# Corbin Bernsen
**Corbin Bernsen** (born 1954) is an American actor, director, and producer best known for playing divorce lawyer Arnie Becker on the NBC legal drama *L.A. Law* (1986–1994), Henry Spencer on the [USA Network](https://www.edgepedia.org/usa-network) comedy-drama *Psych* (2006–2014), and third baseman Roger Dorn in the *Major League* film series. He comes from an entertainment family: his mother was the actress [Jeanne Cooper](https://www.edgepedia.org/jeanne-cooper), a longtime star of the soap opera *The Young and the Restless*, and his father was film and television producer Harry Bernsen.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1954, North Hollywood, California[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/) |
| Signature TV roles | Arnie Becker on *L.A. Law* (1986–1994); Henry Spencer on *Psych* (2006–2014)[2](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/corbin-bernsen) • [3](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/corbin-bernsen/) |
| Emmy nominations | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, 1987 and 1988, for *L.A. Law*[2](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/corbin-bernsen) |
| Film role | Roger Dorn in *Major League* (1989), *Major League II* (1994), and *Major League: Back to the Minors* (1998)[4](https://catalog.afi.com/Person/256770-Corbin-Bernsen?isMiscCredit=False) |
| Education | UCLA, bachelor's degree in theater and master's degree in playwriting[5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio) |
| Family | Married to British actress Amanda Pays since 1988; four sons[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/) |
| Producing | Founder of Home Theater Films, focused on family-friendly films; first title *25 Hill* (2012)[5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio) |
## Early life and family
Bernsen was born in North Hollywood, California, to producer Harry Bernsen and actress Jeanne Cooper, who played Katherine Chancellor on *The Young and the Restless* from the soap's inception in 1973.[3](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/corbin-bernsen/) He attended [Beverly Hills High School](https://www.edgepedia.org/beverly-hills-high-school) and then UCLA, where he earned a bachelor's degree in theater arts and a master's degree in playwriting.[6](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/12/04/la-laws-court-of-appeal/4948923b-8450-4e98-a8b8-1dd2eba20ddb/) He had initially wanted to become a lawyer.[3](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/corbin-bernsen/)
His film debut came as a bit player in his father's 1974 picture *Three the Hard Way*; he has recalled that his father handed him nine hundred dollars at the end of the night and that he decided then that acting was his career.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/) • [7](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/corbin-bernsen-la-law-roger-corman-woodstockers/) Early credits include *Eat My Dust* (1976), produced by [Roger Corman](https://www.edgepedia.org/roger-corman), and [Blake Edwards](https://www.edgepedia.org/blake-edwards)' *S.O.B.* (1981).[4](https://catalog.afi.com/Person/256770-Corbin-Bernsen?isMiscCredit=False) • [6](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/12/04/la-laws-court-of-appeal/4948923b-8450-4e98-a8b8-1dd2eba20ddb/) After moving to New York he supported himself with carpentry, building rooftop decks, before a year and a half as the Winston cigarette model led to a regular part on the daytime drama *Ryan's Hope*.[6](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/12/04/la-laws-court-of-appeal/4948923b-8450-4e98-a8b8-1dd2eba20ddb/)
## L.A. Law and stardom
Bernsen was cast as Arnie Becker on *L.A. Law*, the [Steven Bochco](https://www.edgepedia.org/steven-bochco) series that premiered on NBC in 1986, after auditioning for the part twice.[6](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/12/04/la-laws-court-of-appeal/4948923b-8450-4e98-a8b8-1dd2eba20ddb/) Becker, a slick divorce lawyer introduced driving a Porsche with the vanity plate "LITIG8R," became one of the characters viewers loved to hate, and the role made Bernsen a major television star.[8](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/09/15/the-new-season/2197c334-7d32-4b13-9cec-93eebaf0f299/) The Television Academy records two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, in 1987 and 1988, and he was twice nominated for a Golden Globe as well.[2](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/corbin-bernsen) • [5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio) He was one of the few actors to remain with the series for its entire run, which ended in 1994.[9](https://www.realitytvworld.com/realitytvdb/corbin-bernsen/biography)
During the series' run he hosted *Saturday Night Live* and guest-starred on shows including *Seinfeld* and *Star Trek: The Next Generation*.[5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio)
## Film career
Bernsen's best-known film role is Roger Dorn, the temperamental Cleveland Indians third baseman who later becomes the team's owner, in *Major League* (1989); he reprised the part in *Major League II* (1994) and *Major League: Back to the Minors* (1998).[4](https://catalog.afi.com/Person/256770-Corbin-Bernsen?isMiscCredit=False) Other features from this period include *Hello Again* (1987), *Disorganized Crime* (1989), [Wolfgang Petersen](https://www.edgepedia.org/wolfgang-petersen)'s *Shattered* (1991), *The Great White Hype* (1996), and the cult horror film *The Dentist* (1996), in which he played the insane Dr. Alan Feinstone.[5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio) • [3](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/corbin-bernsen/) Later credits include *Kiss Kiss Bang Bang* (2005) with [Robert Downey Jr.](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-downey-jr) and [Val Kilmer](https://www.edgepedia.org/val-kilmer), *Lay the Favorite* with Bruce Willis, and *The Big Year* with Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson.[5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio)
