B J Novak Biography

B J Novak (born Benjamin Joseph Manaly Novak) is an American actor, writer, comedian, and director, who gained recognition as one of the writers, executive producers, and directors of the NBC sitcom The Office (2005–2013), in which he also played Ryan Howard. As an actor, he has also appeared as PFC Smithson “The Little Man” Utivich in the film Inglourious Basterds (2009), Robert B. Sherman in Saving Mr. Banks (2013), and Harry J. Sonneborn in The Founder (2016).

B J Novak Age

Novak is 42 years old as of 2021, he was born on 31 July 1979, in Newton, Massachusetts, United States. He celebrates his birthday on 31 July every year and his birth sign is Leo.

B J Novak Height and Weight

Novak stands at a height of 5 feet 8 inches (1.73 meters), weighs 73 Kg (160 lbs), and has dark brown hair and blue eyes.

B J Novak Education

Novak went to Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston for elementary school and middle school. He went to Camp Ramah in New England in Massachusetts for several summers when he was in 6th, 7th, and 9th grade.

He attended Newton South High School with future The Office costar John Krasinski, and they graduated in 1997. Novak edited one of the school newspapers, The Lion’s Roar, and co-wrote a satirical play with Krasinski.

Novak graduated from Harvard University in 2001, where he was a member of the Harvard Lampoon and the Hasty Pudding Club. He majored in English and Spanish literature and wrote his honors thesis on the films of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

Aside from the Lampoon, he occasionally staged and performed in a variety show called The B.J. Show with fellow Harvard student B. J. Averell.

B J Novak Family, Parents

Novak was born in Newton, Massachusetts, toLinda (née Manaly) and author William Novak. Novak’s family is Jewish. His father co-edited The Big Book of Jewish Humor and has ghostwritten memoirs for Nancy Reagan, Lee Iacocca, Magic Johnson, and others.

B J Novak Siblings

Novak has two younger brothers, Jesse, a composer, and Lev.

B J Novak Girlfriend, Wife, Dating

Novak has a close friendship with Mindy Kaling, whom he met through writing for The Office. The two dated on and off while writing and acting on the show, sometimes mirroring the on-again, off-again nature of the relationship between their respective characters Ryan Howard and Kelly Kapoor.

B J Novak Children

Novak is the godfather of Kaling’s children.

B J Novak Salary

Details about Novak’s salary are not yet disclosed. However, information about how much he makes will be updated as soon as it is available.

B J Novak Net Worth

Novak’s net worth is estimated to be between $1 million and $5 million. This includes his assets, money, and income. His primary source of income is his career as an actor, writer, comedian, and director. Through his various sources of income, Novak has been able to accumulate a good fortune but prefers to lead a modest lifestyle.

B J Novak Measurements and Facts

Here are some interesting facts and body measurements you should know about B J Novak.

B J Novak Wiki

• Full Names: Benjamin Joseph Manaly Novak
• Popular As: B. J. Novak
• Gender: Male
• Occupation / Profession: Actor, writer, comedian, and director
• Nationality: American
• Race / Ethnicity: White
• Religion: Not Known
• Sexual Orientation: Straight

B J Novak Birthday

• Age / How Old?: 42 (2021)
• Zodiac Sign: Leo
• Date of Birth: July 31, 1979
• Place of Birth: Newton, Massachusetts, U.S.
• Birthday: July 31st

B J Novak Body Measurements

• Body Measurements: Not Available
• Height / How Tall?: 5 feet 8 inches (1.73 meters)
• Weight: 73 Kg (160 lbs)
• Eye Color: Blue
• Hair Color: Dark-brown
• Shoe Size: Not Available
• Biceps Size: Not Available
• Chest Size: Not Available
• Waist Size: Not Available
• Hip Size: Not Available

B J Novak Family and Relationship

• Father (Dad): William Novak
• Mother: Linda (née Manaly)
• Siblings (Brothers and Sisters): *** or Not Known
• Marital Status: Single
• Dating / Girlfriend: Single, dated Mindy Kaling
• Children: Not Available

B J Novak Net Worth and Salary

• Net Worth: $1 million and $5 million
• Salary: Under Review
• Source of Income: Actor, writer, comedian, and director

B J Novak Career

Following his graduation from Harvard, he moved to Los Angeles, California and began working in clubs as a comedian. His first live stand-up performance took place at the Hollywood Youth Hostel on October 10, 2001. He was named one of Variety’s “Ten Comedians To Watch” in 2003.

