David Lander
Encyclopedia
David L. Lander is an American
actor
, comedian
, composer
, musician
, and baseball
scout. David is also the Goodwill Ambassador for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
.
, New York
, to schoolteacher parents. He is best known for his portrayal of Andrew "Squiggy" Squiggman on the situation comedy
Laverne & Shirley
from 1976 to 1982, with sitcom sidekick Lenny (Michael McKean
).
Lander's partnership with McKean began during their acting classes at Carnegie Mellon University
in Pittsburgh where they developed the characters of Lenny and Squiggy. After Pittsburgh they teamed up in the Los Angeles
-based comedy ensemble The Credibility Gap
. The duo released an album as Lenny and the Squigtones in 1980 featuring Christopher Guest
on guitar, credited as Nigel Tufnel
, a name Guest would later reuse in the spoof rock band Spinal Tap
. Lander and McKean also appeared together in the 1979 Steven Spielberg comedy 1941
, and the 1980 Kurt Russell
film Used Cars
.
Lander has also appeared in numerous other TV shows and movies including The Bob Newhart Show
, Barney Miller
, Happy Days
, Married... with Children
, Twin Peaks
, On the Air, The Weird Al Show
, Mad About You
, and The Drew Carey Show
. His film roles were more sparse but still memorable; these included the part of a minor league baseball radio announcer in the film, A League of Their Own
and a bit part
of the minister officiating the marriage ceremony in Say It Isn't So. Lander created the starring role of the demented fast food franchise clown Bruce Burger in the cult film Funland directed by Michael A. Simpson.
Cartoon Voices:
Tom and Jerry Kids: Bernie the Bird
101 Dalmatians the Series: Horace.
Lander also has experience as a voice actor, with a resume dating back to 1969 where he "dramatically reproduced" Elvis Presley
quotations for the Pop Chronicles
music documentary and 1970 when he was the voice of Jerry Lewis
in the Filmation
series Will the Real Jerry Lewis Please Sit Down. Later voice roles included The Big Bang
, A Bug's Life
, Oswald
, Tom and Jerry: The Movie
and the animated TV series Galaxy High
as the six-armed Milo de Venus. He also reprised his role as Squiggy in the animated sitcom, The Simpsons
. Lander also provided the voice of Smartass, the head weasel of Judge Doom’s Toon Patrol in the 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit
. Lander reprised his role for Smartass on the related ride
, but his character was renamed Wiseguy. He was credited as Stephen Lander in Boo, Zino and the Snurks. His latest voice role is that of Ch'p
in the DC Comics
animated movie, Green Lantern: First Flight
. Lander had done the voice of "Henry the Penguin" during the four-year run of the cartoon Oswald, from 2001 to 2004. His distinctive voice was clear during the show's run.
Lander suffers from multiple sclerosis
. Officially diagnosed on 15 May 1984 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
, he went public in 1999 and regularly speaks at related conventions. In 2002, his autobiography was published, Fall Down Laughing: How Squiggy Caught Multiple Sclerosis and Didn't Tell Nobody (ISBN 1-58542-052-2), written with Lee Montgomery.
In addition to acting, Lander, a Pittsburgh Pirates
fan, has a small stake in the Portland Beavers
. He has worked as a baseball talent scout since 1997, first for the Anaheim Angels
, and now for the Seattle Mariners
.
Lander was married 10 March 1979. He currently lives in Thousand Oaks, California
. He has a daughter, Natalie Lander
, who was on MTV
's show, Legally Blonde - The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, and baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
scout. David is also the Goodwill Ambassador for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
National Multiple Sclerosis Society
The National Multiple Sclerosis Society, a United States-based non-profit organization, and its network of chapters nationwide promote research, educate, advocate on issues relating to multiple sclerosis, and organize a wide range of programs, including support for the newly diagnosed and those...
.
Biography
Lander was born David Leonard Landau in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, to schoolteacher parents. He is best known for his portrayal of Andrew "Squiggy" Squiggman on the situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Laverne & Shirley
Laverne & Shirley
Laverne & Shirley is an American television situation comedy that ran on ABC from January 26, 1976, to May 10, 1983...
from 1976 to 1982, with sitcom sidekick Lenny (Michael McKean
Michael McKean
Michael John McKean is an American actor, comedian, writer, composer and musician, perhaps best known for his portrayal of Squiggy's friend, Leonard 'Lenny' Kosnowski, on the sitcom Laverne and Shirley; and for his work in the Christopher Guest ensemble films, particularly as David St...
).
Lander's partnership with McKean began during their acting classes at Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
in Pittsburgh where they developed the characters of Lenny and Squiggy. After Pittsburgh they teamed up in the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based comedy ensemble The Credibility Gap
The Credibility Gap
The Credibility Gap was a satirical comedy team comprising Harry Shearer, Richard Beebe, David L. Lander and Michael McKean. Lew Irwin, John Gilliland, Thom Beck, and Len Chandler also performed in their early days...
