Rachel Susan Dratch (born February 22, 1966) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. After she graduated from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

, she moved to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

to study

improvisational theatre Improvisational theatre, often called improvisation or improv or impro in British English, is the form of theatre, often comedy, in which most or all of what is performed is unplanned or unscripted, created spontaneously by the performers. In its ...

The Second City The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise. It is the oldest improvisational theater troupe to be continuously based in Chicago, with training programs and live theaters in Toronto and New York. Since its debut in 1959, it has b ...

and ImprovOlympic. Dratch's breakthrough role was her tenure as a cast member on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches" or, "skits", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. While the form developed and became popular in ...

series ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

'' from 1999 to 2006. During her time on ''SNL'', she portrayed a variety of roles, including Debbie Downer. She has since occasionally returned to ''SNL'' as a guest portraying Senator Amy Klobuchar. Her other television credits include ''

The King of Queens ''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, with a total of 207 half-hour episodes spanning nine seasons. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who al ...

'' (2002–2004), ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey (screenwriter), Peter Casey, and David Lee (scr ...

'' (2004), ''

30 Rock ''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...

'' (2006–2012), and ''

Broad City ''Broad City'' is an American television sitcom created by and starring Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson. It was developed from their independent web series of the same name, which was produced between 2009 and 2011. The sitcom, like the web serie ...

'' (2014–2016). She has also played the recurring role of Wanda Jo Oliver on ''

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver ''Last Week Tonight with John Oliver'' (often abridged as ''Last Week Tonight'') is an American news satire late-night talk show hosted by comedian John Oliver. The half-hour-long show premiered in the end of April 2014 on HBO and currently has ...

'', and acted in films such as '' Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star'' (2003), '' Spring Breakdown'' (2009), '' That's My Boy'' (2012), and ''Plan B'' (2021). In 2022, Dratch made her Broadway stage debut in '' POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive'' for which she was nominated for the

Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play The Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actresses for quality supporting roles in a Broadway theatre, ...

at the

75th Tony Awards The 75th Tony Awards were held on June 12, 2022, to recognize achievement in Broadway theatre, Broadway productions during the 2021–22 season. The ceremony was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, with Ariana DeBose serving as host ...

. In 2012, she published her autobiographical book ''Girl Walks into a Bar...: Comedy Calamities, Dating Disasters, and a Midlife Miracle''.

Early life

Rachel Dratch was born on February 22, 1966, in

Lexington, Massachusetts Lexington is a suburban town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, located 10 miles (16 km) from Downtown Boston. The population was 34,454 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The area was originally inhabited by ...

, the daughter of Elaine Ruth (née Soloway), a transportation director, and Paul Dratch, a

radiologist Radiology ( ) is the medical specialty that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide treatment within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiation), but tod ...

. Both of Dratch's parents were Reform Jews. Dratch attended Hebrew school and had a

bat mitzvah A ''bar mitzvah'' () or ''bat mitzvah'' () is a coming of age ritual in Judaism. According to Jewish law, before children reach a certain age, the parents are responsible for their child's actions. Once Jewish children reach that age, they a ...

. She is religiously nonobservant as an adult, and characterizes the faith she was born into as part of her

cultural heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by socie ...

. Her younger brother, Daniel, is a television producer and writer; his credits include the TV series ''

Anger Management Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA: ...

'' and ''Monk''. Dratch says she grew up as the "class-clown type" attending William Diamond Middle School and Lexington High School in Lexington. She said while performing in high school plays, she gravitated towards acting in comedies more often than in dramas. Dratch attended the National Theater Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in the fall of 1985 and graduated from

in 1988. She majored in drama and psychology, and was a member of the improvisational comedy group Said and Done. While at Dartmouth, Dratch was a classmate of

Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten Elizabeth Gillibrand (; ; born December 9, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from New York (state), New York since 2009 ...

Career

Dratch was a member of the mainstage cast of The Second City comedy troupe for four years. She received the

Joseph Jefferson Award The Joseph Jefferson Award, more commonly known informally as the Jeff Award, is given for theatre arts produced in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are named in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson, a 19th-century American theater st ...

for Best Actress in a Revue for the two revues in which she performed: ''Paradigm Lost'' and ''Promisekeepers, Losers Weepers''. At The Second City, she performed alongside future ''Saturday Night Live'' head writers

Adam McKay Adam McKay (born April 17, 1968) is an American screenwriter, producer, and director. McKay began his career as a head writer for the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') from 1995 to 2001. After leaving ''SNL'', McKay co-w ...

and

Tina Fey Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey (; born May 18, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. Known for her comedic roles in sketch comedy, television and film, Fey has received List of awards and nominations received by Tina Fe ...

