H. Jon Benjamin: Difference between revisions
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== Ornithology == |
== Ornithology == |
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Benjamin began his Morning Bird Reports in the Spring of 2020. The Audubon Society |
Benjamin began his Morning Bird Reports in the Spring of 2020. The Audubon Society interviewed him in 2021 for the article ''[https://www.audubon.org/news/h-jon-benjamins-morning-bird-reports-have-brought-joy-many-dark-times?ms=digital-eng-social-facebook-x-20210400-nas_eng&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=20210400_nas_eng&fbclid=IwAR1v_S2wSi3eSJ3FJexYdZ11Y3B-oO__CQF4yi6RLx_Zjh7tnLus4dDrzYE H. Jon Benjamin’s 'Morning Bird Reports' Have Brought Joy to Many in Dark Times]'' after being directed to all of his sterling accomplishments as an amateur ornithologist by his adoring fans. |
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"He’s covered the true story of non-native parakeets living in Brooklyn, written a poem about geese, explained cowbird brood parasitism, and made a case for why the Pine Siskin should be re-named in his honor. Benjamin has also called out the ridiculousness of certain common bird names, thrown shade at those who can tell the difference between a raven and a crow, and explained the phenomenon of the dawn chorus, which he then failed to wake up for. He’s also created a PSA about birding while driving. " |
"He’s covered the true story of non-native parakeets living in Brooklyn, written a poem about geese, explained cowbird brood parasitism, and made a case for why the Pine Siskin should be re-named in his honor. Benjamin has also called out the ridiculousness of certain common bird names, thrown shade at those who can tell the difference between a raven and a crow, and explained the phenomenon of the dawn chorus, which he then failed to wake up for. He’s also created a PSA about birding while driving. " |
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Revision as of 16:53, 30 April 2021
 | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (November 2019) |
H. Jon Benjamin | |
|---|---|
 Benjamin at the 2019 WonderCon | |
| Born | Harry Jon Benjamin May 23, 1966 Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Children | 1 |
| Comedy career | |
| Medium |
|
Harry Jon Benjamin (born May 23, 1966)[1] is an American actor, comedian, writer and producer,[2] known for his roles in various adult animated series such as Sterling Archer in Archer; Bob Belcher in Bob's Burgers; Carl in Family Guy; Ben in Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist; Kevin in O'Grady; Satan in Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil; as well as Coach McGuirk and Jason Penopolis on Home Movies.
Early life
Benjamin was born on May 23, 1966, to a Jewish family[3] in Worcester, Massachusetts and graduated from Worcester Academy in 1984 and Connecticut College in 1988.[4]
Although his first name was thought to be "Henry", Benjamin himself said that it was not and that he would not reveal what it actually stands for.[5] However, in his comedic autobiography Failure is an Option: An Attempted Memoir, he writes that his first name is "Harry".[6] He chooses to go by "Jon" and the addition of the "H" in credits was not his idea; it was allegedly initially added by Laura Silverman, Benjamin's Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist co-star, "just to make fun of me."[5]
Career
Benjamin's comedy career began in Boston, where he was in a comedy duo with Sam Seder, then a member of Cross Comedy, a comedy team led by David Cross. For the first seven years of his career, Benjamin almost exclusively worked in groups rather than independently. Afterward, his independent work remained more experimental, rejecting traditional styles of stand-up comedy.
Benjamin's live projects include the Midnight Pajama Jam, a show performed in New York City with Jon Glaser and Tinkle, a show combining stand-up comedy and live music, co-hosted by Todd Barry and David Cross. A Midnight Pajama Jam DVD is currently[when?] in production. Benjamin and Cross appear together on the album Invite Them Up.
He was the guest on Space Ghost Coast to Coast in its eighty-first episode, "King Dead" on December 17, 1999, where Zorak and Moltar kidnapped him. He has appeared in the television show Cheap Seats, on ESPN Classic, as "Gene Stapleton" and "Rabbi Marc Shalowitz". He co-starred in Todd Barry's short film Borrowing Saffron and portrayed a talking can of vegetables with a shameful habit of autofellatio in the film Wet Hot American Summer. He made short cameos in Not Another Teen Movie as the football trainer, and on the FX Network comedy-drama Rescue Me as the pimp "F-bomb" in season two. He can be seen in Turbocharge-the Unauthorized Story of the Cars, a comedy biopic about the '80s rock band The Cars, playing the role of Cars' manager Elliot Roberts in his usual deadpan comedic delivery.[7]
Benjamin has done extensive voice work in animated TV shows. His credits include starring roles in several Soup2Nuts cartoon shows, such as Science Court; Home Movies; O'Grady; Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist; and Assy McGee. He co-created Freak Show with David Cross. Benjamin starred as the Devil and multiple other roles in Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil, which ran for one season on Adult Swim beginning September 9, 2007. Benjamin plays a recurring character on the PBS Kids series WordGirl and is the announcer for The Sam Seder Show and The Majority Report. He did the voice of "Shelly," Sam Seder's accountant, on Breakroom Live with Maron & Seder.
