Biography for
Benjamin McKenzie (I) More at IMDbPro »

Date of Birth

12 September 1978, Austin, Texas, USA

Birth Name

Benjamin McKenzie Schenkkan

Height

5' 9" (1.75 m)

Mini Biography

Benjamin McKenzie Schenkkan was born and raised in Texas. Following, his graduation from the University of Virginia where he was a Foreign Affairs and Economics major, he moved to New York to pursue his passion for acting. While in New York, he appeared off-Broadway in "Life is a Dream" at the Soho Rep. Additionally, he performed in numerous productions at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, including "Street Scene" and "The Blue Bird," and at the University of Virginia, in "Measure for Measure" and "Zoo Story" before moving to Los Angeles where he landed a lead role in THE O.C.

IMDb Mini Biography By: Sarah Rahman

Trivia

Uncle is Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan

Education: Austin High, graduated 1997; University of Virginia, bachelor's degree 2001

His paternal grandparents both did some acting when they were young. His 22-year-old brother Nate is a Yale graduate working in avant-garde theater in New York. Younger brother Zack, 19, is attending Pomona College, a half-hour away from Los Angeles, and still pondering his future.

He followed his father and grandfather to the University of Virginia, where he graduated in 2001 with a degree in economics and foreign relations.

He changed his name for screen-credit purposes because there's an actor named Ben Schenkman registered with the Screen Actors Guild.

Son of Austin attorney Pieter Schenkkan and poet-writer Mary Frances Victory.

Has a manager, publicist and lawyer on the payroll (he's shopping for a new agent now that his career is taking off)

He recently moved into a new apartment in Santa Monica and bought a sleek new Infiniti G35, which he concedes he spends more on than housing.

Moved to New York City three weeks before 9/11

While in New York he waited tables to help support himself and shared a bunk bed in a cramped apartment in the city.

Mother: Frances Schenkkan will begin the master's program in creative writing at the University of Texas in the fall. She's been a newspaper reporter and editor, and in the 1980s she served on the Austin Planning Commission and the board of the Austin Child Guidance Center. She is a recipient of the Adele Steiner Burleson prize in poetry at the university. She and husband Pieter have three sons, Ben, Nate, and Zack.

He graduated from the same high school in Austin that the Bush twins (Jenna and Barbara) graduated from. He was a senior the year they were freshmen.

Second cousin of Sarah Drew

Was a speaker at the Democratic National Convention on July 27, 2004.

Was voted one of InStyle's "10 Hottest Bachelors Of Summer" in July 2005, placing at number 10.

One of his grandfathers, Robert F. ("Bob") Schenkkan, was an early proponent of both PBS and NPR. In recognition of his work, Austin, Texas' public radio and television stations KUT-FM and KLRU-TV hosted a 90th birthday celebration for him in March 2007, at which McKenzie and many of Schenkkan's other grandchildren spoke.

Personal Quotes

"I've always been kind of a loner. Continue to be. So, in that sense, Ryan and I are the same. I played football in Texas, but I didn't really hang out with the jocks. I did honors courses, but I didn't hang out with those kids, either. I sort of had my own group I hung with occasionally, but I've always been kind of by myself." - When asked about his high school experience.

It's a Fox thing, the bad-boy image. They're trying to type me out. There are worse things in life, you know. I'm just really excited about the opportunity.

"It's against type in the sense of my background, but it's with type in the sense that I am a loner who's new to this business and skeptical about a lot of it." When discussing differences between Ryan Atwood and himself.

"I'm somewhat puzzled about that myself. I did theater in college, so I had already started down that path, but I didn't want to major in theater at U. Va. I didn't really know what I wanted to do, so I thought I'd get a good education and do some acting at the same time" Explaining why he majored in Economics and Foreign Affairs and not theater.

Sometimes those fears (about fame) creep into the back of your head, but then you slap yourself and think, 'Oh, woe is me! People actually like me.' What a silly thing to worry about. This is a huge opportunity, and I'm excited.

I had one year of struggle. My parents were always there, but I didn't want to rely on them. Now it's moving pretty fast. I'm not rich, but obviously this is fantastic. All I know to do with money is put it in a shoe box anyway.

This whole scene is very strange. It's a very strange town and a very strange business, and it has a tendency to creep me out. Ryan's relationship with Orange County is very similar to my relationship with L.A.: fabulous wealth, and odd people behaving oddly, and I'm definitely a bit overwhelmed. I hope I'm hiding it well.

"I don't like the whole trend of people in the business treating marriage like entertainment. It's either for publicity value or because they're bored. Because they haven't done a movie in a few months, they get married instead." - On Young Hollywood weddings.

[When a Newsweek interviewer asked McKenzie if he thinks The OC should end with Ryan and Marissa getting married] "I've always pushed for the big marriage that the whole entire audience has always seen coming. Ryan and Seth walk down the aisle hand in hand."

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