What’s your full name?

Bryan Keith Rose

Were you named after anyone?

For the longest time, my mother told me she named me after one of her favorite actors, Brian Keith, who played the father in the original ‘Parent Trap.’ This only further fueled my dream of being an actor when I grew up.

After I became an adult, however, she informed me that she named me after a little boy that she used to babysit when she was younger, because the loved how the name sounded.

What’s your average day like?

I try and wake up early in the morning, when I can, to see my kids off to school. Then I head into work, until I can make it back home.

Now that I’m married with kids, my days usually revolve around seeing my family as much as possible.

How far away do you live from where you were born?

I actually live in the town I was originally born in, but I’ve lived in 18 different houses, across 13 different cities throughout my entire life. So I’ve basically come full-circle for now.

Is that distance something you think about? Do you any connection to your place of birth?

Not really. I was born in this city only because my mother was traveling when she went into labor. Moving here when I met my wife was the first time I actually remember living here. It now has more of a connection because this is where my kids were born.

What do you consider to be your “home”?

Living is so many places, I wasn’t really able to set down “roots” anywhere. Although, I still have people from those towns and cities that I still consider friends and family. Now, I consider my “home” wherever my family is.

What’s your ideal way to spend the holidays?

Christmas has always been my favorite holiday. Christmas movies, colder weather, giving gifts, those are all things I look forward to most of the year. Being a movie nerd my whole life, Christmas movies have always been a staple in our house.

These days, it’s pretty much all about making each holiday as magical as possible for my kids, so we all try as hard as we can to make each one memorable.

What items do you always take with you when you leave the house?

Wallet, phone, keys, my computer bag (for work), and usually a soda.

When you look in the mirror, what do you notice first about your appearance?

I usually end up looking myself in the eye before anything else. I’ve always been drawn to eyes, and my eyes have always been one of my better features physically, so that’s usually where I tend to look first.

If you could change something about your appearance, what would it be?

My weight. It’s pretty obvious to anyone who’s met me in real life, but I’ve been heavyset since around 2^nd grade. Luckily, I made peace with my size a long time ago, and while I would of course love to be thinner, it’s not something I dwell on. I’d much rather be happy, kind, smart, funny, etc. Any of those traits is infinitely better than being thin, personally.

What do you first notice in strangers?

Usually, it’s their eyes. Sometimes, it’s their smile, or lack thereof.

What do think those that know you say about you?

“He really does love Diet Dr Pepper.”

“He has way too much useless knowledge, especially about movies.”

“Can someone please get him to stop talking about Benedict Cumberbatch?”

“Why does a 34-year old need so many toys?”

“He reminds us of a much younger Oliver Platt, but with a nicer beard.”

What would you hope they would say?

Hopefully, that I’m a good person. I’d like to think that they would say I’m kind, funny, smart, honest, and that I have integrity. I’m sure some would probably say that I’m too outspoken, or too passionate, about certain things.

What do you think strangers notice first about you?

Probably my size, if I’m being honest. Being 6’3” tall and over 300 lbs, tends to catch people’s eye from time to time. Possibly my personality, which is surprisingly larger than my physical size. Or perhaps my beard.

What is your proudest moment? Biggest victory?

Becoming a father. While I love my amazing wife, and meeting her is one of the greatest days of my life, being a parent is my greatest achievement so far. And I’m sure she’d say the same thing. Raising our kids to become kind, compassionate, intelligent and decent human beings, will be the biggest victory.

What is your biggest regret? Biggest failure?

My mom died of cancer nearly 7 years ago. I’m thankful that she got to meet my wife, watch us get married, and meet her grandson. The one thing she had always wanted more than anything, though, was a girl in the family. The year after she passed, my daughter was born. So I regret that she never got the chance to meet her granddaughter.

I was also so focused with starting a family of my own, that I didn’t devote as much time to her as I should have, until it was far too late. So I regret taking her for granted, and realizing like most people that you don’t fully understand what you have until it’s gone. I think my only failure was that I spent so much of my life worrying about what everyone else thought, and how they saw me. Once I stopped focusing on that, and stopped caring about what people thought of me, I became a much happier person.

If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be?

I’d love to look all thin and ruggedly handsome. Like a mixture of Chris Pratt and Daniel Craig, with a little Tom Hardy thrown in. But, I’ve made peace with the fact that I look like a younger Oliver Platt.

What makes life worth living?

My wife, my son, and my daughter.

What is the one rule you try to live by? Do you feel successful at following it? 

None of us are ever done learning to be a good person. I try and treat everyone with respect, even if I don’t necessarily agree with them. I always strive to be correct, no matter what the topic, but I’m not afraid to be wrong or to learn something new.

I think too often people treat differences as something to be afraid of, instead of something to learn from. I think I’ve become more successful at this with each new year, and it’s something I’ll strive to accomplish going forward.