Benjamin Bowmar Curtis (born November 2, 1980) is an American actor who became known as the Dell Dude in a series of commercials for
Dell Computers between 2000 and 2003. Since then, he has acted on stage and on screen.
Early life and education
Curtis, born in
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020 ...
, is the second of two children; he attended and graduated from
The McCallie School
The McCallie School is a boys college-preparatory school located on Missionary Ridge in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. The school was founded in 1905 and now has 250 boarding students in grades 9–12 and 669 day students in grades 6–12 ...
, an
all-boys school in Chattanooga, after completing elementary school at Saint Nicholas School, also in
Chattanooga.
At the age of thirteen, inspired by illusionist
David Copperfield
''David Copperfield'' Dickens invented over 14 variations of the title for this work, see is a novel in the bildungsroman genre by Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from inf ...
, Curtis started his own magic business; he competed in and won a few national stage contests. He attended
Tannen's Magic School in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. He then attended
New York University Tisch School of the Arts
The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic and media arts school of New York University.
Founded on August 17, 1965, Tisch is a training ground for artists, scholars of the ar ...
on an acting scholarship. He also studied at
Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute
The Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute (originally the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute) is an acting school founded in 1969 by actor, director, and acting teacher Lee Strasberg. The Institute is located in Union Square on East 15th Street, ...
, the
Atlantic Theater Company
Atlantic Theater Company is an Off-Broadway non-profit theater, whose mission is to produce great plays "simply and truthfully utilizing an artistic ensemble." The company was founded in 1985 by David Mamet, William H. Macy, and 30 of their act ...
, and Tisch's Experimental Theater Wing.
Career
Dell commercials
As part of a commercial advertising campaign, Curtis portrayed the character Steven. The
casting call
In the performing arts industry such as theatre, film, or television, casting, or a casting call, is a pre-production process for selecting a certain type of actor, dancer, singer, or extra for a particular role or part in a script, screenplay, ...
asked for a boy 12 to 17 years old; Curtis was 20.
This advertising campaign popularized the phrase "Dude, you're getting a Dell". The commercials would usually feature Steven informing prospective buyers of all the perks of owning a Dell. When the party was sold on the idea, he would close with the
catchphrase
A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
"Dude, you're getting a Dell." The campaign was a success and brought prominence to Dell and Curtis.
Curtis' tenure with Dell ended shortly after he was arrested and accused of buying a bag of marijuana in 2003. Dell terminated the role and according to Curtis, he was blacklisted from the entertainment community, and it was difficult for him to find work.
Later career
In 2005, Curtis played the role of Christian in the
Off-Broadway comedy ''Joy'' by John Fisher. The show ran at the Actors' Playhouse in Manhattan's West Village from August 14 to September 25.
In 2006, Curtis starred in the short film ''Raccoon'' opposite
Jonathan Togo
Jonathan Frederick Togo (born August 25, 1977) is an American actor, best known for his role in ''CSI: Miami'' as Ryan Wolfe.
Early life, family and education
Togo was born in Rockland, Massachusetts, the son of Sheila, a housewife and former ...
.
Curtis appeared in ''
Take Me Out'' at NYU's
Abe Burrows Theatre, and in
Alexander Klymko's 2011 film ''Spy''.
Curtis has made various appearances in ''
What Would You Do?.''
Curtis returned to Dell in internal training for Dell Technologies employees in 2022 to ask a question during Q&A for Dell leadership pertaining to Dell’s marketing strategy.
Filmography
Film
Television
Video games
References
External links
Official Web site*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Ben
1980 births
American male television actors
American male video game actors
Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute alumni
Living people
Male actors from Tennessee
People from Chattanooga, Tennessee
Tisch School of the Arts alumni