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Matt Besser
Matthew Gregory Besser (born September 22, 1967) is an American actor, comedian, director, producer, and writer, best known as one of the four founding members of the Upright Citizens Brigade sketch comedy troupe, who had their own show on Comedy Central from 1998 to 2000. He currently hosts the improvisation-based podcast ''Improv4humans'' on the Earwolf podcasting network. Early life Besser was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, to parents Diane and Sandy Besser. His father was Jewish, whereas his mother was Christian. Besser is an atheist. He is a quarter German and a quarter French from his mother's side. Besser's grandfather's cousin was Joe Besser of The Three Stooges. He was recruited to play soccer after starting on his high school team, but instead attended Amherst College with a major in American Studies. There, he started doing stand-up comedy and competed in a contest at UMass that was judged by Judd Apatow. After graduating, he briefly moved to Denver in an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Little Rock, Arkansas
( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 = Little Rock Board of Directors , unit_pref = Imperial , area_total_sq_mi = 123.00 , area_total_km2 = 318.58 , area_land_sq_mi = 120.05 , area_land_km2 = 310.92 , area_metro_sq_mi = 4090.34 , area_metro_km2 = 10593.94 , population_as_of = 2020 , population_est = , pop_est_as_of = , population_demonym = Little Rocker , population_footnotes = , population_total = 202591 , population_rank = US: 118th , population_urban = 431,388 (US: 89th) , population_metro = 748,031 (US: 81st) , timezone = CST , utc_offset = −06:00 , timezone_DST ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tim Meadows
Timothy Meadows (born February 5, 1961) is an American actor and comedian. He was one of the longest-running cast members on ''Saturday Night Live'', where he appeared for ten seasons and for which he received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series in 1993. He played main character John Glascott on the ABC sitcom '' Schooled'' for its two-season run after playing the same character in a recurring role for six seasons on '' The Goldbergs''. Early life and education Meadows was born in Highland Park, Michigan, the son of Mardell, a nurse's assistant, and Lathon Meadows, a janitor. He attended Pershing High School in Detroit and studied television and radio broadcasting at Wayne State University. Career Meadows began performing improvisational comedy at the Soup Kitchen Saloon. Meadows's start in show business was in Chicago as a member of The Second City comedy troupe alongside future star Chris Farley. In 1991, Meadows landed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
WFLD
WFLD (channel 32) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, airing programming from the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Gary, Indiana–licensed MyNetworkTV outlet WPWR-TV (channel 50). Both stations share studios on North Michigan Avenue in the Chicago Loop, and transmitter facilities atop the Willis Tower. History As an independent station (1966–1986) Field Communications ownership The station first signed on the air on January 4, 1966, as an independent station. WFLD was founded by a joint venture of the parties that each competed individually for the license and construction permit to operate on UHF channel 32. Field Enterprises—owned by heirs of the Marshall Field's department store chain, and publishers of the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' and the ''Chicago Daily News''—was the station's majority partner (with a 50% interest) and was responsible for managing WFLD's day-to-day operations ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richard O'Donnell (playwright)
Richard O'Donnell (born June 17, 1956) is an American playwright, composer, lyricist, poet, actor, and stand-up comic. He has worked and lived in New York City and Chicago, where he has written and performed for the stage and television. O'Donnell co-wrote the ASCAP award-winning Off-Broadway musical comedy '' One & One'', and Radio City Music Hall's ''Manhattan Showboat''. He founded the New Age Vaudeville theatre company, the New Variety cabaret, the Black Pearl Cabaret, and St. John's Conservatory Theater. As a stand-up comic, he was the executive producer and host of the Fox, Chicago comedy variety television show ''R. Rated''. Early life and education Richard O'Donnell began in the entertainment industry as a professional ventriloquist. While in Jr. high school, he ran away with the Sells & Gray 3-ring tent circus at the age of 15, sleeping in the back of a truck that transported their elephants, Bessie and Anna May. O'Donnell was eventually forced to return home to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Variety
The New Variety is an American cabaret created and produced by Thomas Goodman and Richard O'Donnell. It was a fast-paced, ever-changing volley of acts that included jugglers, fire-eaters, stand-up comics, singers, musicians, and sketch comedy troupes. It was hailed by June Sawyer of the Chicago Tribune as a cabaret for the '90s. History In February 1992, producers Thomas Goodman (founder of CrossCurrents Cabaret) and R. O’Donnell (co-founder of New Age Vaudeville) teamed up to present the New Variety, located at 400 N. Clark, downtown Chicago. Modeled after the vaudeville variety shows of the ‘20s and '30s, the New Variety presented an evening’s worth of acts that included jugglers, fire-eaters, comics, singers, musicians, and sketch comedy troupes. Venues New Variety Cabaret The original location of the New Variety was the upstairs of the Italian restaurant Bellagio. Built specifically for the show, the cabaret was an elegant and intimate 100-seat theater, revealing a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horatio Sanz
