
Age: 47
male
Michael Jonathan Zegen (born February 20, 1979) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the television series Rescue Me (2004–2011), Boardwalk Empire (2011–2014), and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (2017–2023). Zegen was born to a teacher mother and a lawyer father, and lived in Glen Rock, New Jersey, before moving to nearby Ridgewood when he was five. He has two brothers. He is Jewish. His mother was born in Austria in a displaced persons' camp, and his maternal grandparents were Holocaust survivors from Ukraine and Poland. He attended Ridgewood High School, where he was active in the school's theater program. Zegen is a 2001 graduate of Skidmore College. His role on Rescue Me began as a recurring character in seasons 1–3, playing the nephew of series lead Tommy Gavin (Denis Leary). In seasons 5–6, he was promoted to the main cast when his character began probationary firefighter school to become a firefighter. In 2010, Zegen was cast as gangster Bugsy Siegel for the second, third, and fifth season of the HBO series, Boardwalk Empire. In 2011, Zegen, along with James Ransone, was cast in supporting roles in the HBO comedy series How To Make It In America. In mid-2011, Zegen was cast in a recurring guest role in the second season of the AMC series The Walking Dead. In 2014 he created the role of Liam off-Broadway in the dark comedy Bad Jews. Zegan made his Broadway debut in A View from the Bridge in 2015. In 2017, Zegen played Joel Maisel in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. For the role he has won two Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series awards from the Screen Actors Guild. He returned to Broadway in 2021 to star in Trouble in Mind by Alice Childress.

Rachel Rubenstein-Goldblatt is a nice Jewish girl with a shameful secret: she loves Christmas. For a decade she’s hidden her career as a Christmas romance novelist from her family. Her talent has made her a bestseller even as her chronic illness has always kept the kind of love she writes about out of reach. But when her diversity-conscious publisher insists she write a Hanukkah romance, her well of inspiration suddenly runs dry. Hanukkah’s not magical. It’s not merry. It’s not Christmas. Desperate not to lose her contract, Rachel’s determined to find her muse at the Matzah Ball, a Jewish music celebration on the last night of Hanukkah, even if it means working with her summer camp archenemy—Jacob Greenberg. Though Rachel and Jacob haven’t seen each other since they were kids, their grudge still glows brighter than a menorah. But as they spend more time together, Rachel finds herself drawn to Hanukkah—and Jacob—in a way she never expected. Maybe this holiday of lights will be the spark she needed to set her heart ablaze.

