Kent Shocknek

1956-12-02 · Berkeley, California, USA

Kent Shocknek (born Kent Schoknecht, December 2, 1956, in Berkeley, California) is an American actor and former television news anchor. He simplified the spelling of his surname upon arriving in Los Angeles and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Southern California. Over a 36-year journalism career, he became Southern California's first and longest-running morning news anchor, later anchoring prime-time newscasts at CBS-owned stations KCBS and KCAL. By the time he retired from news anchoring in August 2014, he was credited with having logged more hours anchoring local TV news than anyone else in Los Angeles history, and the city designated two separate "Kent Shocknek Days" in his honor. He won eight regional Emmy Awards for his reporting. His transition to acting was facilitated by his on-screen familiarity, and he has since appeared in over 100 film and television productions, typically portraying newscasters, executives, attorneys, and other authority figures. His most notable film credits include Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), Catch Me If You Can (2002, directed by Steven Spielberg), Transformers (2007), Fast Five (2011), Disturbia (2007), Nightcrawler (2014), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), Eagle Eye (2008), and Jobs (2013). On television, he is best known for his recurring role as newsman Guy Ross in NCIS (2004–2019) and its spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles, with additional credits in Criminal Minds and Bosch. He also hosts the nationally syndicated radio show Premiere Magazine Live! with his wife Karen Walters.