, as well as future ''

'' performer

Scott Adsit Robert Scott Adsit (born November 26, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and writer. Born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, Adsit joined the mainstage cast of Chicago's The Second City in 1994 after attending Columbia College Chicago. He app ...

. The first incarnation of her ''SNL'' "Wicked" sketch was performed in The Second City's ''Paradigm Lost''. In addition to acting, Dratch also played the cello onstage. The theater also hosted the first incarnation of ''Dratch & Fey'' (her critically praised two-woman show with Tina Fey), which was later performed at the

Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre The Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) is an improvisational and sketch comedy group that emerged from Chicago's ImprovOlympic in 1990. The original incarnation of the group consisted of Amy Poehler, Matthew Walsh, Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, Ad ...

in New York City, where it was dubbed "the funniest thing to be found on any New York comedy stage" by ''

Time Out New York ''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 333 cities in 59 countries worldwide. In 2012, the London edition became ...

''. Dratch has appeared in several films, including '' Martin & Orloff'', '' The Hebrew Hammer'', ''

Down with Love ''Down with Love'' is a 2003 romantic comedy film directed by Peyton Reed. It stars Renée Zellweger and Ewan McGregor and is a pastiche of the early-1960s American "no-sex sex comedies", such as '' Pillow Talk'' and ''Lover Come Back'' (both ...

'', '' Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star'', '' Click'', '' I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry'', '' Spring Breakdown'', and ''

My Life in Ruins ''My Life in Ruins'' (released as ''Driving Aphrodite'' in the United Kingdom) is a 2009 romantic-comedy film directed by Donald Petrie and starring Nia Vardalos, Richard Dreyfuss, Alexis Georgoulis, Rachel Dratch, Harland Williams and Alis ...

''. She also has joined fellow ''SNL'' cast members on ''A.S.S.S.S.C.A.T.: Improv'', which aired September 7, 2005, on the

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels * Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 * Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing compa ...

channel. Dratch also made television appearances on

's ''

Third Watch ''Third Watch'' is an American crime drama television series created by John Wells and Edward Allen Bernero that aired on NBC from September 23, 1999, to May 6, 2005, with a total of 132 episodes spanning over six seasons. It was produced ...

'' and in a recurring role on ''

'' (playing Denise, the on-off girlfriend of

Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt (born January 27, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. His acting roles include Spence Olchin in the sitcom ''The King of Queens'' (1998–2007) and narrating the sitcom '' The Goldbergs'' (2013–2023) as adult ...

's character Spence Olchin, who worked in a bowling alley). Her other television appearances include '' Portlandia'', ''Monk'', ''

'', ''

Wizards of Waverly Place ''Wizards of Waverly Place'' is an American fantasy teen sitcom created by Todd J. Greenwald that aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between October 2007 and January 2012. The series centers on Alex Russo (Selena Gomez), a teenage wi ...

'', ''

Aqua Teen Hunger Force ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force'' (also branded with different #Alternative titles, alternative titles for seasons 8–11), is an American adult animated television series created by Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro for Cartoon Network's late night progra ...

'', '' Inside Amy Schumer'', ''

Ugly Betty ''Ugly Betty'' is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from September 28, 2006, to April 14, 2010. It is based on the Colombian telenovela ''Yo soy Betty, la fea' ...

'', and '' The Middle'' in season five. She also appeared online with comedian

Billy Eichner Billy Eichner ( ; born September 18, 1978) is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, and television show host. He is the star, executive producer, and creator of Funny or Die's '' Billy on the Street'', a comedy game show that aired on truT ...

in a spoof of

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...

and

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer and songwriter. A classically trained pianist, Keys began composing songs at the age of 12 and was signed by Columbia Records at 15. After d ...

's " Empire State of Mind", titled "Forest Hills State of Mind." Rachel Dratch by David Shankbone

Dratch was originally cast in the role of

Jenna Maroney Jenna Maroney (born Yustrepa Gronkowitz; February 24, 1969) is a fictional character on the American television series ''30 Rock'', played by Jane Krakowski. For her portrayal of Maroney, Krakowski was nominated four times for the Primetime E ...

on ''30 Rock'' as Jenna DeCarlo, and the original

pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...

features her in the role. After feedback from test audiences, the role was ultimately recast with

Jane Krakowski Jane Krakowski (; ; born October 11, 1968) is an American actress and singer. She starred as Jenna Maroney in the NBC satirical comedy series ''30 Rock'' (2006–2013, 2020), for which she received four Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Out ...

. She went on to play a variety of small guest roles in several episodes of the first season, including

Barbara Walters Barbara Jill Walters (September 25, 1929December 30, 2022) was an American broadcast journalist and television personality. Known for her interviewing ability and popularity with viewers, she appeared as a host of numerous television programs, ...

