Jon Lovitz | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Lovitz in 2014 | |
| Born | Jonathan Michael Lovitz (1957-07-21)July 21, 1957 (age 67) Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
| Education | University of California, Irvine (BA) |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1984–present |
Jonathan Michael Lovitz (/ˈlʌvɪts/LUV-its; born July 21, 1957)[1] is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his tenure as acast member on theNBCsketch comedy seriesSaturday Night Live from 1985 to 1990 for which he was nominated for twoPrimetime Emmy Awards.
Outside ofSNL, he starred as Jay Sherman inThe Critic (1994–1995), has played various roles onThe Simpsons (1991–), and has acted in numerous television shows such asSeinfeld,Friends, andNewsRadio. From 2012 to 2015 he starred in thesitcomMr. Box Office.
He played a baseball scout in the filmA League of Their Own (1992)[2] and acted in other films such asThree Amigos (1986),Big (1988),Happiness (1998),Small Time Crooks (2000),Rat Race (2001), andThe Producers (2005). He also voiced roles inThe Brave Little Toaster (1987),Hotel Transylvania (2012) andHotel Transylvania 2 (2015). He playedAlan Dershowitz onSaturday Night Live andGeorge Santos onThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
Lovitz was born on July 21, 1957, in theTarzana neighborhood ofLos Angeles, to Harold and Barbara Lovitz.[3][1] His family isJewish and emigrated fromRomania,Hungary, andRussia.[4] His paternal grandfather Feivel Ianculovici left Romania around 1914 andAnglicized his name to Phillip Lovitz after arriving in the United States.[3]
Lovitz is a friend of David Kudrow, brother ofLisa Kudrow, since childhood. While in college, Lovitz went on abackpacking trip across Europe and Israel with him in 1978.[3] He graduated with a bachelor's degree in drama fromUC Irvine in 1979, then studied acting with Tony Barr at the Film Actors Workshop.[5] He became a member of theGroundlings comedy troupe, where he befriended his futureSNL castmatePhil Hartman.[6]
Lovitz's first stint as a regular in a situation comedy was that of Mole, an investigator for a New York City district attorney's office, in the short-lived 1985–86 seriesFoley Square, starringMargaret Colin. Lovitz was a cast member ofSaturday Night Live from 1985 to 1990. He later said in an interview for the bookLive From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live that his time onSNL was the most memorable in his career. He went from having no money to being offered a $500,000 film contract. He was nominated for anEmmy Award his first two years onSaturday Night Live. One of his most notableSNL characters was "Tommy Flanagan, The Pathological Liar" who used an oldHumphrey Bogart line "Yeah! That's the ticket!" as acatchphrase to punctuate painfully elaborated implausible lies. His other recurring characters and impersonations includedAnnoying Man,Master Thespian,Tonto,Mephistopheles,David Crosby,Harvey Fierstein, andMichael Dukakis. In a 1986SNL episode, he portrayed a virginTrekkie, who was scripted to hang his head when asked byWilliam Shatner if he had ever kissed a girl.
Hanukkah Harry, one of Lovitz's most memorable roles, cast him in 1989 as a Jewish contemporary ofSanta Claus who lives onMount Sinai and travels the globe with a cart flown by three donkeys to give bland gifts to Jewish boys and girls. He is asked to fill in when Santa falls ill on Christmas Eve.
On February 15, 2015, on theSaturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special, he was named byBill Murray as one of the manySNL cast members who had died over the years, with the camera cutting to show Lovitz's reaction. Later, his image was seen in a montage of deceasedSNL members, with the camera once again cutting to his now "outraged" reaction.[7]
From 1998 to 1999, he was cast to replacePhil Hartman onNewsRadio upon the latter's death. Lovitz has lent his voice to several cartoons and films. InThe Critic, he played the title characterJay Sherman (using his regular speaking voice). He has made several appearances onThe Simpsons—asMarge's prom dateArtie Ziff in "The Way We Was", the art teacher in "Brush with Greatness", theater director Llewellyn Sinclair and his sister who owned a daycare center in "A Streetcar Named Marge", and numerous other appearances, including the character of Jay Sherman in the episode "A Star Is Burns", a crossover withThe Critic. He was also the voice of Radio in the Hyperion-produced, Disney-distributed animated filmThe Brave Little Toaster, and that of T.R. Chula the tarantula inAmblimation'sAn American Tail: Fievel Goes West.
