Ben Stein facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Ben Stein
Stein at Murray State University in 2011
Born	Benjamin Jeremy Stein (1944-11-25) November 25, 1944 (age 80) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Education	Columbia University (BA) Yale University (JD)
Occupation	Writer lawyer economist actor comedian commentator
Years active	1970–present (writer and lawyer) 1986–present (actor and comedian)
Television	Win Ben Stein's Money
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Alexandra Denman (m. 1968; div. 1974) (m. 1977)
Parent(s)	Herbert Stein (father)

Benjamin Jeremy Stein (born November 25, 1944) is an American writer, lawyer, and actor. He is also known as a comedian and commentator. Ben Stein started his career working for U.S. presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Later, he became famous in entertainment.

You might know him as the economics teacher in the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off. He also hosted the game show Win Ben Stein's Money. He played Dr. Arthur Neuman in The Mask and Son of the Mask. Ben Stein is the son of Herbert Stein, who was an economist and writer. His acting style is often described as calm and serious.

Early Life and School
Ben Stein's Career
Personal Life
Film and TV Appearances

Early Life and School

Ben Stein was born on November 25, 1944, in Washington, D.C.. His parents were Mildred and Herbert Stein. He grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland.

He went to Montgomery Blair High School. After high school, he studied economics at Columbia University. He graduated with honors in 1966. Then, he went to Yale Law School and graduated in 1970. He was the top student in his class.

Ben Stein's Career

Ben Stein has had many different jobs throughout his life. He has worked as a lawyer, a teacher, a writer, and an entertainer.

Working as a Lawyer and Teacher

Ben Stein first worked as a lawyer helping people in need. He worked in New Haven, Connecticut, and Washington, D.C. Later, he became a trial lawyer for the Federal Trade Commission.

He also taught at several universities. He taught about mass culture at American University. At the University of California, Santa Cruz, he taught about civil rights. He also taught law classes at Pepperdine University.

Writing Books and Articles

Ben Stein writes columns for conservative news sites like The American Spectator and Newsmax. He has also written for many other well-known publications. These include The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

He has written several popular books with investment advisor Phil DeMuth. Some of these books are Yes, You Can Retire Comfortably and Can America Survive?. In 2009, he released a collection of essays called The Real Stars.

Working in Media and Entertainment

Stein speaking at Miami University in 2003

Ben Stein is well-known for his acting roles. In the 1986 movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off, he played a boring economics teacher. He also appeared in the TV series The Wonder Years. There, he played a science teacher named Mr. Cantwell.

He has been in many TV commercials. He was known for his ads for Clear Eyes eye drops. He also appeared in commercials for Godfather's Pizza and Chips Ahoy! cookies.

From 1997 to 2003, Ben Stein hosted the game show Win Ben Stein's Money on Comedy Central. He hosted it with Jimmy Kimmel at first. On the show, contestants won money from Ben Stein's own salary. The show won five Daytime Emmy Awards.

In 1999, he hosted another Comedy Central show called Turn Ben Stein On. His dog, Puppy Wuppy, was often on the show.

Ben Stein has appeared in many other movies and TV shows. These include Seinfeld, Full House, and Casper. He was also in The Mask and its sequel. He has lent his voice to animated characters too. He voiced The Pixies in The Fairly OddParents. He was also Mr. Purutu in The Emperor's New School.

Ben Stein has also written for television. He helped create the talk show parody Fernwood 2 Night. He hosted a show on VH1 called America's Most Smartest Model. This show tried to find the smartest model through different challenges.

Political Work and Views

Stein with United States Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon R. England in 2008

Ben Stein started his political career as a speechwriter. He wrote speeches for President Richard Nixon and President Gerald Ford.

He has shared his thoughts on taxes. He believes that very wealthy people should pay more in taxes. He has pointed out that some rich people pay a lower tax rate than their assistants.

Ben Stein also made a documentary film called Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed in 2008. In this film, he discusses the idea of intelligent design. This film caused a lot of discussion and debate. Many critics said the film used information in a way that supported its own ideas. The Anti-Defamation League also spoke out about the film. They said it used images of the Holocaust in a way that was not appropriate.

