Benjamin Eric Woolf (September 15, 1980 – February 23, 2015) was an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles in ''

American Horror Story ''American Horror Story'' is an American anthology horror television series created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk for the cable network FX. The first installment in the '' American Story'' media franchise, each season is conceived as a ...

first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and fourth seasons, in which he played Infantata and Meep, respectively. He was also a pre-school teacher.

Early life

Born September 15, 1980,

Fort Collins, Colorado Fort Collins is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Larimer County, Colorado Larimer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 359 ...

, in the United States, to parents Nicholas Woolf and author Marcy Luikart, Woolf grew up in

Fairfield, Iowa Fairfield is a city in, and the county seat of, Jefferson County, Iowa. It has a population of 9,416 people, according to the 2020 census. The median family income is $46,138, with 10% of families below the poverty line. The city is typical o ...

. He moved with his family to Santa Barbara in 1999 where he was an active league pool player, improv theater performer, and karaoke enthusiast. He earned a degree in Early Childhood Education at City College, teaching in the Head Start program in

Goleta Goleta or La Goleta may refer to: * ''Goleta'' (spider), a spider genus * Goleta, California, United States, a suburban city in Santa Barbara County * La Goleta, the Spanish and Portuguese name for La Goulette La Goulette (, it, La Goletta), i ...

until 2010. In 2002, he moved to Hollywood to pursue his dream of being an actor.

Career

In 2002, Woolf began his acting career in his musical film debut "Tap". Woolf was featured in '' Dead Kansas'', ''

Insidious Insidious may refer to: * ''Insidious'' (film series), a horror film series consisting of the films listed below ** ''Insidious'' (film), a 2010 American supernatural horror film ** '' Insidious: Chapter 2'', a 2013 sequel ** '' Insidious: Chapt ...

'', ''Haunting Charles Manson'', and ''Woggie''. However, Woolf was perhaps best known for his role as The Infantata and Meep on the television series ''

''. Of his love of pre-school teaching, Woolf said, "when you're with children, you kind of live in a different world that doesn't have any rules. It's more imagination."

Personal life

Woolf was diagnosed with

pituitary dwarfism Growth hormone deficiency (GHD), or human growth hormone deficiency, is a medical condition resulting from not enough growth hormone (GH). Generally the most noticeable symptom is that an individual attains a short height. Newborns may also presen ...

at an early age. He stood at as an adult.

Honors

Two weeks before he died Woolf was honored in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

for his contributions to the

horror genre Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian ...

at the Russian Horror Film Awards.

Death

Woolf died February 23, 2015 at age 34 from a stroke resulting from a head injury he received in a traffic accident while crossing the road. He was struck by the side-view mirror of a passing car in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Woolf later died at

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2 ...

located in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Filmography

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Woolf, Ben 1980 births 2015 deaths 21st-century American male actors American male television actors American male film actors Actors from Fort Collins, Colorado Actors with dwarfism Male actors from Colorado Road incident deaths in California