# Brian Benben
**Brian Benben** (born 1956) is an American actor best known for his starring role as Martin Tupper on the HBO comedy series *[Dream On](https://www.edgepedia.org/dream-on-tv-series)* (1990–1996) and for playing Dr. Sheldon Wallace on the ABC medical drama *Private Practice*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) • [2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1956, Winchester, Virginia, USA[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) |
| Breakout role | Martin Tupper, a divorced book editor, on HBO's *Dream On*, six seasons, 1990–1996[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) |
| Early role | Michael Lasker in the NBC miniseries *The Gangster Chronicles* (1981) and the film *Gangster Wars* (1981)[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/) |
| Later series work | Dr. Sheldon Wallace on *Private Practice* (five seasons) and Max on Bravo's *Imposters* (2017)[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/) |
| Award | Cable ACE Award for *Dream On*, 1992[3](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/2011/International-Television-Almanac-2011-Whos-Who.pdf) |
| Marriage | Married actress Madeleine Stowe in 1982; one daughter, May Theodora, born 1996[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) |
## Early life and stage work
Benben, a native of [Winchester, Virginia](https://www.edgepedia.org/winchester-virginia), was born to produce buyer Peter Michael Benben Sr. and Gloria Patricia (Coffman); on his father's side, his grandparents came from Poland.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) In his late teenage years he moved to New York City to pursue acting.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/) He began performing at age 17 in off-off-Broadway shows, with late 1970s credits including *Wild Oats*, *The Tooth of Crime*, *The Overcoat*, *Gossip*, *A Moon for the Misbegotten*, and the role of Bottom in *A Midsummer Night's Dream*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) He later appeared on Broadway in John Byrne's *Slab Boys*, alongside [Sean Penn](https://www.edgepedia.org/sean-penn), Kevin Bacon, and [Val Kilmer](https://www.edgepedia.org/val-kilmer), and was a member of the Tosos Theater in New York.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) • [4](https://portfolio.moremedavoy.com/brianbenben)
## Television career
**The Gangster Chronicles and the 1980s.** Benben's first major role came in the NBC miniseries *The Gangster Chronicles* (1981), in which he played the gangster Michael Lasker, a character described by IMDb as a barely disguised version of the real-life mobster [Meyer Lansky](https://www.edgepedia.org/meyer-lansky); he reprised the role in the film *Gangster Wars* (1981).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) • [2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/) He then had a regular role on the short-lived CBS medical drama *Kay O'Brien* (1986), playing a chauvinistic hospital resident, in a series canceled before all 13 episodes aired.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) • [2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/) His film work in the period included the drama *Clean and Sober* (1988) and the science-fiction action film *I Come in Peace* (1990), released as *[Dark Angel](https://www.edgepedia.org/dark-angel-1990-film)* outside the United States, in which he played Special Agent Arwood "Larry" Smith.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/)**Dream On.** In 1990 Benben was cast as Martin Tupper, a self-effacing, newly divorced New York book editor, on the sexually frank HBO sitcom *Dream On*, created by [Marta Kauffman](https://www.edgepedia.org/marta-kauffman) and David Crane, the team who later created *Friends*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) • [5](https://sylvesterstallone.com/portfolio/dream-on/) The show interjected clips from older black-and-white television series to punctuate Tupper's thoughts, and ran for six seasons between 1990 and 1996.[5](https://sylvesterstallone.com/portfolio/dream-on/) Executive producer Kevin S. Bright recalled that producers had considered casting a major star until casting director Karen Rea brought Benben in, and praised him as a physical comedian who related to the vintage clips without making the device self-conscious.[6](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-05-30-tv-41329-story.html) Benben received a Cable ACE Award for the series in 1992.[3](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/2011/International-Television-Almanac-2011-Whos-Who.pdf) During the show's run he starred in the 1994 comedy film *Radioland Murders* as Roger Henderson.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/)
**The Brian Benben Show and later work.** After *Dream On* ended, Benben starred in the CBS sitcom *The Brian Benben Show* (1998), playing a news co-anchor under his own name and serving as co-executive producer; the series ran for five of its nine episodes before cancellation.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) • [2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/) He appeared in the television movies *Sister Mary Explains It All* (2001) with [Diane Keaton](https://www.edgepedia.org/diane-keaton) and *The Flamingo Rising* (2001) with [William Hurt](https://www.edgepedia.org/william-hurt), and played the morally tormented surgeon Dr. Heywood Klein in the miniseries *Kingpin* (2003).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/)
Benben joined [Shonda Rhimes](https://www.edgepedia.org/shonda-rhimes)'s *[Private Practice](https://www.edgepedia.org/private-practice-tv-series)*, the *Grey's Anatomy* spinoff, as Dr. Sheldon Wallace, appearing for five seasons on the ABC series (2007–2013).[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/) He made a guest appearance on Rhimes's *[Scandal](https://www.edgepedia.org/scandal-tv-series)* as Leonard Carnehan, and later credits include *Grace and Frankie* and the Showtime series *Roadies*.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/) • [4](https://portfolio.moremedavoy.com/brianbenben) In 2017 he took another main series role as Max, a clever grifter, on the Bravo dark comedy *Imposters*.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/)
## Film roles
Benben's filmography is weighted toward television, but includes supporting and leading parts across the 1980s and 1990s: *Clean and Sober* (1988) as Martin Laux, *Mortal Sins* (1989) as Nathan Weinschank, *I Come in Peace* (1990), and the starring role of Roger Henderson in *Radioland Murders* (1994).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, *Clean and Sober* is his highest-rated film at 61 percent and *Radioland Murders* his lowest at 33 percent.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/brian_benben)
## Personal life
Benben has been married since 1982 to actress [Madeleine Stowe](https://www.edgepedia.org/madeleine-stowe), whom he met while filming *The Gangster Chronicles*, where she played his wife Ruth Lasker.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/) The couple has one daughter, May Theodora, born in 1996, and owns a working cattle ranch in Texas.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/)
## References
1. [Brian Benben, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000903/)
2. [Brian Benben, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/brian-benben/)
3. [BENBEN, BRIAN: Actor, International Television Almanac 2011, Who's Who](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/2011/International-Television-Almanac-2011-Whos-Who.pdf)
4. [Brian Benben biography, More Medavoy](https://portfolio.moremedavoy.com/brianbenben)
5. [Dream On (1991), SylvesterStallone.com](https://sylvesterstallone.com/portfolio/dream-on/)
6. [Profile: Brian Benben's Recurring Dream, Los Angeles Times, May 30, 1993](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-05-30-tv-41329-story.html)
7. [Brian Benben Movies & TV Shows List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/brian_benben)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames Be to Bo*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license