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1. He spent the '90s starring in TV shows like "Providence," "The Division," "What About Brian" and "Related." In 2000, he made his feature-film debut in Clint Eastwood's "Space Cowboys," and then in indie comedy "Kissing Jessica Stein" the next year.
2. His breakout role as Don Draper won him the Golden Globe for best actor in a drama series in 2008. He's starred in a number of movies since the '60s-era advertising drama premiered to critical acclaim in July 2007, including a part in 2008's "The Day the Earth Stood Still" and his first leading role in indie thriller "Stolen" in 2010. He also appeared in Ben Affleck's "The Town" in 2010 and Kristen Wiig comedy "Bridesmaids" this year.
3. He was born in 1971 in St. Louis. His parents divorced when he was two years old, and he moved in with his mother until she was diagnosed with terminal cancer when he was 10 years old. He then moved in with his father, who died when he was 20. He attended the private John Burroughs School in Ladue, Missouri, and competed on the football, baseball and swim teams. There, he also dated Sarah Clarke, who would also go into acting, appearing in the Twilight saga and Men of a Certain Age, among others.
4. His first acting role was "Winnie the Pooh" in first grade. He was cast as Judas in Godspell at 16. He began college at the University of Texas, but transferred to the University of Missouri to be closer to home after his father's death. At Mizzou, he answered an advertisement from a theater company looking for actors for "A Midsummer's Night Dream," and got the role.
5. Despite acting in college, he majored in English. After college, he returned to high school to teach eighth-grade acting. One of his students was Ellie Kemper, who went on to play Erin the secretary on "The Office."
– The Hollywood Reporter