Alan Ruck

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Alan Ruck
Alan Ruck (40740365053) (cropped1).jpg
Ruck in 2019
Born
Alan Douglas Ruck

(1956-07-01) July 1, 1956 (age 66)
Alma mater University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (BFA)
OccupationActor
Years active1983–present
Spouses
  • Claudia Stefany
    (m. 1984;div. 2005)
  • (m. 2008)
Children4

Alan Douglas Ruck (born July 1, 1956) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Cameron Frye, Ferris Bueller's best friend, in John Hughes's film Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986); Stuart Bondek, a lecherous, power-hungry member of the mayor's staff in the ABC sitcom Spin City ; and Connor Roy, the eldest son of a media magnate, in the HBO series Succession . His other notable parts include those in Bad Boys (1983), Three Fugitives (1989), Young Guns II (1990), Speed (1994), and Twister (1996). In 2016, he co-starred with Geena Davis in an updated Fox TV adaptation of William Peter Blatty's best-selling novel The Exorcist.

Contents

Early life

Ruck was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to a schoolteacher mother and a father who worked for a pharmaceutical company. [1] He attended Parma Senior High School in Parma, Ohio, and graduated from the University of Illinois with a B.F.A. in drama in 1979. [2] He recalled:

After school, I went up to Chicago, because I didn't really know anybody in New York or Los Angeles, and I knew people who were doing plays in Chicago. So I went up there, and I knocked around a little bit. And I guess about a year after I was out of school, I got my first job.

Ruck made his Broadway debut in 1985 in Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues with Matthew Broderick. He was soon a stage actor at theaters around the US, including the Wisdom Bridge Theatre in Chicago. In his initial foray into film, Ruck appeared in Class and Hard Knocks as well as some television films. [2]

Career

Ruck's first film role was in the 1983 drama film Bad Boys , in which he played Carl Brennan, Sean Penn's friend in the film. The same year he played Roger Jackson in Class . Three years later, Ruck was cast as Cameron Frye, Ferris Bueller's hypochondriac best friend in John Hughes' Ferris Bueller's Day Off after Broderick encouraged him to audition for the role -- their real-life friendship was reportedly a factor in Ruck's being cast. [3] One of his other film roles was in the 1987 film Three for the Road .

Ruck later appeared in the 1989 comedy film Three Fugitives . Following that, he played a significant role as Hendry William French in Young Guns II , the 1990 sequel to Young Guns . He also played Captain John Harriman of the USS Enterprise-B in the 1994 film Star Trek Generations , a role that he has reprised along with Generations co-star Walter Koenig and other Trek alumni in the fan film Of Gods and Men . [4] Alan also played an annoying tourist named Doug Stephens on an ill-fated bus in the blockbuster Speed . Another supporting role was of the eccentric storm chaser Robert 'Rabbit' Nurick in the 1996 disaster film Twister . [5]

From 1990 to 1991, Ruck starred as Chicago ad man Charlie Davis, in the ABC series Going Places . ABC canceled the series after one season (22 episodes). He appeared in the series Daddy's Girls in 1994, which was canceled after three episodes. From 1996 to 2002, Alan played Stuart Bondek in the sitcom Spin City alongside Michael J. Fox and later, Charlie Sheen. In 2005, he played Leo Bloom in the Broadway version of Mel Brooks' The Producers , a role also played by his Ferris Bueller co-star, Matthew Broderick.

Ruck was then cast in the pilot of the Tim Minear-created Fox Network series Drive , but did not appear in the actual series. He also starred in one episode of the Comedy Central sitcom Stella as Richard, a man looking for work. He later starred in the season two Scrubs episode "My Lucky Day" as a patient, and played reporter Steve Jacobson on the ESPN miniseries The Bronx Is Burning .

In 1998, Ruck guest starred in the fifth episode of the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon as the NASA engineer Tom Dolan.

In 2006, Ruck guest starred in a single episode of Stargate Atlantis called "The Real World" and, in 2007, as unscrupulous property developer Albert Bunford in an episode of Medium .

In the 2007 comedy Kickin' It Old Skool , he appears as Dr. Frye, a possible connection to Cameron Frye; he even mentions still trying to pay off an old Ferrari, a reference to Cameron totaling his dad's Ferrari in Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

Ruck played the part of a ghost of a family man in the 2008 film Ghost Town starring Ricky Gervais. In 2009, he had a minor role as a married man named Frank in an episode of Cougar Town . In his role, he has problems with his marriage due to a crush he had long ago on Jules, played by Courteney Cox.