In the 1990s, Lovitz voiced theRed M&M in commercials forM&M's. Between 1999 and 2000 Lovitz appeared in a $33 million advertising campaign that featured a series of television commercials promoting theYellow Pages. The comic premise was to present Lovitz as the Yellow Pages' author. One of them featured Lovitz saying, "The hardest thing to do is to come up with a simple idea that is also great. And I just thought, 'Oh, the alphabet!'"[8][9]
Lovitz performed a duet withRobbie Williams on Williams' albumSwing When You're Winning (2001), in the song "Well, Did You Evah!". On October 10, 2001, Lovitz sang the song at theRoyal Albert Hall. He also performed on the TV seriesTwo and a Half Men singing "Save the Orphans" and beating Charlie (Charlie Sheen) out of the award for best jingle writer. He has appeared onBroadway at theMusic Box Theatre inNeil Simon's playThe Dinner Party, taking over the lead role fromHenry Winkler. He sang atCarnegie Hall three times (including Great Performances'Ira Gershwin at 100: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall) and sang thenational anthem atDodger Stadium and theU.S. Open.
Lovitz began his stand-up career in 2003 at theLaugh Factory in Los Angeles.[10][11] In 2006, he became the spokesman in an advertising campaign for theSubway restaurant chain.[12]
In 2009, The Jon Lovitz Comedy Club location onUniversal CityWalk inUniversal Studios Hollywood opened.[13] A comic short film starringKen Davitian and featuring Lovitz was filmed there, directed byBrent Roske and written by Aaron Davitian. The Jon Lovitz Comedy Club in Universal Studios Hollywood was home to the first MMA Roasted standup comedy show[14] in 2009.[citation needed] On May 29, 2011, the name was changed to the Jon Lovitz Comedy Club & Podcast Theatre. A premiere event calledPodammit was held, in whichKevin Smith hosted a variety of six podcasts, includingPlus One 3D with his wife,Jennifer Schwalbach;Hollywood Babble-On withRalph Garman; andJay & Silent Bob Get Old withJason Mewes; as well asThe ABCs of SNL with Lovitz himself, a six-episodeThis Is Your Life-style biographical interview about Lovitz's life and career.[15] The Club periodically hosted other podcasts such asRob Paulsen'sTalkin' Toons (which subsequently left in October 2013). The Jon Lovitz Comedy Club & Podcast Theater closed on November 5, 2014.[16]
In 2020, Lovitz starred in commercials for Playology, a brand of toys for aging dogs. They featured him with disparaging puppies, asking for senior dogs to get their due.[17] That same year he portrayed lawyerAlan Dershowitz onseason 45 ofSaturday Night Live withAdam Driver as the host playingJeffrey Epstein.[18] In 2023 he portrayed U.S. CongressmanGeorge Santos onThe Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.[19]
In a 2011 interview, Lovitz described his comedic influences, "When I was 13, I sawWoody Allen's movieTake The Money and Run, and I wanted to be a comedian. Then when I was 16, I saw the movieLenny, aboutLenny Bruce, starringDustin Hoffman. I thought the movie was so great, and I'd never heard of Lenny, so I went to the record store because I wanted to hear the real guy. Then I saw that Woody Allen had a record. I didn't know he had been a standup. So, I boughtWoody Allen: The Nightclub Years, '64-'68. I learned their routines and performed them at my college dorm. That was atU.C. Irvine. I was a drama major there. In imitating their routines, I learned a lot about writing. You learn how to write a joke. I was influenced by them a lot, the way I say something, the timing or whatever. OrJack Benny, sometimes I'll go, 'Well....'"[6]
Lovitz resides inBeverly Hills, California. He is friends withAdam Sandler.[20][21] He was also friends withPenny Marshall andPhil Hartman. He has described Hartman as "the big brother I always wanted".[22]
Lovitz was a contestant onThe New Celebrity Apprentice (also known asCelebrity Apprentice 8), playing for the charitySt. Jude Children's Research Hospital. He was the sixth contestant fired, finishing in 11th place and raising $50,000 for his charity.
