very talented acting coach. After an interview with Ms.
Arnold, Clay was invited to study with her. As a result of his dedication
and hard work, his resume began to fill with credits. More agents began
to take notice and he signed on with Charlie Peterson of Harvest Talent
and Kathy Moore at Marilyn's Inc.
to widen his scope of representation.
Recently, Clay auditioned for a new TV
series "Life In General".
Produced by Kearns Entertainment,
it is scheduled to air in the fall of 2003. Clay had all but forgotten
about the audition
when
he received a phone call from the producer. He was offered the recurring
role of Mr. Winters, a high school teacher and soccer coach.
Today, Clay continues to study under the excellent coaching of Ms. Arnold
and is constantly looking for new and interesting roles. Clay said that
his initial goal was to be part of a long running television series. Now
he says that he would like to be in a blockbuster feature length film
(or two or three or…). He still remembers sitting in his room looking
at that poster and the path that led him to where he is today. Clay began
his acting career on January 2, 2002 and continues to be a dedicated,
hard working and professional actor.