Ruck also has a small role in the 2008 M. Night Shyamalan film The Happening . He played the role of Dean Bowman in the college fraternity drama Greek . He appeared in a guest role as a manic geologist in an episode of Eureka . Additionally, he plays Mr. Cooverman in the film I Love You, Beth Cooper . In 2009, Ruck filmed the medical drama Extraordinary Measures [6] [7] in Portland, Oregon, with star Harrison Ford.

Ruck then appeared as a bank robber in a season three episode of the USA Network series Psych , and as a lawyer in season five of the ABC series Boston Legal . He guest starred as Martin, a magazine reporter, on an episode of Ruby & the Rockits entitled "We Are Family?".

In 2010, Ruck was cast as a lead character in the NBC mystery-drama, Persons Unknown . He also guest-starred on the television show Fringe as a scientist turned criminal, in the NCIS: Los Angeles season two episode "Borderline", and guest-starred as ex-money laundering accountant turned dentist on an episode of Justified entitled "Long in the Tooth". He also appeared in the Grey's Anatomy season five episode "In The Midnight Hour".

In 2012, Ruck was cast in the ABC Family series Bunheads as the husband to Sutton Foster's character, Michelle. In 2013, he appeared in NCIS, guest-starring in the season 11 episode, "Gut Check".

In autumn 2016, Ruck began a 10-episode run on The Exorcist as Henry Rance, the husband (who has suffered mild brain damage in a vaguely explained accident) of Angela Rance (Geena Davis), better known as the adult Regan MacNeil, the tortured girl (played by Linda Blair) who is possessed by a demon in the 1973 hit film The Exorcist .

In 2018, Ruck began in the role of Connor Roy in the Emmy-award winning HBO series Succession .

Personal life

Ruck married Claudia Stefany in 1984. They have two children: a daughter, Emma, and a son, Sam. They divorced in 2005. On January 4, 2008, he married actress Mireille Enos, whom he met in 2005 while co-starring in the Broadway revival of Absurd Person Singular . Mireille gave birth to their daughter Vesper in 2010. Their son Larkin was born in July 2014. [8]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1983 Bad Boys Carl Brennan
1983 Class Roger Jackson
1986 Ferris Bueller's Day Off Cameron Frye
1987 Three for the Road T.S.
1989 Three Fugitives Inspector Tener
1989 Bloodhounds of Broadway John Wangle
1990 Young Guns II Hendry William French
1994 Speed Doug Stephens
1994 Star Trek Generations John Harriman
1995 Born to Be Wild Dan Woodley
1996 Twister Robert "Rabbit" Nurick
1998 Walking to the Waterline Duane Hopwood
2000 Everything Put Together Kessel
2003 Cheaper by the Dozen Bill Shenk
2007 Kickin' It Old Skool Dr. Cameron Frye
2007 InAlienable Dr. Proway
2008 The Happening School Principal
2008 Ghost Town Ghost Dad
2008EavesdropCasper
2008 Star Trek: Of Gods and Men John Harriman
2009 I Love You, Beth Cooper Mr. Cooverman
2009 Don't You Forget About Me Himself
2010 Extraordinary Measures Pete Sutphen
2012 Goats Dr. Eldridge
2012 Shanghai Calling Marcus Groff
2013 Zombie Night Joseph
2015DeathlyRichardShort
2016 Carnage Park Sheriff Wyatt Moss
2016 Dreamland Walter
2017 War Machine Lt. Gen. Pat McKinnon
2018 Gringo Jerry
2018 Sierra Burgess Is a Loser Stephen Burgess
2019 Captive State Charles Rittenhouse
2020 Freaky Mr. Bernardi
TBA The Burial Post-production
TBA Wind River: The Next Chapter Filming

