Jump to content

Fred Armisen: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit
→Early life: two semicolons in one sentence?
Line 39: Line 39:
Armisen was born in [[Hattiesburg, Mississippi]], on December 4, 1966, the son of schoolteacher Hildegardt Mirabal Level and [[IBM]] employee Fereydun Herbert Armisen.<ref name=phawk1>{{cite web|url=http://www.phawker.com/2014/05/08/excerpt-fredlandia/|title=Fredlandia: The Nicest Punk in Show Biz|date=May 8, 2014|author=Phawker|access-date=September 1, 2015|archive-date=September 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924072221/http://www.phawker.com/2014/05/08/excerpt-fredlandia/|url-status=live}}</ref> He moved with his family to New York as a baby,<ref name=sem>{{Cite news |last=Itzkoff |first=Dave |title=Eccentric on 'S.N.L.' Is 'Jus' Keeeeding!' |work=The New York Times |date=September 30, 2005 |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F07E4DE1330F933A0575AC0A9639C8B63 |access-date=October 3, 2010 |archive-date=August 11, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811012324/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F07E4DE1330F933A0575AC0A9639C8B63 |url-status=live }}</ref> and briefly lived in Brazil in his youth. He was raised in [[Valley Stream, New York]],<ref name=sem/> where he was a classmate of fellow ''[[SNL]]'' alumnus [[Jim Breuer]].<ref name="timeline">{{cite magazine |last=Busis |first=Hillary |url=https://www.ew.com/article/2014/02/11/fred-armisen-late-night |title=Fred Armisen's music career: A pre-'Late Night' primer – VIDEO |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |date=February 11, 2014 |access-date=May 10, 2016 |archive-date=March 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200312084735/https://ew.com/article/2014/02/11/fred-armisen-late-night/ |url-status=live }}</ref> He attended the [[School of Visual Arts]] in [[Manhattan]]<ref>[https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/fred-armisen/bio/196439 "Fred Armisen: Biography,"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200426121734/https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/fred-armisen/bio/196439/ |date=April 26, 2020 }} ''TV Guide'', accessdate=2009-11-10.</ref> before dropping out to begin a career as a rock drummer.<ref name=sem/> He said that he was inspired to perform after seeing [[the Clash]] and [[Devo]] perform on television, and wanted to be a performer since he was a child.<ref>Heisler, Steve. [https://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2011/02/fred_armisen_interview_portlan.html "Devo Made Saturday Night Live's Fred Armisen Want to Be on TV"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111225031823/http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2011/02/fred_armisen_interview_portlan.html |date=December 25, 2011 }}, ''[[New York Magazine]]'', February 11, 2011</ref>
Armisen was born in [[Hattiesburg, Mississippi]], on December 4, 1966, the son of schoolteacher Hildegardt Mirabal Level and [[IBM]] employee Fereydun Herbert Armisen.<ref name=phawk1>{{cite web|url=http://www.phawker.com/2014/05/08/excerpt-fredlandia/|title=Fredlandia: The Nicest Punk in Show Biz|date=May 8, 2014|author=Phawker|access-date=September 1, 2015|archive-date=September 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924072221/http://www.phawker.com/2014/05/08/excerpt-fredlandia/|url-status=live}}</ref> He moved with his family to New York as a baby,<ref name=sem>{{Cite news |last=Itzkoff |first=Dave |title=Eccentric on 'S.N.L.' Is 'Jus' Keeeeding!' |work=The New York Times |date=September 30, 2005 |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F07E4DE1330F933A0575AC0A9639C8B63 |access-date=October 3, 2010 |archive-date=August 11, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811012324/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F07E4DE1330F933A0575AC0A9639C8B63 |url-status=live }}</ref> and briefly lived in Brazil in his youth. He was raised in [[Valley Stream, New York]],<ref name=sem/> where he was a classmate of fellow ''[[SNL]]'' alumnus [[Jim Breuer]].<ref name="timeline">{{cite magazine |last=Busis |first=Hillary |url=https://www.ew.com/article/2014/02/11/fred-armisen-late-night |title=Fred Armisen's music career: A pre-'Late Night' primer – VIDEO |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |date=February 11, 2014 |access-date=May 10, 2016 |archive-date=March 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200312084735/https://ew.com/article/2014/02/11/fred-armisen-late-night/ |url-status=live }}</ref> He attended the [[School of Visual Arts]] in [[Manhattan]]<ref>[https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/fred-armisen/bio/196439 "Fred Armisen: Biography,"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200426121734/https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/fred-armisen/bio/196439/ |date=April 26, 2020 }} ''TV Guide'', accessdate=2009-11-10.</ref> before dropping out to begin a career as a rock drummer.<ref name=sem/> He said that he was inspired to perform after seeing [[the Clash]] and [[Devo]] perform on television, and wanted to be a performer since he was a child.<ref>Heisler, Steve. [https://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2011/02/fred_armisen_interview_portlan.html "Devo Made Saturday Night Live's Fred Armisen Want to Be on TV"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111225031823/http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2011/02/fred_armisen_interview_portlan.html |date=December 25, 2011 }}, ''[[New York Magazine]]'', February 11, 2011</ref>


