Angela Kinsey rose to fame in 2005 as uptight accountant Angela Martin on NBC's "The Office." Despite the show's growing popularity, she continued working at the box office at Los Angeles improv comedy theater Improv Olympic West until the start of season three.
Even after the December 2005 episode "Christmas Party" helped make "The Office" the top iTunes download, Kinsey remained cautious. "Don't take anything for granted and save," she said in a recent CNBC interview — advice that continues to shape her financial choices today.
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Sitcom Lift-Off Side Hustle Stays
"I just knew that even though I was on a hit show, that I would need to be already thinking ahead and strategizing about what's my next job," Kinsey told CNBC. By late 2005, she was still selling tickets at the iO West box office while filming season two of "The Office." She didn't quit the side job until early in season three, when she "finally felt comfortable enough" to do so.
Meanwhile, Brian Baumgartner, who played Kevin on the "The Office," recalled on the "And That's What You REALLY Missed" podcast that after those first six episodes, producers "asked us to empty our trailers and go home." Ratings picked up following the "Christmas Party" episode in 2005, and in 2006, NBC had greenlit the remaining 16 episodes—completing the full 22‑episode season and paving the way for season three.
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Smart Saving, Strategic Spending
Uncertainty on set cemented Kinsey's focus on saving. After NBC aired "Booze Cruise" and promoted her to series regular, she leaned into practicality. Laughing on Baumgartner's "The Office Deep Dive" podcast in 2021, she recalled a moment when, while driving home, her aging Chevy Blazer's right tire came off and rolled through an intersection — prompting her to replace it with a more reliable Honda.
Kinsey said her paycheck "wasn't as grandiose as people might think," but smart budgeting helped her save.
Castmates Echo The Caution
Actress Kate Flannery shared on a 2018 episode of the “Living the Dream with Rory O'Malley" podcast that she kept her restaurant job in Los Angeles while filming season one of "The Office." "I kept my restaurant job…just in case," she recalled, noting some nights' tips outpaced her acting checks.
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Flannery's fallback echoed Kinsey's advice in the CNBC interview to "save early, spend modestly and always plan for the next job," a prudent approach as streaming volatility, labor strikes, and shifting production calendars continue to unsettle acting careers.
Deck Boards Over Mansions
"I tried to keep a level head now that I had consistent income, knowing that everything has a finite end date," Kinsey told CNBC.
People magazine reported that Kinsey reunited with Creed Bratton, Ellie Kemper, Craig Robinson and Oscar Núñez for AT&T Business's "Wake Up With CrAIg" commercial and confirmed the existence of the cast's lively "Office Peeps" group chat. Kinsey told People her phone wallpaper hasn't changed since her daughter's toddler days—a lighthearted nod to her long-standing frugality.
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