Rich Sommer

Rich Sommer

Sommer at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2012
Born Richard Olen Sommer II
(1978-02-02) February 2, 1978
Toledo, Ohio, U.S.
Residence Los Angeles, California
Alma mater Case Western Reserve University
Occupation Actor
Years active 2004–present
Spouse(s) Virginia Donohoe (m. 2005)
Children 2

Richard Olen "Rich" Sommer II (born February 2, 1978) is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Harry Crane on the AMC drama series Mad Men. He is also known for his roles in the comedy-drama films The Devil Wears Prada (2006), Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012), The Giant Mechanical Man (2012), and Hello, My Name Is Doris (2015).

Early life and education

Sommer was born in Toledo, Ohio, and raised in Stillwater, Minnesota, where he was educated at Oakland Junior High School and Stillwater Area High School.[1] He then went on to attend Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, where he majored in theater and sang in The Concordia Choir.[2] Sommer studied improvisation at the Brave New Workshop in Minneapolis, and started an improv group, the Slush Puppies, in Moorhead.[3] In 2004, he received his Master of Fine Arts in acting from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.[4] Sommer returned to the school in 2006 to teach icebreakers to law students, and again in 2008 to do an improv workshop with undergraduate theatre students.

Career

Sommer's most notable film role to date is as Anne Hathaway's friend Doug in the 2006 film The Devil Wears Prada. He has appeared in commercials for companies such as Bud Light, Nextel, and Sprint.

Sommer at the 15th Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2009

From 2007 until its ending in 2015, Sommer maintained a regular role on AMC's period drama series Mad Men as Harry Crane, a media buyer who becomes head of the television department in a 1960s Madison Avenue ad agency. In 2008, Sommer appeared as a guest star in two episodes of NBC's mockumentary sitcom series The Office, portraying the role of Alex. In 2010, he played Jimmy Wilson in a guest appearance on Ugly Betty.[5]

In 2011, Sommer guest starred in two episodes of The CW's drama-thriller series Nikita as electrical engineer and CIA consultant Malcolm Mitchell.[6] The following year, he co-starred with Bob Odenkirk and Jenna Fischer in the romantic comedy film The Giant Mechanical Man.[7] In May 2012, he began performances of the Roundabout Theatre Company's production of Harvey on Broadway, co-starring alongside Jim Parsons.[8] Also that same year, he guest starred in NBC's police procedural series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Boyd Hartwell.[9]

On March 1, 2014, it was reported that Sommer had been cast in the CBS pilot Good Session; however, the network later declined to pick up the project to series.[10] In November 2014, Sommer reprised his role as Harlan Emple in an episode of CBS' procedural drama series Elementary, after guest starring as the character in an episode the previous year.[11] From February 2 to March 13, 2016, Sommer will star in the Off-Broadway revival of Sam Shepard's play Buried Child, alongside Ed Harris and Amy Madigan.[12] In 2016, he will co-star in Rob Reiner's biopic LBJ as Press Secretary Pierre Salinger, in a cast including Woody Harrelson in the title role.[13]

Personal life

Sommer lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Virginia Donohoe, whom he married on August 13, 2005. Together, the couple have a daughter, Beatrice Grace (born 2008),[14] and a son, Patrick Ryan (born August 31, 2010).[15]

Board Gaming

Sommer began playing board games at a young age, but he did not discover modern board games until 2004.[16] Since then, Sommer has become a well-known figure in the board gaming industry and community.

On April 1st, 2015 Summer began publishing a board gaming podcast titled "Cardboard! with Rich Sommer" under the Earwolf Podcast Network.[17] Cardboard! regularly hosted guest appearances by prolific members of the board gaming hobby and included signature segments such as Cardboard and Cocktails. The final episode of Cardboard! (under the Earwolf Podcast Network) was published on June 4th, 2015 after running for eleven episodes.[18]

On September 1st, 2016 Summer announced that he would be reviving his former podcast via his podcast's twitter account. [19] In his revival of Cardboard!, he chose to explore the idea of creating a mixture of a podcast and radio show. The show airs live (via the podcasting service, Spreaker), but does not have a regular time or date. Summer chooses to announce the show sporadically via his Twitter. He also publishes the show on other podcast hosting services such as iTunes.[20]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2004 Death 4 Told Donnie Segment: "Folklore"
2006 The Devil Wears Prada Doug
2007 Pose Down Fred Direct-to-DVD
2010 Radio Free Albemuth FBI Agent #2
2012 Celeste and Jesse Forever Max
2012 The Giant Mechanical Man Brian
2012 Fairhaven Sam
2015 Hello, My Name Is Doris Robert
2015 My Name Is David His GRE Student
2016 LBJ Pierre Salinger
2016 Girlfriend's Day Buddy Post-production

