Frequently Asked Questions

A. Pinch yourself. If you squeeze hard enough, you’ll say “Ow!” or “Ouch!”

That same vowel sound is the vowel sound in “Hauck.”

It’s not uncommon for me to hear it pronounced “Hawk,” which sounds pretty cool. But that would be incorrect.

A. The proper pronunciation of my first name, “Benjamin,” is with an r sound. “Bengermin.”

This is because my mom has always pronounced it this way. She didn’t know it until I told her when I was in my twenties.

I’ve adopted her pronunciation as the proper one for my first name.

A. I was named after Benjamin Franklin.

When I was born, there was a lot of talk about Benjamin Franklin given talk of the United States Bicentennial. So I guess Benjamin sounded pretty good.

But again: See above for the proper pronunciation.

A. It’s funny that there is this whole routine that happens when a person learns I moved around a lot as a kid.

“Where are you from?”

“All over the Eastern United States.”

“Military brat?”

“No, my dad killed someone.”

Which is, of course, a joke. We moved around with his job. He was in insurance at the time.

A. That’s not really a question I get, but it’s more of an assumption people seem to make when they learn my immediate family lives in North Carolina.

But to answer the question: No. My immediate family lives in North Carolina, but we are not from there.

Having moved around a lot, I don’t really feel as if I’m from anywhere. This was a bit of a dilemma in college when having to write my actor bio for programs. Most of the actors would lead with their hometown. I didn’t have a hometown. My family moved right after I graduated from high school, so it was inappropriate to say that that new location was my hometown.

Now, I tend to answer the question “Where are you from?” with “I live in New York City.” Technically, I’m not answering the question, in which case I sometimes supplement that answer with “I have Ohio roots” or “I moved here from Ohio.”

I was born in Ohio if that helps you try to place me for whatever diabological anthrographic interests you have.