Thanks to Tiffany L. Edenfield of CaseyBiggs.com for much of the following information.
Casey Biggs was born April 4, 1955. Growing up in Toledo, Ohio, Casey chose to pursue an acting career while he was still a student at Central Catholic High. He actually had a fair amount of talent as a football player, but it was on the stage acting that made him feel most comfortable. After dropping football, which he had taken up in his freshman year, he concentrated his energy on serious acting, joining the Toledo Repertory Theater, where Roy Fluhrer served as his mentor, giving the young actor the encouragement.
Fluhrer would influence Casey for life, as did other Toledoans. Carolyn Seeman and Jerry DePrisco at Catholic High and actress Eve Weiher also influenced Casey considerably. While still in high school, Casey befriended Frank Fischer, who, along with Bill Blinn, is a Hollywood producer. Fischer would accompany Casey to New York to audition for entrance in the Julliard School. He was accepted! And after high school graduation in 1973, Casey spent four years in the hallowed halls of the most famous arts school in the world.
After receiving a BFA from Julliard in 1977, Casey had some guest roles in television sitcoms, but his love of the stage was the center of his professional life. He joined John Houseman's prestigious performance troupe,touring America and Europe with a large cast. Casey, having joined The Acting Company, was also a member of the famed Arena Stage in Washington D.C., where he performed as Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey in 1994.
Professionally, Casey was nominated five times for the Helen Hayes Award for his work at Arena Stage, with a 1996 nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Residence Play in "Long Days Journey into Night."
Although best known to Star Trek fans (i.e. me) as the guest star of television shows, TV is not where Casey puts his focus on. He is known to have said, "I'm a creature of the stage. I'm much more fulfilled working on the stage, but to be able to balance between the two is a big challenge. I see it as an opportunity that I have because I seem to be working at both. That's a real blessing." - "The Blade" (Toledo, Ohio newspaper)
Casey's stunning portrayal of Damar, the reluctant leader of the Cardassian Union turned courageous rebel leader prompted me to honor his work in this site. Not having all that much to say in earlier episodes did not do justice to the depth of Casey's range of acting. When given a more demanding role to play, Mr. Biggs shone as the star of the Final Chapter, and made a lasting impression on all who had dismissed Damar as another Dukat follower.
Casey prior to Deep Space Nine work had a recurring guest star role in the short-lived "Legacy" television series, where he plays, quite fittingly, a handsome ladies' man.
I say fitting because Mr. Biggs in person is more than striking, and there is plenty of evidence in the pictures section that will make this very clear.
Now that Casey is no longer in the Star Trek world, he has gone back to stage work. But thankfully for all Cardassian fans, he does attend conventions, along with Marc Alaimo (of Dukat fame) at times.
Casey has an official fan site.
