Childhood & Early Life
Brian Dietzen was born on November 14, 1977, in Barrington, Illinois, in the US. He acted in several school plays during his elementary school days. He developed interest acting after performing in a second-grade Christmas play. Moving on, he performed in several high school plays. He would also sing in punk-rock bands during his high school and college days.
He attended the ‘University of Colorado Boulder’ and graduated in fine arts, majoring in acting.
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Career
Brian was associated with professional theatre company called ‘Colorado Shakespeare Festival’ for two years. He performed in contemporary theatrical projects for around five years. Some of the plays in which Brian featured were ‘Equus,’ ‘Same Time, Next Year’ and ‘Waiting for Godot.’ He was honoured with the ‘UROP grant for Outstanding Achievement in the Creative Arts.’
He landed with the role of Owen, drummer of a music group, in the sitcom television series ‘My Guide to Becoming a Rockstar,’ starring Oliver Hudson. This show was based on the British comedy series ‘The Young Person's Guide to Becoming a Rock Star.' That year, he also featured as ‘David Caplan’ in the drama television series ‘Boston Public.’
He joined hands with American television writer, actor, director and producer John Riggi to do a two-man theatrical production of ‘The Oldest Man in Show Biz’ with Steve Rudnick. The show earned critical acclaim.
The June 20, 2003, released musical romantic comedy film ‘From Justin to Kelly’ starring Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini featured Brian in the role of ‘Eddie.’
He appeared as ‘Ghost’ in the critically acclaimed 2004 independent film ‘Purgatory House.’ The film was screened at 25 festivals and bagged 12 festival awards.
He got the most memorable role of his career, ‘Dr. Jimmy Palmer,’ in season 1 of the CBS aired action police procedural television series ‘NCIS,’ in 2004. He first appeared in the recurring role of assistant medical examiner ‘Dr. Jimmy Palmer’ in the episode ‘Split Decision.’ The role transitioned into an important character starting from season 10 of the series. Brian has played the role with great élan, which has taken his popularity to new heights. ‘Dr. Jimmy Palmer’ now features as the ‘Chief Medical Examiner of NCIS’ in the series.
Meanwhile, he essayed the role of a clerk in the 2008 action comedy television movie ‘Hit Factor.’ It was directed by Sherwin Shilati and starred James Cromwell, Saba Homayoon, and Neil Hopkins. The following year, he featured as Sheldon Wilkes, starring along with Meredith Monroe and Lochlyn Munro in the action horror mystery film ‘Nowhere to Hide.’
The comedy film ‘Seymour Sally Rufus’ featured Brian in one of the main roles. The film first released on the internet on July 14, 2011, and subsequently at the ‘HollyShorts Film Festival,’ on August 13, 2011, and at the ‘Valley Film Festival,’ on November 11, 2012.
Brian played the lead role of ‘Jim Riley’ in the 2012 comedy drama family film ‘Congratulations.’ It also starred Abby Miller and Debra Jo Rupp. It was screened at several film festivals, including the ‘Austin Film Festival,’ the ‘Oxford Film Festival,’ the ‘Ashland Independent Film Festival,’ and the ‘USA Film Festival.’
He appeared as ‘Mark Leighton’ in episode ‘Asylum’ from the crime drama mystery television series ‘Perception.’
He starred as ‘James’ in the Devon Avery directed short comedy romance film ‘One-Minute Time Machine.’ The film released at the ‘Vail Film Festival,’ on March 29, 2014, and later at the ‘Seattle International Film Festival,’ on May 23, 2015. It earned him the ‘FilmQuest Cthulhu’ nomination in ‘FilmQuest.’
He co-founded and also performed in the sketch comedy group ‘Norm.’
Brian is also a gifted singer and dancer.
