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Evan Handler

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Evan Handler
Handler at a 2009 Golden Globe Awards party
Born (1961-01-10) January 10, 1961 (age 63)
New York City, New York, U.S.
EducationJuilliard School
Occupation(s)Actor, Agent
Years active1981–present
Spouse
Elisa Atti
​
(m. 2003)​
Children1

Evan Handler (born January 10, 1961)[1] is an American actor who is best known for playing Harry Goldenblatt, a divorce attorney and later husband of Charlotte York, on Sex and the City (2002–2004) and its revival series And Just Like That... (2021–present),[2] and Charlie Runkle, Hank Moody's comically bumbling friend and agent, on Californication (2007–2014). Recently, he starred as Eastern District US Attorney Jacob Warner in the Starz drama Power.

Early life

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Handler was born in New York City, to secular Jewish[3][4] parents Enid Irene, a mental health administrator, and Murry Raymond Handler, an agency owner and advertising designer.[5] He was raised in the Town of Cortlandt, New York, near Croton-on-Hudson, New York, and attended Hendrick Hudson High School in Montrose, New York.[5]

After graduating from high school a year early, Handler moved to New York City and worked as an intern at the Chelsea Theater Center. During that time he appeared in the Off-Broadway plays Biography: A Game and Strider: The Story of a Horse.[5] He then attended the Juilliard School as a member of the Drama Division's Group 12 (1979–1983), which also included Kevin Spacey,[6] Ving Rhames,[7] and Elizabeth McGovern.[8] Handler left the four-year program after less than two years to accept a role in the 1981 film Taps.[5]

Career

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Acting

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Handler has appeared in television dramas and sitcoms including Six Feet Under, Friends, Law & Order, The West Wing, Miami Vice, Sex and the City, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, Ed, Lost, 24 and Power. He was a co-star in the ABC sitcoms It's Like, You Know... and Hot Properties and starred in the ill-fated FOX sitcom Woops!.

He has also appeared in several major feature film roles, including Ransom, 1996; The Chosen, 1981; Sweet Lorraine, 1987; and Taps, 1981.

In 2000, Handler portrayed Larry Fine in the made-for-TV biopic The Three Stooges. He played Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein in the HBO movie, Too Big to Fail. The movie was based on the book of the same name written by Andrew Ross Sorkin.[9] From 2007-2014, Handler played Charlie Runkle, the best friend and agent to David Duchovny's character Hank Moody on Californication. In 2016 he had a recurring role in American Crime Story: The People v. O. J. Simpson as Alan Dershowitz, an attorney adviser for the defense in the O. J. Simpson murder case in 1995.

In 1991, Handler famously walked off stage during the first act of a performance of the Broadway play I Hate Hamlet after co-star Nicol Williamson broke choreography during a sword-fighting scene and struck Handler on the backside.[10] Handler responded later, "I removed myself from the production because from the first day of rehearsals I have endured the show's producers condoning Nicol Williamson's persistent abusiveness to other cast members." Handler's understudy continued the performance, for which Gregory Peck and Elaine Stritch were in attendance.[11]

In 2020, Handler appeared as a guest on the Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip marathon fundraiser episode of The George Lucas Talk Show.

Writing

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Handler is also an author. His first book, Time On Fire: My Comedy of Terrors, tells the story of his unlikely recovery from acute myeloid leukemia in his mid-20s. His second, It's Only Temporary...The Good News and the Bad News of Being Alive, tells the story of his long journey toward gratitude in the years after his illness. The book was released in May 2008. Handler has written for several nationally distributed magazines, including ELLE, O, the Oprah Magazine, and Mirabella. Handler contributes regularly to The Huffington Post.

Personal life

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Evan married Elisa Atti, an Italian-born chemist, in 2003, and they have a daughter, Sofia Clementina Handler (born January 17, 2007).[citation needed]

Handler has a brother Lowell and a sister Lillian. Lowell, a writer and photographer, is the author of the book Twitch & Shout: A Touretter's Tale[12] and the star, narrator, and associate producer of the Emmy-nominated PBS television documentary Twitch & Shout, in which Evan appeared.[13]