Novak was a writer for the short-lived The WB sitcom Raising Dad. He performed on Comedy Central’s Premium Blend and on Late Night with Conan O’Brien. Novak’s television acting career began on MTV’s Punk’d.

He was the lead accomplice to Ashton Kutcher on the show’s second season in 2003, playing pranks on Hilary Duff, Rachael Leigh Cook, Usher, and Mýa.

The Office

After hearing Novak’s opening joke at a comedy club, executive producer Greg Daniels decided he “wanted to do something with him.” Novak was subsequently cast as Ryan Howard, who is first introduced on the show as a temporary employee at Dunder Mifflin in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Novak’s character goes through ups and downs throughout his work career and has an on and off relationship with Kelly Kapoor (Mindy Kaling).

Novak was not only a cast member on the show but also a producer and writer. He, along with Mindy Kaling, Greg Daniels, Michael Schur, and Paul Lieberstein, was the original writers for the show. He is credited with writing 15 episodes during the show’s duration including the Writer’s Guild of America nominated episodes “Diversity Day” and “Local Ad”.

On July 21, 2010, news reports indicated Novak had signed a contract to remain with the show for its seventh and eighth seasons. Under the new terms, he would be made an executive producer midway through Season 7 and direct two episodes of the show. Novak left The Office after the ninth-season season premiere “New Guys”, however, he returned to guest-star in the final episode of the series.

Novak and his fellow writers and producers of The Office were nominated five consecutive times for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series from 2007-2011.

In a June 2009 interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer, Novak spoke about sharing the success of The Office with his Newton South High School classmate John Krasinski:

“Sometimes when this feels too good to be true, I think that if this were all a dream, that would be what should have tipped me off. I’d wake up saying, “I was in this incredible TV show and it was a big hit and the star was John [Krasinski] from high school. Isn’t that weird?”

After-The Office career

Novak has had supporting roles in Quentin Tarantino’s acclaimed 2009 war film Inglourious Basterds, John Lee Hancock’s 2013 period drama Saving Mr. Banks about the development of the 1964 film Mary Poppins, and John Lee Hancock’s 2016 biographical drama The Founder about the founders of McDonald’s.

Novak has also appeared in the films Unaccompanied Minors in 2006, Knocked Up in 2007, Reign Over Me in 2007, The Internship in 2013, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 in 2014.

Novak voiced Baker Smurf in The Smurfs in 2011 and The Smurfs 2 in 2013.

He has starred in a few episodes each of The Mindy Project and The Newsroom and made cameo appearances in the shows Community and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.

He also served as a consulting producer for the first season of The Mindy Project.

Novak is set to star in his upcoming thriller Vengeance, of which he is also the writer and director. Filming began in March 2020 but was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In May 2020, it was announced that Novak would be writing and executive producing an upcoming show entitled Young People on HBO Max.

He has also written, directed and executive produced an upcoming half-hour anthological series called The Premise, to be released on FX in 2021.

B J Novak Books

Books

• Novak, B. J. (February 4, 2014). One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 9780385351836.
• Novak, B. J. (September 30, 2014). The Book with No Pictures. Dial Books. ISBN 9780803741713.
• Novak, B. J. (November 19, 2019). My Book with No Pictures. Dial Books. ISBN 9780593111017.

Essays, reporting and other contributions

Publications:

• Novak, B. J. (1998). “My Unhappy Rendezvous with Magical Realism”. The Harvard Lampoon.
• Novak, B. J. (November 4, 2013). “The man who invented the calendar”. Shouts & Murmurs. The New Yorker. Vol. 89 no. 35. pp. 64–65.
• Novak, B. J. (November 28, 2013). “Kellogg’s”. Nautilus (7).
• Novak, B. J. (December 30, 2013). “A Good Problem to Have”. One Story (187).
• Novak, B. J. (January 16, 2014). “Kellogg’s”. Nautilus (9).
• Novak, B. J. (March 2014). “Julie And The Warlord”. Playboy.
• Novak, B. J. (November 2020). “My Unhappy Rendezvous with Magical Realism”. The Harvard Lampoon.
• Novak, B. J. (November 2020). “Gag Gifts”. The Harvard Lampoon.

Novak also has a chapter giving advice in Tim Ferriss’ book Tools of Titans.

Instagram Live:

• Current Mood with John Mayer (February 17, 2019). “Pants”.
• Special Report on Current Mood with John Mayer (April 19, 2020). “Coronavirus”.

