Chapin was born in
New York City, New York, the son of Betty (
née Steinway), a descendant of
Henry E. Steinway (the founder of
Steinway & Sons), and
Schuyler Chapin, an author who was the General Manager of the
Metropolitan Opera. He made his
Broadway debut in
Summer Brave in 1975. In addition to his acting career, Chapin has worked in recent years as a sales consultant for Steinway & Sons Piano manufacturers. He and his father have returned to the familial business in recent years. Chapin's father was the Commissioner of Cultural Affairs of New York City for eight years under Mayor
Rudolph Giuliani and has been a major force in the arts having acted as director of such important venues as the Metropolitan Opera, and The Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Chapin has twin brothers who are a bit older, and an eldest brother Henry Chapin six years Miles' senior, who was featured in 1961 as the child narrator in the recording of
Benjamin Britten's "
The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra," conducted by
Leonard Bernstein. Henry Chapin is a cellist and a music educator in New York City. Chapin has published two non-fiction books,
Tales From The Jungle (Crown, 1995) and
88 Keys (Clarkson Potter, 1997) in addition to numerous magazine articles for
Saveur,
Garden Design,
Quest,
Cigar Aficionado, and
Steinway & Sons Magazine. He was the recipient of a
James Beard award in 2005 for an article in
Saveur about
Lüchow's restaurant. Chapin owns the film rights to
Ain’t No Sin to Rock and Roll, a novel by author Donald Gallinger, although has not released any plans for this film to the public yet. ==Filmography==