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1984Hard KnoxFrankie TyroneTelevision film
1985 First Steps DaveTelevision film
1988 Shooter Stork O'ConnorTelevision film
1989 The Famous Teddy Z Sheldon SammsEpisode: "Teddy Sells the House"
1990–1991 Going Places Charlie Davis19 episodes
1992–1993 The Edge Various13 episodes
1993 Picket Fences Patrick GatwoodEpisode: "Unlawful Entries"
1993 Tales from the Crypt CartyEpisode: "Oil's Well That Ends Well"
1994 Daddy's Girls Lenny3 episodes
1995 Muscle Dr. Marshall Jones13 episodes
1995–1996 Mad About You Lance Brockwell4 episodes
1996 The Outer Limits Howard SharpEpisode: "Unnatural Selection"
1996–2002 Spin City Stewart BondekMain cast; 140 episodes
1998 From the Earth to the Moon Tom Dolan Episode: "Spider"
1998 The Ransom of Red Chief Ambrose DorsetTelevision film
2002 Scrubs Mr. BraginEpisode: "My Lucky Day"
2003 Queens Supreme Dr. KatzEpisode: "That Voodoo That You Do"
2005 Stella RichardEpisode: "Coffee Shop"
2006 Stargate Atlantis Dr. FletcherEpisode: "The Real World"
2007 Drive John AshtonEpisode: "Unaired Pilot"
2007 Medium Albert BunfordEpisode: "Second Opinion"
2007 The Bronx Is Burning Reporter Steve Jacobson8 episodes
2007 Ghost Whisperer Steve SinclairEpisode: "Bad Blood"
2007–2011 Greek Dean Bowman6 episodes
2008 Eureka Dr. HoodEpisode: "Best In Faux"
2008 Boston Legal Wayne DavidsonEpisode: "Kill, Baby, Kill!"
2008, 2014 Psych Phil Stubbins
Ruben Leonard
Episodes: "Gus Walks Into a Bank" /
"Remake A.K.A. Cloudy... With a Chance of Improvement"
2009 Ruby & the Rockits Martin WexlerEpisode: "We Are Family?"
2009 FlashForward TomasiEpisode: "White to Play"
2009 Cougar Town Frank MillerEpisode: "Two Gunslingers"
2010 CSI: Miami Dr. Allan BeckhamEpisode: "Show Stopper"
2010 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Buddy MillsEpisode: "Unshockable"
2010 Numbers Arnold WinslowEpisode: "Growin' Up"
2010 Persons Unknown Charlie Morse13 episodes
2010 Rules of Engagement Dr. GreenblattEpisode: "The Four Pillars"
2010 Justified Roland PikeEpisode: "Long in the Tooth"
2010 NCIS: Los Angeles Donald WexlingEpisode: "Borderline"
2011 Fringe Dr. KrickEpisode: "Os"
2011 Five Sam JarenteTelevision film
2012–2013 Bunheads Hubbell Flowers3 episodes
2012 Ben and Kate Principal Geoff FeeneyEpisode: "Bad Cop/Bad Cop"
2012 Hawaii Five-0 Brian SlaterEpisode: "Ohuna"
2013 Hot in Cleveland Reverend LareEpisode: "Magic Diet Candy"
2013 Burn Notice Max LysterEpisode: "Reckoning"
2013 We Are Men MinisterEpisode: "Pilot"
2013 Zombie Night JosephTelevision film
2013 Masters of Sex Psychiatrist2 episodes
2013 NCIS Ward DavisEpisode: "Gut Check"
2013 Super Fun Night Spencer QuinnEpisode: "Merry Super Fun Christmas"
2014 Intelligence Jonathan CainEpisode: "Cain and Gabriel"
2014 Instant Mom Mr. ShankEpisode: "Teacher's Pest"
2015 Hindsight Harry LavigneEpisode: "...Then I'll Know"
2015 The Whispers Alex Myers4 episodes
2015 Major Crimes Special Agent Jerry SheaEpisode: "Hostage to Fortune"
2015 Sofia the First Herb (voice)2 episodes
2016 The Middle Mr. KershawEpisodes: "Birds of a Feather" and "Film, Friends and Fruit Pies"
2016 Cooper Barrett's Guide to Surviving Life Mark BarrettEpisode: "How to Survive Your Parents' Visit"
2016 The Catch Gordon BaileyEpisodes: "The Trial" and "The Happy Couple"
2016 The Exorcist Henry Rance10 episodes
2016 The Loud House Lord Tetherby, Cop (voices)Episode: "Out on a Limo"
2018–present Succession Connor RoyMain role
2018 My Dinner with Hervé Stu ChambersTelevision film
2018 Dirty John John DzialoEpisode: "One Shoe"
2019 One Day at a Time Lawrence SchneiderEpisode: "The Man"
2022 The Dropout Jay Rosan2 episodes

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References

  1. "Alan Ruck's day off".
  2. 1 2 Haithman, Diane (1986-07-03). "Ruck Just Put Himself Into His 'Day Off' Role". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
  3. Freeman, Hadley (October 11, 2021). "'There was always an excuse to take a drink': Succession's Alan Ruck on Ferris Bueller, booze and bouncing back". theguardian.com. Guardian News & Media Limited. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
  4. Cast list Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine at official forum for Star Trek: Of Gods and Men.
  5. "Alan Ruck Bio". Biography.com . Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  6. "Extraordinary Measures". IMDb.com, Inc. Retrieved 2009-09-29.
  7. "News and Culture: Brenden Fraser's Untitled Crowley Project Now Has (Another) Terrible Title". Willamette Week . September 24, 2009. Archived from the original on 23 October 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-29.
  8. "Alan Ruck and Mireille Enos Expecting Second Child". PEOPLE.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-23. Retrieved 2017-05-26.