Paul Edward Boland Jr. (born 1960 or 1961) is an American

impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

, singer, and announcer. Raised in

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...

, Boland began his career as an actor in

community theater Community theatre refers to any Theatre, theatrical performance made in relation to particular Community, communities—its usage includes theatre made by, with, and for a community. It may refer to a production that is made entirely by a communit ...

Lomita, California Lomita ( Spanish for "Little hill") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 20,921 at the 2020 census, up slightly from 20,256 at the 2010 census. History The Gabrielino were the first to settle in th ...

. He performed on

Rick Dees Rigdon Osmond Dees III (born March 14, 1950), best known as Rick Dees, is an American entertainer, radio personality, comedian, actor, and voice artist, best known for his internationally syndicated radio show '' The Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 Coun ...

' TV show ''Into the Night Starring Rick Dees'' in 1990 and was the announcer for the 1998 revival of ''

Match Game ''Match Game'' is an American television panel game show that premiered on NBC in 1962 and has been revived several times over the course of the last six decades. The game features contestants trying to match answers given by celebrity paneli ...

''. While

Rod Roddy Robert Ray "Rod" Roddy (September 28, 1937 – October 27, 2003) was an American radio and television announcer. He was primarily known for his role as an offstage announcer on game shows. Among the shows that Roddy announced are the CBS game sho ...

was receiving cancer treatment, Boland filled in as announcer on ''

The Price Is Right ''The Price Is Right'' is an American television game show where contestants compete by guessing the prices of merchandise to win cash and prizes. A 1972 revival by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman of their The Price Is Right (1956 American game ...

'' in 2002. Since around the 1990s, Boland has performed as an impressionist on

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

s, including for

Cunard Line The Cunard Line ( ) is a British shipping and an international cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its four ships have been r ...

but mostly for

Royal Caribbean Group Royal Caribbean Group, formerly known as Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., is a cruise holding company based in Miami, Florida, United States and incorporated in Liberia. It is the world's second-largest cruise line operator, after Carnival Corp ...

. He routinely impersonates

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

and is able to imitate over 100 characters including

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

, and

Kermit the Frog Kermit the Frog is a Muppet character created in 1955 and originally performed by Jim Henson. An anthropomorphic green frog, Kermit is the pragmatic everyman protagonist of numerous Muppet productions, most notably as the showrunner and host o ...

Early life and early career

Paul Edward Boland Jr. was born in 1960 or 1961 to Paul Boland Sr. and Christine Boland and was raised in

. He received a high school diploma in 1978 from Cathedral High School and was a theater major at

Holyoke Community College Holyoke Community College (HCC) is a public community college in Holyoke, Massachusetts. It offers associate degrees and certificate programs, as well as a transfer program for students to earn credits for transfer to other colleges. It was the f ...

. Boland played

Lancelot Lancelot du Lac (French for Lancelot of the Lake), alternatively written as Launcelot and other variants, is a popular character in the Matter of Britain, Arthurian legend's chivalric romance tradition. He is typically depicted as King Arthu ...

in the musical ''

Camelot Camelot is a legendary castle and Royal court, court associated with King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described ...

'' at

El Camino College El Camino College (Elco or ECC) is a public community college in Los Angeles County, California. Most of it is in Alondra Park, Theater critic Bill Dorsett wrote in the ''

Daily Breeze The ''Daily Breeze'' is a 57,000-circulation daily newspaper published in Hermosa Beach, California, United States. It serves the South Bay cities of Los Angeles County. Its slogan is "LAX to LA Harbor". Early history The paper was found ...

'', "Boland makes his first entrance and before he can say 'moi' he has the audience in his pocket." He played the revolutionary Norman Cornell in the

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He received three ...

comedy '' The Star-Spangled Girl'' in a 1985 Chapel Theater run in

. The critic Dorsett said that "Boland plays Norman very low-key during the opening scenes, but quickly warms up to the level of the rest of the cast. Boland has some of the best comedy business in the show, and most of the time he handles himself very well on stage." Boland assumed the role of F. Sherman in the Bill Manhoff comedy ''The Owl and the Pussycat'' in 1986 for Chapel Theater. ''Daily Breeze'' reviewer James Bronson criticized his performance, writing, "Boland is low-key – in fact, too low key – through much of the play. And he doesn't show an inherent comedic sense, which keeps the play flat." At the Lomita restaurant and nightclub Seymour Hamms in 1986, Boland acted as the baron Cletis T. Fullernoy in the James McLure play ''Lone Star''. ''Daily Breeze'' reviewer Bill Dorsett wrote that Boland "proves his versatility in the nerdy role" since within the last year, he "has given memorable performances in ''The Star Spangled Girl'', ''Camelot'' and now ''Lone Star'' playing three very different characters expertly." At Seymour Hamms in 1987, Boland produced and staged the musical show "Be-Bop-A-Lula" that showcased music from the 1950s and 1960s. Boland hosted a 2.5-hour musical show, "A Tribute to

Neil Diamond Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling musicians of all time. He has written and ...

