The Larry Sanders Show
HBO (ended 1998)
Cast & Crew
EDIT
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Garry Shandling
Larry Sanders
Comedian Garry Shandling is best known for his top-rated, award-winning parody of television talk shows The Larry Sanders Show, which aired on the HBO cable network from 1993 to 1998. He started out as a comedy writer for other sitcoms and as a standup comedian. He landed his first television show, the It's Garry Shandling's Show, on Fox in 1985. The show was heavily autobiographical, to the point of replicating his apartment on a soundstage. Shandling, however, made his biggest impression with Larry Sanders, a show about the trials, tribulations, and double-dealing that goes on behind the scenes of a latenight talk show. Much of the show's material was drawn from experiences Shandling endured or witnessed on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, where he was a popular guest star. In addition to performing live and on television, Shandling has also played character roles in feature films, beginning with The Night We Never Met (1993).
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Jeffrey Tambor
Hank Kingsley
Jeffrey Tambor has appeared in many films, including And Justice For All and Mr. Mom. -
Wallace Langham
Phil
Wallace Langham is a familiar face to television viewers, having amassed an impressive list of television and film credits during his years in the entertainment industry. His current role is as the sarcastic lab tech David Hodges on the ever popular show CSI Born in Fort Worth, Texas, Wallace Langham moved to Los Angeles at the age of nine with his mother, a costume designer on the original The Donny & Marie Show. He made his feature film debut in Weird Science in 1985 and has been acting ever since, honing his technique under the watchful eye of acclaimed coach Janet Alhanti. Mr. Langham continued building his feature film credits, appearing in Michael opposite John Travolta and Bob Hoskins, and starring in Keith Gordon's directorial debut The Chocolate War, as well as Soul Man and Vital Signs. From 1992 to 1998, Mr. Langham portrayed Phil, the acerbic writer on the Emmy Award-winning series The Larry Sanders Show. His numerous television guest appearances include Murphy Brown, The Tracey Ullman Show, Dave's World, NewsRadio and a memorable turn as a departing surgical resident on the 1997 season premiere episode of ER. From 1997 to 2000, Wallace played the role of Kirstie Alley's sexually ambivalent assistant Josh, on the popular comedy series Veronica's Closet, which was developed by the creators of Friends. In 2001 he played Mark, a fellow teacher and on-again, off-again boyfriend of one of Joan Gallagher's best friends, Betsy, on the new ABC comedy series What About Joan with Joan Cusack. Taking on new challenges, Mr. Langham provided the voice of Andy French, the lead character on the cutting-edge animated series Mission Hill. He has hosted VH1's The List, in addition to appearing as Don Kirshner on the channel's popular original television movie, Daydream Believers: The Monkees Story. He played the role of Ezekiel on the series finale of Showtime's The Outer Limits, co-starring Charlton Heston and Swoosie Kurtz, and also starred opposite Diane Keaton in the Showtime production Sister Mary Explains It All. In addition to acting, Mr. Langham is a devoted father to his two children, Alex and Chloe. In his spare time he enjoys basketball, surfing, swimming and bowling.moreless -
Penny Johnson Jerald
Beverly
Born in Baltimore on March 14, 1961, Penny always dreamt of being an actor. When her high school teacher discouraged her from going into acting, she strengthened her resolve. She got into Julliard School for the Arts and later graduated from there. Her big break came as the titular character in the made-for-TV movie, 'The Files on Jill Hatch.' She soon began making guest star appearances on shows such as 'T.J. Hooker,' 'Paper Chase,' and landed a role on the daytime soap 'General Hospital.' Supporting roles on 'Star Trek: Deep Space Nine' and the 'Larry Sanders Show' followed and kept her into the national eye. She later landed a guest starring appearance on ER. However, her role as master manipulator Sherry Palmer on '24' is the one that has brought her the most recognition. Her stint as the diabolical wife of President David Palmer allowed her to exhibit great range. She would show ruthlessness one moment and kindness in the next. Her most recent television starring role was as Condoleezza Rice in a television biopic concerning the events surrounding the 9/11 tragedy.moreless -
Janeane Garofalo
Paula (seasons 1-5)
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Linda Doucett
Darlene (seasons 1-3)
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Scott Thompson
Brian (seasons 4-6)
Scott Thompson was raised in Brampton, Ontario. He is the second oldest of four boys (the others are Craig, Derek, and Dean). At 19, Scott got involved in an educational program called Canada World Youth, and spent some time in the Phillipines. After CWY, Scott enrolled in York University, but in his third year he was asked to leave for being "disruptive". Scott joined a Toronto improv troupe called the Love Cats and while performing with them, he met Mark McKinney, who introduced him to the rest of the Kids In the Hall. He was a guest performer with the Kids in 1984, and soon after became a member.moreless -
Jeremy Piven
Jerry Capen (seasons 1-2)
Born in New York city, Jeremy Piven was raised in Evanston, IL., the location of his parents (Joyce and Byrne Piven) theater school (the Piven Theatre Workshop). Piven is an alumnus of his parents theater school and is a longtime friend of fellow alumnus John Cusack.
