What is Brian Benben’s Net Worth?
Brian Benben is an American actor who has a net worth of $13 million. That is a combined net worth with his wife since 1982, fellow actor Madeleine Stowe.
Brian Benben is probably best known for his role as Martin Tupper in the HBO comedy television series “Dream On” in the early to mid-1990s. He also has appeared in the medical drama “Private Practice” and had roles in “Roadies,” “Imposters,” and “I Come in Peace,” among other films and television series.
Early Life
Brian Edward Benben was born on June 18, 1956 in Winchester, Virginia to parents Gloria Patricia and Peter Benben Sr. His father worked as a produce buyer to support the family. The family later moved to New York where Benben attended high school in the city of Marlboro. Following his high school graduation, he spent two years at Ulster County Community College in Stone Ridge, New York. He then moved to New York City in order to pursue his dream of becoming an actor.
Career
During the early days of his career, Benben worked a number of different jobs in order to support himself while auditioning for acting jobs. He landed his first role in 1981 when he appeared in “The Gangster Chronicles” as Michael Lasker, a main role. The film was a crime drama that was based on the real lives of gangsters Bugsy Siegel, Lucky Luciano, and Meyer Lansky. Benben’s character was a fictional version of Meyer Lansky. While filming, Lansky visited the set to provide feedback. The film then spawned a subsequent miniseries of 13 hour-long episodes.
His next role was on Broadway when he appeared in a production of John Byrne’s play “Slab Boys” with Kevin Bacon, Sean Penn, Val Kilmer, and Jackie Earle Haley in 1983. The play ran on Broadway for 48 performances and tells the story of a group of young, urban, working-class Scots living during the period 1957-1972.
Benben’s next role came in 1986 when he was cast as a main character in the series “Kay O’Brien.” He played the character of Mark Doyle. Creators of the show expected it to become a popular long-standing show on CBS, but it only lasted eight episodes before being pulled from the air. In 1988, Benben appeared in the film “Clean and Sober” as character Martin Laux. The film starred Michael Keaton who played the role of a struggling real estate agent with a drug addiction and Benben plays his work colleague. In 1989, Benben appeared in the film “Mortal Sins” as Nathan Weinschank.
In 1990, Benben landed the starring role in the series “Dream On” as character Martin Tupper. The series was a sitcom following the family life, romantic life, and career of Tupper, a divorced New York City book editor. The show ran on HBO for six seasons between 1990 and 1996. For his work on the show, Benben received the CableACE Awards for Actor in a Comedy Series in 1993.
(Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images)
While on “Dream On,” Benben appeared in some other projects as well. He appeared in the film “I Come in Peace” in 1990 as Special Agent Arwood ‘Larry’ Smith. The film was released by the name “Dark Angel” outside the United States. In 1994, he appeared in the film “Radioland Murders” as character Roger Henderson. In 1998, he briefly had his own show called “The Brian Benben Show” that he starred in and also co-executive produced.
In 2001, Benben appeared in the television film “The Flamingo Rising” as character Hubert T. Lee. In 2003, he played the lead role of Heywood Klein in the in the series “Kingpin.” In 2005, he appeared in an episode of “Masters of Horror.”
Benben’s next major role came when he was cast as character Sheldon Wallace in the series “Private Practice” in 2008. The show is a spin-off of the very popular series “Grey’s Anatomy.” He had a recurring role on the show for the second and third seasons and then was promoted to a main role in seasons four, five, and six. He remained on the show until 2013.
While working on “Private Practice,” Benben continued working on other projects as well. In 2014, he appeared in an episode of the popular show “Scandal.” In 2015, he had a guest-starring role in an episode of “Grace and Frankie.” In 2016, he landed a recurring role on the series “Roadie” as the character of Preston. His next main role came in 2017 when he was cast in a main role in the series “Imposters.” In the show, he played the character of Max. He remained on the show from 2017 to 2018.
(Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic, Inc)
Personal Life
In 1982, Benben married actress Madeleine Stowe. The two had met while filming “The Gangster Chronicles.” Together, they have one child, a daughter named May, who was born in 1996. The couple lives west of Austin, Texas near Johnson City. They previously lived in Santa Monica, California.
