Background
Swayze was born in Texas, the middle son of Patsy Yvonne Helen (née Karnes), a choreographer, dance instructor, and dancer, and Jesse Wayne Swayze, an engineering drafter.
Swayze was born in Texas, the middle son of Patsy Yvonne Helen (née Karnes), a choreographer, dance instructor, and dancer, and Jesse Wayne Swayze, an engineering drafter.
He is a younger brother of actor Patrick Swayze. He is a sixth cousin once removed of commentator John Cameron Swayze and a relative of noted Texas Revolution soldier Henry Karnes. Swayze"s film work has included an appearance as a dancer in the 1980 film Urban Cowboy, as Ruben in the film Father for Charlie, and as Mark in the film Shy People.
He also played Colonel
Sherman Rutherford in a western–noir hybrid titled Heathens and Thieves in 2012. He also starred in the film Death Ring, and as the Alamo courier James Bonham in Alamo: Price of Freedom, an IMAX film shown in San Antonio, Texas. Swayze is currently appearing in two soap operas, The Young and the Restless and Days of Our Lives.
In 2010, Swayze guest starred in six episodes in a recurring role as Gus, a werewolf, on the Home Box Office series True Blood.
His television drama work includes multiple appearances in Murder She Wrote, The X Files, New York City Police Department Blue, Days of Our Lives, NCIS, Carnivàle, and dozens of other programs. Swayze had a role as a mentally handicapped man suspected of murder in an episode of the television drama Matlock.
He played Jesse James in a season-two episode of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. He had a recurring role on Criminal Minds, specifically the episodes "The Big Game" and "Revelations", in which he played Charles Hankel, the father and alternate personality of serial killer Tobias Hankel.
On Cold Case, Swayze played the adult Grant Hall.
Swayze had a small guest appearance on lieutenant"s Always Sunny In Philadelphia as a crazy boat captain. He has also appeared on Beyond Belief, and The Bridge. Swayze also appeared in an episode of Sons of Anarchy, season 7.
In 2001, Don was on stage as Pedro in Manitoba of Louisiana Mancha, at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center.
In 2005, he played Roy in the comedy Lone Star at the Beverly Hills Playhouse. In the fall of 2011, he co-starred with Anne Archer in an original stage play titled Jane Fonda: In the Court of Public Opinion, at the Edgemar Theater in Santa Monica, California.
He played United States. Army Sergeant Don Simpson (retired), a wounded veteran of the Vietnam War.