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was an English and American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 19 ...

, cat trainer Greta Johansen, custodian Jadwiga, a blue monster, and Dr. Beauvoir. On March 19, 2012, Dratch's memoir, ''Girl Walks into a Bar...: Comedy Calamities, Dating Disasters, and a Midlife Miracle'' was published. In it, Dratch recounts her experiences after being recast in the ''30 Rock'' pilot, including the birth of her child. In 2016, Dratch hosted the program ''Rachel Dratch's Late Night Snack'' on

truTV TruTV (stylized as truTV) is an American basic cable Television channel, channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel primarily broadcasts reruns of Television comedy, comedy, Reality television, docusoaps and reality shows, with a rec ...

. The sketch comedy program featured Dratch playing a waitress who does not talk in wraparound segments. Dratch also appeared in sketches and the show ran for two seasons.

''Saturday Night Live''

Her tenure at ''SNL'' spanned 1999 to 2006. Dratch's recurring characters included Denise McDenna, a Boston teen; Sheldon, the junior-high-school boy from ''Wake up, Wakefield''; Virginia Clarvin, one of the Lovers (with

Will Ferrell John William Ferrell (; born July 16, 1967) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is known for his leading man roles in comedy films and for his work as a television producer. Ferrell received various accolades, including ...

, as two pretentious professors); Abe Scheinwald, a Hollywood producer with a terrible acquisition record; and perhaps most memorably, Debbie Downer, a depressed woman who brought others' moods down while saying grim non sequiturs. In December 2011, she made a guest appearance on ''SNL''s season 37 Christmas show, hosted by former cast member

Jimmy Fallon James Thomas Fallon (born September 19, 1974) is an Americans, American comedian, television host, actor, singer, writer, and producer. Best known for his work in television, Fallon's breakthrough came during his tenure as a cast member on the ...

. On April 15, 2017, she made another guest appearance with host Jimmy Fallon. On a February 3, 2018, season-43 episode hosted by

Natalie Portman Natalie Hershlag{{efn, Some Hebrew sources claim that her birth name was "Neta-Lee Hershleg" ({{langx, he, נטע-לי הרשלג) and later, her first name was Americanized to "Natalie". {{Cite news , last=Shamir , first=Oron , date=August ...

, she made a guest appearance as a "Patriot of New England" in a Revolutionary War-themed sketch parodying the fans of the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

and

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

in advance of

Super Bowl LII Super Bowl LII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2017 season. As a rematch of Super Bowl XXXIX from 13 years earlier, the game was between the National Football Conferen ...

. On a September 29, 2018, season-44 episode hosted by

Adam Driver Adam Douglas Driver (born November 19, 1983) is an American actor, recognized for his collaborations with auteur filmmakers. Driver made his film debut in ''J. Edgar'' (2011) and played supporting roles in ''Lincoln (film), Lincoln'' (2012), '' ...

, she appeared as Senator Amy Klobuchar in the opening sketch, about the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. She continued to reprise the role of Klobuchar during sketches on the 2020 Democratic Party Presidential primary debates, specifically the fifth and sixth debates in November and December 2019.

Personal life

In her book ''Girl Walks Into a Bar...'', Dratch discusses meeting John Wahl, a consultant in the

natural foods Natural food and all-natural food are terms in food labeling and marketing with several definitions, generally denoting foods that are not manufactured by processing. In some countries like the United Kingdom, the term "natural" is defined and ...

industry, in a bar in 2009. Six months later, Dratch learned she was pregnant, and on August 24, 2010, Dratch gave birth to Eli Benjamin, her son with Wahl. In an October 2010 interview, Dratch told ''

People The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...

'' that her pregnancy at age 44 shocked her because she "had bought into all this stuff about, 'Once you're over 40 regnancy becomes difficult" and had "gone through the whole process of letting go of he idea of having kids" As of 2019, Dratch and Wahl were not a couple, but were on good terms and live near each other to parent their son.

Books

* Dratch also narrates the audiobook.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theater

Web

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dratch, Rachel 1966 births Living people 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American comedians 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American actresses 21st-century American comedians 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American memoirists 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American women writers Actresses from Massachusetts American film actresses American Reform Jews American sketch comedians American stage actresses American television actresses American television writers American voice actresses American women comedians American women memoirists American women podcasters American women screenwriters American women television writers Comedians from Massachusetts Dartmouth College alumni Jewish American actresses Jewish American comedians Jewish women comedians Jewish American screenwriters Lexington High School (Massachusetts) alumni People from Lexington, Massachusetts Screenwriters from Massachusetts Writers from Massachusetts Jews from Massachusetts