Samuel Kent Harris (born June 4, 1961) is an American pop and

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatre, 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, ...

musician as well as a television, theatre and film actor.

Career

Singing

Harris got his start as the grand champion singer of ''

Star Search ''Star Search'' (later known as ''Ed McMahon's Star Search'') is an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./ Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 29 ...

'' in its premiere season in 1983. He gained acclaim and became best known for his winning rendition of the song "

Over the Rainbow "Over the Rainbow", also known as "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", is a ballad by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Yip Harburg. It was written for the 1939 film '' The Wizard of Oz'', in which it was sung by actress Judy Garland in her starring role ...

" on the show. "Over the Rainbow" has since become his signature song. His appearance on ''Star Search'' led to him landing a contract with

Motown Records Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

. His first single, "Sugar Don't Bite", was a

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from ''Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust or HIT, a fictional organization i ...

, reaching No. 36 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in November

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

. "Over the Rainbow" was released in Australia and peaked at number 65 in 1985. He is a multi-million selling recording artist with nine studio albums to his credit. He can also be heard on numerous concert, guest artist, and cast recordings. He has toured extensively in concert and has played to sold-out audiences at major venues including New York's

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...

, Los Angeles' Universal Amphitheatre, and London's West End. He has appeared with the

Boston Pops Orchestra The Boston Pops is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symphony Orc ...

, at the White House, and has sung on a variety of television specials and live productions. On February 12, 2008, he released a new single entitled "War on War" that became an Internet phenomenon with music videos made by the general public. The song became a part of his album, ''Free'', which was released that summer. The single "Change Is On The Way" was written to support the Obama campaign and was heard on numerous television shows and behind Internet videos around the time of the election. In 2010, Sam wrote and released "My Reclamation", which has become an anthem for marriage equality.

Stage

On Broadway, he received a

Drama Desk The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...

nomination for his role in the Jeff Calhoun-directed revival of '' Grease'', and a

Drama League Award The Drama League Awards, created in 1922, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing. Each May, the awards ...

as well as

Tony Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony the Tiger, cartoon mascot for Frosted Flakes cereal * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * ...

, Outer Critic's Circle and Drama Desk Award nominations for his work in

Cy Coleman Cy Coleman (born Seymour Kaufman; June 14, 1929 – November 18, 2004) was an American composer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. Life and career Coleman was born Seymour Kaufman in New York City, to Ashkenazi, Eastern European Jewish parents, an ...

's Tony-nominated musical ''

The Life Life is the characteristic that distinguishes organisms from inorganic substances and dead objects. Life or The Life may also refer to: Human life * Human life (disambiguation) * Human condition, the characteristics, events, and situations of h ...

''. He's also appeared on Broadway in

Mel Brooks Melvin James Brooks (né Kaminsky; born June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and songwriter. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodie ...

' Tony Award-winning musical '' The Producers'', in the national tour of ''

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' is a sung-through musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice ...

'', and in the musicals ''

Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Life of Jesus in the New Testament, Gospels' accounts of Passion of Jesus, the Passion, the work interprets ...

'', ''

Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...

'', ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and ...

'', '' Pippin'' and ''

The First Wives Club ''The First Wives Club'' is a 1996 American comedy film directed by Hugh Wilson, based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Olivia Goldsmith. The film stars Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn, and Diane Keaton as three divorcées who seek retributi ...

''. He also starred in the self-penned shows ''Hardcopy'', ''Different Hats'', ''Revival,'' and the critically acclaimed ''SAM''. Harris's most recent show was ''Ham: A Musical Memoir'' which played in New York and Los Angeles. The Los Angeles run received

Ovation Awards The Ovation Awards were a Southern California award for excellence in theatre, established in 1989. They were given out by the non-profit arts service organization LA Stage Alliance and are the only peer-judged theatre awards in Los Angeles. Win ...

for Best Musical, Best Actor (Harris), and Best Musical Director (for Todd Schroeder.)

Films

Harris has appeared in three feature films to date: ''In the Weeds'' (2000, as Jonathan), the documentary ''

Little Man Little Man may refer to: Characters * The Little Man (''The Pink Panther''), a recurring character in ''The Pink Panther'' cartoons * Clayton Chester "Little Man" Logan, from the novel ''Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry'' * Wintell "Little Man" Royc ...

'' (2005, as himself) and ''

Elena Undone ''Elena Undone'' is a 2010 lesbian film written and directed by Nicole Conn and starring Necar Zadegan, Traci Dinwiddie, and Gary Weeks. It is based loosely on Conn's romance with filmmaker Marina Rice Bader. Plot The paths of Elena Winters (N ...

'' (2010, as Tyler).