Lovitz was involved in an intense feud with formerNewsRadio costarAndy Dick concerning the death of their mutual friendPhil Hartman. According to Lovitz, Dick gave Hartman's wife Brynncocaine at a Christmas party at Hartman's house in 1997. Brynn, a recovering addict, began using drugs again, culminating in her killing Hartman and herself on May 28, 1998. When Lovitz joined the cast ofNewsRadio as Hartman's replacement, he and Dick got into a heated argument in which Lovitz reportedly shouted "I wouldn't be here if you hadn't given Brynn coke in the first place." Lovitz later apologized to Dick for the remark.[23]
In early 2007, Dick approached Lovitz at a restaurant and said "I put the Phil Hartman hex on you—you're the next to die."[24] On July 10, 2007, Lovitz got into a physical altercation with Dick at theLaugh Factory in Los Angeles. Lovitz demanded an apology from Dick, who refused and accused Lovitz of blaming him for Hartman's death. Lovitz then smashed Dick's head into the bar.[24]
Politically, Lovitz is a supporter of theDemocratic Party. However, he was an outspoken critic of former PresidentBarack Obama. He called Obama a "fucking asshole" and criticized him for claiming the rich did not pay their share of taxes. Lovitz said: "He had nothing … and the guy ends up being atHarvard. He's the president of the United States. And now he's like, 'Fuck me and everyone who made it like me'."[25]
In June 2021, Lovitz criticizedcancel culture and compared it toMcCarthyism.[26][27] He opined that it makes comedians' jobs increasingly difficult, saying, "If you don't have the ability to laugh at yourself, don't go to a comedy club," and "If you're watching TV and you don't like the show, change the channel. It's very simple."[26]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Hamburger: The Motion Picture | Security guard | |
| Last Resort | Bartender | ||
| Jumpin' Jack Flash | Doug | ||
| Ratboy | Party guest | ||
| Three Amigos | Morty | ||
| 1987 | The Brave Little Toaster | Radio | Voice[28] |
| 1988 | Big | Scotty Brennen | |
| My Stepmother Is an Alien | Ron Mills | ||
| 1990 | Mr. Destiny | Clip Metzler | |
| 1991 | An American Tail: Fievel Goes West | T.R. Chula | Voice[28] |
| 1992 | A League of Their Own | Ernie Capadino | |
| Mom and Dad Save the World | Emperor Tod Spengo | ||
| The Buzz | Unknown | ||
| 1993 | Loaded Weapon 1 | Becker | |
| Coneheads | Dr. Rudolph | Uncredited | |
| 1994 | City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold | Glen Robbins | |
| North | Arthur Belt | ||
| Trapped in Paradise | Dave Firpo | ||
| 1996 | For Goodness Sake II | Unknown | |
| The Great White Hype | Sol | ||
| Matilda | Mickey | Uncredited | |
| High School High | Richard Clark | ||
| 1998 | The Wedding Singer | Jimmie Moore | Uncredited |
| Happiness | Andy Kornbluth | ||
| 1999 | Lost & Found | Uncle Harry | |
| 2000 | Small Time Crooks | Benny | |
| Little Nicky | Peeper | ||
| Sand | Kirby | ||
| 2001 | 3000 Miles to Graceland | Jay Peterson | |
| Cats & Dogs | Calico | Voice[28] | |
| Rat Race | Randall "Randy" Pear | ||
| Good Advice | Barry Sherman | ||
| 2002 | Eight Crazy Nights | Tom Baltezor | Voice[28] |
| 2003 | Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star | Sidney Wernick | |
