A modern Renaissance man, Hodgman purveys his brand of nerdy, self-effacing humor in books, on the web, and on TV and radio.

Hodgman grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts and attended Yale before joining Writers House, the literary agency founded by Al Zuckerman. His stint as a literary agent led to his popular McSweeney's advice column "Ask a Former Professional Literary Agent." Since then, Hodgman has covered the entire media spectrum: He's made radio appearances as a contributor to NPR's This American Life, had his short fiction published in the Paris Review, served as humor editor of the New York Times Magazine, and hosted a popular reading series at Williamsburg bar Galapagos called The Little Gray Book Lectures. He published his first book, The Areas of my Expertise, in 2005, which he billed as "a compendium of complete world knowledge." He, somehow, found more information to share with the world and, in 2006 and 2011, published two subsequent almanacs.

Beginning in the mid-2000s, Hodgman began appearing on TV, most recognizably, in Apple ads as the suited, uptight PC to actor Justin Long's cool, hoodie-and-jeans-wearing Mac. He also began popping up regularly on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as the show's "Resident Expert," a gig he was offered after appearing as a guest to plug his first book. He also had a recurring role on HBO's short-lived series, Bored to Death.

Hodgman lives in Park Slope with his wife (and high school sweetheart) Katherine and their two children. [Image via Getty]