Ryan James Bittle (born March 21, 1976) is an American actor. He began appearing on television in 1994.
Early life
Bittle was born in
La Crescenta
La Crescenta-Montrose () is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The community is bordered by Glendale to the south and west, La Cañada Flintridge to the east, and Angeles National Forest to the north. Accor ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, the son of Kathy Homewood, a nurse, and ICU director, and Jim Bittle, a Glendale fire captain. He has a younger brother, Ron, and an older brother, Jeff. Bittle attended
Crescenta Valley High School
Crescenta Valley High School is a high school in La Crescenta, California. Around 2500 students attend the school, which serves North Glendale, unincorporated La Crescenta and Montrose, as well as a municipal neighborhood on the western boundary o ...
(where he was an All-American
water polo
Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...
player),
Pasadena City College, The
London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and
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 elit ...
, Drama division (group 31), in New York City.
Career
Bittle originally had plans to play NCAA water polo and then to attend medical school before he discovered acting in his senior year of high school. This led him to postpone college in order to play a role in the television series ''
Sweet Valley High
''Sweet Valley High'' is a series of young adult novels attributed to American author Francine Pascal, who presided over a team of ghostwriters to produce the series. The books chronicle the lives of identical twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefi ...
''. He played the role of
Todd Wilkins
''Sweet Valley High'' is a series of young adult novels attributed to American author Francine Pascal, who presided over a team of ghostwriters to produce the series. The books chronicle the lives of identical twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefiel ...
in the first two seasons of the series (1994-1996).
While studying at Pasadena City College, Bittle continued to work as an actor with guest starring roles in 1996 on the television series ''
Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', ''
Boy Meets World
''Boy Meets World'' is an American coming-of-age sitcom created by Michael Jacobs and April Kelly that aired on ABC for seven seasons between September1993 and May2000. The series centers on Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) and his friends and fami ...
'' and ''
The Parent 'Hood
''The Parent 'Hood'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on The WB from January 18, 1995, to July 25, 1999. The series starred Robert Townsend and Suzzanne Douglas. Originally to be titled ''Father Knows Nothing'' (a parody of t ...
''. He also had a recurring role on ''
7th Heaven'' as
Jessica Biel
Jessica Claire Timberlake ( née Biel ; born March 3, 1982) is an American actress and model. She has received various accolades, including a Young Artist Award, and nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award and two Golden Globe Awards.
Bie ...
's early love interest and supporting roles in the films ''
Tear it Down'', ''
Devil in the Flesh'' and ''
The Clown at Midnight''. While working on the latter with
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer (December 13, 1929 – February 5, 2021) was a Canadian actor. His career spanned seven decades, gaining him recognition for his performances in film, stage, and television. He received multiple accolades, inc ...
in 1998, Bittle decided he wanted to leave Hollywood for New York to spend some more time studying at The Juilliard School. In New York, Bittle was in numerous productions with the actors
Nathan Baesel
Nathan Baesel (born April 7, 1974, in La Palma, California) is an American actor.
Biography
Baesel attended Buena Park High School. After high school he went to Fullerton College, before graduating from Juilliard School in 2002. He has appeare ...
,
Jennifer Carpenter
Jennifer Carpenter is an American actress who is known for her role as Debra Morgan in the Showtime series '' Dexter'', for which she earned a Saturn Award in 2009, and also for playing Rebecca Harris in the CBS television series '' Limitles ...
,
Daniel Breaker
Daniel Breaker (born June 2, 1980) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for playing Donkey in ''Shrek The Musical''.
Career
Beginning his career in 2002, immediately after graduating from Juilliard, Breaker has performed in Off-Br ...
and James Martinez.
Back in Los Angeles, Bittle continued with a recurring role on the successful WB drama ''
Dawson's Creek
''Dawson's Creek'' is an American teen drama television series about the lives of a close-knit group of friends in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts, beginning in high school and continuing into college that ran from 1998 to 2003. T ...
'' and the PBS drama ''
American Family''. He also had varying guest star roles on shows such as the CBS dramas ''
CSI: Miami
''CSI: Miami'' (''Crime Scene Investigation: Miami'') is an American police procedural drama television series that ran from September 23, 2002 until April 8, 2012 on CBS. Featuring David Caruso as Lieutenant Horatio Caine, Emily Procter as Dete ...
'', ''
CSI: NY
''CSI: NY'' (''Crime Scene Investigation: New York'', stylized as ''CSI: NY/Crime Scene Investigation'') is an American police procedural television series that ran on CBS from September 22, 2004, to February 22, 2013, for a total of nine seaso ...
'', ''
Numb3rs
''Numbers'' (stylized as ''NUMB3RS'') is an American crime drama television series that was broadcast on CBS from January 23, 2005, to March 12, 2010, for six seasons and 118 episodes. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heu ...
'' and ''
NCIS''. He also played an actor for the second time in his career on
Courteney Cox
Courteney Bass Cox (previously Courteney Cox Arquette; born June 15, 1964) is an American actress and filmmaker. She gained international recognition for her starring role as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom ''Friends'', which aired from 1994 ...