. The duo released an album as Lenny and the Squigtones in 1980 featuring Christopher Guest
Christopher Guest
Christopher Haden-Guest, 5th Baron Haden-Guest , better known as Christopher Guest, is an American screenwriter, composer, musician, director, actor and comedian. He is most widely known in Hollywood for having written, directed and starred in several improvisational "mockumentary" films that...
on guitar, credited as Nigel Tufnel
Nigel Tufnel
Nigel Tufnel was the lead guitarist of the rock band Spinal Tap featured in the 1984 mockumentary film This Is Spinal Tap. He was played by actor Christopher Guest.-Character biography:...
, a name Guest would later reuse in the spoof rock band Spinal Tap
Spinal Tap (band)
Spinal Tap is a parody heavy metal band that first appeared on a failed 1979 ABC TV sketch comedy pilot called "The T.V. Show", starring Rob Reiner...
. Lander and McKean also appeared together in the 1979 Steven Spielberg comedy 1941
1941 (film)
1941 is a 1979 period comedy film directed by Steven Spielberg, written by Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, and featuring an ensemble cast including John Belushi, Ned Beatty, John Candy, Toshiro Mifune, Christopher Lee and Dan Aykroyd...
, and the 1980 Kurt Russell
Kurt Russell
Kurt Vogel Russell is an American television and film actor. His first acting roles were as a child in television series, including a lead role in the Western series The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters...
film Used Cars
Used Cars
Used Cars is a 1980 comedy satire film. It stars Kurt Russell, Jack Warden , Deborah Harmon, and Gerrit Graham.Kurt Russell portrays a devious car salesman working for affable but monumentally unsuccessful used car dealer Luke Fuchs . Luke's principal rival, located directly across the street, is...
.
Lander has also appeared in numerous other TV shows and movies including The Bob Newhart Show
The Bob Newhart Show
The Bob Newhart Show is an American situation comedy produced by MTM Enterprises, which aired 142 original episodes on CBS from September 16, , to April 1, . Comedian Bob Newhart portrayed a psychologist having to deal with his patients and fellow office workers...
, Barney Miller
Barney Miller
Barney Miller is a situation comedy television series set in a New York City police station in Greenwich Village. The series originally was broadcast from January 23, 1975 to May 20, 1982 on ABC. It was created by Danny Arnold and Theodore J. Flicker...
, Happy Days
Happy Days
Happy Days is an American television sitcom that originally aired from January 15, 1974, to September 24, 1984, on ABC. Created by Garry Marshall, the series presents an idealized vision of life in mid-1950s to mid-1960s America....
, Married... with Children
Married... with Children
Married... with Children is an American surrealistic sitcom that aired for 11 seasons that featured a dysfunctional family living in Chicago, Illinois. The show, notable for being the first prime time television series to air on Fox, ran from April 5, 1987, to June 9, 1997. The series was created...
, Twin Peaks
Twin Peaks
Twin Peaks is an American television serial drama created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. The series follows the investigation headed by FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper , of the murder of a popular teenager and homecoming queen, Laura Palmer...
, On the Air, The Weird Al Show
The Weird Al Show
The Weird Al Show is a television show hosted by "Weird Al" Yankovic. Produced in association with Dick Clark Productions, it aired Saturday mornings on the CBS TV network from September to December 1997. The show was released on DVD on August 15, 2006...
, Mad About You
Mad About You
Mad About You is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 23, 1992 to May 24, 1999. The show starred Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt as a newly married couple in New York City. Reiser played Paul Buchman, a documentary film maker. Hunt played Jamie Stemple Buchman, a public relations specialist...
, and The Drew Carey Show
The Drew Carey Show
The Drew Carey Show is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from 1995 to 2004. The show was set in Cleveland, Ohio, and revolved around the retail office and home life of "everyman" Drew Carey, a fictionalized version of the actor....
. His film roles were more sparse but still memorable; these included the part of a minor league baseball radio announcer in the film, A League of Their Own
A League of Their Own
A League of Their Own is a 1992 American comedy-drama film that tells a fictionalized account of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League . Directed by Penny Marshall, the film stars Geena Davis, Lori Petty, Tom Hanks, Madonna, and Rosie O'Donnell...
and a bit part
Bit part
A bit part is a supporting acting role with at least one line of dialogue . In British television, bit parts are referred to as under sixes...
of the minister officiating the marriage ceremony in Say It Isn't So. Lander created the starring role of the demented fast food franchise clown Bruce Burger in the cult film Funland directed by Michael A. Simpson.
Cartoon Voices:
Tom and Jerry Kids: Bernie the Bird
101 Dalmatians the Series: Horace.
Lander also has experience as a voice actor, with a resume dating back to 1969 where he "dramatically reproduced" Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
quotations for the Pop Chronicles
Pop Chronicles
The Pop Chronicles are two radio documentary series which together "may constitute the most complete audio history of 1940s-60s popular music." Both were produced by John Gilliland.-The Pop Chronicles of the 50s and 60s:...
music documentary and 1970 when he was the voice of Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis is an American comedian, actor, singer, film producer, screenwriter and film director. He is best known for his slapstick humor in film, television, stage and radio. He was originally paired up with Dean Martin in 1946, forming the famed comedy team of Martin and Lewis...
in the Filmation
Filmation
Filmation Associates was an American production company that produced animation and live action programming for television during the latter half of the 20th century. Located in Reseda, California, the animation studio was founded in 1963...
series Will the Real Jerry Lewis Please Sit Down. Later voice roles included The Big Bang
The Big Bang (1987 film)
The Big Bang a.k.a. Le Big-Bang is an X-rated animated science fiction fantasy film, originally released in 1987 by 20th Century Fox in France and Entertainment Film Distributors, Ltd. in the United Kingdom...
