Alexander "Sandy" Chaplin was known as Alexander Gaberman and decided to change his professional name when he got married. He and his wife, Daisy, both changed their surnames to Chaplin, a name in Daisy's family.
A native New Yorker, at age six, performed in a local production of "The King and I." With the encouragement of his parents, a novelist and a jazz musician, Sandy pursued acting throughout his youth, in school plays, community theater and at a Catskills summer camp specializing in drama. At 16, he played Eugene in "Brighton Beach Memoirs" at a local theater in Westchester.
Chaplin was accepted to Juilliard in 1989, where he honed his craft in countless productions, including "The Winter's Tale," directed by Michael Edwards; as Wallace in "Women and Wallace," directed by Cedric Harris; and as Richard in "Ah Wilderness!" After his first year, he landed the role of "spinner" a in a three-part ABC Afterschool Specials (1972), "The Mall," directed by John Rubinstein. After graduation, he played the title role in the Public Theatre's "Petrified Prince," directed by the legendary Harold Prince, which he counts as one of his most memorable professional experiences.
Prior to Spin City (1996), Chaplin appeared in the premiere episode of Homicide (1993) playing a male prostitute-turned-strangler opposite Andre Braugher, directed by Barry Levinson. He made his film debut in Basketball Diaries (1995) as Bobo.
Tennis, fishing and traveling are some of Sandy's passions. He resides in New York City with Daisy, a director.