Armisen's mother was Venezuelan, born in [[San Fernando de Apure]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.migelatina.com/la-g-latina/fred-armisen-4303 |title=Fred Armisen: Raices Latinas en Portlandia |publisher=Mi Gelatina |access-date=February 11, 2019 |archive-date=February 12, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190212133738/https://www.migelatina.com/la-g-latina/fred-armisen-4303 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eluniversal.com/arte-y-entretenimiento/120327/un-venezolano-en-portlandia-imp |url-status=dead |date=March 27, 2012 |title=Un venezolano en "Portlandia" – Arte y Entretenimiento |publisher=El Universal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125024313/http://www.eluniversal.com/arte-y-entretenimiento/120327/un-venezolano-en-portlandia-imp |archive-date=January 25, 2018 |access-date=January 29, 2020 }}</ref><ref name="Kin" /> while his father was born in [[Soltau]] to a German mother and Korean father.<ref name="Kin" /><ref name=reynolds>{{cite web |url=https://www.inquisitr.com/4550053/fred-armisen-learns-a-surprising-twist-on-his-ancestry-on-pbs-series-finding-your-roots |title=Fred Armisen Learns a Surprising Twist on His Ancestry on PBS Series 'Finding Your Roots' |author=Jason Reynolds |date=October 12, 2017 |website=[[Inquisitr]] |access-date=October 12, 2017 |archive-date=October 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171012135711/https://www.inquisitr.com/4550053/fred-armisen-learns-a-surprising-twist-on-his-ancestry-on-pbs-series-finding-your-roots/ |url-status=live }}</ref> For much of his life, Armisen thought his paternal grandfather Ehara Masami was Japanese; however, Masami (better known by his professional name Masami Kuni or birth name Park Yeong-in<ref name="Kin" /><ref name="Hoffmann">{{cite book |last=Hoffmann |first=Frank |year=2015 |title=Berlin Koreans and Pictured Koreans |series=Koreans and Central Europeans: Informal Contacts up to 1950, vol. 1, ed. Andreas Schirmer |isbn=978-3-7069-0873-3 |url=https://docs.google.com/gview?url=http://koreanstudies.com/img/Berlin-Koreans.pdf |location=Vienna |publisher=Praesens, pp. 107-127. |access-date=November 17, 2020 |archive-date=April 12, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412174941/https://docs.google.com/gview?url=http%3A%2F%2Fkoreanstudies.com%2Fimg%2FBerlin-Koreans.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref>) was actually Korean and came from [[Ulsan]]; he adopted a Japanese name and persona after the [[Kantō Massacre|massacre of Koreans in 1923]] when he was a high school student.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://harvard-yenching.org/the-great-kanto-earthquake |title=The Great Kantō Earthquake, the Korean Massacre and its Aftermath: The Responsibility of the Japanese Government and People |website=harvard-yenching.org |access-date=November 3, 2018 |archive-date=November 3, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181103131318/https://harvard-yenching.org/the-great-kanto-earthquake |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Kin">{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww3aFlD4iUs |title=Finding Your Roots: Episode 2, Unfamiliar Kin |website=YouTube.com |date=October 9, 2017|access-date=February 19, 2022}}</ref> Park studied aesthetics at [[Tokyo Imperial University]] and became a professional dancer before moving to Germany.<ref>{{Cite conference|conference=7th World Congress of Korean Studies 2014|date=2014|title=Between Self-Appropriation and Self-Discovery: Park Yeong-in in German Dance Modernity|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171013013903/http://congress.aks.ac.kr/korean/files/2_1413536315.pdf |archive-date=October 13, 2017|access-date=May 22, 2022|author=Dr. Okju Son |publisher=Chung-Ang University, South Korea|url=http://congress.aks.ac.kr/korean/files/2_1413536315.pdf}}</ref><ref name="Hoffmann"/> After the war, he returned to Japan, and formed a premier modern dance company. He eventually emigrated to the US, where he taught dance at what is now [[California State University, Fullerton|Cal State Fullerton]] from 1964 to 1975.<ref name="Hoffmann"/><ref name=reynolds/> Park Yeong-in's family were members of the [[Yangban|Korean aristocracy]], and Armisen's Korean lineage can be verifiably traced back to the 1600s.<ref name=reynolds />
Armisen's mother was Venezuelan, born in [[San Fernando de Apure]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.migelatina.com/la-g-latina/fred-armisen-4303 |title=Fred Armisen: Raices Latinas en Portlandia |publisher=Mi Gelatina |access-date=February 11, 2019 |archive-date=February 12, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190212133738/https://www.migelatina.com/la-g-latina/fred-armisen-4303 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eluniversal.com/arte-y-entretenimiento/120327/un-venezolano-en-portlandia-imp |url-status=dead |date=March 27, 2012 |title=Un venezolano en "Portlandia" – Arte y Entretenimiento |publisher=El Universal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125024313/http://www.eluniversal.com/arte-y-entretenimiento/120327/un-venezolano-en-portlandia-imp |archive-date=January 25, 2018 |access-date=January 29, 2020 }}</ref><ref name="Kin" /> while his father was born in [[Soltau]] to a German mother and Korean father.<ref name="Kin" /><ref name=reynolds>{{cite web |url=https://www.inquisitr.com/4550053/fred-armisen-learns-a-surprising-twist-on-his-ancestry-on-pbs-series-finding-your-roots |title=Fred Armisen Learns a Surprising Twist on His Ancestry on PBS Series 'Finding Your Roots' |author=Jason Reynolds |date=October 12, 2017 |website=[[Inquisitr]] |access-date=October 12, 2017 |archive-date=October 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171012135711/https://www.inquisitr.com/4550053/fred-armisen-learns-a-surprising-twist-on-his-ancestry-on-pbs-series-finding-your-roots/ |url-status=live }}</ref> For much of his life, Armisen thought his paternal grandfather Ehara Masami was Japanese. However, Masami (better known by his professional name Masami Kuni or birth name Park Yeong-in<ref name="Kin" /><ref name="Hoffmann">{{cite book |last=Hoffmann |first=Frank |year=2015 |title=Berlin Koreans and Pictured Koreans |series=Koreans and Central Europeans: Informal Contacts up to 1950, vol. 1, ed. Andreas Schirmer |isbn=978-3-7069-0873-3 |url=https://docs.google.com/gview?url=http://koreanstudies.com/img/Berlin-Koreans.pdf |location=Vienna |publisher=Praesens, pp. 107-127. |access-date=November 17, 2020 |archive-date=April 12, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412174941/https://docs.google.com/gview?url=http%3A%2F%2Fkoreanstudies.com%2Fimg%2FBerlin-Koreans.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref>) was actually Korean and came from [[Ulsan]]; he adopted a Japanese name and persona after the [[Kantō Massacre|massacre of Koreans in 1923]] when he was a high school student.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://harvard-yenching.org/the-great-kanto-earthquake |title=The Great Kantō Earthquake, the Korean Massacre and its Aftermath: The Responsibility of the Japanese Government and People |website=harvard-yenching.org |access-date=November 3, 2018 |archive-date=November 3, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181103131318/https://harvard-yenching.org/the-great-kanto-earthquake |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Kin">{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww3aFlD4iUs |title=Finding Your Roots: Episode 2, Unfamiliar Kin |website=YouTube.com |date=October 9, 2017|access-date=February 19, 2022}}</ref> Park studied aesthetics at [[Tokyo Imperial University]] and became a professional dancer before moving to Germany.<ref>{{Cite conference|conference=7th World Congress of Korean Studies 2014|date=2014|title=Between Self-Appropriation and Self-Discovery: Park Yeong-in in German Dance Modernity|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171013013903/http://congress.aks.ac.kr/korean/files/2_1413536315.pdf |archive-date=October 13, 2017|access-date=May 22, 2022|author=Dr. Okju Son |publisher=Chung-Ang University, South Korea|url=http://congress.aks.ac.kr/korean/files/2_1413536315.pdf}}</ref><ref name="Hoffmann"/> After the war, he returned to Japan, and formed a premier modern dance company. He eventually emigrated to the US, where he taught dance at what is now [[California State University, Fullerton|Cal State Fullerton]] from 1964 to 1975.<ref name="Hoffmann"/><ref name=reynolds/> Park Yeong-in's family were members of the [[Yangban|Korean aristocracy]], and Armisen's Korean lineage can be verifiably traced back to the 1600s.<ref name=reynolds />


