Don’t be surprised if Keithen Hergott ’05 looks familiar. Even if you didn’t attend class, play football or run track with him at Hastings College, you still might recognize his face.
Maybe you’ve seen him in a Rug Doctor television commercial, sporting a lab coat and bow tie as the company’s “director of clean.” Or standing under a waterfall in an Olympus camera print advertisement. Or portraying an Air Force pilot in “Mouse,” a suspense film available on Amazon Prime.
Or, most recently, playing a suspect on “Time Will Tell,” an episode of the iconic NBC series “Law & Order,” which aired November 7. Hergott was cast as Glenn Donovan, the temperamental father of a prep school student. In a classic “Law & Order” walk-and-talk scene, his character hurries through a factory, flanked by two detectives who ask him pointed questions about the murder of the school’s dean.
Is Donovan guilty? Hergott isn’t telling, but if you haven’t already seen the episode, you can watch it on Peacock, NBCUniversal’s streaming service. A clip is also available at keithenhergott.com.
“As a New York actor, it’s a little feather in your cap to get on ‘Law & Order’ at least once. It’s particularly competitive,” said Hergott, who lives in New York City’s Financial District.
Hergott was selected after submitting an audition tape. His role was confirmed on a Wednesday, and he received the script on Friday.
“I had all weekend to work on it before my 6:30 a.m. call time on Monday. As I was going to bed Sunday night, I got a message from the assistant director saying to check my email for a rewrite. The edits made for an even earlier morning, but it’s part of the game,” Hergott said. “Everybody on set was really lovely. The director, Milena Govich, was gracious and kind.”
When the show aired, several HC graduates in Hergott’s family were watching, including his mother, Cathy Hergott ’82, in Omaha. A gathering of family in Hastings included his father, Ron Hergott ’82, recently retired from coaching the College’s successful bowling team; his stepmother, Lori Hergott ‘91, a former residence director at Taylor Hall; and stepsisters Nikki Adams ’12 and Maggie Esch ’16.
“It was nice knowing they made a little night of it. I was feeling the love,” he said with a laugh.
Honing his skills at ResponseNews
Hergott enrolled at Hastings College as a media production major with an emphasis in television broadcasting. In between classes and sports practices, he worked for ResponseNews as a news anchor and reporter.
“I loved the storytelling aspect of it,” he said. “My senior year, I covered President George Bush’s visit to Omaha. I was the only college reporter alongside the network television stations.” His feature story placed first in a Nebraska Collegiate Media Association competition.
“Even though I didn’t go into broadcast journalism, the skills transferred to my career in entertainment since I was familiar with editing, sound, lighting, and being in front of a camera,” he said.
After graduation, Hergott eventually landed in Las Vegas where he was approached in a casino by a modeling agent who signed him to her agency. He also began auditioning for acting roles and made his professional stage debut in the show “Birdy’s Bachelorette Party,” an audience participation comedy at the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino.
When a coworker nominated him for a “Cosmopolitan” magazine contest looking for the country’s most eligible bachelors, Hergott was selected to represent Nevada. The magazine invited him to New York City for a press conference and photo shoot, and he booked a flight.
“Coincidentally, at the same time, I was sending my modeling portfolio to a bunch of agencies in New York trying to get signed,” Hergott said. “The week before my flight, an agency called and wanted me to come in for a meeting.”
That initial visit to NYC ended with contract offers from four different agencies.
“I booked a job with Giorgio Armani in New York during my first week in the city. I’ve been blessed to have a career now spanning over 15 years,” he said.
Crafting a career in entertainment
Since moving east, Hergott has been featured in nearly every form of entertainment.
As a model, he’s walked the runway at fashion shows and appeared in print ads for brands like Untuckit and Tiffany & Co. As an actor, he’s done improv with the Upright Citizen’s Brigade and appeared off-Broadway and in theater festivals. His television work includes appearances on six different shows, including the miniseries “Dead Ringers” and “Lisey’s Story.”
He has appeared in numerous television commercials for national brands like American Express, Samsung, Stella Artois and Michelob Ultra. He made his feature film debut in “Episode 50” and has had both leading and supporting roles in several other independent films.
Hergott’s proudest achievement is the creation of his company, August Ace Productions, which released the award-winning short film “Issues” about angsty superhero Calvin Elliot. He played the lead role, co-wrote the script, and directed and produced the film, currently available on the YouTube channel, “Issues – With Supers.”
“Artistically, being able to create something that elicits an emotion from the audience is cool, especially when you do it right,” he said.
