Don't Ask the 'Jake From State Farm' Actor for Any Insurance-Related Advice
Lisa Steuer McArdle
· 4 min read
The ‘Jake From
State Farm
’ actor and the now-famous commercials. It’s one of those ad figures
that almost everyone is familiar with, yet it’s such a simple concept.The first Jake From State Farm actor featured in a commercial was not actually an actor, but a real-life State Farm employee named Jake Stone, according to the
Chicago Tribune
. The iconic character with the red shirt and khakis has been popular since the first commercial came out 10 years ago. 
The Jake From State Farm commercials
First, let’s take a look at the commercials that made the character famous.
The Jake From State Farm character debuted in a 2011 commercial. In that first ad, the customer is shown calling his State Farm agent in the very early hours of the morning.
Of course, the customer’s wife is suspicious when she catches her husband on the phone at that hour, and takes the phone because she assumes he must be talking to a woman. She talks to Jake and remarks that "she sounds hideous," to which her husband responds that it’s because "she’s a guy."
The ad was very popular and soon Jake became the company’s mascot. He even has his own Twitter account.
The new Jake From State Farm actor
But despite the popularity, there were also some controversies with the original ad, according to
Medium
. Some people in the transgender community thought the punchline "she sounds hideous" indicated that a deep voice insinuated a woman was hideous. State Farm ended up producing another similar commercial with the punchline taken out, and since then more commercials have been released with the mascot—which meant the company needed an actor devoted to the role, instead of a State Farm employee.
So now, Jake From State Farm is actually actor Kevin Miles from Chicago, who has been playing the part for a little over a year.
As the Jake From State Farm actor, Miles has starred in commercials where the character has moved beyond sitting at a work desk.
Instead, Jake From State Farm has been seen in beekeeping suits and sharing the spotlight with celebrities like Drake,
Aaron Rodgers
, Chris Paul and more. An actor’s dream come true
Miles began to seriously pursue acting about eight years ago when he moved to Los Angeles from Chicago’s South Side.
In his youth, Miles’ father introduced him to film noir, while his mother and grandmother inspired his love of theater. He’s a graduate of the Webster University Conservatory of Theatre Arts and has always wanted to do film and television.
Miles enjoys playing Jake From State Farm and feels humbled when he gets recognized, notes Chicago Tribune.
What does the Jake from State Farm actor know about insurance?
So does Miles get a discount at State Farm because of the role he plays on the television commercials?
Some might be surprised to find that the answer is no. But Miles told the Chicago Tribune that "it feels right" that he doesn’t get a discount, and he wouldn’t like it if employees of State Farm did not get the real rate of the public.
Another fact about Miles that people might be surprised to learn is that he doesn’t actually know too much about car insurance.
One might think that after playing the character for a year, he would have picked up some information. But instead, he says if you do have a question to call your agent or he can direct you.
In the interview when asked if he could help with insurance-related questions Miles jokes, "...I can’t. But if you call your agent or if you need something, right now, I can direct you.
