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Ben Koldyke

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Ben Koldyke
Born
Benjamin Koldyke

(1968-03-27) March 27, 1968 (age 56)
OccupationActor
Years active2000–present
Spouse
(m. 2015; div. 2017)
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Benjamin Koldyke (born March 27, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Don Frank on How I Met Your Mother (2009–2010), Lee Standish in Work It (2012), and Greg Gibbon on Gortimer Gibbon's Life On Normal Street (2014–2016).

Early life and education

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Koldyke was born in Chicago, Illinois, and grew up in nearby Kenilworth. His father, Martin J. "Mike" Koldyke, is a former investment banker who founded Frontenac Company in Chicago and is a life trustee of Northwestern University;[2] through his mother, Patricia Blunt Koldyke, he is a member of the family that controls Laird Norton Company, an investment company with roots in the timber industry of the Pacific Northwest.

After graduating from high school, he did a post-graduate year at Choate Rosemary Hall. He graduated in 1991 from Dartmouth College, where he earned a bachelor's degree in English and was a quarterback for the football team.[3]

Career

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Koldyke worked as a high school English teacher and football coach in Chicago. His acting career received a jump start after a chance encounter with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia creator-star, Rob McElhenney. Regulars at the same Venice cafe, he covered Rob's tab with a note that said he "thought his show was fantastic," and this exchange led to Koldyke's first TV pilot, Boldly Going Nowhere for Fox, a few years later.[4]

After Boldly was not picked up, Koldyke went on to recur as Dale Tomasson in the HBO series Big Love and as Don Frank in How I Met Your Mother for CBS.[5]

In 2012, Koldyke starred as the lead character in the short-lived ABC comedy series Work It and later guest starred in HBO's The Newsroom.[6] 2013 saw him star in another ABC sitcom, Back in the Game, opposite James Caan and Maggie Lawson.[7] He had a significant arc on Showtime's Masters of Sex as teacher and football coach Paul Edley,[8] and played male chauvinist Brent throughout the final season of The Good Place.[9] In 2021 he had a recurring role on season 1 of Peacock sitcom Rutherford Falls.[10]

Koldyke was seen on the big screen in 2016 in a supporting role for Disney's The Finest Hours alongside Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Eric Bana, and Ben Foster.

Personal life

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On August 8, 2015, Koldyke married actress Maggie Lawson in a ceremony at his family's ranch in Las Vegas, New Mexico. In early 2017, Lawson filed for divorce from Koldyke.[1]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2000 The Next Best Thing Kelly's Boyfriend
2000 Thirteen Days RF-8 Pilot
2001 Red Zone Dutch Van Roble Also writer and director
2002 Osama Bin Laden: Behind the Madness Writer and director
2003 Say I Do Ben
2003 Stuck on You Officer Tommy Johnson
2008 Jedi Gym Master Flynn Short film, also writer and director
2016 The Finest Hours Sam

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2002 24 LAPD Officer Episode: "Day 2: 10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m."
2009 Boldly Going Nowhere TV pilot
2009 It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Sean Episode: "The Gang Exploits the Mortgage Crisis"
2009 The Big D Will Dupree TV pilot
2009 This Little Piggy TV pilot
2010 Big Love Dale Tomasson 5 episodes
2009–2010 How I Met Your Mother Don Frank 6 episodes
2012 Work It Lee Standish Series regular, 11 episodes
2013 The Newsroom Cyrus West Episode: "First Thing We Do, Let's Kill All the Lawyers"
2013 Back in the Game Dick Slingbaugh Series regular
2014-2016 Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street Greg Gibbon Recurring
2015 Mr. Robinson Jimmy Series regular
2015 Masters of Sex Paul Edley Recurring
2017 Curb Your Enthusiasm Dave Episode: "The Accidental Text on Purpose"
2018 Silicon Valley Ben Episode: "Chief Operating Officer"
2019 The Good Place Brent Norwalk Recurring (season 4)
2021 Rutherford Falls Dudley 'Duz' Rutherford Recurring

References

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  1. ^ a b "Ben Koldyke Selling Updated 1920s Santa Monica Craftsman". Variety. February 9, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
  2. ^ Lyon, Jeff (May 15, 1988). "Grabbing the Wheel". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  3. ^ "Ben Koldyke biography". TVGuide.com. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  4. ^ Nellie Andreeva; AP (October 21, 2008). "Rookie takes lead in Fox's 'Boldly'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
  5. ^ Waterman, Lauren (January 30, 2001). "Ben Koldyke Talks Dale's Twist on Big Love". Vulture. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  6. ^ Andriakos, Jacqueline (January 14, 2012). "Work it is cancelled by ABC". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  7. ^ Lacey Rose (August 4, 2013). "Cullen Brothers, James Caan Preview ABC's 'Back in the Game'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
  8. ^ Petski, Denise (July 28, 2015). "Brent Sexton Joins Amazon's 'Bosch'". Deadline. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
  9. ^ Dan, Hamamura (November 8, 2019). "Ben Koldyke Forking Kills It (Plus Easter Eggs) In This Week's 'The Good Place'!". Pajiba.com. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  10. ^ "'Rutherford Falls': Ed Helms in a Culture Clash". Rolling Stone. April 21, 2021. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
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