Born in Regensburg Germany, Daniel was raised in Upstate, New York. He has United States and German Citizenship. He has a rich German lineage; Daniel's the great-great-great-grand nephew of Friedrich Ebert, who served as Chancellor of Germany and First President during the Weimar period. His great-granduncle, the famous dancer and choreographer Helge Peters Pawlinin was hunted by the Nazis for his ambiguous sexual performances. Daniel's grandmother designed and made gowns for the Nuremberg Opera, pre and post World War II, Germany. Daniel has a younger brother, Alexander, and a younger sister, Astrid. After graduating from high school, Daniel moved to Manhattan to become an actor. Within three months he booked his first feature film, Hell High. Shortly after, his first big break came in Stephen King's Creepshow 2. Daniel played the lead in The Raft story. At the age of twenty, he became a member of The Actors Studio. Daniel has played many characters: the unfaithful boyfriend of Julia Roberts in Dying Young, the antagonistic detective opposite Keanu Reaves in Point Break, a killer in The Last Best Sunday, and an angry husband, who ends up being a nice guy in the Western Love Finds A Home. Daniel has guest-starred on numerous one-hour television shows. He also appeared in Michael Jackson's "Who Is It," video, and Paula Abdul's "Rush Rush." Daniel is a published writer. His work has appeared in the literary magazine 34thParallel and the international magazine Modern literature. He has taught writing seminars at Lancaster State Prison. Away from the entertainment business, Daniel enjoys dancing tango and skiing. He boxes and was trained by the legendary trainer Freddie Roach. When Daniel lived in New York City, he played in the West 4th Street Summer Pro Basketball League, and was offered a try-out to play pro ball overseas.