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Jim Downey (comedian)
James Woodward Downey (born ) is an American comedy writer and occasional actor. Downey wrote for over 30 seasons of ''Saturday Night Live'', making him the longest tenured writer in the show's history. ''SNL'' creator Lorne Michaels called Downey the "best political humorist alive". Early life and education Downey grew up in Joliet, Illinois. After graduating from Joliet Catholic Academy, Joliet Catholic High School, he entered Harvard University, where he wrote for the ''Harvard Lampoon'' and later became its president. He graduated from Harvard in 1974 with a degree in Russian. Writing In 1976, Downey joined the ''Saturday Night Live'' writing staff as its youngest member. He was among the first The Harvard Lampoon, ''Harvard Lampoon'' writers to write for television; writer Steve O'Donnell (writer), Steve O'Donnell said "the proliferation of cable and the proliferation of comedy [led] the sensibilities of the ''Lampoon'' [to become] a little closer to the sensibilities of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
:Template:Infobox Writer/doc
Infobox writer may be used to summarize information about a person who is a writer/author (includes screenwriters). If the writer-specific fields here are not needed, consider using the more general ; other infoboxes there can be found in :People and person infobox templates. This template may also be used as a module (or sub-template) of ; see WikiProject Infoboxes/embed for guidance on such usage. Syntax The infobox may be added by pasting the template as shown below into an article. All fields are optional. Any unused parameter names can be left blank or omitted. Parameters Please remove any parameters from an article's infobox that are unlikely to be used. All parameters are optional. Unless otherwise specified, if a parameter has multiple values, they should be comma-separated using the template: : which produces: : , language= If any of the individual values contain commas already, add to use semi-colons as separators: : which produces: : , ps ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mike Reiss
Michael L. Reiss ( '; born ) is an American television comedy writer and author. He served as a show-runner, writer and producer for the animated series ''The Simpsons'' and co-created the animated series '' The Critic''. He created and wrote the webtoon '' Queer Duck'' and has also worked on screenplays including: '' Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs'', ''The Simpsons Movie'' and '' My Life in Ruins''. Early life Reiss, the middle child of five, was born to a Jewish family in Bristol, Connecticut, United States. His mother was a local journalist and his father was a doctor. He attended Memorial Boulevard Public School, Thomas Patterson School and Bristol Eastern High School and has stated that he felt like an "outsider" in these places. Reiss studied at Harvard University. He has stated that he hates Harvard as an institution, explaining that "I had an epiphany on my third day there: This place would be just as good as a summer camp where you met other people, networked, and le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norm Macdonald
Norman Gene MacdonaldThe capitalization of Norm Macdonald's surname has been inconsistently reported in publications such as ''TV Guide''. Books that discuss him, such as ''Shales'' (2003) and Crawford' (2000), as well as other sources such as the Game Show Network and Comedy Central's '' Sports Show with Norm Macdonald'', all consistently report "Macdonald" (lowercase "d") as his surname. (October 17, 1959One of the standard references that erroneously gives his date of birth as October 17, 1963, is September 14, 2021) was a Canadian stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. His stand-up style was characterized by a slow, almost stuttering deadpan delivery and the use of folksy, old-fashioned turns of phrase. He appeared in many films and was a regular guest on late-night talk shows, where he became best known for telling shaggy dog stories. Early in his career, Macdonald's first work on television included writing for such comedies as '' Roseanne'' and '' The Dennis Miller Show ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Late Night With David Letterman
''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on NBC, the first iteration of the ''Late Night'' franchise. It premiered on February 1, 1982, and was produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated, and Carson Productions. Letterman had previously hosted his own morning talk show on NBC from June to October 1980. The show's house band, The World's Most Dangerous Band, was led by music director Paul Shaffer. In 1993, Letterman announced that he would leave NBC to host the '' Late Show with David Letterman'' on CBS, and the final episode of ''Late Night'' aired on June 25, 1993. Since then, Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon, and Seth Meyers have each reformatted the series. In 2013, this series and ''Late Show with David Letterman'' were ranked No. 41 on TV Guide's 60 Best Series of All Time. During its run, the show was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Series 11 time ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Head Writer
A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera genre, as well as with sketch comedies and talk shows that feature monologues and comedy skits. In fictional comedy or and drama TV shows, this is generally performed by an executive producer, who is usually also the showrunner. Overview The head writer conceives and outlines the long-term story of a scripted television or radio series. In daytime television, the over-arcing story lines are broken out into daily episodes, which are individually outlined by particular writers, and fleshed out with dialogue by others. In prime time series, individual staff or freelance writers briefed with any long-term story lines generally pitch their episode ideas to the head writer/executive producer. The writer develops their ideas into an outline and a script, which is subsequently edited and revised by the series' entire writing team during the production process ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harry Shearer
