Paul Chaplin (born Paul Schersten) is an American writer and comedian, known for his work on the television series ''

Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on WUCW, KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. It then ...

'', for which he wrote and played the recurring characters of an Observer, Ned the Nanite, Pitch the Demon, and Ortega, along with several other bit roles.

Early years

After earning his master's degree from the

Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs The Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs is a public policy and planning school at the University of Minnesota, a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is named after Hube ...

, Schersten became a community organizer in

Saint Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. For his contributions towards the New Testament, he is generally ...

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

. After finding little reward in his work he decided to pursue a career in comedy. It was during this time that Schersten took the stage surname Chaplin.

''Mystery Science Theater 3000''

While working the comedy club circuit in Minneapolis, Chaplin met

Michael J. Nelson Michael John Nelson (born October 11, 1964) is an American comedian and writer, most known for his work on the television series ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (''MST3K''). Nelson was the head writer of the series for most of the show's origi ...

and

Mary Jo Pehl Mary Jo Pehl (; born February 27, 1960)Sherman, Dale (2023). The Worst We Can Find: MST3K, RiffTrax, and the History of Heckling at the Movies'. Lanham, MD: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books. pp. 157–158. . is an American writer, actress, a ...

. During the third season of ''MST3K'', Nelson approached Chaplin and asked him about becoming a writer on ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (''MST3K''). Nelson tested Chaplin by giving him ten minutes of footage from the movie '' Daddy-O'', which Chaplin was to take home and give the "''MST3K'' treatment". Chaplin passed the test with "flying colors", and was hired by

Best Brains Best Brains, Inc. (first known as ''Hair Brain Productions'') is an entertainment company based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. It is best known for the creation and production of the comedy/sci-fi television program ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'', A ...

as a writer. During his tenure on ''MST3K'', Chaplin portrayed several characters in addition to his writing duties, most notably an Observer, Pitch the Demon (originally portrayed in the movie ''

Santa Claus Santa Claus (also known as Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or Santa) is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring gifts during the late evening and overnight hours on Chris ...

''), Ned the Nanite, and Ortega (originally portrayed in the movie ''

The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies ''The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies'' (sometimes "!!?" is appended to the title and shortened to ''The Incredibly Strange Creatures'') is a 1964 American monster movie produced and directed by Ray D ...

'').

Work since MST3K

Since ''MST3K'' ended its eleven-year run in 1999, Chaplin has collaborated with his former ''MST3K'' colleagues on projects such as '' Edward the Less'' and ''

Timmy Big Hands ''Timmy Big Hands'' was a humor webzine created in 2000 by the former cast and crew of ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'', including Michael J. Nelson, Bill Corbett, and Kevin Murphy. The site garnered much critical acclaim and accolades, but was eve ...

'', and has also written for

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

and ''

Elysian Fields Quarterly ''Elysian Fields Quarterly'' (''EFQ'') was a literary baseball journal of "writing on baseball from the fan's perspective", published in St. Paul, Minnesota. It featured articles on baseball history and lore. History and profile ''EFQ'' was foun ...

''. In the 2007 ''MST3K'' online animated series, Chaplin provided the voice of Crow T. Robot in addition to writing the show. He also guest starred in the show's 11th season.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaplin, Paul 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American male writers American male actors Year of birth missing (living people) American male comedians 21st-century American comedians Living people Place of birth missing (living people) American television writers American male television writers American male screenwriters American comedy writers