Daniel Waverly

*"It's a car.... It doesn't think. You have to do that for it." - Dan Waverly*

**Daniel Waverly** is a long-time resident of Ashford Falls, New York and the son of local physician Dr. Albert Waverly and town socialite Candace Waverly. Born in 1959, his younger siblings are Chloe Waverly and Benjamin Waverly.

The oldest of three children, Daniel was raised with opulent means due to his father's medical career and his mother's vast fortune. As a young man, he was difficult and abrasive to Chloe and Ben, but while Chloe didn't notice his bluntness, his attitude left Ben with feelings of insecurity that lasted into adulthood. As a teenager, Dan came off as a rival to Ty Hedison, the oldest son of the Hedison Family. When his ego and demands for wealth became too much for his family, they cut him off financially and placed him in a small house they had paid for but left him to support himself. In order to prove to his father he could be tough and successful, Dan tried to become a fireman for the Ashford Falls Fire Department, but he couldn't make it through the rigorous physical exam. He also followed Ted Beauchamp into the police academy, but his contempt for authority got him expelled. Due to the time limit his father gave him to make something with his life, he worked briefly at the Coleman Garage, owned by the father of his classmate, Russell Coleman. Although he excelled as an employee under Jack Coleman, he turned out not to have any mechanical expertise. His time limit running down, he quickly bought a used truck and trailer and started hauling around a lawn mower to mow local yards. Ironically, Dan turned out to be very adept in landscaping and hired a few friends to help him get jobs done. Hearing the positive word-of-mouth reviews of Dan's work, Dr. Alan Fairwood helped Dan set up and create Ashford Falls Landscaping, taking care of the homes of Carter Hedison, Nate Featherstone, Carl Griggs and Elizabeth Woods among other clients.

Buoyed by his success, Dan decided to finally marry Francine Mason, his on-and-off again girlfriend for over eight years; the two of them buying a house on Owens Road. The two of them had two sons named James and Robert. To make up for his relationship with his siblings, he re-bonded with Chloe, becoming protective of her, and giving Ben and Chloe jobs in his landscaping company. However, long being perturbed by the fact he had not got his landscaping business without Fairwood's help, he also purchased the Ashford Falls Taxi Service next to his business from Carter Hedison and turned it into the Emerald Taxi Service, expanding it with a shuttle service to Lemp Field and the town's ambulance service. However, once he made it profitable once more, Carter tried to ruthlessly re-seize it and the landscaping company. Facing off with Carter renewed his feud with Ty Hedison and a number of fights followed. After one debacle at the Sidewalk Restaurant, Dan claimed he would kill Ty if he ever came at him again, a situation that stunned both Ty and Dan when Carter walked away without giving a care.

At some point in his life, Dan became friends with Carter's nephew, Bradley Larabee, the two sharing an interest in abandoned houses and urban exploration. He also became friends with Russell Coleman, who did the body work for his taxis and ambulances. However, he had Coleman do most of his mechanical work after Len Snedeker, a local mechanic, came out as a cross dresser.

As chance would have it, neither Ben nor Chloe worked with him for long. Chloe was more interested in working at the library and elementary school, and Ben had a hard time with the physical labor in landscaping and the stress as a cab driver, subsequently landing a more lackadaisical job at the Ashford Arms Hotel. In the Spring 1989, Chloe was attacked and nearly dead by an unknown serial rapist later identified as Bud Mason. Since Dan knew Bud through his contacts, he searched Bud's hangouts in town trying to get revenge for his sister, bud Mason successfully eluded him. Dan spent much time by Chloe's hospital bed and visited her often at Ardmore Mental Hospital apologizing for not being able to protect her, but Chloe soon asked him to give up his guilt.

In 1995, Dan supported Carl Griggs for a third term as mayor and donated to his election and let him use his garage to run his campaign. However, both Ben and Chloe supported the more liberal Democrat Sabrina Collins, reviving some of their old sibling rivalries. It was Dan who extended a truce to them after Collins won the election. As with Len's cross-dressing lifestyle, Dan is struggling to accept Chloe's lesbian lifestyle.