| 2004 | The Stepford Wives | Dave Markowitz | |
| 2005 | Bailey's Billion$ | Bailey | Voice[28] |
| Pancho's Pizza | Unknown | Short film | |
| The Producers | Mr. Marks | ||
| 2006 | The Benchwarmers | Mel | |
| Southland Tales | Bart Bookman | ||
| Farce of the Penguins | "My eyes are up here" Penguin | Voice; Direct-to-DVD release | |
| 2007 | I Could Never Be Your Woman | Rob | Direct-to-DVD release |
| 2010 | Casino Jack | Adam Kidan | |
| 2012 | Jewtopia | Dennis Lipschitz | |
| Hotel Transylvania | Quasimodo | Voice[28] | |
| A Mouse Tale | Mouse King | Voice[28] | |
| 2013 | Jungle Master | Mulla | Voice[28] |
| Jay & Silent Bob's Super Groovy Cartoon Movie! | The Mad Scientist | Voice | |
| Bula Quo! | Wilson | ||
| Grown Ups 2 | Squats Fitness Janitor | ||
| Almost Sharkproof | Max | [29] | |
| 2014 | Birds of Paradise | Skeeter | Voice[28] |
| Coffee Shop | Frank Miller | ||
| 2015 | Hotel Transylvania 2 | The Phantom of the Opera | Voice[28] |
| The Ridiculous 6 | Ezekiel Grant | ||
| Bark Ranger | Ranger | Voice | |
| 2016 | Mother's Day | Wally Burn | |
| 2017 | Sandy Wexler | Testimonial | |
| Killing Hasselhoff | Barry | ||
| Chasing the Blues | Lincoln Groome | ||
| 2018 | Bachelor Lions | Alfred Brownberry | |
| Paws P.I. | Jackson | Voice | |
| 2019 | Benchwarmers 2: Breaking Balls | Mel Carmichael | |
| Hooked | Mr. Campbell | ||
| 2020 | Influence | Gregg Anderson | |
| Agent Toby Barks | Toby | Voice | |
| The Swing of Things | Jon Johnston | ||
| 2021 | Extinct | Conch | Voice[28] |
| Tales of a Fifth Grade Robin Hood | John Prince | ||
| Love on the Rock | Alex Wingrave | ||
| Lacy's Christmas Do-Over | Santa's Elf | Voice | |
| Ace & the Christmas Miracle | Ace | Voice | |
| 2024 | Lost & Found in Cleveland | TBA | [30] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | The Paper Chase | Levitz | Episode: "Billy Pierce" |
| 1985–1986 | Foley Square | Mole | Regular cast member |
| 1985–1992 | Saturday Night Live | Various characters | Main cast (92 episodes) |
| 1991 | Tales from the Crypt | Barry Blye | Episode: "Top Billing" |
| Married... with Children | Jeff Littlehead | Episode: "Kelly Does Hollywood: Part 2" | |
| 1991–present | The Simpsons | Artie Ziff, Jay Sherman, Aristotle Amadopolis, Prof. Lombardo | Voice, 20 episodes |
| 1992, 1994 | The Larry Sanders Show | Himself | 2 episodes |
| 1993 | A League of Their Own | Ernie Capadino | Episode: "Dottie's Back" |
| 1994–1995 | The Critic | Jay Sherman | Voice, main role (23 episodes) |
| 1995 | Seinfeld | Gary Fogel | Episode: "The Scofflaw" |
| 1995, 2003 | Friends | Steve | 2 episodes |
| 1997 | The Naked Truth | Acer Predburn | Episode: "The Scoop" |
| 1997–1999 | NewsRadio | Ulysses S. Grant Mike Johnson Max Lewis | 2 episodes; Main cast member in fifth season |
| 1997 | Saturday Night Live | Host | Episode: "Jon Lovitz/Jane's Addiction" |
| 2000 | Bette | Himself | Episode: "Polterguest" |
| 2000–2001 | The Critic (webisodes) | Jay Sherman | Voice |
| 2002 | Son of the Beach | Father of B.J.'s Baby | Episode: "Bad News, Mr. Johnson" |
| 2003 | Just Shoot Me! | Roland Devereaux | Episode: "A Simple Kiss of Fate" |
| 2004–2005 | Las Vegas | Fred Puterbaugh | 3 episodes |
| 2006 | Two and a Half Men | Archie Baldwin | Episode: "The Unfortunate Little Schnauzer" |
