Todd Graff (born October 22, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is best known for writing and directing the musical comedy films ''

Camp Camp may refer to: Areas of confinement, imprisonment, or for execution * Concentration camp, an internment camp for political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or minority ethnic groups * Extermination ...

'' (2003), for which he was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

, '' Bandslam'' (2009), and '' Joyful Noise'' (2012). Graff is also known for his supporting roles in the science fiction films ''

The Abyss ''The Abyss'' is a 1989 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn. When an American submarine sinks in the Caribbean, a US search and recovery tea ...

'' (1989) and '' Strange Days'' (1995), as well as the black comedy crime film ''

Death to Smoochy ''Death to Smoochy'' is a 2002 satirical black comedy crime film directed by Danny DeVito and written by Adam Resnick. Starring Robin Williams, Edward Norton, Catherine Keener, DeVito, and Jon Stewart, the film centers on "Rainbow" Randolp ...

'' (2002).

Early life

Graff was born in New York City, the son of Judith Clarice (née Oxhorn), a piano teacher and choirmaster, and Jerome Lawrence Graff, a musician. His sister is actress Ilene Graff.

Career

Graff is an alumnus both as a camper and counselor of the Stagedoor Manor performing arts

summer camp A summer camp, also known as a sleepaway camp or residential camp, is a supervised overnight program for children conducted during the summer vacation from school in many countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer residential camps ...

upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region of New York (state), New York that lies north and northwest of the New York metropolitan area, New York City metropolitan area of downstate New York. Upstate includes the middle and upper Hudson Valley, ...

. He sang on the original-cast albums of ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...

'' (1970) and the follow-up ''Sesame Street 2'' (1971). He garnered fame in 1975 when he joined the cast of the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

children's television series ''

The Electric Company ''The Electric Company'' is an American educational children's television series produced by the Children's Television Workshop (CTW, now known as Sesame Workshop). It was co-created by Paul Dooley, Joan Ganz Cooney, and Lloyd Morrisett. ...

''. Playing the role of Jesse, a member of the Short Circus, he remained with the show to the end of its production in 1977 (replacing Stephen Gustafson). Graff's writing credits include ''

'', ''

Used People ''Used People'' is a 1992 romantic comedy film directed by Beeban Kidron. The film stars Shirley MacLaine, Marcello Mastroianni, Bob Dishy, Kathy Bates, Marcia Gay Harden, Jessica Tandy, Doris Roberts and Joe Pantoliano. The screenplay by Todd Gr ...

'', '' The Vanishing'', and '' The Beautician and the Beast''. Graff acted in several films including ''

'', '' Dominick and Eugene'', '' Strange Days'', '' Not Quite Paradise'', and ''

''. He was nominated for a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

for his portrayal of Danny in Broadway's ''

Baby In common terminology, a baby is the very young offspring of adult human beings, while infant (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'baby' or 'child') is a formal or specialised synonym. The terms may also be used to refer to Juvenile (orga ...

'' in 1984. He starred in the 1987

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

musical '' Birds of Paradise'' as Homer. In 2006, Graff directed the stage musical ''13'' by

Jason Robert Brown Jason Robert Brown (born June 20, 1970) is an American musical theatre composer, lyricist, and playwright. Brown's music sensibility fuses pop-rock stylings with theatrical lyrics. He is the recipient of three Tony Awards for his work on ''Parad ...

and Dan Elish at the

Mark Taper Forum The Mark Taper Forum is a 739-seat thrust stage at the Los Angeles Music Center designed by Welton Becket and Associates on the Bunker Hill section of downtown Los Angeles. Named for real estate developer Mark Taper, the Forum, the neighborin ...

.Mark Taper Forum website
Retrieved August 2014. In 2009, he co-wrote and directed the film '' Bandslam''. In 2012 he wrote and directed the film '' Joyful Noise''. He developed Apple TV's miniseries ''

The Crowded Room ''The Crowded Room'' is an American psychological thriller miniseries created by Akiva Goldsman and inspired by the 1981 non-fiction novel ''The Minds of Billy Milligan'' by Daniel Keyes. Tom Holland, Amanda Seyfried, and Emmy Rossum lead a supp ...

'' (2023).

Filmography

Film

Television

Award nominations

* 1984

nominee as Featured Actor in a Musical for ''

'' * 1984 Won

Theatre World Award The Theatre World Award is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway. It was first awarded for the 1945–1946 theatre se ...

for '' Baby (musical)'' * 2003

Grand Jury Prize nominee for ''Camp''

TV

* '' Made in Hollywood: Teen Edition'' (2012) * ''Made in Hollywood'' (2011) * ''Hollywood Singing & Dancing: A Musical History – 1980s, 1990s and 2000s'' (2009) * ''Hollywood Singing & Dancing: A Musical History – 1970's'' (2009) * ''Under Pressure: Making 'The Abyss'' (1993)

Writer/Director

* ''

'' (1992; writer only) * ' (1993; writer only) * '' The Vanishing'' (1993; writer only) * '' Angie'' (1994; writer only) * '' The Beautician and the Beast'' (1997; writer only) * ''

'' (2003; director) * '' Bandslam'' (2009; director) * '' Joyful Noise'' (2012; director)

References

External links

Todd Graff infosite (in Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graff, Todd 1959 births 20th-century American actors American gay actors American LGBTQ film directors American male child actors American male film actors Film directors from New York City Living people Male actors from New York City Screenwriters from New York (state)