Brian Baumgartner

Early life and education

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, and of Austrian descent, Baumgartner attended Holy Innocents' Episcopal School. He attended and graduated from The Westminster Schools in 1991, one year before his co-star on The Office Ed Helms graduated. During his time at The Westminster School, Baumgartner competed in competitive speech events for drama, reaching the national finals his senior year. Between his junior and senior year of high school, he also attended Northwestern University's National High School Institute, and focused on theater there. Baumgartner later attended Southern Methodist University, where he majored in theater and graduated in 1995.

He later moved to Los Angeles and was Artistic Director of Hidden Theatre in Minneapolis, where he received multiple awards for artistic and acting excellence. Baumgartner later performed regionally at the Guthrie Theater, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Children's Theater Company, and Theatre de la Jeune Lune.

Career

Baumgartner has had roles on the television shows Jake in Progress, Arrested Development and Everwood. He served as a celebrity talent scout on Last Comic Standing with his The Office co-star Kate Flannery and starred with Robin Williams, Mandy Moore and John Krasinski in License to Wed. He also appeared in Ingrid Michaelson's music video for "Time Machine".

''The Office''

Baumgartner is best known for portraying accountant Kevin Malone in the American remake of the British series The Office. In June 2007, he won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Broadband ProgramComedy for his work on The Office: The Accountants webisodes. His co-stars Angela Kinsey and Oscar Nunez also shared the award. In 2020, he hosted and executive produced An Oral History of The Office, a podcast for Spotify that featured interviews with his The Office co-stars. In 2021, he hosted and executive produced a podcast for iHeart: The Office Deep Dive with Brian Baumgartner. This podcast features the full-length, in-depth interviews with the cast and crew originally heard in An Oral History of The Office. In October 2025, Baumgartner appeared as himself in a viral stunt and advertisement for the financial technology company Ramp. In the stunt, Baumgartner processed receipts in a transparent box in Manhattan’s Flatiron Plaza for 7 hours. The Office co-star Andy Buckley also made an appearance.

Personal life

Baumgartner is married to Celeste Ackelson. Together they have a daughter.

Filmography

Film

Television

Web series

Awards and nominations

References

References

1. (November 29, 2019). "UPI Almanac for Friday, Nov. 29, 2019". [[United Press International]].
2. "Hall of Fame". Westminster Schools.
3. Murphy, Joel. (2006). "One on One with Brian Baumgartner". HoboTrashcan.
4. "Brian Baumgartner Biography".
5. Huseman, Jessica. (November 5, 2009). "Former Mustangs Makin' It Big: Brian Baumgartner – The Office".
6. Horst Hatch, Megan. (February 22, 2015). "Ingrid Michaelson shares star-filled music video for breakup song 'Time Machine'".
7. [http://www.emmyonline.org/mediacenter/daytime_34th_creative_winners_data.html 34th Annual Creative Arts & Entertainment Emmy Awards] {{webarchive. link. (December 9, 2007 , from the Emmy Awards website)
8. Pedersen, Erik. (2020-07-07). "'An Oral History Of The Office' Podcast Set With Host Brian Baumgartner – Hear The Trailer".
9. "The Office Deep Dive with Brian Baumgartner".
10. "Inside the making of Ramp's viral livestream with Brian Baumgartner".
11. (2014-04-28). "'The Office' Cast Reunites for Brian Baumgartner's Wedding".
12. (2014-04-28). "Office US star Brian Baumgartner weds Celeste Ackelson". BBC News.
13. Lee, Esther. (2015-03-25). "Brian Baumgartner Welcomes First Child With Wife: Baby Announcement".
14. Starner, Nina. (June 26, 2020). "Quibi just announced a Princess Bride remake you never expected to see".