Fred Armisen
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| Fred Armisen | |
|---|---|
 Armisen at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival |
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| Born | December 4, 1966 Valley Stream, New York, USA |
| Years active | 1987 - present |
| Spouse(s) | Sally Timms (divorced) Elisabeth Moss (2009-present) |
| Official website | |
Fred Armisen (born December 4, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, and musician, best known for his work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live.
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[edit] Personal life
Armisen grew up in Long Island, New York. His mother and father are of Venezuelan and German/Japanese lineage. He attended the School of Visual Arts (NYC).[1]
Armisen is SNL's second Asian-American cast member (after Rob Schneider, who is part Filipino) as well as the second Hispanic-American cast member (after Horatio Sanz, who is Chilean-American).[2] With Darrell Hammond gone from the cast at the start of the 35th season, Armisen is now the only SNL cast member to be born before the 1970s and the oldest cast member at age 42.
Armisen married Elisabeth Moss of The West Wing and Mad Men on October 25, 2009.[3]
[edit] Music career
Armisen began his career in 1988 when he moved from New York to Chicago to play drums for the punk rock band Trenchmouth.[4] In the 1990s, he played background drums with the Blue Man Group in Chicago.
In 1997, he toured with Those Bastard Souls, a project of David Shouse of The Grifters which also featured The Flaming Lips' Steven Drozd.[citation needed] He plays drums on three tracks on Les Savy Fav's 2007 album, Let's Stay Friends.[5]
[edit] Discography
| Year | Title |
| 1996 | The Broadcasting System |
| 1994 | Trenchmouth Vs. the Light of the Sun |
| 1993 | Inside the Future |
| 1991 | Construction of New Action: Volume 1: First There Was Movement |
[edit] Television and film career
While playing with Trenchmouth, Armisen's interests switched to performing. In a January 2006 interview with The AV Club, he explained it this way:[6]
- "I wanted to be on TV somehow. For some reason, I always thought it would be an indirect route, I didn't know that it would be comedy and Saturday Night Live. I just wanted to do something with performing that would lead me there".
Armisen's subsequent television work, such as some "memorable Andy Kaufman-esque appearances" on Late Night with Conan O'Brien as well as work for Crank Yankers and Adult Swim, led in 2002 to a role as a featured player in the cast of Saturday Night Live.[7] In the 2004 season, he was promoted to a repertory cast member.
Armisen has done a handful of supporting roles in comedy films, such as the creepy Italian man in the film Eurotrip and roles in Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Deck the Halls, The Ex, The Promotion, The Rocker and Confessions of a Shopaholic.
[edit] Controversies
Saturday Night Live drew criticism for having Armisen portray Barack Obama starting in February 2008, with at least one journalist comparing Armisen's Obama makeup to blackface.[8]
In December 2008, Armisen's impression of New York governor David Paterson drew criticism from from the National Federation of the Blind and from the governor's office, which said the skit ridiculed people with physicial disabilities.[9]
[edit] Television
| Year | Title | Role | First Episode | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Fred | Himself-Various | unknown | writer, director, music |
| Reverb | Interviewer | unknown | ||
| 2001 | Late Friday | Father Fred/ Fericito | "Episode 1.8" | 2 episodes |
| Premium Blend | Sergeant Fred | "October 12, 2001" | 2 episodes | |
| 2002 | Late World with Zach | Various | Unknown | 1 episode |
| Next! | Various | "Pilot" | Failed TV pilot | |
| 2002-present | Saturday Night Live | Various | "Matt Damon/ Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band" | 138 episodes |
| 2003 | Crank Yankers | Chip Douglas | "Episode 2.1" | voice only, 13 episodes |
| 2004 | Aqua Teen Hunger Force | Poncho/ Robot Husband | "Hypno-Germ" | voice only, 2 episodes (one in 2008) |
| Comedy Lab | Jeremy | "12:21" | 1 episode | |
| 2005 | Looking For A Thrill: An Anthology of Inspiration | Himself | TV documentary | |
| New York Noise | Himself | "Beggars Group 10th Anniversary in NYC Party" | 1 episode | |
| Squidbillies | Miguel/ Jesus/ Hippie Killed with Chainsaw | "Take This Job and Take It" | voice only, 4 episodes | |
| 2006 | Freak Show | various | "Elections" | 3 episodes, voices |
| Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Event of Autism Education | Himself/ Prince | TV special | ||
| Tom Goes to the Mayor | Phillip Priest | "Jeffy the Sea Serpent" | voice only, 1 episode | |
| 2007 | 30 Rock | Raheem Haddad | "Somebody to Love" | 1 episode |
| Tim and Eric Nite Live | Dr. Pat Gordon Hall | "Episode 1.3" | 1 episode | |
| 2008 | Human Giant | Dr. Marker | "Still Here, Man. Still Here" | 1 episode |
| The Sarah Silverman Program | Taylor Magenheim | "Patriot Tact" | 1 episode | |
| Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday | Various | "Episode 1.1" | 6 episodes | |
| Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! | K.J. Nutt/ Tennis Buddy | "Pepperoni" | 2 episodes | |
| 2009 | Parks & Recreation | Raul | "Sister City" | 1 episode |
| Late Night with Jimmy Fallon | Himself | "Episode 85" | 1 episode |
[edit] SNL characters and impressions
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This section is missing citations or needs footnotes. Please help add inline citations to guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (October 2008) |
The following is a partial list of notable roles Armisen has played in Saturday Night Live sketches.
