Paul Lee Willson (born December 25, 1945) is an American film, television and voice actor well known for many roles, including as Paul Krapence on '' Cheers''. He was born in

Fairmont, Minnesota Fairmont is a city in and the county seat of Martin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 10,487 at the 2020 census. History Fairmont was platted in 1857. The city was so named on account of its elevated town site. A post office ...

, the son of Doris Geraldine and Lee Wilford Willson.

Career

Willson has played numerous guest characters on a variety of shows including '' Laverne & Shirley'' as Eraserhead in episode "A Date with Eraserhead", and ''

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'' as Stu in episode "Crimes and Michelle's Demeanor" in 1990, '' Curb Your Enthusiasm'', ''

Boston Public ''Boston Public'' is an American drama television series created by David E. Kelley and broadcast on Fox. Set in Boston, the series centers on Winslow High School, a fictional public high school in the Boston Public Schools district. It feature ...

'', '' Caroline in the City'', '' The Newsroom'' and '' Star Trek: Voyager''. He is perhaps most famous for his repeated guest character of Paul Krapence on the television show '' Cheers'' (which he also reprised in an episode of the ''Cheers'' spin-off, ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It premiered on September 16, 1993, and ended on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee (as Grub ...

''). His character was originally called "Gregg" because Paul Vaughn was already playing a character named "Paul" on ''Cheers''. For five years (1986-1990) he was Garry Shandling's neighbor Leonard Smith on ''

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''. Willson also appeared on Garry Shandling's ''

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'' playing Larry's accountant, and the brother of Sid the

cue card Cue cards, also known as note cards, are cards with words written on them that help actors and speakers remember what they have to say. They are typically used in television productions where they can be held off-camera and are unseen by the au ...

holder. He played Ed, a neighbor, in a few episodes of '' Malcolm in the Middle'', and also appeared in an episode of '' The Golden Girls''. His film appearances include '' The Pack'' (1977), ''

The Devonsville Terror ''The Devonsville Terror'' is a 1983 American supernatural horror film directed by Ulli Lommel and starring Suzanna Love, Donald Pleasence, and Robert Walker. The plot focuses on three different women who arrive in a conservative New England town ...

'' (1983), '' My Best Friend Is a Vampire'' (1987), '' Moving'' (1988), '' 976-EVIL'' (1988), ''

Problem Child 2 ''Problem Child 2'' is a 1991 American black comedy film, and a sequel to the 1990 film '' Problem Child''; a continuation of the exploits of Junior ( Michael Oliver), an adopted orphan boy who deliberately wreaks comedic havoc everywhere he goes ...

'' (1991), ''

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'' (1990), '' Plughead Rewired: Circuitry Man II'' (1994) and the

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Office Space ''Office Space'' is a 1999 American black comedy film written and directed by Mike Judge. It satirizes the worklife of a typical 1990s software company, focusing on a handful of individuals weary of their jobs. It stars Ron Livingston, Jennifer ...

'' (1999) as one of "The Bobs". Willson also appeared on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

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s ''

The King of Queens ''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, a total of nine seasons and 207 episodes. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who also served as the show ...

'' and ''

The Big Bang Theory ''The Big Bang Theory'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro, all of whom also served as head writers. It premiered on C ...

''. He's also done voice work as Mr. Detweiler T.J.'s father in Disney's ''Recess'' and in the 2001 feature film ''Recess: School's Out''. Although primarily recognized for his television work, he has been noted as a "great improv player" by Garry Shandling as a result of their time working together doing improv in the late 1970s. ''Cheers'' producer Ken Levine has also acknowledged Willson as "one of the greatest improv artists I have EVER seen." Since 2012 he has appeared in television ads for

Safeco Insurance Safeco Insurance, a member of Liberty Mutual Group, is an American insurance company. It held the naming rights to the Seattle Mariners' baseball stadium Safeco Field from its opening in 1999 through the end of the 2018 season. History Safec ...

References

External links

* * * * 1945 births Living people American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Minnesota People from Fairmont, Minnesota 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors {{US-screen-actor-1940s-stub