## Psych and later television
In 2006 Bernsen returned to a lead series role as Henry Spencer, the stern ex-cop father of the fake psychic Shawn Spencer (James Roday), on USA Network's *Psych*, which ran through 2014; he reprised the role in *Psych: The Movie* (2017) and *Psych 2: Lassie Come Home* (2020).[3](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/corbin-bernsen/) • [10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/corbin_bernsen) He also returned to soap opera roots with a recurring role on his mother's show, *The Young and the Restless*, playing Father Todd Williams beginning in 2009, and earlier played John Durant on *General Hospital* from September 2004 until the character was murdered in May 2006.[3](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/corbin-bernsen/) • [9](https://www.realitytvworld.com/realitytvdb/corbin-bernsen/biography)
Recent television work shows the breadth of his later career: he played Paul in the miniseries *The Curse* (2023–2024), but did not receive an Emmy nomination for that role, and appeared as Jack Bailey in *Your Friends & Neighbors* (2025–2026) and as Duck Donovan in *[The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-fall-and-rise-of-reggie-dinkins)* (2026), for which he received a guest-actor nomination.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/) • [11](https://www.televisionacademy.com/sites/default/files/ballots/performer-2024-v1.pdf) • [12](https://www.televisionacademy.com/files/assets/ballots/performer-2026-v3.pdf) • [2](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/corbin-bernsen)
## Directing and Home Theater Films
Bernsen moved behind the camera with the films *Carpool Guy*, *Dead Air*, and *Rust*, the last distributed by Sony Pictures Entertainment.[5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio) With *Rust* he shifted toward family-friendly movies and founded Home Theater Films, described by [Belmont University](https://www.edgepedia.org/belmont-university)'s report on a talk he gave there as a producer of "smart family entertainment."[5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio) • [13](https://news.belmont.edu/actor-corbin-bernsen-speaks-to-students-about-faith-film/) Its first title was *25 Hill* (2012), a drama about the All-American Soap Box Derby that he wrote, directed, and shot on location in [Akron, Ohio](https://www.edgepedia.org/akron-ohio), distributed by EchoLight Studios in July 2012; it was followed by *3 Day Test* (2012) and *Beyond the Heavens* (2013), and later projects include *Christian Mingle* (2015) and *In-Lawfully Yours* (2016).[5](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio) • [14](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/bio/?mode=desktop)
In 2026 he returned to independent production with *Woodstockers*, a television pilot about a former hippie reckoning with his life, written by Bernsen with Joshua Michael Stern and directed by his son Oliver Bernsen; the pilot premiered at SXSW, where it won the TV Spotlight Audience Award. One account of the project names his son Finley as the collaborator.[7](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/corbin-bernsen-la-law-roger-corman-woodstockers/) • [15](https://acbmedia.org/2026/07/26/sunday-edition-and-take2radio-present-the-life-and-roles-of-corbin/)
## Personal life
Bernsen married British actress [Amanda Pays](https://www.edgepedia.org/amanda-pays) in 1988, and the couple has four sons; they have appeared together in the science-fiction film *Spacejacked* and the television movies *Dead on the Money* and *The Santa Trap*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/)
## References
1. [Corbin Bernsen, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/)
2. [Corbin Bernsen, Emmy Awards and Nominations, Television Academy](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/corbin-bernsen)
3. [Corbin Bernsen, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/corbin-bernsen/)
4. [Corbin Bernsen filmography, AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Person/256770-Corbin-Bernsen?isMiscCredit=False)
5. [Corbin Bernsen, Official Site biography](https://www.corbinbernsen.com/bio)
6. ["'L.A. Law's' Court of Appeal," The Washington Post, December 4, 1986](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/12/04/la-laws-court-of-appeal/4948923b-8450-4e98-a8b8-1dd2eba20ddb/)
7. ["Corbin Bernsen On Embracing a Roger Corman Spirit, Working With His Son in Woodstockers," Den of Geek, April 10, 2026](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/corbin-bernsen-la-law-roger-corman-woodstockers/)
8. ["The New Season," The Washington Post, September 14, 1986](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/09/15/the-new-season/2197c334-7d32-4b13-9cec-93eebaf0f299/)
9. [Corbin Bernsen Biography, Reality TV World](https://www.realitytvworld.com/realitytvdb/corbin-bernsen/biography)
10. [Corbin Bernsen, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/corbin_bernsen)
11. [Television Academy Awards, Performer Ballot 2024](https://www.televisionacademy.com/sites/default/files/ballots/performer-2024-v1.pdf)
12. [Television Academy Awards, Performer Ballot 2026](https://www.televisionacademy.com/files/assets/ballots/performer-2026-v3.pdf)
13. ["Actor Corbin Bernsen Speaks to Students about Faith & Film," Belmont University News & Media](https://news.belmont.edu/actor-corbin-bernsen-speaks-to-students-about-faith-film/)
14. [Corbin Bernsen Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000929/bio/?mode=desktop)
15. ["Sunday Edition and Take2Radio Present The Life and Roles of Corbin," ACB Media Network](https://acbmedia.org/2026/07/26/sunday-edition-and-take2radio-present-the-life-and-roles-of-corbin/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames Be to Bo*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license