Full Name: James William Van Der Beek
Nickname: Baby James, Beek
Origin of Name: Van Der Beek is Dutch for "by the brook"
Birth Date: March 8, 1977
Star Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Cheshire, Connecticut
Siblings: One younger brother, Jared and one younger sister, Juliana
Family Ties: James' dad, Jim, works for a telephone company. His mother , Melinda, is a former Broadway dancer turned gymnastics teacher.
Favorite Band: The Dave Matthews Band
Favorite Actors: Marlon Brando, Tom Hanks, Tim Robbins
Favorite Directors: Steven Spielberg, Stanley Kubrick, Oliver Stone, Milos Forman
Favorite TV Show: The Wonder Years
Hobbies: Sports, reading, writing, and shooting pool
Favorite Color: Blue
Celebrity Crush: Natalie Imbruglia
Favorite Book: The classic Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man, by James Joyce
Razor Burn: To look 16 for Dawson's Creek, James has to shave twice a day.
Net Pranks: James has visited Internet fan sites devoted to his co-star and former roomate Joshua Jackson and posted comments like, "I think Josh is dreamy!"
Favorite Team: 
Strumming Along: James is teaching himself how to play the guitar.
TV Credits: Clarissa Explains It All and the ABC-TV movie The Red Booth
Movie Credits: Angus, Harvest, I Love You...I Love You Not..., Harvest, Varsity Blues.
DAWSON LEERY -- A budding filmmaker who idolizes Steven Spielberg. Life-
long, best friends with the girl from the "wrong side of the creek," Joey
Potter. Mesmerized by his new neighbor Jen. His world is turned upside down
when his mother confesses to having an affair. Finally recognizing that his
feelings for Joey are romantic, he kisses her. In Season 2, Dawson, madly in
love, agonizes over he and Joey's on-again, off-again relationship. Their
relationship is resolved when Joey finally gives him one life-altering,
heartbreaking rejection. His mother and father separated, Dawson follows his
mother to Philadelphia for a summer internship at her News Station.
James Van Der Beek:
DAWSON (talking about Pacey): That’s not too surprising, given what a
total flake he’s been lately. There aren’t any especially doable new
faculty members I don’t know about, are there?
JEN: What?
DAWSON: The last time Pacey acted this weird, I ended up with taped
outtakes of him and Ms. Jacobs performing tree surgery at the Ruins.
DAWSON: Hey, is anyone else thinking what I'm thinking?
JOEY: That Pacey's cranberry sauce was by far the lamest
contribution to this meal?
DAWSON: Well, there's that, but I was thinking about how long it's
been since all of us have actually done something together. It's
kinda nice.
JEN: You're right, Dawson. All of a sudden I feel like I'm in the
middle of "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving."
ANDIE: I love "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving." That's the one where
they have dinner on the ping-pong table and it keeps collapsing and
they make popcorn and --
JOEY: -- The group hug may be a little premature, guys. I'm sure we'll
find a way to be estranged again in no time.
DAWSON: Yeah, but before we do, let me just say that I'm pretty amazed
by this little surrogate family we've assembled. 'Cause, I don't know,
in a world where the people who raise you only end up letting you down,
it's an honor and a privilege to have you guys to turn to.
JOEY: I can hardly wait for the Oscar speech, Dawson. There won't be
a dry eye in the house.
JOEY: What do you actually know about my life these days, Dawson?
Think about it. Do you know how I lost my job? How I did on my PSATs?
How the Potter sisters are eking out their meager living? And you know
what? I don't know one thing about your life right now either.
DAWSON: Joey, I'm sorry if I've been distant. I thought that's what we
needed...
JOEY: Dawson, the last year of my life has been like this wide-awake
nightmare of conflicting emotions. But no matter how bad it got, one thing kept
me going. Us. Our bond, our connection, whatever you want to call it. It made
me feel like I wasn't alone, like I was part of something special. So I'm not
whining about being friends or not being friends. It's just that... for the
first time in my life... I'm not feeling that connection anymore. And it scares me.
DAWSON: Hey, once upon a time, you yourself told me that some love stories
never end. What happened to that girl?
