Cameron Mathison
Soap star Cameron Mathison, who plays Ryan Lavery on “All My Children,” will join the cast of “Dancing with the Stars” this season. This is not Mathison’s first experience with reality TV though. He hosts the SoapNet show “I Wanna Be a Soap Star.”
Mathison was born in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada on August 25, 1969. At the age of 2 ½, he was diagnosed with Legg-Pertheas disease, which affects the hipbones. He spent six months in the hospital and for the next 3 ½ years, he had to wear braces on his legs and use crutches to walk.
He attended Thornlea High School in Thornhill. He obtained his Bachelors degree in civil engineering from McGill University. After graduation, he began taking modeling jobs as a form of extra income. The modeling work lasted for four years. At that point, Mathison became interested in acting and began taking classes. Mathison quickly landed a role on a made for television movie (Any Mother’s Son) and was on one episode “The Defenders: Choice of Evils” and “F/X: The Series.” His first major film was 1998’s 54.
After 54, he was cast in the leading role of an independent film, Washed Up. In 1998, Mathison was hired to play Ryan Lavery on “All My Children.” The character appeared on the soap opera from 1998-2002, then again from 2003 to present. For his acting, Mathison won the Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Male Newcomer in 1999. In 2002 and again in 2005, he was nominated for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor.
Mathison has also made guest appearances on “What I Like About You,” “JAG,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “The Drew Carey Show,” and “The Job.” He was named by People Magazine as one of America’s most eligible bachelors in 2000, but he was taken off the market when he married model Vanessa Arevalo in 2002. They have a son, Lucas (born in 2003) and a daughter, Leila (born in 2006). Mathison lists photography, basketball (he was the captain of the team at McGill his last season), golf, swimming, and skiing as his hobbies.
Mathison will be paired with Edyta Sliwinska. Newlywed Edyta has partnered with Evander Holyfield, George Hamilton, Joey Lawrence, and John Ratzenberge in previous seasons. “Dancing with the Stars” premieres September 24 on ABC.
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