Jeremy Piven is a graduate of Evanston Township High School, Drake University (as an undergraduate), New York University (for a graduate degree), and the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center and The National Theater of Great Britain (where he intensely studied Shakespearean acting.)
Piven's first true national televised success came in the form of the critically-acclaimed ABC T.V show, Cupid, which was filmed in Chicago where Piven now owns a home. The show was cancelled after only a few episodes.
Piven was also a regular on Larry Sanders Show, and Ellen in the early and mid 1990s respectively, but neither garnered him as much recognition as his role in Cupid. During the same time frame, Piven was able to score a few guest stars on several renowned shows such as the popular sitcom Seinfeld. More recently, Piven was a guest star on yet another sitcom, the long-running NBC hit Will & Grace.
Over the years, Piven has also been the voice of many cartoon characters. He was a regular on All Grown Up, the sequel series to the popular Rugrats cartoon (which he provided voices for as a guest star on two occassions). In addition, Piven provided his voice for characters from superhero cartoons Justice League Unlimited and MTV's Spider-Man. Piven has also made an assortment of single episode appearances on a number of other TV cartoons.
Piven has been involved in over 40 films over the years, including Grosse Pointe Blank, Serendipity, Say Anything, Black Hawk Down, Phoenix, Kiss the Girls, Just Write, Rush Hour 2, Music from Another Room and Very Bad Things.
More recently, Piven has had more significant roles in films including Runaway Jury, Old School, Chasing Liberty, Two for the Money and Keeping Up with the Steins . Piven's latest and greatest success, however, has been on the small screen in his role as super agent Ari Gold in the HBO series "Entourage", which has won him three consecutive Emmys in 2006,2007 & 2008.moreless -
Mary Lynn Rajskub
Mary Lou (seasons 5-6)
Mary Lynn Rajskub is an accomplished comedian/artist and actress. She has come a long way since joining the cast of Mr. Show with Bob and David back in 1995. Mary Lynn did not actually set out to be a comedian, but when she was doing performance art and realised the audience thought she was funny, then tried the comedy scene. Her act became a parody of performance art. The unique take on live comedy quickly caught on with audiences, and shortly thereafter, Rajskub was approached by Bob Odenkirk and David Cross and asked to join the cast of their upcoming HBO comedy series Mr. Show with Bob and David. After a falling out with series co-creator Cross, Mary left the show to explore other opportunites. Soon after Garry Shandling saw her act and she got a part on The Larry Sanders Show. During this time she also started getting more into acting and was cast in some films. As time passed, Mary got more and more film roles, while still doing comedy on sketch shows such as The Downer Channel, and also getting guest appearances on television shows such as Veronica's Closet Currently she is living in California, and has been working on the hit show 24 since 2003. She is back as a series regular in the sixth season.moreless -
Megan Gallagher
Jeannie Sanders (season 1)
Megan Gallagher wanted to act since she was five. She took acting classes in high school. She attend the Juilliard where she received a B.A. She appeared in the Broadway cast of "A Few Good Men" where she won two theater awards (Theatre World and Outer Critics Circle Award for outstanding debut) for her Broadway performance in "A Few Good Men". After Juilliard, she worked with John Houseman's Acting Company and made her TV debut in the miniseries " George Washington". Almost gave up acting, then she won the "Hill Street Blues" (1981) role, which developed from a guest star to a regular role. In addition to her appearance in A Few Good Men, Megan appeared in the Broadway productions of Angel in America. She appeared in the National Tour of Cyrano. Off Broadway she appeared in Miss Julie, Pay, Come & Go and Tartuffe. Regional theatre includes The Constant Wife at the Guthrie and Pasadena Playhouse; Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Arena Stage; Oliver! Oliver! at Long Warf; Present Laughter and Man in His Underware at Williamstown Theatre Festival; Man and Superman, Major Barbara at Center Stage; Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference; Twelfth Night, The Country Wife at The Acting Company. Television movies include: A Time to Remember, Homeland Security, 1st to Die, Underground Father, Best Friend Contagion.moreless -
Kathryn Harrold
Francine (season 2)
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Rip Torn
Artie
