Casper was born in Ridgewood, New Jersey, the son of Diane, a retired nursery school teacher, and Casper Robert Van Dien, Sr., a retired U.S. Navy commander and fighter pilot. The name Casper is a family tradition, given to the eldest son of his family for more than 11 generations. There is a long military tradition in Van Dien's family. Aside from his father, his grandfather was a Marine during Read more...

Moving to L.A., he landed a number of small parts in various television series and movies. Two early breaks were recurring roles on One Life to Live and Beverly Hills 90210. This was followed by parts in several straight-to-video releases, including Night Eyes 4, Beastmaster III: The Eye of Braxus, Night Scream and, ironically, Casper: A Spirited Beginning.

He achieved more notice as the lead Read more...

Van Dien was married to actress Carrie Mitchum (the granddaughter of Robert Mitchum) from 1993 to 1997. They have two children, Casper "Cappy" Robert Mitchum Van Dien and Caroline "Gracie" Dorothy Grace Van Dien, of whom Van Dien holds full custody. The only time the couple worked together was near the end of their marriage, in James Dean: Race with Destiny, which also starred Robert Mitchum.

Van Read more...