Richard Schiff

Schiff in 2007, photo by s_bukley/Bigstock.com

Place of Birth: Bethesda, Maryland, U.S.

Date of Birth: May 27, 1955

Ethnicity: Ashkenazi Jewish

Richard Schiff is an American actor and comedian.

He is the son of Charlotte and Edward Schiff. His brother, Paul Schiff, is a film producer. Richard was raised Jewish. His mother is originally from Brooklyn, New York. Richard has stated that his ancestors moved to the U.S., through Ellis Island, from Ukraine, Austria, and Poland.

Richard is married to actress Sheila Kelley, with whom he has two children. Sheila is the granddaughter of politician Augustine B. Kelley, who was a U.S. Congressman from Pennsylvania.

Richard’s paternal grandfather was named Seymour Schiff. Seymour was born in Austria. Richard’s paternal grandfather was a gangster associated with the New York mob.

Richard’s paternal grandmother was named Bella Kotin (the daughter of Harry Kotin/Koten and Sarah). Harry was born in Glubokoye, Russia, the son of Iokhel Koten. Sarah was born in Minsk, Belarus.

Richard’s maternal grandfather was Maurice Irving Grad (the son of Samuel Grad and Lottie Prazer/Prager). Maurice was born in New York. Samuel was originally from Austria, the son of Moshe Yitzchak Grad. Lottie was born in either Poland or Russia, to parents from Russia, with her father’s name having been Tsvi Hirsch Prager.

Richard’s maternal grandmother was Selma R. Goldberg (the daughter of Abraham Goldberg and Hanna Rosen). Selma was born in New York.

Sources: http://www.jewishtelegraph.com
http://www.independent.co.uk

Genealogy of Richard Schiff – https://www.geni.com

Richard’s maternal grandfather, Maurice Irving Grad, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org