==Career==
==Career==

Revision as of 16:45, 27 September 2024

Fred Armisen
Armisen in 2015
Born
Fereydun Robert Armisen

(1966-12-04) December 4, 1966 (age 58)
Hattiesburg, Mississippi, U.S.
EducationSchool of Visual Arts
Occupations
  • Actor
  • comedian
  • musician
  • writer
Years active1984–present
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1998; div. 2004)​
​
​
(m. 2009; div. 2011)​
​
(m. 2022)​
PartnerNatasha Lyonne (2014–2022)[1]
Children1
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • drums
  • guitar
LabelsSkene!/East West
Websitefredarmisen.com

Fereydun Robert Armisen (born December 4, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, musician, and writer. With his comedy partner Carrie Brownstein, he co-created and co-starred in the IFC sketch comedy series Portlandia. He also co-created and starred in the mockumentary IFC series Documentary Now! and the Showtime comedy series Moonbase 8.

Armisen was the bandleader and frequent drummer for the Late Night with Seth Meyers house band, the 8G Band from 2014 to 2024. He is known as a cast member on the late-night sketch comedy and variety series Saturday Night Live from 2002 to 2013. He also voiced Speedy Gonzales on The Looney Tunes Show.

Armisen has acted in comedy films, including EuroTrip, Melvin Goes to Dinner, The Ex, and The Dictator. He is also notable for his guest-star appearances in television shows such as 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, New Girl, Broad City, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Difficult People, The Last Man on Earth, Toast of London, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Modern Family, and Barry.

Armisen received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Comedy Album for Standup for Drummers in 2019. He has also won two Peabody Awards, one in 2008 as part of the Saturday Night Live political satire cast[2] and one in 2011 for Portlandia.[3] From 2019 to 2022, he co-starred and served as writer and executive producer on the Spanish-language series Los Espookys, which he co-created.

