Daniel Frischman (born April 23, 1959) is an American
actor
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), l ...
,
comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audience dir ...
,
writer
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, pla ...
,
director
Director may refer to:
Literature
* ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine
* ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker
* ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty
Music
* Director (band), an Irish rock band
* ''D ...
and
magic
Magic or Magick most commonly refers to:
* Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces
* Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic
* Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...
ian. He was born in
Whippany, New Jersey
Whippany is a unincorporated community located within Hanover Township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. Whippany's name is derived from the Whippanong Native Americans, a tribe that once inhabited the area. Whippanong meant "place ...
. He is best known for his roles as Chris Potter on the
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
sitcom ''
Kenan & Kel
''Kenan & Kel'' is an American buddy comedy sitcom created by Kim Bass. The show originally aired on the Nickelodeon network for four seasons, from July 15, 1996, to July 15, 2000. Set in Chicago, Illinois, the series follows mischievous Kenan ...
'' and Arvid Engen on the
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
sitcom ''
Head of the Class
''Head of the Class'' is an American sitcom television series that ran from 1986 to 1991 on the ABC television network.
The series follows a group of gifted students in the Individualized Honors Program (IHP) at the fictional Millard Fillmor ...
''. He is noted for playing
socially inept "
geek
The word ''geek'' is a slang term originally used to describe eccentric or non-mainstream people; in current use, the word typically connotes an expert or enthusiast obsessed with a hobby or intellectual pursuit. In the past, it had a genera ...
s" and "
nerd
A nerd is a person seen as overly intellectual, obsessive, introverted or lacking social skills. Such a person may spend inordinate amounts of time on unpopular, little known, or non-mainstream activities, which are generally either highly techn ...
s". Frischman is a member of
The Magic Castle
The Magic Castle is a clubhouse for Magic (illusion), magicians and magic enthusiasts, as well as the clubhouse for the Academy of Magical Arts. It is in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California and it bills itse ...
, who belongs to the Academy of Magic Arts in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywoo ...
.
Frischman's birthdate is often listed as 1964, because early in his career his
acting agent encouraged him to
falsify his age to make himself more eligible for
teenaged
Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with th ...
acting roles.
Early life
Frischman was raised in the
Whippany section of
Hanover Township, New Jersey
Hanover Township is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. At the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 13,712, reflecting an increase of 814 (+6.3%) from the 12,898 counted in the 2000 Census, which had i ...
. He attended
Whippany Park High School
Whippany Park High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from Hanover Township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States, operating as one of the two secondary schools of ...
, graduating in 1977, before attending
Penn State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State becam ...
.
[Lent, James]
"Magic was Dan Frischman’s first passion, then came comedy stardom; he uses both in new book"
''Hanover Eagle'', April 24, 2009. Accessed December 11, 2019. "Dan Frischman did, but he also knew waiting until he got older to do it was not for him: He wanted to perform in front of audiences, and he wanted to start now. It was the art of magic that first drew the young Whippany boy in and convinced him of his destiny. He had found a catalogue of magic on the back of a Boy' Life magazine and was immediately hooked.... After graduating from Whippany Park High School in 1977, Frischman attended Penn State University where he stayed for a couple of years acting in college plays until the restlessness to perform on a bigger stage got to him."
Before television
Frischman developed an interest in magic as a child after seeing an ad in ''
Boys' Life
''Scout Life'' (formerly ''Boys' Life'') is the monthly magazine of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Its target readers are boys and girls between the ages of 6 and 18. The magazine‘s headquarters are in Irving, Texas.
''Scout Life'' is pub ...
'' magazine.
[ Before Frischman's television breakthrough, he often worked as a magician in the ]Los Angeles area
Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Cou ...
under the pseudonym "The Great Houdanny" (in reference to Harry Houdini
Harry Houdini (, born Erik Weisz; March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926) was a Hungarian-American escape artist, magic man, and stunt performer, noted for his escape acts. His pseudonym is a reference to his spiritual master, French magician ...