, A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life is a 1998 American computer animated adventure comedy film produced by Pixar and released by Walt Disney Pictures in the United States on November 25, 1998. A Bug's Life was the second Disney·Pixar feature film after Toy Story, and the third American computer-animated film after Toy...
, Oswald
Oswald (TV series)
Oswald is an American children's cartoon series on Nick Jr. about a blue octopus and his friends, that first aired August 20, 2001 and officially ended in early 2004. The show was created by Dan Yaccarino and was co-produced by HiT Entertainment. It was also shown on Noggin in reruns. The show...
, Tom and Jerry: The Movie
Tom and Jerry: The Movie
Tom and Jerry: The Movie is a 1992 American animated musical film directed by Phil Roman, and produced by Film Roman and Turner Pictures. It is a film adaptation of the Tom and Jerry series of theatrical shorts....
and the animated TV series Galaxy High
Galaxy High
Galaxy High is an American science fiction animated series that premiered on September 13, 1986 on CBS and ran for 13 episodes until December 6, 1986. The series was created by movie director Matthew Noakes and featured music and a theme song composed by Eagles member Don Felder...
as the six-armed Milo de Venus. He also reprised his role as Squiggy in the animated sitcom, The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
. Lander also provided the voice of Smartass, the head weasel of Judge Doom’s Toon Patrol in the 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American fantasy-comedy-noir film directed by Robert Zemeckis and released by Touchstone Pictures. The film combines live action and animation, and is based on Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, which depicts a world in which cartoon characters...
. Lander reprised his role for Smartass on the related ride
Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin
Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin is a dark ride at the Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland theme parks. The ride is based on the 1988 Academy Award-winning film, Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Both versions of the attraction are located in Mickey's Toontown...
, but his character was renamed Wiseguy. He was credited as Stephen Lander in Boo, Zino and the Snurks. His latest voice role is that of Ch'p
Ch'p
Ch'p is a fictional character, a member of the Green Lantern Corps in the . Like all H'lvenites, he resembled a somewhat anthropomorphic combination between a squirrel and a chipmunk. He was created by Paul Kupperberg and Don Newton....
in the DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
animated movie, Green Lantern: First Flight
Green Lantern: First Flight
# "Main Title" # "The Ring Chooses Hal" # "Hal Meets / The Flight of The Lanterns" # "Labella's Club" # "Going After Cuch" # "The Way I Heard It" # "Bugs in the Baggage" # "Teleport Pursuit"...
. Lander had done the voice of "Henry the Penguin" during the four-year run of the cartoon Oswald, from 2001 to 2004. His distinctive voice was clear during the show's run.
Lander suffers from multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory disease in which the fatty myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and spinal cord are damaged, leading to demyelination and scarring as well as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms...
. Officially diagnosed on 15 May 1984 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Originally established as Kaspare Cohn Hospital in 1902, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a non-profit, tertiary 958-bed hospital and multi-specialty academic health science centre located in Los Angeles, California, US. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over...
, he went public in 1999 and regularly speaks at related conventions. In 2002, his autobiography was published, Fall Down Laughing: How Squiggy Caught Multiple Sclerosis and Didn't Tell Nobody (ISBN 1-58542-052-2), written with Lee Montgomery.
In addition to acting, Lander, a Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
fan, has a small stake in the Portland Beavers
Portland Beavers
The Tucson Padres are a minor league baseball team, representing Tucson, Arizona, in the Pacific Coast League . They are the Triple-A affiliate for the San Diego Padres. The team was formerly known as the Portland Beavers and played its last home game at PGE Park on September 6, 2010...
. He has worked as a baseball talent scout since 1997, first for the Anaheim Angels
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...
, and now for the Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
.
Lander was married 10 March 1979. He currently lives in Thousand Oaks, California
Thousand Oaks, California
Thousand Oaks is a city in southeastern Ventura County, California, in the United States. It was named after the many oak trees that grace the area, and the city seal is adorned with an oak....
. He has a daughter, Natalie Lander
Natalie Lander
Natalie Jenette Lander is an American actress, voice actress, and singer. She is the daughter of actors David Lander and Kathy Fields...
, who was on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's show, Legally Blonde - The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods
Legally Blonde - The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods
Legally Blonde — The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods is an MTV program created in order to cast an actress to replace Laura Bell Bundy in the role of Elle Woods in the Broadway production of Legally Blonde – The Musical...
.
External links
- [ Lenny and the Squigtones at allmusic]
- National Multiple Sclerosis Society