Early life

Armisen was born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, on December 4, 1966, the son of schoolteacher Hildegardt Mirabal Level and IBM employee Fereydun Herbert Armisen.[4] He moved with his family to New York as a baby,[5] and briefly lived in Brazil in his youth. He was raised in Valley Stream, New York,[5] where he was a classmate of fellow SNL alumnus Jim Breuer.[6] He attended the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan[7] before dropping out to begin a career as a rock drummer.[5] He said that he was inspired to perform after seeing the Clash and Devo perform on television, and wanted to be a performer since he was a child.[8]

Armisen's mother was Venezuelan, born in San Fernando de Apure,[9][10][11] while his father was born in Soltau to a German mother and Korean father.[11][12] For much of his life, Armisen thought his paternal grandfather Ehara Masami was Japanese. However, Masami (better known by his professional name Masami Kuni or birth name Park Yeong-in[11][13]) was actually Korean and came from Ulsan; he adopted a Japanese name and persona after the massacre of Koreans in 1923 when he was a high school student.[14][11] Park studied aesthetics at Tokyo Imperial University and became a professional dancer before moving to Germany.[15][13] After the war, he returned to Japan, and formed a premier modern dance company. He eventually emigrated to the US, where he taught dance at what is now Cal State Fullerton from 1964 to 1975.[13][12] Park Yeong-in's family were members of the Korean aristocracy, and Armisen's Korean lineage can be verifiably traced back to the 1600s.[12]

Career

Music

In 1984, Armisen played drums in a local band along with his high school friends in Valley Stream, New York, but the group soon ended. In 1988, he moved to Chicago to play drums for the punk rock band Trenchmouth,[16] and in the 1990s he played background drums with Blue Man Group.

Armisen played drums on three tracks for Les Savy Fav's 2007 album Let's Stay Friends,[17] as well as tracks for Matthew Sweet's 2011 album Modern Art[18] and Wandering Lucy's 1996[19] album Leap Year.[18]

Armisen is the music director and frequent drummer[20] of the 8G Band, the house band for Late Night with Seth Meyers, since February 24, 2014.[21] However, the band was laid off at the end of the 2023–2024 season due to budget cuts from NBC. They will still pre-record music for the show, but will not perform live.[22]

In 2018, Armisen played drums as part of Devo at John Waters' Burger Boogaloo festival in Oakland, California.[23][24]

In July 2021, he performed at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island.[25]

Television and film

While not playing with the band Trenchmouth, Armisen's interests switched to acting. In a January 2006 interview, he said, "I wanted to be on TV somehow. For some reason, I always thought it would be an indirect route; I didn't know that it would be comedy and Saturday Night Live. I just wanted to do something with performing that would lead me there."[26]

Armisen's subsequent television work, such as some "memorable Andy Kaufman–esque appearances"[27] on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, as well as work for Crank Yankers and Adult Swim, led to a role in 2002 as a featured player in the cast of Saturday Night Live.[27] In the 2004 season, he was promoted to repertory cast member.

Armisen has landed several minor yet memorable roles that were defined by an interviewer as "feral foreigners"[28] in comedy films such as Eurotrip, Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Deck the Halls, The Ex, The Promotion, The Rocker, Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny, and Confessions of a Shopaholic, Cranky Kong's voice on Super Mario Brothers movie.

Further television work included an appearance on Parks and Recreation in the 2009 episode "Sister City".[29] For the Cartoon Network series The Looney Tunes Show (2011–2014), Armisen voices Speedy Gonzales. He and fellow Saturday Night Live alums Bill Hader and Seth Meyers write, produce, and star in the IFC mockumentary series Documentary Now![30] which premiered in 2015.

Armisen starred in the IFC sketch series Portlandia alongside Carrie Brownstein (of Sleater-Kinney); the first season debuted on January 21, 2011.[31] With Brownstein, he appeared on the 2012 Simpsons episode "The Day the Earth Stood Cool", in which they play the Simpsons' new neighbors, who encourage everyone to be cool like them.[32][33]

Since 2014, Armisen has been music director and sometimes bandleader and drummer on Late Night with Seth Meyers, for which he received positive reviews for his deadpan comedy and especially for his interplay with the host.[34]

For his work on Portlandia, Armisen was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series in 2012, 2013, and 2014[35] and for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 2014.

In 2021, Armisen was executive producer on the documentary Charm Circle, directed by Nira Burstein.[36]

In 2022, he appeared in Wednesday as Uncle Fester.[37]

in 2024 he appeared as FDA representative Mike Puntz in Jerry Seinfeld’s Unfrosted.

Saturday Night Live

Armisen joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 2002.[38] He was promoted to a repertory player in 2004. After 11 years as a cast member, he decided to leave the show. At the time of his 2013 departure from the show,[39][40] Armisen was the third-longest-tenured cast member (behind Seth Meyers and Darrell Hammond), and he appeared in the second-highest number of sketches (856) of any cast member. Since then, Armisen has come back for multiple cameo appearances on the show, including when he hosted the season 41 finale on May 21, 2016, with musical guest Courtney Barnett.

The following is a partial list of notable roles Armisen has played in Saturday Night Live sketches.

