B. J. Novak

Novak was born on July 31, 1979, at Newton-Wellesley Hospital in Newton, Massachusetts. His parents are Linda (née Manaly) and author William Novak. He is Jewish. His father co-edited The Big Book of Jewish Humor, and has ghostwritten memoirs for Nancy Reagan, Lee Iacocca, Magic Johnson and others. Novak has two brothers: Lev Novak and composer Jesse Novak.

He attended Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston and Brown Middle School. He went to Camp Ramah in New England in Massachusetts in the summers of his 6th, 7th and 9th grades.

He attended Newton South High School with future The Office costar John Krasinski; they graduated in 1997. Novak edited one of the school newspapers, The Lion's Roar, and cowrote a satirical play with Krasinski.

Novak graduated from Harvard University in 2001, where he was a member of the Harvard Lampoon. He majored in English and Spanish literature, and wrote his honors thesis on the films of Shakespeare's Hamlet. Aside from the Lampoon, he occasionally staged and performed in a variety show called The B.J. Show with fellow Harvard student B. J. Averell.After Harvard, Novak moved to Los Angeles, California and began working in clubs as a comedian. His first live stand-up performance was at the Hollywood Youth Hostel on October 10, 2001. He was named one of Variety's "Ten Comedians To Watch" in 2003.

He was a writer for the short-lived The WB sitcom Raising Dad. He performed on Comedy Central's Premium Blend and on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.

Novak's television acting career began on MTV's Punk'd. He was the lead accomplice to Ashton Kutcher on the show's second season in 2003, playing pranks on Hilary Duff, Rachael Leigh Cook, Usher and Mýa.

An image of Novak entered the public domain as a stock photo and has been used on various international products, reportedly including a particular type of Calvin Klein cologne in Sweden.