Christopher Atkins

Christopher Atkins is an American actor, who became famous in his debut role with co-star Brooke Shields in the 1980 film “The Blue Lagoon”. Atkins was born in Rye, New York, to German Americans Donald Bomann and Bitsy Nebauer. In high school, he was a lifeguard and sailing instructor, where he was discovered for The Blue Lagoon.

He had no previous interest or experience in acting, but an agent he knew persuaded him to audition for "The Blue Lagoon", a role he won over 2,000 other actors. In the film, he and co-star Brooke Shields played two teenage cousins who have lived alone together since they were marooned as children in a tropical paradise, eventually falling in love. The film grossed over $58 million with a production cost of $4.5 million.

He went on to star with Kristy McNichol in “The Pirate Movie” an update of Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta “The Pirates of Penzance”. He hit #71 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart with the song "How Can I Live Without Her?", which appeared in “The Pirate Movie”.

In “A Night in Heaven”, also starring Lesley Ann Warren, Atkins played Rick Monroe, an outspoken and overconfident student working his way through college as a male stripper. For one season (1983–1984), Atkins had a recurring role as swimming instructor Peter Richards on the CBS prime time soap opera “Dallas” in which his character has an affair with Sue Ellen Ewing.

Atkins has been the cover boy of many teen magazines and has appeared in several television commercials representing Coke and Adidas. In the 1990s and 2000s, he appeared in the made-for-network and cable movies “Fatal Charms”, “Project Shadowchaser III” and “Angel Flight Dawn”. Other projects include “Caved In”, “Spiritual Warriors”, “13th Child”, “The Employee of the Month”, “Tequila Express”, “Quigley” and “True Legends of the West”.

In 2007, he starred in the direct-to-DVD sci-fi movie “100 Million BC”. In 2009, he appeared on VH1's “Confessions of a Teen Idol”, a reality show in featuring former teen idols.

He owns an outdoor sports company and has patented a fishing lure. Atkins was nominated for a Golden Globe Awards for New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture – Male for The Blue Lagoon as well as Best Young Actor for the Young Artist Awards. He is ranked Number 76 on VH1's 100 Greatest Teen Stars.