Harry Julius Shearer (born December 23, 1943) is an American actor, comedian, writer, musician, radio host, director and producer. Born in Los Angeles, California, Shearer began his career as a child actor. From 1969 to 1976, Shearer was a member of The Credibility Gap, a radio comedy group. Following the breakup of the group, Shearer co-wrote the film '' Real Life'' (1979) with Albert Brooks and worked as a writer on Martin Mull's television series '' Fernwood 2 Night''. Shearer was a cast member on '' Saturday Night Live'' between 1979 and 1980, and 1984 and 1985. Shearer co-created, co-wrote and co-starred in the film ''This Is Spinal Tap'' (1984), a satirical rockumentary, which became a hit. In 1989, he joined the cast of the animated sitcom '' The Simpsons''; he provides voices for characters including Mr. Burns, Waylon Smithers, Principal Skinner, Ned Flanders, Reverend Lovejoy, Kent Brockman, formerly Dr. Hibbert, and more. Shearer has appeared in films including ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Shaffer
Paul Allen Wood Shaffer (born November 28, 1949) is a Canadian singer, composer, actor, author, comedian, and multi-instrumentalist who served as David Letterman's musical director, band leader, and sidekick on the entire run of both ''Late Night with David Letterman'' (1982–1993) and ''Late Show with David Letterman'' (1993–2015). Early years Shaffer was born in 1949 in Toronto, and raised in Fort William (now part of Thunder Bay), Ontario, Canada, the son of Shirley and Bernard Shaffer. His father, a lawyer, was a jazz aficionado while his mother loved show tunes. When Shaffer was 12, his parents took him on a trip to Las Vegas where they took in Nat King Cole and other shows; this was an experience Shaffer described later as "life changing" and led to his decision to become a performer. As a child, Shaffer took piano lessons, and in his teenage years played the organ in a band called Fabulous Fugitives with his schoolmates in Thunder Bay. Later, he performed with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peter Aykroyd
Peter Jonathan Aykroyd (November 19, 1955 – November 6, 2021) was a Canadian actor, comedian, and writer. Biography Born to Lorraine (1918–2018) and Peter Hugh Aykroyd (1922–2020) in Ottawa, he was the younger brother of comedian Dan Aykroyd. Along with his older brother he was in the Second City comedy troupe in Toronto. The two were also on ''Saturday Night Live''. He was a cast member and writer during the show's fifth season, from 1979–1980. He and Dan Aykroyd wrote the movie '' Nothing but Trouble'' in the early 1990s; Peter wrote the story and Dan wrote the screenplay. In 1996, Peter Aykroyd co-created the Canadian sci-fi show '' Psi Factor'' with Christopher Chacon and Peter Ventrella; the show was hosted by his brother Dan and produced 88 episodes. In 1997, Peter Aykroyd and Jim Belushi provided the voices of Elwood Blues and Jake Blues for the cartoon ''The Blues Brothers: Animated Series'', playing the roles made famous by their respective brothers Dan and J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Belushi
John Adam Belushi (January 24, 1949 – March 5, 1982) was an American comedian, actor, and musician, best known for being one of the seven original cast members of the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). Throughout his career, Belushi had a personal and artistic partnership with his fellow ''SNL'' star Dan Aykroyd, whom he met while they were both working at Chicago's Second City comedy club. Born in Chicago to Albanian-American parents, Belushi started his own comedy troupe with Tino Insana and Steve Beshekas, called "The West Compass Trio". After being discovered by Bernard Sahlins, he performed with The Second City and met Aykroyd, Brian Doyle-Murray, and Harold Ramis. In 1975, Chevy Chase and Michael O'Donoghue recommended Belushi to ''SNL'' creator and showrunner Lorne Michaels, who accepted him as a new cast member of the show after an audition. Belushi developed a series of characters on the show that reached great success, including his perform ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
History Of Saturday Night Live (1975-1980)
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves as the program's showrunner. The show premiere was hosted by George Carlin on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title ''NBC's Saturday Night''. The show's comedy sketches, which often parody contemporary culture and politics, are performed by a large and varying cast of repertory and newer cast members. Each episode is hosted by a celebrity guest, who usually delivers the opening monologue and performs in sketches with the cast, with featured performances by a musical guest. An episode normally begins with a cold open sketch that ends with someone breaking character and proclaiming, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!", properly beginning the show. In 1980, Michaels left the series to explore other opportunities. He was repla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dan Aykroyd
Daniel Edward Aykroyd ( ; born July 1, 1952) is a Canadian actor, comedian, producer, musician and writer. He was an original member of the "Not Ready for Prime Time Players" on ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1979). During his tenure on ''SNL'', Aykroyd appeared in a recurring series of sketches about the Coneheads, and the Blues Brothers. For his work on the show he received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations winning for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series in 1977. After his departure, he has since returned in guest roles. Aykroyd gained prominence for writing, and starring as Dr. Raymond "Ray" Stantz in ''Ghostbusters'' (1984), which spawned an entire media franchise, reprising the role in ''Ghostbusters II'' (1989), ''Casper'' (1995), '' Ghostbusters: Afterlife'' (2021), and an upcoming sequel (2023), cameoing as a different character in '' Ghostbusters: Answer the Call'' (2016). He also is known for his comedic roles in ''Trading Places'' (1983), ''Spies Like Us' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tom Davis (comedian)
Thomas James Davis (August 13, 1952 – July 19, 2012) was an American comedian, writer, and author. He is best known for his comedy partnership with Al Franken, as half of the comedy duo "Franken & Davis" on ''Saturday Night Live''. Life and career Davis was born in St. Paul, Minnesota. He attended The Blake School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he began his friendship and professional partnership with Al Franken. In 1975, Davis got his big break as one of the original writers for ''Saturday Night Live'' where he and Franken also performed together. The duo wrote the screenplay for and appeared in the film '' One More Saturday Night'', and had brief appearances in ''Trading Places'' and '' The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash''. Davis was a frequent guest on ''The Al Franken Show'', appearing in sketches as various characters. In a well-known sketch on ''Saturday Night Live'', he provided the voice calling into an interview with Dan Aykroyd's Jimmy Carter as the youngster ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
