Topics: International Speakers Bureau, Inc. |
Fee Range: Call For Quote (fee note) |
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 Biography: For Jason Alexander, nine seasons as hapless schlep George Costanza on NBC's Seinfeld have been the crowning glory to a 20 year career on stage, screen and television. With looks that can be pitiful, sympathetic, charming, devious, and even unscrupulous - combined with an equally malleable talent - this multi-Award-winning actor is in little danger of being stereotyped, however. For his portrayal of George, Alexander has earned six Emmy and four Golden Globe nominations, an American Television Award and two American Comedy Awards for Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series. The Screen Actors Guild went one step higher and knighted him Best Actor in a Comedy Series despite his role as a supporting actor. Now with Seinfeld behind him, Alexander can concentrate on his production company, Angel Ark Productions, which recently signed a multi-year development deal with Studios USA Television, under which it will produce comedy and drama series while also developing feature films, cable movies and MOW's. Alexander continues to defy an easy pigeonhole and during his last hiatus on Seinfeld completed filming two diverse projects. In the realm of film, he starred in the 1998 independent dark comedy DENIAL that answers the question, "Does monogamy really exist?" Alexander portrays a cynical, semi-successful novelist who plants the seed of doubt into three seemingly happy couples. He also starred as Lionel (the prince's valet) in ABC's version of Rogers and Hammerstein's Cinderella along with Whitney Houston, Brandy and Whoopi Goldberg. Currently, Alexander is in post-production on Universal's Rocky & Bullwinkle as Boris Badenov the live action/CGI special effects combo also starring Renee Russo and Robert DeNiro. One of the most versatile actors around, Alexander is also making waves as a director. His first effort behind the camera, for an episode of Seinfeld, was nominated for a DGA Award in 1993. Alexander's film debut was Castle Rock's romantic comedy For Better or Worse, in which he also starred opposite Lolita Davidovich and James Woods. One of his latest directing efforts was a 1997 episode of AMC's Remember When. Last summer Alexander directed an independent film, Just Looking, set in the 50s about young boys coming of age. Just Looking stars Patti LuPone, Gretchen Mol and Ryan Merriman with Jean Doumanian as the producer. Born and raised in New Jersey, Jason Alexander first found an audience among his classmates, entertaining them in an effort to distract from his chubbiness. At 16, he earned his first professional job when he was spotted in a children's theater group and was asked to perform on a local New York children's program. Two years later he landed his first film - The Burning, horror yarn produced by Harvey Weinstein while studying acting at Boston University. In 1995, Alexander returned to Boston University to received an honorary doctorate in Fine Arts. Alexander has appeared on the big screen in Brighton Beach Memoirs, Mosquito Coast, Jacob's Ladder, White Palace, Coneheads, Blankman, The Last Supper and the Academy Award nominated live action short film Down On the Waterfront. His most memorable roles include those in Rob Reiner's North, Ron Howard's The Paper, and as Richard Gere's villainous lawyer in Pretty Woman. As a leading man he has brought his comedic Checks In. In 1997 he garnered exceptional reviews for his wonderful portrayal of Buzz in the film version of Terrance McNally's Tony Award winning play Love! Valour! Compassion! A lover of theater, Alexander made his Broadway debut in the Hal Prince/Stephen Sondheim show Merrily We Roll Along. He later starred on Broadway in Rupert Holmes' Accomplice, Neil Simon's Broadway Bound and The Rink with Liza Minnelli and Chita Rivera. In 1989 his theatrical capstone came in Jerome Robbins' Broadway, for which he won a Tony, an Outer Critics and Drama Desk Awards for Best Actor in a Musical. As a loving tribute to Gilda Radner, Alexander and Julia Louis Dreyfus performed benefit readings in 1994 of Alan Zweibel's Bunny Bunny. In Los Angeles, he received unanimous kudos and a Dramalogue Award for his portrayal of Harry Truman in the one man play Give 'Em Hell Harry and most recently starred in Promises, Promises for Reprise! Broadway's Best in Concert. Among his television work, Alexander starred in the CBS series Everything's Relative, the Elliot Gould comedy series E.R., the mini-series Favorite Son, ABC's version of Bye Bye Birdie opposite Vanessa Williams hosted Saturday Night Live, and earned an Emmy nomination for a supporting guest spot on HBO's Dream On. Alexander never ceases to surprise us, revealing an even broader range with song and dance numbers for The Comedy Hall of Fame, The Kennedy Center Honors, and The 1994 Emmy Awards, (for which he was nominated for an American Comedy Award) and as a co-host of The 1995 Emmy Awards with Cybill Sheperd. Most recently, he performed with the Boston Pops on PBS and with the orchestra again at Carnegie Hall. Alexander's voice has become equally as famous in animated features and television series. For four seasons, he starred in USA Network's critically acclaimed voice work in The Return of Jafar and Hercules as well as Hugo the gargoyle in Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. In the commercial realm, the actor has lent his image to numerous campaigns, most notably as The Amazing Pretzel Boy for Frito Lay's award winning Rold Gold pretzels. Donating his time to many charitable causes, the one closest to his heart is serving as a spokesperson for the United Scleroderma Foundation, his own sister suffered from Scleroderma, a life threatening disease of the vascular immune systems that primarily affects women. Admittingly he misses the New York Theater community, but he now calls Los Angeles his home, where this multi-talented actor/director/producer/writer/singer/dancer lives with his wife Daena and their sons Gabriel and Noah. *By special arrangement with Paradigm |
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Programs: DONNY CLAY Donny Clay (as performed by award-winning and internationally known actor, Jason Alexander) is one of the most sought after and highly regarded motivational speakers in the world today. Donny Clay will turn your event into the most powerful tool for enlightenment and change. Or he won't. Either way, you'll be laughing so hard, you won't notice. Inspired by numerous stints as an M.C. for events, Seinfeld alum Jason Alexander has created a new comedy act specifically for conferences and corporate meetings. Donny Clay is Alexander's parody of a motivational speaker - or, rather, his parody of a really bad motivational speaker. The actor plans to tailor each show to the client, and in addition to send-ups of stereotypical motivational seminars, his appearance can include sketches incorporating the host organization's staff, musical numbers, additional characters, or magic acts. This unique comedy show is presented as a motivational/inspirational seminar. However, it is actually a hysterical sendup of the Tony Robbins/Deepak Chopra/Dr. Phil milieu. The show runs from 45 minutes to an hour; Alexander can also do a meet-and greet session. |
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