Recurring characters

  • Billy Smith – a Native American stand-up comedian who tells Native-American-themed jokes that no one understands.
  • Fericito – a Venezuelan nightclub comedian who has his own TV show, Show Biz Grande Explosion with sidekick Manuel (Horatio Sanz).
  • Gunther Kelly – a student at George Washington University who performs songs on Weekend Update with his brother Patrick (played by Will Forte).
  • Leonard – the strange European host of the foreign music show Club Traxx.
  • Mackey – a senile drummer who often does rimshots at inappropriate moments and appears in the "Rialto Grande" sketches.
  • Nooni Schoener – a quirky, foreign art dealer who appears with his wife Nuni Schoener (played by Maya Rudolph) in "the Schoeners" sketches.
  • Frondi – a mentally challenged character who criticizes Ben Affleck's movie Gigli to Ben himself.
  • Manuel Ortiz – host of The Manuel Ortiz show on Television Dominicana where he "helps with whatever it is" his audience members are going through.
  • Nicholas Fehn – a political commentator whose mind wanders so much that he is incapable of finishing a sentence without starting a new one.
  • Roger A. Trevanti – a greedy studio head and AMPTP member who rails against the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. The character's only SNL appearance was on the last episode of season 33, before the show went on hiatus for the WGA strike, but he appeared in several Internet videos around the same time.
  • Rodger Brush – a producer of multiple "Dr. Phil"-type talk shows, each focused on a different topic (teen, marital, sexual, and pregnancy issues), who fills in when the hosts are sick. He repeatedly tells guests relating their problems to speak up, and, unable to relate to their problems, offers them either useless advice based on his experience or no help at all.
  • Garth – part of Garth & Kat (with Kristen Wiig), a musical duo who appear on Weekend Update unprepared and make up songs on the spot.
  • Giuseppe – the saxophone player for What's Up With That?
  • Stuart – homeowner from The Californians, a soap opera parody featuring Armisen, Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig and others as wealthy blondes with Valley girl accents.
  • One of the "Dictator's Two Best Friends from Growing Up" (with Vanessa Bayer) who come to Weekend Update to secretly trash-talk the various dictators (such as Muammar al-Gaddafi and Kim Jong-un) with whom they grew up.
  • Regine – a pretentious and condescending woman who exhibits blatant euphoric and erotic facial expressions when touched on certain parts of her body.
  • Ian Rubbish – A late-1970s/early-80s British punk rocker, a parody of Sex Pistols' John Lydon, who caught heat from his bandmates Derek Gash (played by Bill Hader) and Keith Grimshaw (played by Taran Killam) and fans for writing and performing songs supporting Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

Celebrity impressions

Armisen's list of notable impressions has included:

  • Barack Obama – recurring in Season 33 and Season 34 episodes as the Democratic presidential candidate (Season 33), the Democratic nominee, President-elect, and President (Season 34), beginning on February 23, 2008. As of season 38, Jay Pharoah replaced Armisen as Obama.
  • Prince – parody of the musician as the host of a talk show called The Prince Show, with Beyoncé Knowles (played by Maya Rudolph) as his co-host. Armisen, a fan of Prince since childhood, created the sketch as a way of improving his chances of meeting the musician.[26]
  • Steve Jobs – Apple CEO who appears on Weekend Update to show off strange new technology. Armisen has stated that Steve Jobs is the celebrity he most enjoys portraying.[41]
  • Ira Glass – After seeing an unused SNL sketch, Glass invited Armisen to co-host a This American Life episode about doppelgängers.[42]
  • David Paterson – Governor of New York.
  • Queen Elizabeth II – There were four sketches between the years 2010 and 2012 where he played the Queen of the United Kingdom.
  • Michael Bloomberg – numerous sketches between 2011 and present, including recurrent segments during the 2020 Democratic Primaries.

Other work

In 1998, he posed as a music journalist for the short film Fred Armisen's Guide to Music and South by Southwest. It was filmed by then-girlfriend Sally Timms and featured Armisen's "pranking musicians and industry types" during the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas.[43] In various segments he asked self-described "stupid" questions, pretended to be German, and also acted blind.[44] A year later, Armisen starred with alternative rock legend Steve Albini in Chevelle's Point No. 1 EPK.

Armisen is part of ThunderAnt, a comedy duo with Sleater-Kinney guitarist Carrie Brownstein. The duo specializes in creating comedic short skits often about independent vocations such as one-man shows, feminist bookstores, and bicycle rights activists. Armisen founded ThunderAnt.com, a website that features the comedy sketches created with Brownstein.

Armisen has directed music videos for bands such as the Helio Sequence. Armisen also had a role in the Wilco documentary I Am Trying to Break Your Heart, which featured footage from his stint opening for front man Jeff Tweedy's 2001 solo tour. He also appeared in video segments on Blue Man Group's How to be a Megastar Tour 2.0. Armisen occasionally writes for Pitchfork Media and interviewed Cat Power for that company.[45] He appeared as Jens Hannemann on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on October 19, 2007, promoting a 28-minute DVD called Fred Armisen presents Jens Hannemann: "COMPLICATED DRUMMING TECHNIQUE".[46] In 2010, Armisen briefly joined Joanna Newsom's tour for her album Have One on Me as his character Jens Hannemann.[47] On SNL, Armisen often plays musical instruments in sketches, has two recurring characters who are musicians (Mackey the drummer from the Rialto Grande and Ferecito from Showbiz Grande Explosion), or impersonates famous figures in the music world such as Liberace, Phil Spector, Lou Reed, and Prince.

