A dark-haired, deep-voiced actor with looks and talent more befitting a risk-taking character player than a white bread leading man, Rick Hoffman worked steadily in bit parts from his 1997 debut, but only stopped waiting tables when, in 2000, he landed a regular role on the doomed Fox drama "The $treet". A Long Island native who studied drama at the University of Arizona in Tucson and headed to Los Angeles to pursue a career, Hoffman was so nervous while filming his brief role in 1997's "Conspiracy Theory" that he blew his lines. Luckily, his misread got laughs, was included in the final draft
