How could David stay so calm? His pooch has just slipped out the door of a Hollywood photo studio and bolted. You see, it was Twist’s idea to have David bring Bertha Blue to this shoot. What if the dog’s really lost? You’ve seen what David looks like when he gets pissed as Angel, the 242-year old good guy vampire he plays on Buffy the Vampire Slayer-we really don’t want to find out if those fangs are real! Twenty minutes go by when the studio door opens and Bertha Blue comes running in, followed by David. “I found her nine blocks away,” David says, patting me on the back. “It’s like I could just smell where she was.”
Funny, ‘cause you could say it was Bertha Blue who helped David sniff out his role on Buffy. “If it wasn’t for Bertha Blue,” David says, “I probably would never havce gotten the part.” David was playing with her in a park near his house when a big-time Hollywood manager approached him and asked if he was in the biz. David told him about the commercials he had been in and the time when he played Kelly Bundy’s biker boyfriend in Married…With Children. The guy told David he’d be perfect for the part of Angel, a new character on Buffy. A few days later, David got the job, becoming the only vampire you wouldn’t mind meeting in a dark alley.
David may not be a vampire, but he sure looks like the one he plays on TV. Like Angel, he’s really tall (6’1” to be exact) and has deep brown eyes, really broad shoulders, olive skin, and hair with that cute, spiky thing going on. But unlike Angel, David’s not one to brood quietly in a corner all by himself. In fact, David can’t keep still-he has a habit of hitting pretend golf balls with a pretend golf club and doing some of Angel’s way athletic kicks, punches, and body spins for you. Whereas Angel’s intense and serious, David’s always smiling (he has perfect teeth) and loves to joke around, especially with Buffy herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar. “Before doing kissing scenes, we try to gross each other out by eating things like goldfish crackers, or tuna fish,” David says with a laugh. “We know it’s disgusting, but we do it just to joke around.”
Growing up in Philly, David never dreamed he’d be goofing around on the set of a hit TV show. In fact, he wanted to be a pro football player. “I drank tons of mils and ate green beans because I heard that made you run faster and jump higher,” says David, who played wide receiver and defense back on his high school team. “It was all I wanted to do. I as obsessed with it.” But his dream came to an end in his junior year after he injured his knee during a track jump. “I realized that football wasn’t going to be a career for me,” he says. So, he turned to his secret passion: acting. Ever since he was eight years old-when his parents took him to a production of The King and I-David loved the theater. “The show just blew me away,” he says. “Right after that, I just wanted to see plays and musicals and my parents took me all the time. But I would never tell anyone about that. When I’d hit the field, it was football, but behind closed doors, it was theater.” Still, high school wasn’t all standing ovations for David. “It was a trying period for me,” he says. “You know, you have all these hormones racing inside of you. You don’t know where you’re going. You’re stepping left when you should be stepping right. Things are growing on you that you haven’t seen there before. It’s embarrassing. It’s frightening.” He thinks about hose days when he’s playing Angel. “Angel’s trapped,” David says. “He doesn’t like where he’s at. But he’s cursed and he has to be there. It’s a lot like high school.”
High school may have been tough, but is totally prepared him for the life of a struggling actor. After graduating from Ithaca College in New York, David moved to Hollywood. He spent a few years living paycheck to paycheck-getting some acting jobs while also earning cash as a valet parker, a house painter, and the guy who hands out towels at a sports club. (Imagine going to the gym and having David hand you a towel!) “I did a lot of beer commercials,” he remembers. “I also did a music video. I was in the chorus-in the background.” Then he landed a choice role on Buffyand his life changed. “It’s amazing how this show has taken off,” David says. “I’m blessed with doing Buffy. “I just have to count those blessings and work hard..” David’s not allowed to reveal what’s going to happen on the show, but he does tell us that “you’ll get more background into the slayer and what a slayer’s all about” this year. Ask him about Angel and Buffy’s future together and he gives a devilish grin. “I think this show is very unpredictable,” he says. “It’s gonna surprise a lot of viewers when they see what’s going to happen this year. There’s going to be a lot of strange thins occurring.” OK, so he won’t tell us much about Angel’s love life, but what about his own? What type of girl does David go for? “Intelligence is very sexy,” David says. “I like girls who I can have a real conversation with about music, poetry, and great books.” Having fun is also a requirement. His idea of a romantic date? Eating some burgers and hanging out in a playground.
If David sounds like a fun-loving guy, that’s ‘cause he is. On his days off, he can’t get enough of sports. If he’s not watching ESPN, you’ll find David on the golf course, at hockey games, or at the gym. “I’m really into boxing right now,” he says. And he always has time for the most important people in his life: his family. Dad’s a TV weatherman, mom works at a travel agency, and he’s way close with his two older sisters. “My family is one of the things that keeps me sane,” David says. “My parents are very proud. That’s the best reward-having my parents seeing me do this.” Another big reward-his fans. As you’d expect he gets tons of mail. “I do take some time not only to write back, bit also to call some people out of the blue. “At first they don’t believe it’s me, but then I describe their letter to them.” In other words-make sure to include your digits when you write to David. You might get a phone call that will have you believing in angels. One Angel, anyway.