Ben Rappaport (born ) is an American actor. He played the role of Todd Dempsy in the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
sitcom '' Outsourced'', which aired during the 2010–11 television season. The series marked Rappaport's debut acting role on screen.
Life and career
Rappaport was born in
Arlington, Texas
Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...
, and was active in the arts (painting and playing guitar) during his childhood. He was raised in the
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
religion, and his
Jewish identity
Jewish identity is the objective or subjective state of Identity (social science), perceiving oneself as a Jew and as relating to being Jews, Jewish. Under a broader definition, Jewish identity does not depend on whether a person is regarded as ...
is important to him. He attended
Klein High School
Klein High School is a public high school located in Klein, Texas, United States, located approximately from Downtown Houston. It serves grades 9– 12 in the Klein Independent School District. The current principal of Klein High School is Bran ...
near Houston. Rappaport developed an interest in acting at the age of fifteen, and subsequently graduated from the
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...
in New York City where he studied acting. He was the recipient of the
Michel
Michel may refer to:
* Michel (name), a given name or surname of French origin (and list of people with the name)
* Míchel (nickname), a nickname (a list of people with the nickname, mainly Spanish footballers)
* Míchel (footballer, born 1963), ...
and Suria Saint-Denis Prize as a Juilliard student, which is the Drama Department's highest honor.
Rappaport was featured in a Kay Jeweler's holiday commercial. The ad was well known because it prominently featured sign language and a deaf character. In 2010, Rappaport was cast in the lead role as Todd Dempsy in the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
sitcom '' Outsourced''. The role marked Rappaport's first on-screen acting job. Rappaport had previously performed in theater and stage productions. He resides in
Studio City, Los Angeles
Studio City is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, in the southeast San Fernando Valley, just west of the Cahuenga Pass. It is named after the studio lot that was established in the area by film producer Mack Sennett in 1927, ...
.
He was a series regular in the
Shondaland
Shondaland (stylized as ShondaLand from 2005 to 2016 and shondaland thereafter) is an American television production company founded by television writer/producer Shonda Rhimes. She founded it to be one of the production companies of her first s ...