Naperville Central High School. Photo: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NCHS_Aerial.jpg)
College/University
Gallery of David Eigenberg
University of Iowa. Photo: Billwhittaker ( talk ) at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Iowa_Hall.JPG)
Gallery of David Eigenberg
American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Photo: Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AADA_Colony_Club.jpg)
University of Iowa. Photo: Billwhittaker ( talk ) at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Iowa_Hall.JPG)
American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Photo: Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AADA_Colony_Club.jpg)
David Eigenberg is an American actor known for playing Steve Brady in Sex and the City and its revival And Just Like That..., and firefighter Christopher Herrmann in NBC's Chicago Fire. His career has also included Broadway performances, films, television guest roles, and voice acting.
Background
Eigenberg was born in Manhasset, New York, and moved with his family to Illinois when he was four. He grew up in Naperville as the only boy among six children. His mother, Beverly, owned preschools, while his father, Harry Eigenberg, was a certified public accountant; his parents came from Episcopalian and Jewish religious backgrounds.
He attended Naperville Central High School and played football there. He has recalled acting for the first time at age twelve in a community-theater production of Kurt Vonnegut's Happy Birthday, Wanda June. His high-school football team included Sean Payton, who later became a professional football coach.
Education
Eigenberg graduated from Naperville Central High School in 1982. The school is a public secondary institution in Naperville, a Chicago suburb whose community later remained connected with Eigenberg through visits and local interviews.
He subsequently attended the University of Iowa and studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. The University of Iowa is a major public research university with established traditions in the arts and humanities, while the American Academy of Dramatic Arts is a professional conservatory founded to train actors for stage and screen.
After graduating from high school, Eigenberg served in the United States Marine Corps Reserve from 1982 to 1986 and was honorably discharged as a lance corporal. The Marine Corps Reserve provides trained personnel who can support the active Marine Corps during national emergencies and other operational requirements.
He began his acting career in the late 1980s and made his Broadway debut in the original production of John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation, appearing from 1990 to 1992. He later returned to Broadway in Richard Greenberg's Take Me Out from 2003 to 2004. Broadway is the principal commercial theater district of New York City and a central institution in American theatrical production.
Eigenberg became widely known as Steve Brady on HBO's Sex and the City, a role he played in the television series and reprised in the films Sex and the City and Sex and the City 2. HBO's series helped establish an ensemble television model centered on the professional and personal lives of contemporary New Yorkers.
His screen work has included films such as Daybreak, The Mothman Prophecies, Around the Bend, Garfield: The Movie, and Robosapien: Rebooted, as well as guest appearances in programs including Homicide: Life on the Street, The Practice, NCIS, Ghost Whisperer, Castle, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and Criminal Minds. He voiced Nermal in Garfield: The Movie.
In 2012, Eigenberg joined NBC's Chicago Fire as Christopher Herrmann, a firefighter who progresses through senior firefighter and officer roles within Firehouse 51. The series is part of NBC's Chicago franchise and is built around the professional lives of firefighters and emergency responders. He also reprised Steve Brady in the Sex and the City revival And Just Like That....
Achievements
Eigenberg established a long-running television career through his portrayal of Steve Brady in Sex and the City, later reprising the role in the feature films and the revival series And Just Like That....
He joined the original Broadway production of Six Degrees of Separation in 1990 and later returned to Broadway in Take Me Out, extending his work across television, film, and theater.
He supported American service members through USO appearances and visits, drawing on his prior service in the Marine Corps Reserve.
Works
animated film
Garfield: The Movie
(Feature film in which Eigenberg provided the voice of Ner...)
(HBO television series in which Eigenberg played Steve Brady.)
1998
Religion
Eigenberg was raised in his mother's Episcopalian faith; his father was Jewish. Episcopalian identity belongs to the Anglican tradition represented in the United States by the Episcopal Church, whose worship combines historic Christian liturgy, scripture, sacramental practice, and a tradition of theological breadth.
His upbringing took place in an interfaith family, with his mother's Episcopal affiliation and his father's Jewish background forming the documented religious setting of his childhood.
Views
Eigenberg's public remarks emphasize respect for service, responsibility, and community. His support for the USO and his work with real firefighters reflect an expressed appreciation for people whose occupations involve public safety, duty, and sacrifice.
Membership
Eigenberg has participated in United Service Organizations activities supporting American service members. The USO is a nonprofit organization that provides programs, entertainment, and welfare support to members of the United States military and their families.
Participated in USO tours and events supporting service members.
United Service Organizations
,
United States
2001 - present
Personality
In interviews, Eigenberg has described himself as closely connected to ordinary community life and has spoken appreciatively about the Chicago firefighters who helped the cast prepare for Chicago Fire. His public comments also show sustained respect for military service and service-member communities.
Quotes from others about the person
Chicago firefighters who worked with Eigenberg during preparation for Chicago Fire described the cast's engagement with the department as respectful and serious. Eigenberg has publicly characterized his USO work as a privilege and emphasized the sacrifices made by service members.
Interests
Community theater, military service-member support, and work with firefighters
Writers
Kurt Vonnegut
Sport & Clubs
Football
Athletes
Sean Payton
Connections
Eigenberg married Chrysti Kotik in 2002. They have two children, a son, Louie Steven, born in 2009, and a daughter, Myrna Belle, born in 2014.
His wife served in the United States Army, and the couple met during one of Eigenberg's USO visits to a military installation. The family has been associated with the Chicago area while Eigenberg has worked on Chicago Fire.
Wife:
Chrysti Kotik
Eigenberg married Kotik in 2002. She served in the United States Army before their marriage.