) performing at, amongst other things, children's birthday parties and charity events. He brought his brand of comedy to his magic shows and was a popular hire in the mid-1980s.
Early appearance
He was first noticed in a March 17, 1982, episode of the NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters ...
television series '' The Facts of Life''. In the episode, titled "Kids Can Be Cruel" Frischman played high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
student "Carl 'Rocky' Price" who was picked on by his peers because of his acne
Acne, also known as ''acne vulgaris'', is a long-term skin condition that occurs when dead skin cells and oil from the skin clog hair follicles. Typical features of the condition include blackheads or whiteheads, pimples, oily skin, and ...
and nerd-like personality. The students in the episode referred to Frischman's character as "Pizzaface", because of his pronounced acne blemishes and scars. In the episode the character Natalie Green, played by actress Mindy Cohn
Mindy Cohn (born May 20, 1966) is an American actress, who appeared on VH1's List of "100 Greatest Kid Stars". She starred as Natalie Green in the sitcom '' The Facts of Life'' from 1979 to 1988, and is known for voicing Velma Dinkley in the ''S ...
, gets angry at her roommate Blair Warner (Lisa Whelchel
Lisa Diane Whelchel (born May 29, 1963) is an American actress, singer, songwriter, author, and life coach. She is known for her appearances as a Mouseketeer on ''The New Mickey Mouse Club'' and her nine-year role as the preppy and wealthy Blai ...
) and sets her up with Frischman's character "Rocky" as a cruel joke.
In 1983
The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning ...
, Frischman appeared in the comedy film ''Get Crazy
''Get Crazy'' is a 1983 American musical comedy film directed by Allan Arkush, and stars Malcolm McDowell, Allen Garfield, Daniel Stern, Gail Edwards, and Ed Begley Jr.
Plot
It is December 31, 1982, and the Saturn Theater is preparing fo ...
'' as Joey, a typically nerdy (and virginal) stagehand
A stagehand is a person who works backstage or behind the scenes in theatres, film, television, or location performance. Their work include setting up the scenery, lights, sound, props, rigging, and special effects for a production.
General
...
who ultimately gets the girl. Also in 1983, he starred in the "Things your Parents Used to Say" sequence in '' Good-bye, Cruel World''.
Frischman appeared in both these projects alongside his sometime roommate, comedian Andrew J. Lederer, who played smaller roles.
Frischman and Lederer also appeared together as two of the "Schlongini Singers" in the Andrew "Dice" Clay horror comedy, ''Wacko'' and (with Adam Small and Felice Seiler) in the comedy group, ''The Ding Dongs''.
''Head of the Class''
Frischman's first co-starring role was that of Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...
-based high school student Arvid Engen on ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
-TV's late 1980s/early 1990s series ''Head of the Class
''Head of the Class'' is an American sitcom television series that ran from 1986 to 1991 on the ABC television network.
The series follows a group of gifted students in the Individualized Honors Program (IHP) at the fictional Millard Fillmor ...
''. Though playing a teenager, Frischman was 27 as the series started, and 32 when it concluded.
Arvid was a bespectacled geek who was an early connoisseur of computer culture as well as a budding scientist
A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences.
In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosophica ...
. Arvid and his classmates were considered possible genius
Genius is a characteristic of original and exceptional insight in the performance of some art or endeavor that surpasses expectations, sets new standards for future works, establishes better methods of operation, or remains outside the capabilit ...
es and were placed in the "I.H.P. Individualized Honors Program" for advanced and gifted students.
On Saturday December 20, 1986, Frischman and the cast of ''Head of the Class'' were the celebrity guests on the urban music
Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contem ...
series ''Soul Train
''Soul Train'' is an American musical variety television show. It aired in syndication from October 2, 1971, to March 25, 2006. Across its 35-year history the show primarily featured performances by R&B, soul, and hip hop artists. The series ...
''. On Wednesday July 15, 1987 Frischman appeared as that evening's guest on NBC-TV's talk show ''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 ...
''.