Stein (right) with Carl and Rachel Lender of Lender's Bagels in 2019

He is a strong supporter of Israel. He has also supported different political candidates. In 2008, he supported John McCain for president. He later voted for Donald Trump in 2016.

In 2023, Ben Stein spoke about the Aunt Jemima brand. The brand changed its name and logo in 2021. This was because the original image was linked to a harmful stereotype.

Personal Life

Ben Stein is married to Alexandra Denman. They first married in 1968 and divorced in 1974. They got married again in 1977. They live in Beverly Hills and Malibu, California. He also has a summer home in Sandpoint, Idaho.

Film and TV Appearances

Year	Title	Credit			Notes
Year	Title	Actor	Screenwriter	Role	Notes
1976	All's Fair	No	No		Consultant
1977	Fernwood 2 Night	No	No		Creative consultant
1984	The Wild Life	Yes	No	Surplus salesman
1986	Ferris Bueller's Day Off	Yes	No	Economics teacher
1987	Planes, Trains & Automobiles	Yes	No	Wichita airport representative
1987–1990	Charles in Charge	Yes	No	Stanley Willard	4 episodes
1988	Frankenstein General Hospital	Yes	No	Dr. Who
1988	The Boost	No	Yes
1989	Ghostbusters II	Yes	No	Public Works official
1989	Easy Wheels	Yes	No	Preacher
1989–1991	The Wonder Years	Yes	No	Mr. Cantwell	12 episodes
1991	Soapdish	Yes	No	Nitwit executive
1991	MacGyver	Yes	No	Major Snead	Episode: "Honest Abe"
1992	Honeymoon in Vegas	Yes	No	Walter
1992	Mastergate	Yes	No	Marvin Rotweiler
1993	Melrose Place	Yes	No	loan officer	Episode: "My New Partner"
1993	Dave	Yes	No	Himself
1993	Dennis the Menace	Yes	No	Boss
1993	Me and the Kid	Yes	No	Fred Herbert
1993	Full House	Yes	No	Elliott Warner	Episode: "Another Opening, Another No Show"
1993	Animaniacs	Yes	No	Francis "Pip" Pumphandle	Voice, episode: "Chairman of the Bored"
1993	The Day My Parents Ran Away	Yes	No	Dr. Lillianfarb
1993–1994	Hearts Afire	Yes	No	Mr. Starnes	2 episodes
1994	My Girl 2	Yes	No	Stanley Rosenfeld
1994	Love & War	Yes	No	Dr. Baxter	Episode: "Are the Stars Out Tonight?"
1994	Mr. Write	Yes	No	Eliott	uncredited
1994	North	Yes	No	Curator
1994	The Mask	Yes	No	Dr. Arthur Neuman
1994	Richie Rich	Yes	No	School teacher
1995	Tales from the Crypt	Yes	No	Andrews	Episode: "Doctor of Horror"
1995	Miami Rhapsody	Yes	No	Rabbi
1995	Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman	Yes	No	Pro lawyer	Episode: "Whine, Whine, Whine"
1995	Casper	Yes	No	Mr. Rugg
1995	Married... with Children	Yes	No	Thomas	Episode: "Requiem for a Dead Briard"
1995	Freakazoid!	Yes	No	H.A. Futterman	Voice, episode: "Relax-O-Vision"
1995	Live Shot	Yes	No	Hal, Herb	2 episodes
1995	The Marshal	Yes	No	Ben	Episode: "Time Off for Clever Behavior"
1995–1996	The Mask: Animated Series	Yes	No	Dr. Arthur Neuman	Voice, 3 episodes
1996–1998	The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper	Yes	No	Mr. Happ	Voice, 3 episodes
1996	Bruno the Kid	Yes	No	Professor Wisenstein	Voice
1996	Aaahh!!! Real Monsters	Yes	No	Glug, Computer	Voice, episode: "Less Talk, More Monsters"
1996	Earthworm Jim	Yes	No	Dr. Houston, Rosebud	Voice, 2 episodes
1996	House Arrest	Yes	No	Ralph Doyle
1996	Toonstruck	Yes	No	Sam Schmaltz	Video game