Television

Harris co-created the television series '' Down to Earth'' (1984, which ran for four years and 104 episodes). He appeared on Motown Returns to The Apollo in 1985. In addition to his now iconic performances on "Star Search" he was a series regular on '' The Class'' (2006-2007 - Perry Pearl). In 1986-87, Harris was one of several "Star Search" alumni who performed the contestants' songs on the songwriting competition series '' You Write the Songs'' with Harris singing the winning song "Everybody Needs A Dream" by songwriter Tom Grose (also a "Star Search" alumnus with his band The Varsity.) Harris is also credited on '' Rules of Engagement'' (Jackie, recurring), ''

The Wayne Brady Show ''The Wayne Brady Show'' is an American variety show hosted by comedian Wayne Brady that aired in two separate forms. On August 8, 2001, ABC, for whom Brady had been working as a panelist on '' Whose Line Is It Anyway?'', launched the first ' ...

'', ''CSI'' (Alan Widcom), ''Major Crimes'' (Jason) among others. He was music supervisor on ''Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration'' (2001), and has also appeared on numerous talk shows including ''

The Rosie O'Donnell Show ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show'' is an American daytime variety show, variety television talk show created, hosted, and produced by actress and comedian Rosie O'Donnell. It premiered on June 10, 1996, and concluded after six seasons on June 27, 200 ...

'' (1997 and 2000 - three episodes), ''

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the fourth and sixth installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Jay Leno, it aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009, replacing ''The Ton ...

'' (1994), ''

Brunch Brunch is a meal, often accompanied by "signature morning cocktails" such as mimosas, bloody marys, espresso martinis, and bellinis, taken sometime in the late morning or early afternoon – the universally accepted time is 11am-2pm, though mod ...

'' (co-host (2006), ''

The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' is an American first-run syndicated talk show that was hosted by Oprah Winfrey. The show ran for twenty-five seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in which it broadcast 4,561 episodes. The show was taped i ...

'' (1997 and 2001 - two episodes), ''

Dr. Phil Phillip Calvin McGraw (born September 1, 1950), also known as Dr. Phil, is an American television personality and author who is best known for hosting the talk show '' Dr. Phil''. He holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, though he ceased ...

s 500th episode (2005), ''

The View ''The View'' is an American talk show created by broadcast journalist Barbara Walters. , in its 28th season, the show has aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC as part of the network's ABC Daytime, daytime programming block since August ...

'' (2007 - one episode), ''

The Tyra Banks Show ''The Tyra Banks Show'', also known as and shortened to ''Tyra'' or ''The Tyra Show'', is an American talk show hosted by Tyra Banks that aired from 2005 to 2010. While Banks's show covered a variety of topics, there was a sensationalized focus ...

'' (2010), '' The Dr. Drew Show'' (2011) and "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon".

Author

In 2014, Harris penned a collection of autobiographical essays and stories entitled ''Ham - Slices of a Life'' which was published by Simon & Schuster/Gallery Books, and received unanimous critical praise. Harris subsequently adapted the book into an Off-off-Broadway solo performance, ''HAM: A Musical Memoir''. In 2020, Harris released his second book, a novel entitled ''The Substance of All Things''.

Personal life

Sam Harris left his home in Oklahoma at the age of 15 to pursue a theater career, finished high school through correspondence courses, and briefly attended the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

, where he received the

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 ...

Pop Singing Award. Harris and Danny Jacobsen, who is a director and presentation coach for numerous blue-chip companies and also a film producer, have been together since 1994. In 2008, they adopted a son, Cooper Atticus Harris-Jacobsen, and then the couple married.

Stage work

* ''

'' (1990) * ''Cabaret'' (1992) * ''

'' (1994) * '' Grease'' (1994) * ''

'' (1997) * '' The Producers'' (2002) * ''SAM.'' (2003) * ''

The Jazz Singer ''The Jazz Singer'' is a 1927 American part-talkie musical drama film directed by Alan Crosland and produced by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is the first feature-length motion picture with both synchronized recorded music and lip-synchronous ...

'' (1998) (workshop) * ''

'' (2000) * '' Funny Girl'' (2002) (benefit concert) * ''

Mack & Mabel ''Mack & Mabel'' is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The plot involves the tumultuous romantic relationship between Hollywood director Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand (transformed from an artist's mod ...

'' (2003) (benefit concert) * '' Pippin'' (2005) * ''

'' (2009) * ''Ham: A Musical Memoir'' (2014-2015)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Sam 1961 births Living people 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American singers 21st-century American male actors 21st-century American singers American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American male pop singers American male television actors Motown artists American gay actors American gay musicians LGBTQ people from Oklahoma American LGBTQ singers Male actors from Oklahoma Singers from Oklahoma People from Cushing, Oklahoma 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male singers 20th-century American LGBTQ people 21st-century American LGBTQ people