Jon Hamm Net Worth

Jon Hamm's Quotes

• Being in an ensemble cast is the best. You're all in the same boat. You're all together. [on being part of The Division (2001) cast]
• I have a lady, she's a great lady. I love her a lot, she loves me. We're on the same page. Whenever that day happens when we're not on the same page we'll move forward with it. We're interested in having our lives be our lives right now and not a third person's vis-à-vis marriage and whatever that means. - on his relationship with long-time girlfriend Jennifer Westfeldt.
• [on his advice to aspiring actors] I guess I would say, "Don't be afraid to fail." It's not the end of the world, and in many ways, it's the first step toward learning something and getting better at it. If you live your entire life never having failed at anything, it's got to be a weirdly false existence in so many ways. So I think that-depending upon the age, obviously-that would be my bit of advice. Just don't be afraid to fail.
• [on teaching acting] I went back to my old high school after I graduated college. I didn't have any money. Literally, no money. So I had to find a job, and I started waiting tables a little bit, and I had the idea that I would go back and talk to my old high-school acting teacher. I said, "Hey, man, what do you think of this idea? Would it be helpful if I came back, and taught all the classes you don't want to teach, or that you're too busy to teach? And helped you out? I'm cheap." And he said, "That's a great idea. I'd love the help." And so we together pitched it to the headmaster, and he was like, "Sounds great. It's too late to start this year, why don't you start next year?" So I took a year, I waited tables, and then I taught school for a year, and after that I was 25, I think, and I was ready to try to go. I had a little bit of money saved, and my car sort of ran, so I was like, "You know what, I'm gonna try it before I get any older and I lose any momentum I have." And west I came.
• I went to a high school where you were encouraged to do a lot of different things, so there wasn't this great divide between the jocks and the theater guys, or the smart kids and the stoners, or whatever. It was like everybody was a little bit of everything, and that was encouraged. I was a pretty serious athlete for a long time, and thought maybe that's what I wanted to do with my life, but I was also a diligent student, and really wanted to achieve in that area, too. And theater was kind of a challenge, like, "Oh, maybe I could do that, that looks like fun." So I started doing it a little bit in 11th and 12th grade, and got pretty good feedback, and kept getting cast to do bigger and bigger parts. And I started to think, "Oh, maybe this is something I could do." But I went to college and kind of forgot about it until I was a junior, and I randomly answered an ad in the paper for some production of Midsummer Night's Dream that was coming through. They were casting students as the young lovers, and having an open audition. I remember looking at my roommate and going, "You know what, fuck it, I'm gonna audition for this thing. What's the worst that could happen?" And I did, and I got it. And then the theater department was like, "You should be in the theater department, why are you not? You're good at this." Enough people kept saying, "You know what? You're kind of good at this. Why aren't you doing it for real?" that finally I started listening, and over the next couple of years at school, I ended up getting a theater scholarship, and doing close to 15 plays over two years, and really focusing on it. But at every level, you're constantly reminded that there are other people that do it better than you and have been doing it longer than you. It was a real wakeup call coming to L.A., where it's, "Well, you're not the go-to guy that you were in the University Of Missouri theater department. Now there's 100,000 people ahead of you in line." But for whatever reason, it didn't faze me. I just kept plugging away, and putting one foot in front of the other, and showing up.

Interesting Facts about Jon Hamm

1. Became interested in acting in the first grade, when he was handpicked to play Winnie-the-Pooh. Received a scholarship to study acting at the University of Missouri.
2. Worked as a day-care teacher during college and, before moving to Hollywood, was a high school teacher.
3. Role models are Jeff Bridges, Sam Elliott and Greg Kinnear.
4. His mother died when he was ten, and his father ten years later.
5. Former partner of Jennifer Westfeldt, the actress and co-writer of Kissing Jessica Stein (2001). They were together from 1998-2015.
6. Went to high school (John Burroughs High School in St. Louis) with Sarah Clarke.
7. Taught drama at his alma mater, John Burroughs High School in St. Louis, Missouri. One of his students was Ellie Kemper.
8. Very close friends with Paul Rudd.
9. Has two step-siblings.
10. Is an avid St. Louis Cardinals baseball fan and narrated the 2011 Official World Series film.
11. Went to a prom with Sarah Clarke, who also later became a professional actor (24 (2001); the "Twilight" series).
12. Lives in ultra trendy Los Angeles neighborhood, Los Feliz. Giovanni Ribisi, Bo Barrett, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Pine, Brad Pitt, Mark Ruffalo, Kristen Stuart, Michael Cera, Hannah Telle and Robert Pattinson are among the other actors who also call Los Feliz home.
13. He is of German, English, and Irish ancestry.
14. Is a huge comedy fan and is known to frequently quote lines from ''Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)'' and comedy troupe ''The Kids in The Hall''.
15. Struggled with severe chronic depression in his early twenties after the death of his father.
16. Did not book a single acting job in the first three years of his career in Los Angeles.
17. Once worked as a set dresser for pornographic films.
18. Was unable to find work in his mid twenties as most roles were for High school aged characters and he looked too old.
19. Gave himself a career deadline, saying that he planned to move back home if his acting career did not gain momentum by the age of 30.
20. Was represented by the famous William Morris Talent agency, but was dropped after failing to book a single part in three years.