Armisen appeared in the official music video for Man Man's song "Rabbit Habits", playing a man who charms his blind date (Charlyne Yi) but runs away after she turns into a werewolf.[48]

In 2013, Armisen appeared in the official music video for Portland, Oregon-based band Red Fang's song "Blood Like Cream". In 2021, he appeared as the protagonist in the official music video for the 2020 mix of George Harrison's song "My Sweet Lord".[49][50]

Along with Bill Hader and Jason Sudeikis, Armisen voiced radio characters in the video game Grand Theft Auto IV. Armisen would also continue to appear in other titles from Rockstar Games, such as a pharmacist in Red Dead Redemption, Grand Theft Auto V as a judge on an in-game reality TV show, strongly parodying Simon Cowell, and Red Dead Redemption 2 as a host at an in-game theatre you can attend.

Armisen performed as a singer/drummer/comedic actor in the Blue Man Group's "How to be a Megastar Live!". He played the part of a salesman on TV who advertises for the Megastar Rock Manual. He also drummed in the performance and was a backup singer.

In late 2014, Armisen was featured on the popular comedy web series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee with host Jerry Seinfeld.

Armisen is a longtime fan of punk rock music and can be seen in the documentaries Salad Days and The Damned: Don't You Wish That We Were Dead.

In 2015, Armisen was the recipient of Smithsonian magazine's American Ingenuity Award for Performing Arts.[51]

In 2018, Armisen provided the foreword to The Yacht Rock Book by author Greg Prato.[52]

Armisen appears as Michael on the sixth episode of the revival of The Kids in the Hall, released on May 13, 2022.[53]

In 2024, Armisen made a cameo as DJ Carl in Fallout, living in a shack surrounded by bespoke traps and playing colonial-era violin music, a reference to the oft-hated Classical Radio station from Fallout 4.

Personal life

Armisen was married to English musician Sally Timms from 1998 to 2004,[54] and American actress Elisabeth Moss from 2009 to 2011.[55][56] In 2014, Moss described their time together as "extremely traumatic, awful and horrible" and said of Armisen, "He's so great at doing impersonations. But the greatest impersonation he does is that of a normal person."[57] During a later interview with Howard Stern, Armisen said, "I think I was a terrible husband. I think I'm a terrible boyfriend. [...] I feel bad for everyone I've gone out with."[57]

Armisen started dating actress Natasha Lyonne in 2014.[58][59] Lyonne confirmed that they had ended their relationship in April 2022: "We love each other just about as much as two people can love each other and we're still talking all the time."[60] Armisen began dating and married comedian Riki Lindhome later that year, and they purchased a home together in Los Feliz. They have one child together.[61]

Since working together on ThunderAnt, Armisen and Carrie Brownstein developed what Brownstein has called "one of the most intimate, functional, romantic, but nonsexual relationships [they have] ever had".[62] According to Armisen, their relationship is "all of the things that I've ever wanted, you know, aside from like the physical stuff, but the intimacy that I have with her is like no other".[63]

Armisen is a fan of the Red Dead video game franchise,[64] and voiced characters in Red Dead Redemption and Red Dead Redemption 2.[65] He is also a fan of black metal and death metal.[66]

Armisen has stated that he is an atheist.[67]

Discography

As a member of Trenchmouth:

  • Snakebite [EP] (1989)
  • Kick Your Mind And Make It Move [EP] (1991)
  • Construction of New Action (1991)
  • Trenchmouth / Circus Lupus [Split] (1992)
  • Inside the Future (1993)
  • The Position of the Right Hand: Trenchmouth / Bliss [Split] (1993)
  • Achtung Chicago! Zwei compilation (1993)
  • Trenchmouth vs. The Light of the Sun (1994)
  • The Broadcasting System (1995)
  • Volumes, Amplifiers, Equalizers (1995)
  • More Motion: A Collection (2003)

As a member of Crisis of Conformity:

  • Fist Fight! [single] (2010) (Armisen played all the music and did the vocals for the record, although is rumored that drums were actually played by Dave Grohl)

As a member of the Blue Jean Committee:

  • Catalina Breeze [EP] (2015)

As a comedian:

Comedy Album

  • Standup for Drummers (2018)

Singles & EP

  • Portlandia with Carrie Brownstein (2011)
  • KFC Nashville Hot Record (2016)

