EVANSVILLE, Ind. — The beloved Caveman from the GEICO commercials just got a new gig doing "mammoth" things at a southern Indiana university.
McManus Woodend is leaving the beard and bushy eyebrows in the past and looking toward his future.
Woodend joined the USI English Department faculty this fall as an English teacher specializing in rhetoric and composition.
"I've enjoyed getting to know and interact with the students and building on the camaraderie with the faculty members," he said.
For Woodend, teaching college-level classes was just the latest step in a career centered around film and acting.
Over the years, Woodend has appeared in six feature films, co-created the movie "Rocksteppy," and directed the short film "Paper" with his wife.
He landed his most well-known credit in the 2000s, when he began appearing in the GEICO commercials as the Caveman.
He was the fifth actor to be put in the role. He appeared in more than 25 commercials and did voiceovers on the GEICO/Pandora "Caveman Radio" station.
His bio on the USI website says the role remains one of his favorites to this day.
He said transitioning to teaching was a natural progression for him.
"I've always had people encourage me, even people I’ve worked with in film and TV who said on set that I should teach,” he explained. "So, I've always said I wanted to teach at a collegiate level, because there is something about it."
His parents were teachers and he said he was hooked on USI immediately after walking on campus.
"There was just something about driving and parking, then walking around, and the thought in my mind was I could do this for however long the campus wanted to have me."
Woodend said he's thrilled to be a teacher and that it caters to the actor in him because there are performative aspects to teaching to keep students engaged and connected.
"I'm teaching all new course material, so those types of stresses and pressures are there, but overall, it's just a great environment. USI is a good balance, and that’s something I've always striven for," Woodend said.
He has a master's in filmmaking and is now studying online as a doctorate candidate at The European Graduate School.