Benjamin has made guest appearances in several animated shows. He was in the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episodes "Bus of the Undead" and "The Last One" as Mothmonsterman, in "Broodwich" as Mr. Sticks, in "Bible Fruit" as Mortimer Mango and played the live-action role of Master Shake in "Last Last One Forever and Ever," credited as Capt. Turd Mahoy. He made a cameo appearance as a government agent in the film Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters alongside frequent collaborator Jon Glaser. He has appeared in Family Guy as Carl, a movie trivia obsessed convenience store clerk who portrayed Yoda in the Star Wars parody episode "Something, Something, Something, Dark Side."
Other appearances include The Venture Bros., in the episodes "Escape to the House of Mummies Part II," "I Know Why the Caged Bird Kills" and "The Better Man," in which he played Dr. Orpheus's master—who appears in the form of Cerberus, Catherine the Great's horse and, in "The Better Man," both Dr. Orpheus's ex-wife and a future Dean Venture, respectively. He appeared in the Stella short "Bar," which can be found as an easter egg on the Season 1 DVD. Benjamin appeared on the Comedy Central sketch/variety show Important Things with Demetri Martin.
In 2009, Benjamin and David Cross created and wrote for Paid Programming, a live-action pilot for Cartoon Network's late night programing block, Adult Swim. Paid Programming was not picked up for a full series and Benjamin referred to it as an "abject failure".[8]
Benjamin was featured in a Super Bowl XLIII Bud Light commercial with Conan O'Brien[9] and was responsible for the McCain Girls[10] videos on YouTube.[11] He voices Sterling Archer, a secret agent in the FX series Archer that first aired January 14, 2010.[12] He has appeared in several segments of the television show Human Giant and had a cameo in the American Dad! episode "License to Till" as a talking head of cabbage.
Benjamin starred in the Comedy Central series Jon Benjamin Has a Van, which he co-created with comedian Leo Allen.[13] The series debuted on May 14, 2011; a total of 10 episodes aired, the last on August 10, 2011.
Beginning in 2013, Benjamin's voice can be heard as the narrator of a series of TV commercials for Coke Zero, including some with tie-ins to ESPN's College Game Day program.[citation needed]
In 2014, Benjamin was named as the year's best male comedy performer for his work on Bob's Burgers and Archer by the Vulture TV Awards, a digital expansion of New York magazine.[14]
In 2015, despite not knowing how to play any instrument, Benjamin released his first jazz album, Well, I Should Have....[15] Benjamin "played" piano and was joined by Scott Kreitzer on sax, David Finck on bass and Jonathan Preitz on drums.[16]
Benjamin wrote the comedic autobiography Failure is an Option: An Attempted Memoir, which was published by Penguin Random House in May 2018.[6] He narrated the audiobook.[17]
Benjamin began appearing in commercials for Arby's restaurant chain in 2018 as their new spokesman promoting their variety of meats "for sandwiches".[18]
On January 22, 2020, Benjamin endorsed Bernie Sanders for president and narrated a series of videos on Sanders's health care proposals.[19]
In March 2020, Benjamin was the voice of Saddam Hussein in Blowback, a podcast about the Iraq War created and hosted by Brendan James and Noah Kulwin.[20]
In September 2020, Benjamin narrated the launch video for the Gravel Institute.[21]
Ornithology
Benjamin began his Morning Bird Reports in the Spring of 2020. The Audubon Society interviewed him in 2021 for the article H. Jon Benjamin’s 'Morning Bird Reports' Have Brought Joy to Many in Dark Times after being directed to all of his sterling accomplishments as an amateur ornithologist by his adoring fans.