1996–1997	Duckman	Yes	No	Dr. Ben Stein, Lionel Stein	Voice, 9 episodes
1997	Seinfeld	Yes	No	Shellbach	Episode: "The Comeback"
1997	Murphy Brown	Yes	No	Williams	Episode: "How to Marry a Billionaire"
1997	A Smile Like Yours	Yes	No	clinic video narrator	Voice
1997	101 Dalmatians: The Series	Yes	No	waiter	Voice, episode: "Two Faces of Anita"
1997	Casper: A Spirited Beginning	Yes	No	Grocer
1997	Total Security	Yes	No	Sam Hinkle	Episode: "Citizen Canine"
1997	Rugrats	Yes	No	Bingo Caller	Voice, episode: "Lady Luck"
1997–2003	Win Ben Stein's Money	No	No	Himself	host
1998	Muppets Tonight	Yes	No	The Sad And Lonely Man That Science Has Left Dr. Honeydew	Episode: "Andie MacDowell"
1998	Breakfast with Einstein	Yes	No	Jack
1998	Men in White	Yes	No	Man in Strangemeister's head
1998	Casper Meets Wendy	Yes	No	Lawyer	uncredited
1998	Hercules	Yes	No	Trivia	Voice, episode: "Hercules and the Pool Party"
1998	The Secret Files of the Spy Dogs	Yes	No	Ernst Stavro Blowfish	Episode: "I.H.R.F./Oatz"
1998	Pinky and the Brain	Yes	No	Francis "Pip" Pumphandle	Voice, episode: "Star Warners"
1998	The Hughleys	Yes	No	Dr. Mopp	Episode: "I'm Shrinnnking"
1998	Tannenbaum	Yes	No	Car lot owner
1999	Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain	Yes	No	Rockin' Johnny Hot	Voice, episode: "At the Hop!"
1999	Wakko's Wish	Yes	No	Desire Fulfillment Facilitator	Voice
1999	Shasta McNasty	Yes	No	himself	Episode: "Adult Education"
1999	Turn Ben Stein On	No	No	Himself	Host, executive producer, theme music composer
2000	The Man Show	Yes	No	Juggy University professor	Episode: "X-Ray Specs"
2001	The Drew Carey Show	Yes	No	Heavenly Guide	Episode: "Drew's in a Coma"
2001	Lloyd in Space	Yes	No	Ranger Wormy	Episode: "Caution: Wormhole!"
2001	Osmosis Jones	Yes	No	Doc	uncredited
2002	The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius	Yes	No	Giggles the clown	Voice, episode: "Hypno Birthday to You"
2002	Santa vs. the Snowman 3D	Yes	No	Spunky the elf	Voice
2002	Most Outrageous Game Show Moments	No	No	Himself	Co-host
2002	Do Over	Yes	No	Teacher	Episode: "Joel Larsen's Day Off"
2003–2009	Family Guy	Yes	No	Rabbi Goldberg	Voice, 2 episodes
2004	King of the Hill	Yes	No	Quizmaster	Voice, episode: "Stressed for Success"
2004–2008	The Fairly OddParents	Yes	No	Head Pixie, Sanderson, Pixies	Voice, 8 episodes
2004	As Told by Ginger	Yes	No	Buddy Baker	Voice, 3 episodes
2005	Son of the Mask	Yes	No	Dr. Neuman
2005	Game Show Moments Gone Bananas	No	No	Himself (Presenter)
2006	Mayor Dog	Yes	No	Narrator
2006	Totally Awesome	Yes	No	Narrator
2006	The Emperor's New School	Yes	No	Mr. Purutu	Voice, 8 episodes
2007	America's Most Smartest Model	No	No	Himself (Host)
2007	Your Mommy Kills Animals	No	No	Himself
2008	Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed	No	Yes	Himself	Documentary
2012–2018	Cavuto on Business	No	No	Himself	Panelist
2016	Facetiming With Mommy	Yes	No	Daddy	TV series
2018	The Last Sharknado: It's About Time	Yes	No	Alexander Hamilton
2019	Animal Sanctuary	Yes	No	Donald Donkey	Voice; Short
TBA	The Engagement Ring	Yes	No	Dr. Miller	Announced

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