[edit] Notable characters
- Billy Smith—a Native American stand-up comedian who tells Native American themed jokes that no one gets.
- Fericito—a Venezuelan nightclub comedian and host of ¡Show Biz Grande Explosion!
- Gabe Fisher—a Jewish man who takes many adult classes as a member of the Adult Students.
- Gunther Kelly—a man who performs songs on Weekend Update with his brother Patrick (played by Will Forte)
- Leonard—The strange European host of the foreign music show Club Traxx.
- Mackey—a senile drummer who often does rimshots at inappropriate moments and appears in the "Rialto Grande" sketches.
- Nooni Schoener—a quirky, foreign art dealer who appears with his wife Nuni Schoener (played by Maya Rudolph) in the "The Schoeners" sketches)
- Frondi—a mentally challenged character who criticizes Ben Affleck's movie Gigli to Ben himself.
- Nicholas Fehn—a political commentator whose mind races and wanders so much that he is incapable of finishing a sentence without starting a new one.
- Roger A. Trevanti—Greedy studio head and AMPTP member who rails against the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike.
[edit] Notable impressions
Armisen has done impressions of political figures such as Hugo Chávez, Vicente Fox, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Barney Frank, George H. W. Bush, Muammar al-Gaddafi, and Mike Gravel. He has also impersonated film and television celebrities past and present such as Martin Scorsese, Desi Arnaz, Corbin Bleu, Sam Waterston, Joy Behar, George Carlin, Dov Charney, Howie Mandel, Alan Osmond, Liberace, David Gregory, Larry King, Penny Marshall, David Lee Roth, Gene Simmons, Lawrence Welk, Paul Lynde, Randy Newman, and John Oates.
His list of impressions has also included:
- Barack Obama — recurring in Season 33 and Season 34 episodes as the Democratic presidential candidate (Season 33), the Democratic nominee, President-Elect, and President (Season 34), beginning on February 23, 2008.
- Prince — parody of the musician as the host of a talk show called The Prince Show, with Beyoncé Knowles (played by Maya Rudolph) as his co-host. Armisen, a fan of Prince since childhood, created the sketch as a way of improving his chances of meeting the musician.[6]
- Steve Jobs — Apple CEO who appears on Weekend Update to show off strange new technology. Armisen has stated that Steve Jobs is the celebrity he enjoys impersonating most.[10]
- David Paterson - African-American Governor of New York, appears on Weekend Update, played as obnoxious, and frequently makes rude jokes about upstate New York and New Jersey; fumbles around the studio underlining the fact that Paterson is legally blind.