''Kenan & Kel''
Frischman's second co-starring role was the character of Chris Potter in the 1990s Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
TV series ''Kenan & Kel
''Kenan & Kel'' is an American buddy comedy sitcom created by Kim Bass. The show originally aired on the Nickelodeon network for four seasons, from July 15, 1996, to July 15, 2000. Set in Chicago, Illinois, the series follows mischievous Kenan ...
'', a spin-off of Nickelodeon's ''All That
''All That'' is an American sketch comedy television series created by Brian Robbins and Mike Tollin. The series originally aired on Nickelodeon from April 16, 1994, to October 22, 2005, lasting ten seasons, and was produced by Tollin/Robbins P ...
'' starring Kenan Thompson
Kenan Thompson (; born May 10, 1978) is an American actor and comedian. He has been a cast member of the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' since 2003, making him the longest-tenured cast member in the show's history. He was also th ...
and Kel Mitchell
Kel Johari Rice Mitchell (born August 25, 1978) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. He was an original cast member of the Nickelodeon sketch comedy series ''All That'' for its first five seasons (1994–1999), where he was often paired a ...
. Once again Frischman played a socially awkward nerd, this time as Chris Potter, Kenan's boss at Rigby's, a small grocery store
A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday U.S. usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym for supermarket, ...
.
Chris often informs customers and other guests that he has a radio in his car in an attempt to make conversation. One of Chris' anxieties was a recurring dream that he was being chased by a giant bunny
Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit sp ...
.
Cameos
Frischman made a short appearance on the 1990s series ''Seinfeld
''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld ( ...
''. In episode 93, titled "The Mom & Pop Store
"The Mom & Pop Store" is the 94th episode of the NBC sitcom ''Seinfeld''. This was the eighth episode for the sixth season. It aired on November 17, 1994. In this episode, George buys a car said to have belonged to Jon Voight (who cameos in the e ...
" (which originally aired on Thursday November 17, 1994 on U.S. television network NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters ...
), Frischman plays a man who phones Jerry Seinfeld
Jerome Allen Seinfeld ( ; born April 29, 1954) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He is best known for playing a semi-fictionalized version of himself in the sitcom ''Seinfeld'', which he created and wrote with Larr ...
to tell the comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audience dir ...
that he has found his stolen sneaker
Sneakers (also called trainers, athletic shoes, tennis shoes, gym shoes, kicks, sport shoes, flats, running shoes, or runners) are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise, but which are now also widely used fo ...
collection at a yard sale
A garage sale (also known as a yard sale, tag sale, moving sale and by many other namesSome rarely used names include "attic sale," "basement sale," "rummage sale," "thrift sale," "patio sale," "lawn sale," and "jumble sale".) is an informal ...
in Parsippany, New Jersey (located just north of the town Frischman grew up in); Frischman asked to change the name of the place in the script from Parsippany to his hometown of Whippany, but Seinfeld declined, saying "No, 'Whippany' doesn't sound like the name of a real town."[
On October 24, 2005, Frischman was a celebrity panelist on '' I Love the '80s 3-D'', a ]television program
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising ...
on VH1
VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Communic ...
.
Personal life
Frischman announced on his Facebook page in 2019 that he had recently discovered he had a biological daughter Emily, now in her mid-30s, and a grandson Roy. Frischman briefly dated Emily's mother when he was 22 years old. He lost contact with her, unaware that she was pregnant and that she later put her baby up for adoption. Frischman learned of his daughter's existence in January 2019 through the DNA testing web site 23andMe
23andMe Holding Co. is a publicly held personal genomics and biotechnology company based in South San Francisco, California. It is best known for providing a direct-to-consumer genetic testing service in which customers provide a saliva sample ...
. He soon met her along with her husband Neil and their son Roy, describing them as "a beautiful new family that I’m building a relationship with."
Filmography
Television
Film
References
External links
Official website
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frischman, Dan
1959 births
Male actors from New Jersey
American male film actors
American male television actors
Jewish American male actors
Living people
Pennsylvania State University alumni
People from Hanover Township, New Jersey
21st-century American Jews