Dempsey has been married twice. In 1987, he married actress and acting coach Rochelle "Rocky" Parker, who appeared with Dempsey in the film In the Mood. At the time of their marriage, Dempsey was 21 years old, while Parker was 48, with a son, Corey Parker, who was one year Dempsey's senior. The couple divorced in 1994.

On July 31, 1999, Dempsey married Jillian Fink, a Connecticut resident Read more...

In 1997, Dempsey's mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She would be treated for the disease and have two relapses and have it treated another two times. In response to his mother's bouts with cancer, Dempsey helped start the Patrick Dempsey Center in his home town of Lewiston, Maine.

Dempsey was discovered by an agent and invited to audition for a role in the stage production of Torch Song Trilogy. His audition was successful, and he spent the following four months touring with the company in San Francisco. Dempsey also appeared on MTV on a show Overnight Success by Teri DeSario, where he dances and juggles. He followed this with another tour, Brighton Beach Memoirs, in the Read more...