Timothy Robert DeKay is an American actor. He starred in the USA Network series White Collar, which chronicled the partnership between a con artist and an FBI agent.
Early life
Tim DeKay was born June 12, 1963 to Jim DeKay and Jill Vaughn in Lansing, New York, where he and his brother Jamey grew up. Growing up DeKay enjoyed athletics, having played both varsity basketball and baseball, the latter of which is a generational tradition in his family. He also enjoyed the arts, and performed in his high school's production of Oliver!. He attended Le Moyne College to study Business and Philosophy, where he also played baseball, eventually deciding to pursue a career in theater. DeKay planned for a career in business or law, and he graduated with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1985. However, he realized that he wanted to work in theater instead. After taking a few courses in directing at Syracuse University, he attended Rutgers University, where he received a Master of Fine Arts and met his wife, actress Elisa Taylor.
Career
DeKay has performed in plays both on Broadway and off, including Ridiculous Fraud at the McCarter Theatre; Billy Budd at the Circle in the Square Theatre; Someone to Watch Over Me with the Denver Theatre Company; The Merchant of Venice on the Hartford Stage; and the national tour of The Lion in Winter. In 2009, he was both director and producer of the short filmThis Monday. It was included in several short film festivals, including Cannes Short Film Corner and The Palm Springs International Short Film Festival. His first onscreen acting job was as corporation head Larry Deon on seaQuest 2032. He was a cast member of Party of Five from 1997-1999, Carnivàle from 2003-05 and Tell Me You Love Me in 2007. He also appeared as Dean Stewart in the gay-themed comedy/drama film "Big Eden" in 2000. He appeared in two episodes of Seinfeld: "The Soul Mate" and "The Bizarro Jerry", as Elaine's boyfriend Kevin. He would work with Julia Louis-Dreyfus again in The New Adventures of Old Christine, playing a temperamental boyfriend of Louis-Dreyfus's character in a three episode story arc. He has also guest-starred on a number of other television series, including Friends, , My Name Is Earl, NCIS, Scrubs, and Chuck. In 2009, DeKay began starring in the USA Network comedy-drama White Collar as FBI agent Peter Burke. He made his directorial debut in the episode "Stealing Home", which premiered in 2012. In March 2015, it was announced that he will play FBI agent Duval Pritchard in the FOX pilot, Frankenstein. DeKay played Duvall Pritchard in Fox Television's 2016 sci-fi drama series Second Chance. He is a member of the Actors Studio. He taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California.
Personal life
DeKay and his wife, actress Elisa Taylor, reside in California. They have a daughter, Danna, and a son, Jamis.