", in 1988 at Seymour Hamms. ''Daily Breeze'' reviewer Shari Okamoto found that "Saturday's show wasn't perfect, but it was a flattering tribute to Diamond and rousing entertainment for people not familiar with his work."

Career

Boland performed an impersonation sketch with Gregg Binkley on an episode of

' TV show ''Into the Night Starring Rick Dees'' in 1990. While dressed up like

, Boland imitated the voices of Presley,

Jim Ignatowski The Reverend Jim "Iggy" Ignatowski is a fictional character in the 1970s television series ''Taxi''. He was played by Christopher Lloyd. A gentle soul, Jim, in his own words, was "the living embodiment of the Sixties." His most noticeable characte ...

in the TV series ''

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

'', and

. After singing part of "

My Way "My Way" is Paul Anka's English-language lyrical adaptation of the French song " Comme d'habitude", released by Frank Sinatra in 1969. The original song was written by Jacques Revaux, Gilles Thibaut, and Claude François, and was first recor ...

" in Presley's voice, for the rest of the song, he imitated 17 people in total such as

Dudley Moore Dudley Stuart John Moore (19 April 193527 March 2002) was an English actor, comedian, musician and composer. He first came to prominence in the UK as a leading figure in the British satire boom of the 1960s. He was one of the four writer-perf ...

Richard Dreyfuss Richard Stephen Dreyfuss ( ; Dreyfus; born October 29, 1947) is an American actor. He emerged from the New Hollywood wave of American cinema, finding fame with a succession of leading man parts in the 1970s. He has received an Academy Award, a ...

Sonny Bono Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono ( ; February 16, 1935 – January 5, 1998) was an American singer, songwriter, actor, and politician. In partnership with his second wife, Cher, he formed the singing duo Sonny & Cher. A member of the Republican Pa ...

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

, and

Jack Nicholson John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. Nicholson is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of the 20th century, often playing rebels fighting against the social structure. Over his five-de ...

. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' reviewer John J. O'Connor called Boland's and Binkley's performances the "best bit". Writing in the ''

Orange County Register ''The Orange County Register'' is a paid daily List of newspapers in California, newspaper published in California. The ''Register'', published in Orange County, California, is owned by the private equity firm Alden Global Capital via its Digit ...

'', critic Ray Richmond stated, "this Elvis (actually actor Paul Boland) was no ordinary Elvis imposter. For one, he was pretty good." Calling Boland an Elvis

look-alike A look-alike, or double, is a person who bears a strong physical resemblance to another person, excluding cases like twins and other instances of Family resemblance (anthropology), family resemblance. Some look-alikes have been notable individua ...

, ''

The Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...

''s John Voorhees found that he "proved to be a great impersonator" in his ''Into the Night Starring Rick Dees'' appearance. Boland performed for the Apollo Theater Chicago show "Al Anthony's Salute to the Superstars" in 1991. In a positive review, ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' theater critic Richard Christiansen wrote that the show was "strictly phony, but at least the phoniness is genuine and unpretentious" and said of Boland's performance, "When Paul Boland, not even looking or particularly singing like Elvis Presley, comes on and does an amiably offhand, what-the-hell turn as The King, the mature ladies who chat and dance with him no doubt feel they are in the presence of a real rocker." He performed at

The Mirage The Mirage is a defunct casino resort on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The 65-acre property included a casino and 3,044 rooms. Mirage Resorts, Golden Nugget, Inc., led by developer Steve Wynn, purchased the future lan ...

on the

Las Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city limits ...

around 1992. He was the

game show A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a game show host, host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating a ...

announcer An announcer is a voice artist who relays information to the audience on a broadcast media programme or live event either on radio or television. Television and other media Some announcers work in television production, radio or filmmaki ...

for the 1998 revival of ''

''. Boland performed song impersonations at a

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Gen ...

concert in San Diego in 1999. ''

The San Diego Union-Tribune ''The San Diego Union-Tribune'' is a metropolitan daily newspaper published in San Diego, California, that has run since 1868. Its name derives from a 1992 merger between the two major daily newspapers at the time, ''The San Diego Union'' and ...