's TV show ''
Dirt
Dirt is an unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin, or possessions. In such cases, they are said to become dirty.
Common types of dirt include:
* Debris: scattered pieces of waste or remains
* Dust: a gener ...
''.
In 2003, Bittle starred as Christian opposite
Mark Harelik
Marcus Frank Harelik (born June 5, 1951) is an American television, film, and stage actor, and playwright.
Early life
Harelik was born in Hamilton, Texas.
In 1909, Harelik's Russian Jewish grandfather, Haskell Harelik—upon whom Harelik's ...
and
Gregory Itzin
Gregory Martin Itzin (April 20, 1948 – July 8, 2022) was an American character actor of film and television best known for his role as U.S. President Charles Logan in the action thriller series '' 24''.
Early life
Itzin was born in Washin ...
in ''
Cyrano de Bergerac
Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist.
A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th cen ...
'' at
South Coast Repertory
South Coast Repertory (SCR) is a professional theatre company located in Costa Mesa, California.
Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory, founded in 1964 by David Emmes and Martin Benson, is led by Artistic Director David Ivers and Managing Direc ...
.
[imdb.com]
Bittle was in three films released in 2010-2011: ''
Take Me Home Tonight'', a 1980s set comedy starring with
Topher Grace
Christopher John Grace ( ; born July 12, 1978) is an American actor. He is known for portraying Eric Forman in the Fox sitcom ''That '70s Show'', Eddie Brock / Venom in Sam Raimi's film ''Spider-Man 3'', Pete Monash in '' Win a Date with Tad H ...
and
Anna Faris
Anna Kay Faris (; born November 29, 1976) is an American actress. She rose to prominence for her work in comedic roles, particularly the lead part of Cindy Campbell in the ''Scary Movie'' film series (2000–2006). She has appeared in a number ...
; ''
Backyard Wedding'', starring with
Alicia Witt
Alicia Roanne Witt (born August 21, 1975) is an American actress, singer and pianist. She first came to fame as a child actress after being discovered by David Lynch, who cast her in '' Dune'' (1984) and '' Twin Peaks'' (1990). Witt had a critic ...
and
Frances Fisher
Frances Louise Fisher (born May 11, 1952) is a British-born American actress. She began her career in theatre and later starred as record executive Suzette 'Red' Saxon in the CBS daytime soap opera ''The Guiding Light'' (1985). In film, she is ...
and the horror/thriller ''
A Lure: Teen Fight Club''.
In 2012, Bittle starred in ''
Annie Claus Is Coming To Town'', opposite
Maria Thayer
Maria Christina Thayer is an American actress and comedian. She first earned public recognition for her portrayal of Tammi Littlenut on the cult series ''Strangers with Candy'' in 1999. Thayer has also had supporting roles in the comedy films '' ...
and
Sam Page, as well as the made-for-TV movie ''
Operation Cupcake'', opposite
Dean Cain
Dean George Cain ( Tanaka; born July 31, 1966) is an American actor. From 1993 to 1997, he played Clark Kent / Superman in the TV series '' Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman''. Cain was the host of '' Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' a ...
and
Kristy Swanson
Kristen Noel Swanson (born December 19, 1969) is an American actress. She is best recognized for having played Buffy Summers in the 1992 film ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' and appeared in the 1996 film ''The Phantom''.
Her first starring role wa ...
. He also guest starred on ''
The Closer
''The Closer'' is an American television police procedural starring Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Los Angeles Police Department deputy chief. A CIA-trained interrogator originally from Atlanta, Georgia, Brenda has a reputation as a c ...
'' and the NBC comedy ''
The New Normal''.
In 2013, Bittle guest starred on the Showtime series ''
Shameless'' as well as reviving the role of
JR Chandler
Adam "JR" Chandler Jr. is a fictional character from the ABC and The Online Network daytime drama ''All My Children''. He was portrayed by Jacob Young from 2003 to 2011, prior to Ryan Bittle taking over the role in 2013. Bittle was cast as the n ...
on the revived Prospect Park's ''
All My Children''.
In 2014, Bittle starred in two films, ''
Love By the Book
Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of meanings is that the love o ...
'', starring opposite
Leah Renee, and ''
A Christmas Mystery'' opposite
Esmé Bianco
Esmé Augusta Bianco (born 25 May 1982) is a British actress and neo-burlesque performer, who is best known for her recurring roles as Ros on ''Game of Thrones'' and Jane Chatwin on '' The Magicians''.
Career
Bianco has posed for painters Chri ...
.
Personal life
Bittle enjoys playing sports. He plays golf and
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
when he can. In his spare time he plays masters
water polo
Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...
and coaches polo at high school and club level.
Bittle also enjoys flying and received his private pilot's license in 2001.
In 2003, Bittle married Jennifer Davis;
they divorced in 2006.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bittle, Ryan
1976 births
Living people
People from La Crescenta-Montrose, California
American male film actors
American male water polo players
Aviators from California
American male television actors
Pasadena City College alumni