JOEY: She offered herself to the boy she loved. The boy she thought loved
her back. And he rejected her.
DAWSON: Joey, listen to me: If we are truly meant to be, then we will find
our way back to each other. It's as simple as that.
When I saw you at the movie theater with that lipstick on...I remember thinking how pretty you looked. I mean, I ignored it...but I thought it.
I don't get it! What did he do that I didn't do?
What have we learned from this 90210 evening?
Not until you explain the Crisco!
* "If there's one thing I learned about relationships in the past year, it's that they begin and end with honesty." --Dawson
JOEY: You think every Joey has a Dawson and every Dawson has a Joey?
DAWSON: I hope so. For their sake.
~Right now you've just come off filming 'Texas Ranger.' Can you tell us what it was like filming that?
James: 'Texas Ranger' was great. It was a western. I dyed my hair dark again and had facial hair and chops. As soon as I got in the make-up trailer for 'Dawson's Creek,' they shaved me down and gave me blonde hair again. I looked in the mirror and almost cried. It was quite a shock. I'm still not used to looking myself in the mirror, because I was different for so long. But it's great. I had to learn how to ride horses and I had to learn how to shoot. It was a lot of fun.
::Varsity Blues::When star quarterback Lance Harbor (PAUL WALKER, last seen in 'Pleasantville') suffers a season-ending injury, the coach must turn to Mox, whose ability to lead the team is questionable. Kilmer and Mox have always had an adversarial relationship, but now, with the division championship hanging in the balance, their divergent styles clash head-on. As Mox's world turns upside down, the young man must grapple with the temptations of his newfound stardom and struggle to do theright thing without compromising his integrity or betraying his identity. Rounding out the film's supporting cast are RON LESTER ('Good Burger') as Billy Bob, the stalwart but sensitive lineman for the Coyotes; SCOTT CAAN ('Nowhere') as Tweeder, the wild party guy of the team; AMY SMART (soon appearing in 'Outside Providence' starring Alec Baldwin) as Jules Harbor, Mox's high school sweetheart; ALI LARTER (who has appeared on "Just Shoot Me") as Darcy, girlfriend of golden boy Lance Harbor; and newcomer ELIEL SWINTON as Wendell, a football player with dreams of the NFL.
::Rumors::
Not True:
~KATIE HOLMES dated you and then dumped you cause JOSHUA JACKSON got a new do.. is that true?
JamesVDB: (laughs) No, it's not true at all. Don't believe everything you hear on the radio. Katie's like my little sister.
True:
~What's with the cool necklace James always wears?
JamesVDB: The necklace on the show is one I bought in Prague when I was backpacking. When I made the pilot they said they loved the necklace, so it's been in my trailer every morning since then. The necklace I wear in the show is not the one I wear in real life.
~How much weight in muscle did you put on for 'Varsity Blues?'
JamesVDB: I think it was about 17 or 18 pounds. I was 165 in the last episode of "Dawson's Creek," then I was 184 for 'Varsity Blues.'
~Does working on "Dawson's Creek" take you back to the memories and hardships of when you were fifteen?
JamesVDB: Oh, absolutely. One of the most common questions I get asked is, is it hard playing someone that young? And the answer is always no, because with those kinds of experiences -- well, you just don't forget those things.
~What's your favorite football team?
JamesVDB: Green Bay Packers. That's why I was Number 4 in 'Varsity Blues.' I'm serious, that's why I requested Number 4, for good old BRETT [FAVRE].
~Where do you see your career heading to in the next five years? or ten years?
JamesVDB: Hopefully, I can keep on working in films once "Dawson's Creek" is finished. I'd also like to go back to the theater once in a while.
~What was your favorite scene in "Dawson's Creek" to shoot & why?
JamesVDB: I think any scene at a school dance is my favorite because they were such miserable times. School dances always ended in disaster. Just even being in that kind of atmosphere on set really brings it back. So those memories remain with me pretty firmly and makes them always easy to play. Plus, at school dances, there was always a heightened sense of the dramatic.
~What's your favorite movie lately? Do you like [STEVEN] SPIELBERG?
JamesVDB: Oh, probably 'The Shawshank Redemption.' Yes, I'm a big Spielberg fan.
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