David Schwimmer — actor and director with roots in the Russian Empire
David Schwimmer (born 2 November 1966, Queens, New York City) is an American actor and director. After graduating from Northwestern University in 1988 he co-founded the Lookingglass Theatre Company in Chicago. He played Ross Geller in Friends (NBC, 1994–2004) and Robert Kardashian in The People v. O. J. Simpson (2016), receiving Emmy nominations for both. He directed the film Run Fatboy Run (2007) and in 2017 adapted short films on workplace sexual harassment.
Tracing the roots — Minsk (Minsk Governorate)
According to genealogical sources, his maternal great-grandparents Jacob Sherman and Rebecca Jaffe emigrated from Minsk, and his maternal grandfather's parents from the Russian Empire. On his father's side, a great-grandmother was born in Russia and a great-grandfather in Sambir, then in Austrian Galicia.
.svg?width=900)
Minsk (Minsk Governorate). At the time, this region lay within the Russian Empire, which spanned from Poland to the Pacific.
A career defined by ambition
"Ross is not me. But his need for love — that I understand."