Filmography

Main article: Fred Armisen filmography

Awards and nominations

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Fred Armisen

References

  1. ^ Gray, Delilah (December 11, 2022). "Fred Armisen & Riki Lindhome Snagged This Magical & Lush Cottage for $4 Million — See the Photos!". SheKnows. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  2. ^ "Saturday Night Live Political Satire 2008". The Peabody Awards. Archived from the original on May 12, 2015. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  3. ^ "Portlandia". The Peabody Awards. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  4. ^ Phawker (May 8, 2014). "Fredlandia: The Nicest Punk in Show Biz". Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  5. ^ a b c Itzkoff, Dave (September 30, 2005). "Eccentric on 'S.N.L.' Is 'Jus' Keeeeding!'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved October 3, 2010.
  6. ^ Busis, Hillary (February 11, 2014). "Fred Armisen's music career: A pre-'Late Night' primer – VIDEO". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on March 12, 2020. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  7. ^ "Fred Armisen: Biography," Archived April 26, 2020, at the Wayback Machine TV Guide, accessdate=2009-11-10.
  8. ^ Heisler, Steve. "Devo Made Saturday Night Live's Fred Armisen Want to Be on TV" Archived December 25, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, New York Magazine, February 11, 2011
  9. ^ "Fred Armisen: Raices Latinas en Portlandia". Mi Gelatina. Archived from the original on February 12, 2019. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
  10. ^ "Un venezolano en "Portlandia" – Arte y Entretenimiento". El Universal. March 27, 2012. Archived from the original on January 25, 2018. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  11. ^ a b c d "Finding Your Roots: Episode 2, Unfamiliar Kin". YouTube.com. October 9, 2017. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
  12. ^ a b c Jason Reynolds (October 12, 2017). "Fred Armisen Learns a Surprising Twist on His Ancestry on PBS Series 'Finding Your Roots'". Inquisitr. Archived from the original on October 12, 2017. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  13. ^ a b c Hoffmann, Frank (2015). Berlin Koreans and Pictured Koreans (PDF). Koreans and Central Europeans: Informal Contacts up to 1950, vol. 1, ed. Andreas Schirmer. Vienna: Praesens, pp. 107-127. ISBN 978-3-7069-0873-3. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 12, 2019. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  14. ^ "The Great Kantō Earthquake, the Korean Massacre and its Aftermath: The Responsibility of the Japanese Government and People". harvard-yenching.org. Archived from the original on November 3, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  15. ^ Dr. Okju Son (2014). Between Self-Appropriation and Self-Discovery: Park Yeong-in in German Dance Modernity (PDF). 7th World Congress of Korean Studies 2014. Chung-Ang University, South Korea. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 13, 2017. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  16. ^ DeRogatis, Jim (February 5, 2003). "All Ke-e-e-ding Aside". Jimdero.com. Archived from the original on February 16, 2012. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  17. ^ Jason Lymangrover (September 18, 2007). "Let's Stay Friends – Les Savy Fav | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 9, 2020. Retrieved February 11, 2014.
  18. ^ a b "Leap Year (KLP053) | Wandering Lucy". Wanderinglucy.bandcamp.com. July 6, 2015. Archived from the original on September 18, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  19. ^ "Wandering Lucy – Leap Year at Discogs". Discogs. 1996. Archived from the original on May 13, 2013. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  20. ^ Zinoman, Jason (February 5, 2018). "Comics Select Their Audiences as Carefully as Their Jokes". New York Times. Archived from the original on March 21, 2019. Retrieved March 22, 2019.
  21. ^ Murphy, Samantha (November 18, 2011). "Fred Armisen Joins 'Late Night with Seth Meyers' as Bandleader". Mashable.com. Archived from the original on February 15, 2014. Retrieved February 11, 2014.
  22. ^ "'Late Night With Seth Meyers' Losing Live Band For Season 12". JamBase. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  23. ^ "Fred Armisen Joins Devo at Burger Boogaloo 2018". pitchfork.com. July 2018. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
  24. ^ "Watch 'Portlandia' star Fred Armisen join Devo onstage at US festival". nme.com. July 2018. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
  25. ^ "Newport Folk Festival stage schedule 2021". newportfolk.org. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
  26. ^ a b Armisen interview Archived December 6, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, The A.V. Club, January 2006.
  27. ^ a b Lavery, Lisa. Interview: ""Whaddya mean you've never heard of....Fred Armisen?"". Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved July 10, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) Cult Cargo, November 16, 2006.
  28. ^ Duncan, Alasdair (August 3, 2012). "Fred Armisen on Portlandia, video games and cross-dressing". Crikey. Archived from the original on April 26, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2013.
  29. ^ Hernandez, Lee (September 1, 2009). "Fred Armisen to Guest Star on "Parks and Recreation"". Latina. Archived from the original on July 19, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2009.
  30. ^ Turnquist, Kristi (September 14, 2016). "30 shares Fred Armisen, Bill Hader kick off 'Documentary Now!' Season 2 as 'super insane' politicos". OregonLive.com. The Oregonian. Archived from the original on October 9, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  31. ^ Portlandia Archived December 20, 2010, at the Wayback Machine at IFC.com, 2010.
  32. ^ "Fred Armisen". Voice Chasers. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  33. ^ "Critic's corner". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on March 24, 2012.
