About Lance Kerwin
Lived 1960 – 2023 (aged 62). Lance Kerwin was an American actor, television actor and film actor.
Lance Michael Kerwin (November 6, 1960 – January 24, 2023) was an American actor, known primarily for roles in television and film during his childhood and teen years in the 1970s. He played lead roles in the TV series James at 15 as well as the TV films The Loneliest Runner and Salem's Lot.
Early life and career Kerwin was raised in Lake Elsinore, California. His father, Don Kerwin, was an acting coach, who brought home scripts for his son to read. His mother, Lois, was also a performer and later, a talent agent. He was the youngest of five brothers. His brother Shane was his stand-in.
In the 1970s, Kerwin appeared in a number of TV movies and series. He was, said former theater critic and British Film Institute governor John Holmstrom, "probably America's leading boy actor of the late Seventies ... a handsome lad ... [with] considerable sensitivity as an actor". His serious acting roles often portrayed anguished characters facing difficult challenges, such as in The Loneliest Runner, The Boy Who Drank Too Much, and Children of Divorce.
In 1985, he co-starred in the "Snow Queen", a retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's classic tale in an episode of Shelley Duvall's children's television series Faerie Tale Theatre.
Personal life and death Kerwin had a daughter, Savanah Paige, with Kristen Lansdale, and four children with his wife Yvonne Kerwin. He gave up acting in the mid-1990s, but returned to the screen in 2022 for The Wind & the Reckoning, filmed in Hawaii.
In July 2010, it was reported that Kerwin was working as a pastor at Calvary Chapel in Kapaa, Hawaii, and a program leader at U-Turn for Christ, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation organization. The report also stated that Kerwin and his wife Yvonne pled guilty to falsifying documents to obtain state medical assistance in Hawaii after neglecting to report his ownership of three properties on the mainland. Kerwin was sentenced to five years probation and 300 hours of community service. Lance also continued to work in theater while on the island of Kauai.
Kerwin died in San Clemente, California, on January 24, 2023. An immediate cause was not listed, but later reported it was due to ischemic heart disease and atherosclerotic coronary artery disease.
Filmography
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Important facts
People in Lance Kerwin's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Lance Kerwin's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Lance Kerwin?
American actor
When was Lance Kerwin born?
Lance Kerwin was born on 6 November 1960 in Newport Beach.
When did Lance Kerwin die?
Lance Kerwin died on 24 January 2023 in San Clemente.
What was Lance Kerwin's occupation?
Lance Kerwin was an actor, television actor and film actor.
What nationality was Lance Kerwin?
Lance Kerwin was American.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Lance Kerwin. https://biography.guide/lance-kerwin/
MLA: "Lance Kerwin." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/lance-kerwin/.
Chicago: "Lance Kerwin." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/lance-kerwin/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
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