"He’s covered the true story of non-native parakeets living in Brooklyn, written a poem about geese, explained cowbird brood parasitism, and made a case for why the Pine Siskin should be re-named in his honor. Benjamin has also called out the ridiculousness of certain common bird names, thrown shade at those who can tell the difference between a raven and a crow, and explained the phenomenon of the dawn chorus, which he then failed to wake up for. He’s also created a PSA about birding while driving. "
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Who's the Caboose? | Ken Fold | |
| 1998 | Next Stop Wonderland | Eric | |
| 2000 | Happy Accidents | Reveler #1 | |
| 2001 | Wet Hot American Summer | Can of Vegetables (voice) | |
| Not Another Teen Movie | Trainer | ||
| 2002 | Martin & Orloff | Keith | |
| Borrowing Saffron | Ron | Short film | |
| 2003 | Temptation | Kevin | |
| 2004 | New York Minute | Vendor | |
| 2007 | Puberty: The Movie | The Torah / Uncle Irving | |
| Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters | CIA Agent #1 (voice) | ||
| The Ten | Lying Rhyno (voice) | ||
| 2008 | The Toe Tactic | Police Officer | |
| A Bad Situationist | Isaiah | ||
| Turbocharge: The Unauthorized Story of the Cars | Dance Instructor | ||
| 2014 | 22 Jump Street | MCS Coach | Uncredited[22] |
| Jason Nash Is Married | Dennis | ||
| 2015 | Creative Control | Gary Gass | |
| Limbo | Jim | Short film | |
| Hell and Back | The Tree (voice) | ||
| 2018 | The Who was show | ||
| 2021 | Bob's Burgers: The Movie | Bob Belcher |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Understanding | Quark | Episode: "Uncertainty" |
| 1995–1999; 2002 |
Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist | Ben, Various Voices | Also writer 80 episodes |
| 1997 | The Chris Rock Show | Extra | 1 episode |
| The Jenny McCarthy Show | Various | 6 episodes | |
| 1997–2000 | Science Court | Prof. Nick Parsons (voice) | 29 episodes |
| 1998 | Sex and the City | Jeff | Episode: "Bay of Married Pigs" |
| Upright Citizens Brigade | Various | 10 episodes | |
| 1999 | Dick and Paula Celebrity Special | Various | Also writer 2 episodes |
| 1999–2004 | Home Movies | Coach John McGuirk, Jason Penopolis, Various Voices | 52 episodes Also writer and producer |
| 1999 | Space Ghost Coast to Coast | Himself | Episode: "King Dead" |
| 2001–2009 | Aqua Teen Hunger Force | Various Voices | 5 episodes |
| 2002 | Saddle Rash | Gummy, Tommy Morgan (voices) | Pilot Also writer |
| 2004 | Pilot Season | Ken Fold | 2 episodes |
| 2004–2006 | Cheap Seats: Without Ron Parker | Rabbi Marc Shalowitz, Gene Stapleton | 4 episodes |
| 2004–2006 | O'Grady | Kevin Harnisch, Iris, Philip (voices) | 19 episodes |
| 2005 | Rescue Me | Gary | Episode: "Rebirth" |
| 2005–2006 | Sunday Pants | Bob the Log | Travel Logs shorts |
| 2005–2007 | Lucy, The Daughter of the Devil | Satan, Special Father #1 (voices) | Also writer 11 episodes |
| 2006 | Freak Show | Tuck, Various Voices | 7 episodes Also co-creator, writer, and executive producer |
| 2006–2012 | The Venture Bros. | The Master (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 2006–present | Family Guy | Carl Graves, Bob Belcher (voices) | 26 episodes |
| 2006–2008 | Assy McGee | The Mayor, Various Voices | 19 episodes Also writer and consulting producer |
| 2007–2015 | WordGirl | Reginald, InvisiBill, Jewelry Store Clerk, Additional Voices | 31 episodes |
| 2007–2008 | Human Giant | Various | 4 episodes Also consultant writer |
| 2009 | Michael and Michael Have Issues | Larry | Episode: "Frog Box" |
| Paid Programming | Various | Pilot Co-creator, writer and executive producer | |
| Parks and Recreation | Scott Braddock | Episode: "Kaboom" | |
| Titan Maximum | Tap Banister (voice) | Episode: "Dirty Lansbury" | |
| 2009–present | Archer | Sterling Archer (voice) | 110 episodes |
| 2009–2010 | Important Things with Demetri Martin | Various | 7 episodes Also writer and co-producer |
| 2011 | Jon Benjamin Has a Van | Host | 10 episodes Also co-creator, writer and executive producer |
| Soul Quest Overdrive | Mortimer (voice) | 6 episodes Also co-creator and co-writer | |
| 2011–present | Bob's Burgers | Bob Belcher, Jimmy Pesto Jr., Various Voices | 194 episodes |
| 2011 | American Dad! | Talking Cabbage (voice) | Episode: "License to Till" |
| 2012 | Suburgatory | Tabitha | Episode: "Ryan's Song" |
| Ugly Americans | Dick Maggotbone (voice) | Episode: "Mark Loves Dick" | |
| 2013 | Nathan For You | Himself | Episode: "Yogurt Shop/Pizzeria" |
| 2014–2018 | Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | Ben, Scientist, Defendant | 3 episodes |
| 2015 | Conan | Sterling Archer (voice) | Episode: "677" |