Horacio Sanz (born June 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Horatio Sanz, is a Chilean-born American actor and comedian. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1998 to 2006. Early life Sanz was born on June 4, 1969 in Santiago, Chile, to Sylvia and Carlos Sanz. He is the youngest of three sons and the younger brother of actor Carlos Sanz. He grew up in the Humboldt Park neighborhood of Chicago. Career Sanz performed at various theaters in Chicago, including The Court Theater and The Second City, where he was a member of their Chicago ETC theater. While in Chicago, Sanz was also one of the founding members of the Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) sketch comedy and improv troupe. Sanz can still be seen regularly performing with the sketch troupe at their long-running improv show "ASSSSCAT 3000", at both of the UCB's comedy theaters, located in New York City and Los Angeles. ''Saturday Night Live'' Sanz joined the cast of ''Saturday Night Live'' in September 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1 = U.S. state, State , subdivision_type2 = List of counties in Illinois, Counties , subdivision_name1 = Illinois , subdivision_name2 = Cook County, Illinois, Cook and DuPage County, Illinois, DuPage , established_title = Settled , established_date = , established_title2 = Municipal corporation, Incorporated (city) , established_date2 = , founder = Jean Baptiste Point du Sable , government_type = Mayor–council government, Mayor–council , governing_body = Chicago City Council , leader_title = Mayor of Chicago, Mayor , leader_name = Lori Lightfo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sketch Comedy
Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and is used widely in variety shows, comedy talk shows, and some sitcoms and children's television series. The sketches may be improvised live by the performers, developed through improvisation before public performance, or scripted and rehearsed in advance like a play. Sketch comedians routinely differentiate their work from a "skit", maintaining that a skit is a (single) dramatized joke (or "bit") while a sketch is a comedic exploration of a concept, character, or situation. definition 3b, Merriam-Webster online. Retrieved 5/4/2019 History Sketch comedy has its origins in[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Del Close
Del Close (March 9, 1934 – March 4, 1999) was an American actor, writer, and teacher who coached many of the best-known comedians and comic actors of the late twentieth century. In addition to an acting career in television and film, he was one of the influences on modern improvisational theater. Close is co-founder of the iO, or iO Chicago, (formerly known as "ImprovOlympic"). Life and career Early life Close was born on March 9, 1934, in Manhattan, Kansas. He ran away from home at the age of 17 to work in a traveling side show, but returned to attend Kansas State University. At age 19 he performed in summer stock with the Belfry Players at Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. At age 23 he became a member of the Compass Players in St. Louis. When most of the cast—including Mike Nichols and Elaine May—moved to New York City, Close followed. He developed a stand-up comedy act, starred as the Yogi in the Broadway musical revue ''The Nervous Set'', and performed briefly with an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ali Farahnakian
Ali Reza Farahnakian (born October 26, 1967) is an American actor, writer, and improvisational comedian. He is the founder of The Peoples Improv Theater (The PIT) in NYC and co-starred in the Adult Swim comedy series ''Delocated''. Life and career Farahnakian was born in Iran but grew up in North Carolina and graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1990. After college he moved to Chicago in 1990. While in Chicago he became involved in improvisational comedy and was a performer at Chicago's Second City, ImprovOlympic and was one of the original founding members of the Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) along with other original UCB members such as Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts, Rick Roman, Horatio Sanz, and Adam McKay. In 2002 he founded The Peoples Improv Theater (The PIT) in New York City in honor of his mentor Del Close. In 2001, his one-man show "Word of Mouth" was featured at the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival. Farahnakian wrote for ''Saturday Night Live'' in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neil Flynn
Neil Richard Flynn (born November 13, 1960) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his roles as Janitor on '' Scrubs'' and Mike Heck in the ABC comedy series '' The Middle''. He has had notable appearances in television series, such as ''That '70s Show'', '' CSI'', and ''Smallville'' and the television films '' It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie'' and '' Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie.'' His film career includes appearances in '' The Fugitive'', '' Home Alone 3'', '' Mean Girls'', '' Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull'' and '' The Resurrection of Gavin Stone''. His voice-over work extends to films such as '' Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs'', TV shows including ''Bob's Burgers'', '' Buzz Lightyear of Star Command'', '' Clone High'', ''King of the Hill'' and the '' Ratchet & Clank'' video games. In 2015, he starred in the DC Comics web series '' Vixen'', set in the Arrowverse. In 2019, he starred alongside Natalie Morales in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ian Roberts (American Actor)
Ian Michael Roberts (born July 29, 1965) is an American actor, comedian and writer. Roberts is a founding member of the famed Upright Citizens Brigade improv and sketch comedy troupe. Life and career Roberts was born in Queens, New York, to parents Don and Penny Roberts, but spent the majority of his childhood in Secaucus, New Jersey, where he moved at age four. Roberts is a 1987 graduate of Grinnell College in Iowa, where he majored in theater. After graduating from college, Roberts moved to Milwaukee and eventually to Chicago where he became involved in improvisational comedy, studying improv under comedy legend Del Close. In the early 1990s, Roberts and Matt Besser (along with several other Chicago improv comics) would eventually form the Upright Citizens Brigade sketch comedy troupe. Amy Poehler and Matt Walsh would later join the group, forming the ''UCB'' foursome who went on to create their own Comedy Central series and later opened the affiliated Upright Citizens Brig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