He was born in Temple Texas the 6 of February in 1931. He was nicknamed "Rip" by his family after his father, who was also called like that. He went to the University of Texas, where he got a degree in animal husbandry. When he was still young and naive, he went to Hollywood wanting to be a big movie star, but it didn't come soon, so he had to work in odd places while being cast in some shows. His professional acting started on the small screen, appearing in "Omnibus" and "Playhouse 90". After becoming famous, he is constantly in demand as both leading and supporting actor. His best roles have been dramatic ones, but he still likes comedy. He married Ann Wedgeworth in 1956, but soon divorced to marry Geraldine Page, who tragically died in 1987.moreless -
Doug Ballard
Dennis (seasons 2-5)
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Bruno Kirby
Himself (seasons 2, 5, 6)
Son of actor Bruce Kirby, Bruno was a veteran character actor who acted in various films and television shows over a thirty year period. -
Deborah May
Melanie Parrish
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Sid Newman
Sid (seasons 2-6)
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Bob Odenkirk
Stevie Grant (seasons 2-5)
Bob Odenkirk grew up in small suburb outside Chicago--Naperville. Bob is one of 7 siblings, born to Walter (a businessman who died in 1995) and Barbara (a homemaker). His younger brother is Bill Odenkirk, who has produced several hit TV series. Bob graduated from Columbia College in 1984 with a major in radio and TV. Bob was waiting tables in New York, when a friend of his, Robert Smigel, got a job at Saturday Night Live. Smigel began passing Bob's work around and eventually Bob was hired as a writer for SNL (1987-1991). There he shared an office with a featured player, Ben Stiller. Later, Stiller and Bob would work together on Stiller's short-lived sketch show for Fox. Anyways, Bob Odenkirk later came to be half the creator, writer, and star of the hit sketch show: Mr. Show(the other half would be...the amazing Mr. David Cross). Mr. Show is commonly recognized as Mr. Odenkirk's "claim to fame." Aside from all that he is also an actor, screen writer, performer, and a stand-up comic. Bob is married to a talent scout, named Naomi.moreless -
David Paymer
Norman Litkey (seasons 1, 3, 5, 6)
Well known for his seamless and varied characterizations, Oscar nominated actor David Paymer has starred or co-starred in more than 40 motion pictures, several television movies and countless television series. He discovered his love of acting while performing in school plays. He continued his pursuit of acting at the University of Michigan, where he double-majored in theatre and psychology and appeared in many summer stock and dinner theatre productions. Shortly after graduation Paymer attended an open casting call for the musical "Grease," and landed the role of "Sonny Latieri" in the national touring company and on Broadway. Not long after his Broadway stint, he was cast in his first feature film, "The In-Laws," directed by Arthur Hiller, which eventually brought him to Hollywood. His first job after moving to Los Angeles was playing an inept burglar on a memorable episode of "Barney Miller." Other TV shows followed, including guest starring roles on "Hill Street Blues," "Taxi," "Lou Grant," "Cheers," "Murphy Brown," "L.A. Law" and "Moonlighting." It wasn't long before he began appearing regularly in such notable films as "No Way Out," "Irreconcilable Differences," "Heart and Souls," "Crazy People" and "Searching For Bobby Fischer." He also co-starred in the highly successful "City Slickers" and "City Slickers 2: Curly's Gold." However, it was his role in "Mr. Saturday Night" that brought his best notices to date. His performance as Billy Crystal's put-upon brother in the film won him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor of 1992, as well as a Golden Globe nomination. Paymer's sly, subtle portrayal of the conniving producer in "Quiz Show," directed by Robert Redford, ultimately led to more edgy and textured characters in such movies as "Get Shorty," directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, "Nixon," directed by Oliver Stone, and "The American President," directed by Rob Reiner. He also starred in and received a Golden Globe Award nomination for HBO's dramatic film about the Lindberg baby kidnapping, "Crime of the Century" directed by Mark Rydell. Other notable films notable films include "Payback," "Mighty Joe Young," "Mumford," directed by Lawrence Kasdan, "The Hurricane," directed by Norman Jewison, "State and Main," directed by David Mamet, and "Amistad," directed by Steven Speilberg. Paymer is also venturing behind the camera. He directed the short film "Candor City Hospital" for Showtime, and will direct an upcoming episode of the series "Everwood" this season. Born and raised in Long Island, New York, Paymer currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife, actress Liz Georges, and their daughters Emily and Julia. PERSONAL INFORMATION HOMETOWN: LongIsland, NY BIRTHDATE: August 30 Source: ABCmoreless -
Jon Stewart
Himself (seasons 5-6)
Best known for his work on The Daily Show on Comedy Central, Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz) has had a long career in comedy. Jon has won many awards, including Emmys, and is recognized for his comedic talents. -
Sam Whipple
Makeup Artist (season 1)
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Carlos Jacott