Activism

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In 2014 Handler starred in a public service announcement supporting DC Statehood.[14] He attended the Creative Coalition's DC Statehood Dinner in December 2015[15] and participates in DC Shadow Senator Paul Strauss's "51 Stars" campaign which aims to enlist 51 celebrities to endorse making Washington, DC the 51st state.[16]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1981 Taps Edward West
1981 The Chosen Goldberg
1987 Sweet Lorraine Bobby [17]
1994 Natural Born Killers David
1996 Ransom Miles Roberts
2008 Sex and the City Harry Goldenblatt
2010 Sex and the City 2 Harry Goldenblatt
2011 The Family Tree Harv Druckner
2012 Should've Been Romeo Stewart
2019 Lying and Stealing Eric Maropakis
2019 Foster Boy Samuel Collins

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1985 Miami Vice Louis Martinez Episode: "Milk Run"
1991–1992 Sibs Monty 4 episodes
1992 Woops! Mark Braddock 11 episodes
1999–2001 It's Like, You Know... Shrug 26 episodes
2000 The Three Stooges Larry Fine Television movie
2000 Law & Order Eli Becker Episode: "Return"
2001 The West Wing Douglas Wegland 3 episodes
2002 The Guardian Mitchell Lichtman 3 episodes
2002–2004 Sex and the City Harry Goldenblatt 18 episodes
2002 John Doe Max Clark Episode: "Low Art"
2003 Friends The Director Episode: "The One Where Rachel Goes Back to Work"
2003 Six Feet Under Scott Phillip Smith Episode: "Nobody Sleeps"
2006 CSI: Miami Norman Stein Episode: "Fade Out"
2006 Lost Dave Episode: "Dave"
2006 Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip Ricky Tahoe 4 episodes
2007 Shark Stanley Davis Episode: "Trial by Fire"
2007–2014 Californication Charlie Runkle Main cast
2008 The Ellen DeGeneres Show Himself 1 episode
2015 The Astronaut Wives Club Duncan "Dunk" Pringle 10 episodes
2016 American Crime Story Alan Dershowitz 4 episodes
2017 The Breaks Jonah "Juggy" Aaron 8 episodes
2018 The Good Fight Jonathan Episode: "Day 443"
2019 Fosse/Verdon Hal Prince Television miniseries
Episodes: "Life Is a Cabaret" and "Who's Got the Pain?"
2019–2020 Power District Attorney Jacob Warner 18 episodes
2019 L.A.'s Finest Captain Thomas Hirsch Episode: "Pilot"
2019 Daughterhood Mike Episode: "Mother's Day"
2021–present And Just Like That... Harry Goldenblatt 10 episodes

References

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  1. ^ Rose, Mike (January 10, 2023). "Today's famous birthdays list for January 10, 2023 includes celebrities Rod Stewart, Sarah Shahi". Cleveland.com. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
  2. ^ Condon, Ali (January 24, 2022). "And Just Like That... Evan Handler Responds To Rumours He Was Wearing a Prosthetic In NSFW Bathroom Scene". www.tyla.com. Tyla. Retrieved August 18, 2022.
  3. ^ Silverman, Stephen M. (2003-10-16). "Evan Handler Leads Celeb Marrying Spree". People. Retrieved 2012-05-06.
  4. ^ Andrea, Waxman (2008-10-29). "Evan Handler: In spite of being doomed, we might as well have a few laughs". The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2014-08-09. Retrieved 2012-05-06.
  5. ^ a b c d "Evan Handler Biography". Yahoo Movies!.
  6. ^ "Alumni News". The Juilliard School. September 2008. Archived from the original on 2011-11-11.
  7. ^ "Alumni News". The Juilliard School. April 2010. Archived from the original on 2011-11-11.
  8. ^ "Alumni News". The Juilliard School. October 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-11-11.
  9. ^ Kinsley, Michael (22 May 2011). "Economic Crisis Unfurls in Hushed Suspense". The New York Times.
  10. ^ "Actor was sword of volatile". The New York Post. January 26, 2012.
  11. ^ "'I Hate Hamlet' Co-Star Walks Out". The New York Times. May 4, 1991.
  12. ^ Handler, Lowell (2004). Twitch and Shout: A Touretter's Tale. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. p. 256. ISBN 978-0-8166-4451-3.
  13. ^ Lowell Handler at IMDb
  14. ^ Senator Paul Strauss and Evan Handler DC Statehood PSA, archived from the original on 2021-12-21, retrieved 2021-05-15
  15. ^ "The Scene: D.C. statehood dinner in West Hollywood". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-05-15.
  16. ^ "Celebrities Schooled in D.C. Statehood on Capitol Hill". Roll Call. 2015-04-24. Retrieved 2021-05-15.
  17. ^ Maslin, Janet (1987-05-01). "FILM: 'SWEET LORRAINE'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-01-12.
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