Editing Jon Lovitz

'''Jonathan M. Lovitz''' (born [[July 21]], [[1957]]) is an American [[actor]] and [[comedian]] perhaps best known as a cast member of ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' and the voice of Jay Sherman in ''[[The Critic]]''.

==Early life==
Lovitz was born in [[Tarzana, California]] to a [[Jew]]ish couple.<ref>http://www.filmreference.com/film/59/Jon-Lovitz.html</ref> He attended and studied theater at the [[University of California, Irvine|University of California at Irvine]] and graduated in 1979. He studied acting with Tony Barr at the Film Actors Workshop. He became a member of [[The Groundlings]] comedy troupe where he befriended [[Phil Hartman]] and [[Paul Reubens]]. His father was an  [[immigrant]] from [[Albania]] who lived in [[Jacksonville]], [[Florida]], and later moved to [[California]].

==Career==
===''Saturday Night Live''===
Lovitz was a cast member of ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' from [[1985 in television|1985]] to [[1990 in television|1990]]. He later said in an interview for the book ''Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live'' that his time on ''SNL'' was the most memorable in his career. He went from having no money to being offered a [[United States dollar|$]]500,000 movie contract. He was nominated for an [[Emmy]] his first two years on ''Saturday Night Live''. One of his most notable ''SNL'' characters was "[[Saturday Night Live characters appearing on Weekend Update#Tommy Flanagan, the Pathological Liar|Tommy Flanagan, The Pathological Liar]]" that generated the [[catch phrase]], "Yeah! That's the ticket!"  Some of his other recurring characters included [[Master Thespian]], [[Tonto (Lone Ranger character)|Tonto]], [[Mephistopheles]], [[Hanukkah Harry]], and [[Michael Dukakis]].

===Voice over work===
Lovitz has lent his [[voice actor|voice]] to several [[animated television series|cartoons]] and films. In the series ''[[The Critic]]'' he played the title character of Jay Sherman. On ''[[The Simpsons]]'' he played [[Marge Simpson|Marge]]'s ex-prom date Artie Ziff, theater director Llewellyn Sinclair (and his sister, who runs a daycare center) on the season four episode "[[A Streetcar Named Marge]]", Jay Sherman from ''The Critic'' in the Season 6 crossover episode "[[A Star Is Burns]]", and paparazzo Enrico Irritazio in the season eighteen episode "[[Homerazzi]]". He also played Professor Lombardo and Aristotle Amadopolous.

===Movie cameos and television guest appearances===
In the late 1990s, Lovitz was "the man who wrote the [[Yellow Pages]]", in a series of commercials and print ads for the American Yellow Pages industry.

He also had an uncredited [[cameo role|cameo]] as a rival [[crooner]] to [[Adam Sandler]] in the movie ''[[The Wedding Singer]]''. 

Lovitz has also appeared on ''[[Friends]]'' twice. He first appeared in the Season 1 episode "[[The One with the Stoned Guy]]" as a restaurateur who gets stoned on marijuana trip just prior to interviewing [[Monica Geller]] for a job. He reappeared years later in the Season 9 episode "[[The One with the Blind Dates]]", where it is revealed that he lost his restaurant due to a drug problem.  

He also appeared on ''[[Seinfeld]]'' as Gary Fogel, a man who lies about having [[cancer]] ("[[The Scofflaw]]") and later dies in a car accident.

Lovitz guest-starred twice on ''[[Newsradio]]'' as two separate characters before becoming a cast member in the show's final season (playing a third character).

===Broadway theatre===
He has appeared on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] at the [[Music Box Theatre]] in [[Neil Simon]]'s play ''[[The Dinner Party (play)|The Dinner Party]]'', taking over the lead role from [[Henry Winkler]]. He sang at [[Carnegie Hall]] three times (including Great Performances' ''Ira Gershwin at 100: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall'') and sang the [[national anthem]] at [[Dodger Stadium]] and the [[U.S. Open (tennis)|U.S. Open]].

On [[October 10]], [[2001]], Lovitz sang a duet (with [[Robbie Williams]]) of the song "Well, Did You Evah" at the [[Royal Albert Hall]] in the [[United Kingdom|UK]]. The recording can be found on the ''[[Swing When You're Winning]]'' album.

===Stand-up comedy===
In 2005, Lovitz entered [[stand-up comedy]] for the first time in his career. He also appeared in the film ''[[The Producers (2005 film)|The Producers]]'' as the strict accounting firm chairman, Mr. Marx. In [[2006]], he became the spokesperson in an advertising campaign for the [[Subway (restaurant)|Subway]] restaurant chain. He was dropped from the campaign later that year by [[Fred De Luca]] after test audiences and a number of phone calls and letters deemed him not funny enough to cause people to eat. {{Fact|date=October 2007}}

On [[May 31]], [[2007]] the [[Laugh Factory]] on [[Sunset Strip]] announced that Lovitz had signed a deal to appear there every Wednesday night for the rest of his life. Or, Lovitz could appear in [[New York]] if he is there on a project such as a movie. In addition, Lovitz will write a Laugh Factory blog giving advice to up-and-coming comedians. Lovitz commented "Who knows? I could become the [[Don Ho]] of [[Los Angeles]]," he said. "God knows I've got enough [[Hawaiian shirts]]".<ref>http://www.eonline.com/news/article/index.jsp?uuid=cdc5216b-4a43-48d0-89cd-65bbf8c763af</ref>