Bill
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Danny DeVito
Himself
Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. was born on November 17, 1944, in Neptune, New Jersey. His father, Daniel, Sr., was a small business owner whose ventures included a dry cleaning shop, a dairy outlet, a diner, and a pool hall. His mother, Julia, was a homemaker. While growing up in Asbury Park, his parents sent him to private schools. He attended Our Lady of Mount Carmel grammar school and Oratory Prep School. Following graduation in 1962, he took a job as a cosmetician at his sister's beauty salon. A year later, he enrolled at New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts so he could learn more about cosmetology. While at the academy, he fell in love with acting and decided to further pursue an acting career. During this time, he met another aspiring actor Michael Douglas at the National Playwrights Conference in Waterford, Connecticut. The two would later go on to collaborate on numerous projects. Soon after he also met an actress named Rhea Perlman. The two fell in loved and moved in together. They would later get married and have three children. In 1968, Danny landed his first part in a movie when he appeared as a thug in the obscure Dreams of Glass (1970). Despite this minor triumph, Danny became discouraged with the film industry and decided to focus on stage productions. He made his Off-Broadway debut in 1969 in "The Man With the Flower in His Mouth." He followed this up with stage roles in "The Shrinking Bride," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "Lady Liberty." In 1975, he was approached by director Milos Forman and Michael Douglas about reprising his role in the film version of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), which would star Jack Nicholson in the leading role. With box office success almost guaranteed and a chance for national exposure, Danny agreed to the role. The movie became a huge hit, both critically and financially, and still ranks today as one the greatest movies of all time. Unfortunately, the movie did very little to help Danny's career. In the years following, he was relegated to small movie roles and guest appearances on television shows. His big break came in 1978 when he auditioned for a role on an ABC sitcom pilot called "Taxi" (1978), which centered around taxi cab drivers at a New York City garage. Danny auditioned for the role of dispatcher Louie DePalma. At the audition, the producers told Danny that he needed to show more attitude in order to get the part. He then slammed down the script and yelled, "Who wrote this sh**?" The producers, realizing he was perfect for the part, brought him on board. The show was a huge success, running from 1978 to 1983. Louie DePalma, played flawlessly by Danny, became one of the most memorable (and reviled) characters in television history. While he was universally hated by TV viewers, he was well-praised by critics, winning an Emmy award and being nominated three other times. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Danny maintained his status as a great character actor with memorable roles in movies like Romancing the Stone (1984), Ruthless People (1986), Throw Momma from the Train (1987) and _Twins (1988)_ . He also had a great deal of success behind the camera, directing movies like The War of the Roses (1989) and Hoffa (1992). In 1992, Danny was introduced to a new generation of moviegoers, when he was given the role of The Penguin/Oswald Cobblepot in Tim Burton's highly successful Batman Returns (1992). This earned him a nomination for Best Villain at the MTV Movie Awards. That same year, along with his wife Rhea Perlman, Danny co-founded Jersey Films, which has produced many popular films and TV shows, including Pulp Fiction (1994), Get Shorty (1995), Man on the Moon (1999) and Erin Brockovich (2000). Despite being a diminutive 5' tall, overweight and balding, Danny has managed to overcome long odds to become one of Hollywoods most versatile actors. These days, he continues to work with many of today's top talents as an actor, director and producer.moreless -
Talia Balsam
Dora
The daughter of actors Martin Balsam and Joyce Van Patten, Talia Balsam has herself pursued an acting career since her teens. Talia's film resume includes Sunnyside (1979), Crawlspace (1986) and In the Mood (1987). In the obscure film melodrama Private Investigations, Talia co-starred with her father Martin. Among Talia Balsam's many TV credits is the 1981 TV docudrama Kent State, in which she played one of the five students felled by National Guard bullets.moreless -
Mandy Patinkin
Himself