| 2015 | Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp | Can of Vegetables, Mitch | 4 episodes |
| The Jim Gaffigan Show | Kevin | Episode: "The Bible Story" | |
| The Adventures of Puss in Boots | Baltasar (voice) | Episode: "Luck" | |
| 2015–2017 | Master of None | Benjamin | 4 episodes |
| 2015 | All Hail King Julien | Fred (voice) | Episode: "The King Who Would Be King" |
| 2016–2017 | People of Earth | Officer Glimmer | Recurring role |
| 2017 | Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later | Can of Vegetables, Mitch | 5 episodes |
| Difficult People | Brian | Episode: "Fuzz Buddies" | |
| 2018 | The Who Was? Show | Narrator | 13 episodes |
| The Simpsons | Bob Belcher (voice) | Episode: "My Way or the Highway to Heaven" | |
| 2019 | Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas | Batman | Episode: "Inequality Problems" |
| Star Trek: Short Treks | Edward Larkin | Episode: "The Trouble with Edward" | |
| 2020–present | Central Park | Mayor Whitney Whitebottom | Recurring role |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Destiny 2 | Radio voice, Scabretti |
References
Notes
- ^ "Worcester, Mass. Public Records". Retrieved 2018-11-25.
- ^ Dekel, Jon (8 January 2015). "H. Jon Benjamin's voice work sets the tone on Archer, the silly spy cartoon for adults that could". National Post. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
- ^ Rock 'n Roll Ghost. "H. Jon Benjamin Talks FX's Archer Season Finale". Rocknrollghost.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-09. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Class Notes" Archived 2012-04-25 at the Wayback Machine The [Worcester Academy] Hilltopper (Spring 2011) p.28
- ^ a b The Verge (2013-07-05), On The Verge: interview with voice actor H Jon Benjamin (Archer, Bob's Burgers), retrieved 2019-05-04
- ^ a b "Failure Is An Option by H. Jon Benjamin | PenguinRandomHouse.com". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Retrieved 2018-08-16.
- ^ "Welcome to TURBOCHARGE The Movie". Turbochargethemovie.com. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
- ^ Heisler, Steve (4 February 2011). "Random Roles H. Jon Benjamin". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
- ^ "Super Bowl 43 ad: Budweiser Bud Light - Conan O'brien 'Vroom Vroom Party Starter'" (Video). YouTube.com. Retrieved 2009-02-15.
- ^ "McCaingirls's Channel". YouTube.com. 2008-03-14. Retrieved 2009-02-15.
- ^ "Just because". SamSederShow.com. Archived from the original on 2008-11-21. Retrieved 2009-02-15.
- ^ "Archer reviews at". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
- ^ "Interview with Jon Benjamin". SanDiego.com. Archived from the original on 2011-06-12. Retrieved 2011-06-09.
- ^ Seitz, Matt. "Vulture TV Awards: The Year's Best Male Comedy Performer Is H. Jon Benjamin". Vulture. New York. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
- ^ Bradley, Laura (23 November 2015). "Watch H. Jon Benjamin Record a Whole Jazz Album on the Piano Even Though He Can't Play the Piano". Slate. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
- ^ "H. Jon Benjamin Discusses Why He Recorded Jazz Album in Recently Surfaced Interview". Classicalite. 2016-01-20. Retrieved 2016-01-22.
- ^ "Failure is an Option by H. Jon Benjamin". Penguin Random House. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
- ^ "Arby's Wants You To Know It Does More Than Just Roast Beef". Forbes. 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2018-09-27.
- ^ Budryk, Zack (2020-01-22). "Sanders campaign releases video series hosted by voice actor H. Jon Benjamin". TheHill. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
- ^ https://blowback.show/
- ^ Jackson, Gita (October 1, 2020). "The Gravel Institute Is Trying to Make PragerU, But Good". Vice News. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
- ^ McCarthy, Erin. "10 Things to Know About '22 Jump Street'". MentalFloss.com. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
External links
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
- 1966 births
- 20th-century American comedians
- 20th-century American male actors
- 21st-century American comedians
- 21st-century American male actors
- American male film actors
- American male television actors
- American male television writers
- American male voice actors
- American stand-up comedians
- American television producers
- American television writers
- Annie Award winners
- Comedians from Massachusetts
- Connecticut College alumni
- Jewish American male actors
- Jewish American male comedians
- Living people
- Male actors from Worcester, Massachusetts
- Screenwriters from Massachusetts
- Writers from Worcester, Massachusetts