Paul Rudd

Paul Stephen Rudd (born April 6, 1969) is an American actor and screenwriter. He primarily appears in comedies, and is most well-known for his roles in the films Clueless, Wet Hot American Summer, Anchorman, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Dinner For Schmucks, Role Models, I Love You, Man and How Do You Know. On television, he is best known for his role on the NBC sitcom Friends, playing Mike Hannigan, Phoebe Buffay's boyfriend and later husband. Rudd was born in Passaic, New Jersey. His parents, who emigrated from Britain, were Jewish, and Rudd had a bar mitzvah. His family's original surname, "Rudnitzky", was changed by his grandfather to "Rudd". Rudd's father, Michael, was a historical tour guide who was formerly the vice president of World Airways, while Rudd's mother, Gloria, was a sales manager at the television station KSMO-TV. When he was ten, Rudd's family moved to Overland Park, Kansas, where he was raised. He attended high school at Shawnee Mission West and college at the University of Kansas, where he was a member of Sigma Nu fraternity. For one semester, he studied Jacobean drama at the University of Oxford.