Mandel Bruce Patinkin was born November 30, 1952 in Chicago, Illinois. Even from an early age Mandy employed his lovely voice to entertain, whether it was singing in temple or just for family and friends. Mandy attended Kenwood High School, University of Kansas and Juilliard School of Drama. His first real break in to show business was when he played Che in Evita on Broadway in 1979. He went on to win a Tony Award for that role. After this initial musical theater success he moved to film, playing a number of small parts in movies such as Yentl and Ragtime, before returning to Broadway in 1984 to star in Sunday in the Park with George, which saw him earn another Tony Award nomination. Over the next decade he continued to appear in various movies such as Dick Tracy and Alien Nation, on Broadway in The Secret Garden, and released two solo albums called Mandy Patinkin and Dress Casual. In 1994, he burst onto the small screen playing the role of Dr. Jeffrey Geiger on CBS's Chicago Hope and promptly won an Emmy Award. However, despite the award and the ratings success of the show Mandy left the show part way through the second season. Since Chicago Hope, Patinkin has taken parts in a number of films. However, he has mostly been performing as a singer, releasing three more albums. He also returned to Broadway again in 2000 in the New York Shakespeare Festival's The Wild Party, earning another Tony Award nomination. Recently he has also been seen in the Showtime comedy-drama Dead Like Me. As of 2006, he stars in the CBS crime drama Criminal Minds as the unconventional Special Agent Jason Gideon. Concerning his private life, Mandy has been happily married to author/actress Kathryn Grody since 1980, and they have two sons together named Isaac and Gideon.moreless -
Martin Mull
Himself
A classically trained artist, Martin fell into acting by stages. While still a student and struggling artist, Martin began writing songs and performing. First as part of a group called Soop, he performed on one album called In the Soop. Subsequent albums were under his own name, although pianist Ed Wise (who was with MM in the previous group) continued to perform with him. His break into acting came when Norman Lear offered him a role on the soap opera parody Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. After this character was killed off (followed quickly by the assassination of Mary Hartman itself because star Louise Lasser burned herself out), Lear cast him in another parody, Fernwood 2Night, which poked fun at small-town talk shows. This was set in Fernwood, Ohio, the fictional home of Mary Hartman. For the second season, the show was renamed America 2Night. The locale was changed to a small town near Los Angeles so that big stars could appear on the show from time to time. After America 2Night, Martin appeared in numerous movies and had a recurring character on Roseanne. Currently he can be seen as the Principal on Sabrina, the Teenaged Witch. But as far as MM was concerned, this was just a side trip. His real love was, and is, in his painting. If he got some money from his acting or singing/songwriting (one of his songs was covered by Sonic Youth), it was more to buy "more tubes of paint" than anything else.moreless -
Harvey Vernon
Harlen
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George Wendt
Himself
George Wendt was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He attended a strict Jesuit prep school and then dropped out of Notre Dame University after a few uneventful years. He worked with the Windy City's famed Second City comedy troupe from 1974-1980. He is best known for playing Norm Peterson on the hit televison series, "Cheers" (1982). He is married to actress Bernadette Birkett, who provided the rare offscreen voice of Vera, Norm's unseen wife, Vera. The couple have two sons and a daughter. They met while working at the Second City in Chicago.moreless -
John Ritter
Himself
American actor John Ritter, typically the engaging, rather boyish, sometimes goofy comic lead, made his film acting debut in 1970 and came into prominence on TV's popular and amusing if rather unsubtly prurient Three's Company. He used the series, which ran from 1977 to 1984, to carve out an identity that led him to many other roles. Ritter would later enjoy greater critical acclaim, if less popular response, in Hooperman (1987-1989), a comedy-drama which dared to eschew the prompting of a laugh track (Previously, John had displayed his versatility with a strong dramatic performance in the TV-movie, Unnatural Causes, 1986), and Hearts Afire(1992-1995). Extremely deft at physical comedy, Ritter went on to appear in a number of light comedy features such as Real Men (1987) and Problem Child (1990), with modest success through the 1980s and 90s. He has also served as executive producer of two TV series. John, whose father was the singing cowboy Tex Ritter, and his mother, Dorothy Fay, an actress who became the official greeter at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, was twice married: first to actress Nancy Morgan (1977-1996), with whom he had three children, the oldest son being actor Jason Ritter, and then he and actress Amy Yasbeck (Wings) were wed in 1999. Ritter died of an aortic dissection on September 11, 2003 after becoming ill on the set of 8 Simple Rules... for Dating My Teenage Daughter.moreless -
Lorna Scott
Guest Star
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Categories
Comedy, Talk & Interview
Themes
Alcoholism, Bad Parenting, Blatant Misogyny, Buddies And Gal Pals, Callous Rebellion