  34. ^ Horgan, Richard (February 27, 2014). "Fred Armisen Deadpans His Way to Late Night Approval". ADWeek. Archived from the original on January 31, 2018. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  35. ^ "Fred Armisen: Biography". TV Guide. Archived from the original on July 28, 2013. Retrieved July 4, 2013.
  36. ^ ""My Parents Supported Me Making This Art about Them": Nira Burstein on Charm Circle". filmmakermagazine.com. November 12, 2021. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  37. ^ "Fred Armisen Revealed as Uncle Fester in Wednesday Trailer — Featuring Christina Ricci's Return". Peoplemag. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  38. ^ "Meet SNL's latest breakout star – Rob Brunner". Entertainment Weekly. November 8, 2002. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  39. ^ Czajkowski, Elise (June 28, 2013). "Talking to Fred Armisen About 'SNL', 'Portlandia', and Being Part of a Comedy Collective". Splitsider. Vulture. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  40. ^ "Fred Armisen and Bill Hader Say Goodbye to 'Saturday Night Live' – Connor Simpson". The Atlantic Wire. May 19, 2013. Archived from the original on October 8, 2013. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  41. ^ Armstrong, Josh E. "Seven Questions with Fred Armisen". Armstrong Interviews. Archived from the original on January 6, 2009. Retrieved July 15, 2008.
  42. ^ "Doppelgängers". This American Life. January 11, 2013. Archived from the original on January 20, 2014. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  43. ^ Smooching Deadlines Archived December 14, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, The Austin Chronicle, November 5, 1998.
  44. ^ Armisen, Fred (December 2011). "Inside Portlandia". YouTube. Archived from the original on February 28, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  45. ^ Armisen, Fred; Stosuy, Brandon (November 13, 2006). "Interview: Cat Power". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 6, 2008.
  46. ^ Jens Hannemann "COMPLICATED DRUMMING TECHNIQUE" Archived December 23, 2010, at the Wayback Machine on Drag City Educational Music DVD
  47. ^ "Fred Armisen Joins Joanna Newsom in Concert". Stereogum. March 25, 2010. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  48. ^ "Man Man: "Rabbit Habits (with Fred Armisen, Brett Gurewitz, others)"". Punknews.org. April 8, 2009. Archived from the original on May 26, 2011. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  49. ^ Blistein, Jon (December 15, 2021). "Ringo Starr Chucks Popcorn at Fred Armisen in Video for George Harrison's 'My Sweet Lord'". Rolling Stone. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  50. ^ "George Harrison – My Sweet Lord (Official Music Video)". YouTube. VEVO. December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  51. ^ "2015 American Ingenuity Award Winners". Smithsonian Magazine. Smithsonian. Archived from the original on October 12, 2018. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
  52. ^ Prato, Greg (March 6, 2018). The Yacht Rock Book. Jawbone Press. ISBN 978-1911036296.
  53. ^ "It's Head-Crushing Time! Prime Video Announces the Premiere Date and Trailer Release for Canadian Amazon Original Series The Kids in the Hall". newswire.ca. April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  54. ^ Borrelli, Christopher (January 11, 2012). "Fred Armisen: The Chicago years". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on July 23, 2012. Retrieved February 5, 2012.
  55. ^ Park, Michael Y. (October 26, 2009). "Mad Men's Elisabeth Moss Marries SNL's Fred Armisen". People. Archived from the original on January 8, 2011. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
  56. ^ Serpe, Gina (May 19, 2011). "Elisabeth Moss, Fred Armisen divorce official". Today. MSNBC. Archived from the original on May 20, 2011.
  57. ^ a b "Elisabeth Moss on Armisen marriage: 'Traumatic, awful, horrible'". LA Times. March 10, 2014.
  58. ^ Marquina, Sierra (August 26, 2014). "Natasha Lyonne and Fred Armisen Are Dating: Details". Us Weekly. Archived from the original on August 15, 2020. Retrieved August 30, 2020.
  59. ^ Jefferson, Whitney (September 19, 2016). "Fred Armisen And Natasha Lyonne Attended The Emmys In A Hearse". BuzzFeed. Archived from the original on September 18, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
  60. ^ Jackson, Dory (April 15, 2022). "Natasha Lyonne Confirms Split from Fred Armisen: 'We're Still Talking All the Time'". People. Archived from the original on April 17, 2022. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  61. ^ Gray, Delilah (December 11, 2022). "Fred Armisen & Riki Lindhome Snagged This Magical & Lush Cottage for $4 Million — See the Photos!". SheKnows. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  62. ^ Rosenblit, Rachel (January 9, 2012). "Portlandia's Comedy Chemistry". Elle. New York City: Hearst Publications. Archived from the original on January 22, 2013. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  63. ^ Fred Armisen: Transcript Archived November 27, 2012, at the Wayback Machine from WNYC's Here's the Thing. Retrieved September 14, 2012.
  64. ^ King, Larry (January 26, 2018). "If You Only Knew: Fred Armisen". Archived from the original on May 17, 2020. Retrieved February 11, 2019 – via YouTube.
  65. ^ Wojnar, Jason (July 30, 2020). "10 Crazy Stories About Red Dead Redemption 2's Development". Game Rant. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  66. ^ Pasbani, Robert (January 9, 2019). "Comedian Fred Armisen Tells Us His Favorite Metal Bands, What Working With DANZIG Was Like". Metal Injection. Archived from the original on June 16, 2019. Retrieved June 16, 2019.
  67. ^ "Real Time with Bill Maher". Episode 242. HBO. March 23, 2012. Archived from the original on March 29, 2012. Retrieved March 27, 2012.
Media offices
Preceded by Late Night bandleader
February 24, 2014–present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Fred_Armisen&oldid=1248098109"