Podcast Appearances:

• Weird Adults with Little Esther (December 17, 2012). “32. BJ Novak” (Podcast).
• Id10t with Chris Hardwick (February 3, 2014). “B.J. Novak” (Podcast).
• Ron Bennington Interviews (February 6, 2014). “Unmasked with B.J. Novak” (Podcast).
• The Hollywood Handbook (May 13, 2014). “32. B.J. Novak, Our Close Friend” (Podcast).
• The Tim Ferriss Show (November 25, 2015). “#121: BJ Novak of The Office on Creative Process, Handling Rejection, and Good Comedy” (Podcast).
• Decoder with Nilay Patel (November 25, 2015). “Recode Decode: B.J. Novak and Dev Flaherty, The List App Co-Founders” (Podcast).
• Exactly (January 6, 2017). “BJ Novak: Why Does Dark Comedy Work?” (Podcast).
• The Great Debates (December 20, 2018). “309 — Our Traditional Holiday Gathering With BJ & John” (Podcast).
• The Great Debates (December 25, 2019). “Holiday Special 2019 with Special Guests” (Podcast).
• You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes (January 29, 2020). “B.J. Novak” (Podcast).
• LA Podcast (April 24, 2020). “FREE SAMPLE: The Ten, Episode 1 – BJ Novak” (Podcast).
• Office Ladies (June 24, 2020). “Initiation w/ B.J. Novak and Rainn Wilson” (Podcast).
• The Great Debates (December 31, 2020). “511 – 2020 Holiday Special” (Podcast).

B J Novak Movies and TV Shows

Film

Acting credits

2006 Unaccompanied Minors

2007 Knocked Up

2007 Reign Over Me

2009 Inglourious Basterds

2011 The Smurfs

2012 The Dictator

2013 The Internship

2013 The Smurfs 2

2013 Saving Mr. Banks

2014 The Amazing Spider-Man 2

2016 The Founder

TBA Vengeance
Writing/directing credits

TBA Vengeance

Television

Acting credits

2003 Punk’d

2005–2013 The Office

2013–2016 The Mindy Project

2014 Community

2014 The Newsroom

2015 Arthur

2016–2018 Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Writing credits

2001–2002 Raising Dad

2005–2012 The Office

2013 The Mindy Project

2021 The Premise

Directing credits

2009 The Office

2009 The Office

2011 The Office
The Office

2012 The Office

2013 The Mindy Project
The Mindy Project

2021 The Premise

B J Novak Awards and Achievements

List of awards and nominations

2005 Writers Guild of America Awards

2006 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Writers Guild of America Awards

2007 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Emmy Awards
Writers Guild of America Awards

2008 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Emmy Awards
Writers Guild of America Awards

2009 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Emmy Awards
Writers Guild of America Awards
Prism Award

2010 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Emmy Awards
Writers Guild of America Awards

2011 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Emmy Awards

2012 Screen Actors Guild Awards

2012 Writers Guild of America Awards

Frequently Asked Questions About B J Novak

Who is B J Novak?

B J Novak (born Benjamin Joseph Manaly Novak) is an American actor, writer, comedian, and director, who gained recognition as one of the writers, executive producers, and directors of the NBC sitcom The Office (2005–2013), in which he also played Ryan Howard. As an actor, he has also appeared as PFC Smithson “The Little Man” Utivich in the film Inglourious Basterds (2009), Robert B. Sherman in Saving Mr. Banks (2013), and Harry J. Sonneborn in The Founder (2016).

How old is B J Novak?

Novak is an American national born on July 31, 1979, in Newton, Massachusetts, U.S.

How tall is B J Novak?

Novak stands at a height of 5 feet 8 inches (1.73 meters).

Is B J Novak married?

No, Novak has a close friendship with Mindy Kaling, whom he met through writing for The Office. The two dated on and off while writing and acting on the show, sometimes mirroring the on-again, off-again nature of the relationship between their respective characters Ryan Howard and Kelly Kapoor.

How much is B J Novak worth?

Novak has an approximate net worth of $1 million and $5 million. This amount has been accrued from his leading roles in the film industry.

How much does B J Novak make?

Details about Novak’s salary are not yet disclosed. However, information about how much he makes will be updated as soon as it is available.

Where does Novak live?

Novak has not shared his precise location of residence. We will update this information if we get the location and images of his house.

Is Novak dead or alive?

Novak is alive and in good health. There have been no reports of him being sick or having any health-related issues.

Where is Novak Now?

Novak is still an active participant in the creative entertainment industry, he is working as an actor, writer, comedian, and director

B J Novak Contacts

• Instagram
• Twitter
• Facebook
• Youtube
• Tiktok
• Website

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