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2007 Law & Order Mike Scholl Episode: "Talking Points"
2007–2015 Mad Men Harry Crane 80 episodes
2008 Without a Trace Will Herring Episode: "Article 32"
2008 The Office Alex 2 episodes
2009 Law & Order Zach Marshall Episode: "Doped"
2009 The Storm Dr. Jack Hoffman 2 episodes
2010 Ugly Betty Jimmy Wilson Episode: "Fire and Nice"
2010 Burn Notice Winston Episode: "Friends and Enemies"
2011 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Scott Horan Episode: "Man Up"
2011 Curb Your Enthusiasm Veterinarian Episode: "Vow of Silence"
2011 Nikita Malcolm Mitchell 2 episodes
2012 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Boyd Hartwell Episode: "Valentine's Day"
2013–2014 Elementary Harlan Emple 2 episodes
2014 The League Freddie Mandino Episode: "The Beach House"
2015 The Simpsons Young Man (voice) Episode: "My Fare Lady"
2015 Regular Show Del Hanlon / Additional voices 5 episodes
2015 Comedy Bang! Bang! Agent Bill Ritz Episode: "Skylar Astin Wears Blue Jeans and Weathered Brown Desert Boots"
2015 Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp Graham 6 episodes
2015 Playing House Brian Episode: "Sleepless in Pinebrook"
2016 Love Dustin Episode: "Party in the Hills"
2016 Last Week Tonight Apple Engineer Episode: "Encryption"
2016 Grey's Anatomy Noah Episode: "At Last"
2016 Elena of Avalor Captain Daniel Turner 13 episodes

Video games

Year Title Role
2011 L.A. Noire John Cunningham
2016 Firewatch Henry

Stage

Year Title Role Notes
2012 Harvey Duane Wilson Roundabout Theatre Company
2013 The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin Chris Wyatt Roundabout Theatre Company
2016 Buried Child Bradley The New Group

Awards and nominations

Year Association Category Work Result
2007 Satellite Awards Best Cast – Television Series Mad Men Won
Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series Nominated
2008 Won
2009 Won
2010 Nominated
2012 Nominated
2015 Nominated

References

  1. ↑ Divine, Mary (April 24, 2015). "'Mad Men' actor Rich Sommer comes home for Stillwater benefit". TwinCities.com.
  2. ↑ "Saberi, Sommer to Receive Sent Forth Awards". Concordia College (Moorhead, Minnesota). March 4, 2014.
  3. ↑ Royce, Graydon (July 27, 2011). "It's a mad, mad, mad weekend for Brave New Workshop". Star Tribune.
  4. ↑ Washington, Julie (November 25, 2008). "Rich Sommer of 'Mad Men' puts his 'cigarettes' down to help out at Case Western Reserve University / Cleveland Play House graduate program". Cleveland.com.
  5. ↑ Ausiello, Michael (January 16, 2010). "'Ugly Betty' exclusive: 'Mad' man Rich Sommer woos Betty". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 27, 2012.
  6. ↑ Masters, Megan (March 16, 2011). "Nikita Scoop: Mad Man Infiltrates Division!". TVLine.
  7. ↑ Fernandez, Jay A (June 12, 2010). "Three Actors Cast in 'The Giant Mechanical Man' Romantic Comedy". The Hollywood Reporter.
  8. ↑ Leeds, Sarene (April 26, 2012). "'Mad Men' Actor Rich Sommer: 'Harry's Not a Douchebag'". Rolling Stone.
  9. ↑ Stanhope, Kate (April 17, 2012). "Exclusive SVU Video: Chloe Sevigny Gets "Sociopathic" as a Self-Destructive Housewife". TV Guide.
  10. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (March 1, 2014). "Rich Sommer Cast In CBS Pilot 'Good Session'; Brian Howe In 'Save the Date'". Deadline.com.
  11. ↑ Abrams, Natalie (July 31, 2014). "Exclusive: Mad Men's Rich Sommer Returning to Elementary". TV Guide.
  12. ↑ Clemet, Olivia (December 3, 2015). ""Mad Men" Star Rich Sommer Joins Cast of Upcoming Off-Broadway Revival of Sam Shepard's Buried Child". Playbill.
  13. ↑ Lincoln, Ross A (September 21, 2015). "Allison Tolman, Michaela Watkins Join Will Ferrell-Amy Poehler Comedy; LBJ Packs Cast As Production Starts". Deadline.com.
  14. ↑ Farley, Christopher John (March 19, 2012). "A Mad Man on the Loose". The Wall Street Journal.
  15. ↑ Michaud, Sarah (September 2, 2010). "Rich Sommer Welcomes Son Patrick Ryan". People. Retrieved March 27, 2012.
  16. ↑ https://www.asmodee.us/en/news/2016/5/26/an-interview-with-rich-sommer/
  17. ↑ http://www.earwolf.com/
  18. ↑ https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/cardboard!-with-rich-sommer/id982094665?mt=2
  19. ↑ https://twitter.com/CardboardCast/status/771464729650798592
  20. ↑ https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/cardboard!-with-rich-sommer/id1150235267?mt=2
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