[edit] Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Guide to Music and South by Southwest | Various | Short film, writer, director |
| 2002 | I Am Trying to Break Your Heart | Himself | |
| Like Mike | New Age Dad | ||
| 2003 | Frank International Film Festival | Frank | Short film, video |
| Melvin Goes to Dinner | Vesa | ||
| 2004 | Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy | Tino | Nominated MTV Movie Award for Best Musical Performance |
| Eurotrip | Creepy Italian Guy | ||
| Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie | Tino | Video | |
| 2005 | Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo | Frenchman | uncredited |
| 2006 | Deck the Halls | Gustave | |
| The Ex | Manny | ||
| Griffin & Phoenix | unknown | ||
| Kiss Me Again | Professor Szabo | ||
| Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny | Security Guard | ||
| 2007 | Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters | Time Lincoln | voice only |
| 2008 | Baby Mama | Stroller Salesman | |
| Christmas on Mars | Noachis | ||
| Grand Theft Auto IV | Pervert/ Hot Dog Vendor/ Internet Nerd | Video Game | |
| Largo | Himself | ||
| The Promotion | Scott Fargas | ||
| The Rocker | Kerr | ||
| 2009 | Confessions of a Shopaholic | Ryan Koening | |
| Post Grad | Guacanator Pitchman | ||
| 2010 | A Couple of Dicks | unknown |
[edit] Other work
In 1998 he posed as a music journalist for the short film Fred Armisen’s Guide to Music and South by Southwest. It was filmed by then-girlfriend Sally Timms and featured Armisen's "pranking musicians and industry types" during the South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas.[11]
Armisen is part of ThunderAnt, a comedy duo with former Sleater-Kinney guitarist Carrie Brownstein. The duo specializes in creating comedic short skits oftentimes about independent vocations such as one man shows, feminist bookstores, and bicycle rights activists.
Armisen has directed music videos for bands like The Helio Sequence. Armisen also had a role in the Wilco documentary I Am Trying to Break Your Heart, which featured footage from his stint opening for front man Jeff Tweedy's 2001 solo tour. He also appeared in video segments on Blue Man Group's How to be a Megastar Tour 2.0. Armisen occasionally writes for Pitchfork Media and interviewed Cat Power for that company.[12] Fred appeared as Jens Hannemann on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on October 19, 2007, promoting a 28-minute DVD called Fred Armisen presents Jens Hannemann: "COMPLICATED DRUMMING TECHNIQUE".[13] On SNL, Armisen often plays musical instruments in sketches, has two recurring characters who are musicians (Mackey the drummer from the Rialto Grande and Ferecito from Showbiz Grande Explosion) or impersonates famous figures in the music world such as Liberace, Phil Spector, Lou Reed, and Prince.
Armisen appeared in the official music video for Man Man's song "Rabbit Habits", playing a man who charms his blind date (Charlyne Yi) but runs away after she turns into a werewolf.[14]
Along with Bill Hader and Jason Sudeikis, Armisen voiced radio characters in Grand Theft Auto IV.
[edit] References
- ^ "Fred Armisen: Biography," TV Guide, accessdate=2009-11-10.
- ^ DeRogatis, Jim (2003-02-05). "All Ke-e-e-ding Aside". Chicago Sun-Times. http://www.jimdero.com/News2003/FredArmisenFeb5.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-12.
- ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/arts/television/07barn.html
- ^ www.jimdero.com website
- ^ Allmusic.com website
- ^ a b January 2006 Interview with The A.V. Club
- ^ 2006 Interview with Fred Armisen on Cult Cargo
- ^ "‘SNL’ Fauxbama Fauxmenting Backlash". New York Magazine. 2008-02-29. http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2008/02/snls_fauxbama_fauxmenting_back.html.
- ^ Associated Press (2008-12-15). "N.Y. governor not laughing at ‘SNL’ skit". MSNBC.com. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28236321.
- ^ Armstrong, Josh E. "Seven Questions with Fred Armisen". Armstrong Interviews. http://armstronginterviews.com/2008/seven-questions-with-fred-armisen/. Retrieved 2008-07-15.
- ^ Smooching Deadlines, November 5, 1998 column in The Austin Chronicle
- ^ Pitchfork Feature: Interview: Cat Power
- ^ Jens Hannemann "COMPLICATED DRUMMING TECHNIQUE" on Drag City Educational Music DVD
- ^ Man Man: "Rabbit Habits (with Fred Armisen, Brett Gurewitz, others)"
[edit] External links
- Official Website
- Fred Armisen at the Internet Movie Database
- Fred Armisen at Allmovie
- Fred Armisen at MySpace
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