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Mark Proksch

American actor and comedian

Image credit is listed at the end of this article.

Mark Proksch (/ˈprʊkʃ/ PRUUKSH; born 1978 or 1979) is an American comedian and character actor. He is best known for acting in the television series The Office, Better Call Saul, Dream Corp LLC, What We Do in the Shadows and as a fictionalized version of himself in the On Cinema universe.

He rose to prominence when he portrayed the character "K-Strass", a parody of a yo-yo master, who appeared on local news shows.

01Early life

Proksch grew up in Onalaska, Wisconsin, and is a graduate of Onalaska High School and the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

02K-Strass

Proksch had the alias Kenny "K-Strass" Strasser early in his career, during which he appeared on small-market local newscasts as a hapless "yo-yo master." In these appearances, he fabricated stories about visiting schools to speak to children about environmentalism. When asked to perform tricks live on the air, he would display a complete inability to do any of them. The character of K-Strass was described by online magazine Paste as "the funniest thing that's ever happened" and speaking "in a nasal Midwestern accent, with a halting cadence that was both awkward and deliberate." K-Strass was created when Proksch's temp job at an ad agency fell through.

Proksch also appeared as K-Strass while opening for Gregg Turkington's Neil Hamburger on tour. Turkington and Proksch would work together again on On Cinema.

03Television career

Proksch had a recurring role on the television series The Office as Nate, Dwight Schrute's lackey and the office handyman. He appeared in 19 episodes over the show's final three seasons. In March 2013, Proksch starred in the NBC television pilot Holding Patterns. He also voiced the character Johnnie in the Adventure Time episode "Bad Timing." In March 2014, Proksch appeared in an episode of Portlandia as Carrie Brownstein's love interest. From 2015 to 2017 he appeared as Daniel "Pryce" Wormald, a recurring character on the AMC drama series Better Call Saul, a prequel to Breaking Bad. From 2014 through 2020, Proksch appeared as the character "Randy Blink" in the Adult Swim series Dream Corp LLC. In 2015, Proksch appeared in Season 3, Episode 1 of Drunk History in which he told the story of the Bone Wars.

On Cinema at the Cinema

Proksch plays a fictionalized version of himself in the On Cinema universe, in which he attempts various impersonations, including W.C. Fields and The Marx Brothers, where his last name is frequently mispronounced.

The fictional Proksch was briefly declared dead during the 5th Annual On Cinema Oscar special, having suffocated inside a heavy diving suit during a Jaws impersonation skit. His character briefly appears in season 10's VR episodes, when the camera is turned showing his comatose body. This takes place during a recurring section in which Gregg Turkington plays his old audition tapes for films he failed to be cast in. His comatose body again appears in the 6th Annual Oscar special as "The Living Oscar". Painted gold and strapped to a gurney, pre-recorded phrases in his voice are played in answer to questions surrounding Oscar trivia. During one segment his comatose body is slowly rotated around a compilation of past Oscar nominated films. He awakens after being knocked over by host Tim Heidecker and spends the rest of the special in a state of confusion and shock while bleeding from a broken nose. The fictional Proksch still appeared confused in the next season of On Cinema. After being beaten in a Los Angeles Police Department holding cell when he was wrongly arrested for selling VHS copies of public domain movies with Gregg, he goes missing. During the 8th Annual Oscar special, a brief video recording that appears to depict the fictional Proksch surfaces and suggests that he no longer wishes to be involved with the hosts of On Cinema. He later returns to co-star as The Mummy and other characters, in Deck of Cards.

As of the 12th Annual Oscar special, he remains involved with the hosts of On Cinema, despite constant abuse.

What We Do in the Shadows

Proksch stars as Colin Robinson, an energy vampire, in the FX series What We Do in the Shadows, as well as portraying the reincarnation of Colin Robinson as a child and teenager (nicknamed "The Boy") following the original Colin's death in the third season finale.

04Personal life

Proksch is married to writer Amelie Gillette.

05Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2014 Hamlet A.D.D. N/A Uncredited
A Merry Friggin' Christmas Trooper Zblocki
2016 Another Evil Os Bijourn
Asperger's Are Us Himself/K-Strass Documentary
2019 Her Mind in Pieces Jeffrey Presch
VHYes Teddy
Mister America Mark Proksch Archive footage
2024 Perfect 10 Kevin Short film
2025 The Twits Horvis Dungle (voice)

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2010-2013 The Office Nate Nickerson 19 episodes
2012, 2014 Infomercials Kenny/Kirk Peckley Episode:"Smart Pipe" & "Swords, Knives, Very Sharp Objects, and Cutlery"
2013, 2025 Bob's Burgers Mr. Dinkler/Dean 2 episodes
2013 Animal Practice Gary Episode: "Wingmen"
Hello Ladies Father Episode: "The Wedding"
New Girl Dan Episode: "Nerd"
Comedy Bang! Bang! Alternate Reality Man Episode: " Andy Dick Wears a Black Suit Jacket & Skinny Tie"
Eagleheart Craig Balmer Episode: "Bowsley"
2014-2017 Decker Abdul Shariff/Mark Proksch/Frankenstein/Wolfman/WC-3P0 20 episodes
2014-2020 Dream Corp LLC Randy Blink 30 episodes, 1 pilot short
2014 Adventure Time Johnnie Episode: "Bad Timing"
Portlandia Sean Episode: "Pull-Out King"
Modern Family Coleman Episode: "Message Received"
Marry Me Chad Episode: "Move Me"
Selfie Waiter Episode: "Follow Through"
2015 Drunk History Narrator Episode: "New Jersey"
2015-2017 Better Call Saul Daniel "Pryce" Wormald 4 episodes
2016-2017 Son of Zorn Todd 9 episodes
2017 Comrade Detective Stefan/American Guard/Embassy Officer 3 episodes
Apollo Gauntlet Monty 5 episodes
Tarantula Voice Episode: "The Shade"
2018 This Is Us Mel Buchanan Episode: "The Car"
Fresh Off The Boat Chad Episode: "Let Me Go, Bro"
A.P. Bio Philip Episode: "Teacher Jail"
Room 104 Gene Episode: "Hungry"
2019 Corporate Mark Episode: "The Fall"
2019-2024 What We Do in the Shadows Colin Robinson Main Cast, 50 episodes
2020 Black Monday Lou 'Jewdini' Dinowitz Episode: "Idiot Inside"
2021 Q-Force Additional voices 2 episodes
Ten Year Old Tom Dakota's Dad 3 episodes
2022 Fairfax Terry 2 episodes
Central Park Lester Posey/Nico
Paradise PD Norf 4 episodes
2022-2025 The Great North Roy 7 episodes
2023 HouseBroken Amigo Episode: "Who's the Cat-Chelorette"
2024 Exploding Kittens Marv Higgins 9 episodes
The Simpsons Hack-GPT Episode: "Bart's Birthday"
2026 The 'Burbs Tod Mann Main Cast

Web series

Year Title Role Episode
2014-present On Cinema Mark Proksch 21 episodes, 7 special

Music videos

Year Title Artist Role
2023 Bubblegum Dog MGMT Cameo
2023 Round the Bend The Tubs Taxi driver

06Nominations

Year Award Category Nominated work Result Ref.
2021 Critics' Choice Television Awards Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series What We Do in the Shadows Nominated
Watch videos about Mark ProkschExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article Mark Proksch, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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