| 2008 | Comedy Central Roast of Bob Saget | Himself | Television special |
| 2010 | WWE Raw | Himself | Guest host[31] |
| 2011 | Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen | Himself | Television special |
| 2011 | Saturday Night Live | Himself (cameo) | Episode: "Dana Carvey/Linkin Park" |
| 2011–2012 | Hot in Cleveland | Homeless man/Artie | 4 episodes |
| 2012–2015 | Mr. Box Office | Bobby Gold | Main cast member |
| 2013–2014 | New Girl | Rabbi Feiglin | 2 episodes |
| 2014 | Sing Your Face Off | Himself | Contestant |
| 2015 | Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja | Queen Gabnidine | Voice, episode: "To Smell and Back" |
| Hawaii Five-O | Barry Burns | 2 episodes | |
| 2016–2018 | Animals. | Himself / Old Ben | Voice, 3 episodes[28] |
| 2016, 2018 | The $100,000 Pyramid | Himself/Celebrity Guest | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | The New Celebrity Apprentice | Himself/Contestant | 11th place |
| Justice League Action | Sid Sharp | Voice, episode: "Superman's Pal, Sid Sharp"[28] | |
| 2017–2020 | Funny You Should Ask | Himself/Celebrity Comic | 257 episodes |
| 2018 | Insatiable | Father Schwartz | Episode 1.09 "Bad Kitty" |
| Mogulettes | Amnon | Television film | |
| 2019 | The Goldbergs | Jimmie Moore | Episode: "The Wedding Singer" |
| The Cool Kids | Kip Samgood | Episode: "Kip Samgood's Biggest Fan" | |
| Jackie and the Next-Neighbor Girls | Johnny Bodine | 41 episodes | |
| Historical Roasts | Franklin D. Roosevelt | Episode: "Anne Frank" | |
| Anything but A..Man..Da! | Michael Stein | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 2020 | Saturday Night Live | Alan Dershowitz | Episode: "Adam Driver/Halsey" |
| Bitmoji TV | Justin Bieber | Voice, episode: "Demon Bear" | |
| Holey Moley | Himself/Captain Long Jon Lovitz | 3 episodes | |
| A.P. Bio | Robin Schwonk | Episode 3.02 "Disgraced" | |
| 2021 | The Potwins | Henry | Episode: "Blue Collar" |
| Paper Empire | Stan Katz | Episode: "The Anderson Files" | |
| 2023 | The Tonight Show | George Santos | Episode: "Colin Jost/Kenya Barris" |
| The Masked Singer | Himself | Episode: "Comedy Roast Night" | |
| Human Resources | Schmitty from Pity | Voice, episode: "Pity Party" | |
| Magnum P.I. | Pierre | Episode: "Consciousness of Guilt" | |
| 2024 | SpongeBob SquarePants | Acceleration T. Greenlight | Episode: "Student Driver Survivor" |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | The Dinner Party | Albert Donay (replacement) | Music Box Theatre, Broadway |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Kevin Pollak's Chat Show | Himself/Guest | Episode: "178" |
| 2020 | GPS Distress | Manager, NavTerrain | Season 5, Episode 10 |
| 2024 | Bill Burr's Monday Morning | Himself | February 1, 2024 |
| Year | Association | Category | Project | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Primetime Emmy Award | Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety Program | Saturday Night Live | Nominated | |
| 1987 | Nominated | ||||
| 1993 | American Comedy Awards | Funniest Supporting Actor in a Movie | A League of Their Own | Nominated | |
| 1998 | National Board of Review | Best Acting in an Ensemble | Happiness | Won | |
| 2013 | Behind the Voice Awards | Best Vocal Performance in a Film | Hotel Transylvania | Nominated |