'' music critic Mikel Toombs had a negative review of Boland's work, writing, "Some of Boland's bits had an entertaining familiarity – and some didn't, which is death to an impressionist – but his lack of imagination showed why he's stuck on TV hosting a recycled game show ("The New Match Game")." Boland performed on the

's cruise ship ''

Queen Elizabeth 2 ''Queen Elizabeth 2'' (''QE2'') is a retired British ocean liner. Built for the Cunard Line, the ship was operated as a transatlantic liner and cruise ship from 1969 to 2008. She was laid up until converted into a floating hotel, operating sin ...

'' in 1999. In a review of Boland's performance, '' The Gazette'' columnist Gus Schrader wrote, "We enjoyed Boland the most. He is a versatile young man you probably will be seeing on TV - or maybe already have. He rivaled impressionist

Rich Little Richard Caruthers Little (born November 26, 1938) is a Canadian-American comedian, impressionist and voice actor. Sometimes known as the "Man of a Thousand Voices", Little has recorded nine comedy albums and made numerous television appearance ...

with his clever lines as he imitated famous people, mostly singers." He filled in for announcer

on ''

'' in 2002 during Roddy's cancer operations. After Roddy died, Boland auditioned to become announcer, but

Rich Fields Richard Wayne Fields (born November 30, 1960) is an American media personality, author, motivational speaker, former game show announcer and meteorologist. He is best known as the announcer for the American version of ''The Price Is Right'' with ...

received the role. George Hamilton called Boland "the very best there is" and

Wayne Newton Carson Wayne Newton (born April 3, 1942), also known as Mr. Las Vegas, is an American singer and actor. One of the most popular singers in the United States from the mid-to-late 20th century, Newton remains one of the best-known entertainers in ...

said he is "one of the greatest entertainers I know". Boland performed for a fundraiser at the St. John Fisher Parish School in

Rancho Palos Verdes, California Rancho Palos Verdes is a coastal city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated on September 7, 1973, the city has a population of 42,287 as reported in the 2020 United States census. The city sits atop the bluffs of ...

, in 2008. The journalist Frank Brown wrote, "He gave a non-stop, athletic performance singing in his own voice and accurately imitating more than two dozen of the country's top pop and even country and western singers. He added a repertoire of amusing bits of costume and wigs, one of the funniest of which proved to be

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

." According to a 2013 article, Paul and his wife Marlise Boland, a

musical theater Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, moveme ...

actress, have performed on

s for two decades. The duo have been entertainers primarily for the

. During his performances, Boland imitates 100 people including

, and

. Boland performed at the Sun Lakes Friendship Club in

Banning, California Banning is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. Its population was 29,505 as of the 2020 census, down from 29,603 at the 2010 census. It is situated in the San Gorgonio Pass, also known as ''Banning Pass''. It is named for ...

, in 2019. Imitating the voices of

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

Ray Romano Raymond Albert Romano (born December 21, 1957) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is best known for his role as Raymond "Ray" Barone on the CBS sitcom ''Everybody Loves Raymond'' (1996–2005), for which he won three Primetime Emm ...

Jerry Seinfeld Jerome Allen Seinfeld ( ; born April 29, 1954) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. As a stand-up comedian, Seinfeld specializes in observational comedy. Seinfeld gained stardom playing a semi-fictionalized version ...

Jimmy Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morali ...

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and comedie ...

, Boland performed " It's a Wonderful World". In his rendition of "

I Got You Babe "I Got You Babe" is a song performed by American pop and entertainment duo Sonny & Cher and written by Sonny Bono. It was the first single taken from their debut studio album, '' Look at Us'' (1965). In August 1965, the single spent three weeks ...

", he put on a wig that had

on one side and

on the other.

Personal life

Boland married Marlise Sharleen Ricardos at the Mary Star of the Sea Catholic Church in

San Pedro, Los Angeles San Pedro ( ; ) is a neighborhood located within the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay and Los Angeles Harbor Region, Harbor region of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los ...

, in 1993. Ricardos had won the

Miss California The Miss California competition selects the representative for the state of California in the Miss America competition. The pageant began in Santa Cruz in 1924 and was held there in 1925. During the years 1926 through 1946 in years when the M ...

title in 1988. The couple live in Los Angeles and have a daughter.

References

External links

*
Paul Boland
at The Anglophile Channel * {{DEFAULTSORT:Boland, Paul 1960s births 21st-century American comedians American male comedians American impressionists (entertainers) American male singers Game show announcers Living people Musicians from Springfield, Massachusetts Comedians from Massachusetts Year of birth missing (living people)