Larry Miller (actor)

Infobox actor


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name = Larry Miller
birthname = Lawrence J. Miller
birthdate = birth date and age|1953|10|15
birthplace = Valley Stream, Long Island, New York
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homepage =
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Lawrence J. "Larry" Miller (born October 15, 1953) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and columnist who frequently portrays babbling, obsequious yes-men, slightly odd friends, wisecracking professionals and other second-banana characters to headlining comedians in movies and television shows.

Biography

Personal life and career

Miller was born in Valley Stream, New York, and attended Amherst College; he is Jewish.cite news | last =Miller| first =Larry| coauthors=| title =I'm... dreaming... of a white... Chri -- ummm, holidays| pages=| publisher =The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles| date =2006-12-22 | url =http://www.jewishjournal.com/home/preview.php?id=16993| accessdate =2006-12-22 ] He is the best friend of fellow comedian Jerry Seinfeld and auditioned for the role of George Costanza but ultimately lost out to Jason Alexander. He is well-known for his cameo appearances, including a memorable role as a vindictive doorman on "Seinfeld", as well as several of Christopher Guest's mockumentary movies. He has also appeared in the 1992 British comedy film "Carry On Columbus".

His most notable and popular role is as Dean Richmond with comedian Eddie Murphy in the box office smashes "The Nutty Professor" and "". The dean (Miller) is the only antagonist in the movie other than Sherman Klump's (Murphy) alter ego: Buddy Love. Dean Richmond is an extremely intimidating, mean-spirited bully of sorts who makes Klump's experiments very stressful. He threatens to take Professor Klump's funding away and even goes so far as to threaten his job, throughout the movie. Richmond is clearly prejudiced against Klump because of his obesity, which is more than implied by the fat jokes he cracks at Klump's expense. In 2001, he starred as Principal Jindraike in Disney's "Max Keeble's Big Move".

He played Edwin Poole in the popular ABC dramedy "Boston Legal". He only made three appearances on the show, but his character is one of the three named partners of the law firm (Crane, Poole & Schmidt) that the show centers around.

Larry was also memorable in his role in "Pretty Woman" as Mr. Hollister, where he provided some of the most memorable jokes of the movie.

Miller is extremely popular among fellow stand-up comics, who consider him a genius of nuance and timing, and a "stand-up comic's comic."

Quotes

In a standup routine he taped for HBO in the 1980s, he made these observations about the battle of the sexes:

*"Trust me, ladies, if you knew even for a second how we men really look at you, you would never stop slapping us."
*"Woman is the most powerful magnet in the universe, and all men are cheap metal... and they all know where 'North' is."
*"You have nooo idea... the difference in sex drive between a man and woman is like the difference between shooting a bullet and throwing it."

Miller also writes a regular political-humor column in "The Weekly Standard", generally taking traditional conservative and controversial positions on a variety of issues:

*"The Palestinians want their own country. There's just one thing about that: there are no Palestinians. It's a made up word. Israel was called Palestine for two thousand years. Like "Wiccan," "Palestinian" sounds ancient but is really a modern invention."

And regarding Palestinians who want their own state:

*Instead, let's call them what they are: "Other Arabs From The Same General Area Who Are In Deep Denial About Never Being Able To Accomplish Anything In Life And Would Rather Wrap Themselves In The Seductive Melodrama Of Eternal Struggle And Death."

He also has a regular comedy routine called [http://www.larrymillerhumor.com/media/index.php "The Five Stages of Drinking"] . At the end of an all-night pub crawl he explains, "if you're 19 and you stay up all night, it's a victory, it's like you beat the night. You remember that feeling. If you're over 30, then that sun is like God's flashlight."

In 2006 he wrote "Spoiled Rotten America", a collection of seventeen comic essays about life in America today which includes:

*"So, is one o'clock okay for your foot massage?" about the offhand excesses of celebrity culture
*"'Do you leave your coffeemaker plugged in at night?' my sister once asked. 'Sure,' I said, 'but only when I take it in the shower with me'" referring to the paranoias of everyday life.

elected Filmography

*"Pretty Woman" - Mr. Hollister (1990)
*"The Nutty Professor"- Dean Richmond (1996)
*"Pros & Cons" - Ben Babbitt (1999)
*"10 Things I Hate About You"- Walter Stratford (1999)
*""-Dean Richmond
*"Max Keeble's Big Move"- Principal Elliot T. Jindrake (2001)
*"The Princess Diaries"- Paolo (2001)
*""- Paolo (2004)
*"" - Underchief (2008)

In popular culture

Miller has been referenced several times on "Mystery Science Theater 3000", usually upon the appearance of vaguely similar characters with receding hairlines. In episode #402 "The Giant Gila Monster", a teenager resembling Miller drives off in a convertible filled with women. In a suave Bing Crosby-ish voice, Joel Robinson says, "Looks like Larry Miller's Traveling Hot Tub." In episode #512 "Mitchell", Joel Robinson says, "Larry Miller!" every time a balding bad guy appears, culminating in, "Mitchell! Miller! Mitchell!" as the camera cuts between them.

Television

He voiced the Pointy-Haired Boss on "Dilbert".
He had a reocurring character on Law & Order as Walter Dobson.

Personal life

Miller is married to TV writer and producer, Eileen Conn.

References

External links

* [http://larrymillerhumor.com Larry Miller's official website]
*imdb name|id=0588777|name=Larry Miller
*Official website for book [http://www.spoiledrottenamerica.com Spoiled Rotten America: Outrages of Everyday Life]
* [http://larrymillerhumor.com/media/index.php The Five Stages of Drinking]