Christopher Chace Crawford (born
July 18,
1985) is an
American actor best known for his role as
Nate Archibald in
Gossip Girl on
The CW.
[ABC News: 'Gossip Girls': 'Raunchy and Intense']
Early life
Chace Crawford grew up in
Plano, Texas. His father is a dermatologist and his mother is a teacher. He has one sibling, a younger sister, Candice Crawford, who is
Miss Missouri USA 2008. Crawford played
football and golf in high school. He graduated from Trinity Christian Academy in 2003. Although he worked as a model in Dallas, he never pursued acting. After high school, he moved to
Malibu,
California, to attend
Pepperdine University. He struggled to identify a career path, vacillating between advertising, business and communications majors. Midway through his second year, Crawford's mother encouraged him to pursue acting. He credits her for initiating this bold move. She states that "it was a practical move", based on a career aptitude test he had taken in high school which revealed that he was best suited for a career in the performing arts. He was signed by the first talent agent that interviewed him, and then committed full-time to acting studies.