     
David Schwimmer (Ross) was born in
Queens, NY, on November 12 and raised in Los Angeles.
He was first exposed to acting when he enrolled in a high-school drama
class on a whim. After he
completed the course, an instructor encouraged him to attend a summer
program in acting at
Northwestern University in Chicago. He recalls: "I was sold on acting
after that summer
workshop because of my experience at Northwestern. It was both
enlightening and
exhilarating."
After his graduation from high
school he returned to Northwestern, where he received a B.S.
degree in speech/theater. Following his graduation in 1988, Schwimmer,
along with seven other
Northwestern graduates, founded the Lookingglass Theater Company in
Chicago. The group is an
ensemble of actors, directors and writers. A writer and director as well
as an actor,
Schwimmer describes the company as having "a very physical style that
uses all of the circus
arts -- dance, acrobatics, movement -- as well as the classic training of
the theater."
Schwimmer's stage-acting credits
with Lookingglass include "West," "The Odyssey,"
"Of One
Blood," "In the Eye of the Beholder" and "The Master
and Margarita." His stage-directing
credits include "The Jungle," which earned six Joseph Jefferson
Awards; "The Serpent"; and
"Alice in Wonderland," which was performed at the Edinburgh
Festival in Scotland.
In 1993 Schwimmer made his debut
as a television-series regular on the comedy "Monty." His
other TV credits include recurring roles on such series as "NYPD
Blue," "L.A. Law" and "The
Wonder Years." He also hosted Montreal's "13th Annual Just For
Laughs Festival" which
will broadcast on network television later this year.
In the debut season (1994-1995) of
"Friends" David Schwimmer's performance as
Ross, a sensitive, hopeless romantic earned him an Emmy nomination for
Outstanding
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.
His feature films are "Crossing
the Bridge," "Flight of the Intruder" and
"Twenty Bucks." Schwimmer also stars in the feature film
"The Pallbearer" starring Barbara Hershey and Gwyneth Paltrow.
David enjoys writing and
participating in such sports as softball and basketball. He has residences
in Los Angeles and Chicago.
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