Stephen Shortridge (born October 23, 1951, in Red Oak, Iowa) is an American actor.

Shortridge appeared in more than 20 film and television projects throughout the 1970s and 1980s, most recognizably from his role as a Southern high school student named Beau De LaBarre on the television sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter. He has also done over 50 commercials for such products as Mennen, Coca-Cola, and Head & Shoulders.^[1] In 1987, he spent one year as a regular cast member on the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful.^[2]

In the late 1980s, Shortridge quit the acting business to concentrate on painting. He presented gallery showings across the United States. He currently makes his home in Idaho with his children. His second wife, Cathy, whom he had married in 1976, died in 2017, leaving him a widower.

Shortridge is also an author. He published his first book in 2011 titled Deepest Thanks, Deeper Apologies.

Deepest Thanks, Deeper Apologies, Worthy Publishing, 2011, ISBN 978-1-936034-574