==Confrontation with Andy Dick==
On [[July 11]], [[2007]], Lovitz got into a violent confrontation with fellow comedian [[Andy Dick]] at the Laugh Factory. Lovitz had long blamed Dick for reintroducing [[Phil Hartman]]'s wife [[Brynn Hartman|Brynn]] to [[cocaine]] (after 10 years of [[sobriety]]) just five months before she would murder her husband and commit [[suicide]]. Laugh Factory owner Jamie Masada said, "Jon picked Andy up by the head and smashed him into the bar four or five times, and blood started gushing out of his nose." Dick had previously said to Lovitz he would "put the 'Phil Hartman [[hex]]' on you - you’re the next one to die."<ref>http://www.nypost.com/seven/07172007/gossip/pagesix/pagesix.htm</ref> Lovitz told ''Page Six'', "All the comedians are glad I did it because this guy is an asshole." He has not commented further. Lovitz succeeded Hartman on the comedy series ''[[NewsRadio]]'' following Hartman's murder; Dick was a co-star. 

Recently, Lovitz was on the 97.1 Morning Show. When he was asked about the Andy Dick incident, he replied ,"Oh, I just call him A. Dick."<ref>http://video.msn.com/v/us/msnbc.htm?g=85cde3f0-f86d-41d2-bbd2-deee6b84c48f&f=00&fg=copy</ref>

==Filmography==
===Films===
{|border = 1
! Film !! Year !! Role
|-
|[[Hamburger The Motion Picture]]
|1986
|''Security Guard''
|-
|[[Last Resort (film)|Last Resort]]
|1986
|''Bartender''
|-
|[[Jumpin' Jack Flash (film)|Jumpin' Jack Flash]]
|1986
|''Doug''
|-
|[[Ratboy]]
|1986
|''Party Guest''
|-
|[[¡Three Amigos!]]
|1986
|''Morty''
|-
|[[The Brave Little Toaster]]
|1987
|''The Radio'' (voice)
|-
|[[Big (film)|Big]]
|1988
|''Scotty Brennen''
|-
|[[My Stepmother is an Alien]]
|1988
|''Ron Mills''
|-
|[[Cranium Command (film)|Cranium Command]] (short subject)
|1989
|''Right Cranium''
|-
|[[Mr. Destiny]]
|1990
|''Clip Metzler''
|-
|[[Tales from the Crypt (TV series)|Tales from the Crypt]]
|1991 
|''Barry Blye''
|-
|[[An American Tail: Fievel Goes West]]
|1991
|''T.R. Chula''
|-
|[[A League of Their Own]]
|1992
|''Ernie Capadino''
|-
|[[Mom and Dad Save The World]]
|1992
|''Emperor Todd Spengo''
|-
|[[Loaded Weapon 1]]
|1993
|''Becker''
|-
|[[Coneheads (film)|Coneheads]]
|1993
|''Dr. Rudolph, Dentist'' (uncredited)
|-
|[[City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold]]
|1994
|''Glen Robbins''
|-
|[[North (film)|North]]
|1994
|''Arthur Belt''
|-
|[[Trapped in Paradise]]
|1994
|''Dave Firpo''
|-
|[[The Great White Hype]]
|1996
|''Sol''
|-
|[[Matilda (film)|Matilda]]
|1996
|''Million $ Sticky Host''
|-
|[[High School High]]
|1996
|''Richard Clark''
|-
|[[The Wedding Singer]]
|1998
|''Jimmie Moore'' (uncredited)
|-
|''Banjo-Kazooie''(Promotional Video)
|1998
|''Narrator(Voice) 
|-
|[[Happiness (film)|Happiness]]
|1998
|''Andy Kornbluth''
|-
|[[Spyro the Dragon]] (video game)
|1998
|''Tomas, Oswin, Cosmos, Zane, additional voices (voice)
|-
|[[Lost & Found (1999 film)|Lost and Found]]
|1999
|''Uncle Harry''
|-
|[[Small Time Crooks]]
|2000
|''Benny''
|-
|[[Little Nicky (film)|Little Nicky]]
|2000
|''Pepper''
|-
|[[Sand (film)|Sand]]
|2000
|''Kirby''
|-
|[[3000 Miles to Graceland]]
|2001
|''Jay Peterson''
|-
|[[Cats & Dogs]]
|2001
|''Calico'' (voice)
|-
|[[Rat Race (film)|Rat Race]]
|2001
|''Randall 'Randy' Pear''
|-
|[[Good Advice]]
|2001
|''Barry Sherman''
|-
|[[Eight Crazy Nights]]
|2002
|''Tom Baltezor'' (voice)
|-
|[[Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star]]
|2003
|''Sidney Wernick''
|-
|[[The Stepford Wives (2004 film)|The Stepford Wives]]
|2004
|''Dave Markowitz''
|-
|Pancho's Pizza (short film)
|2005
|
|-
|[[Bailey's Billion$]]
|2005
|''Bailey'' (voice)
|-
|[[The Producers (2005 film)|The Producers]]
|2005
|''Mr. Marks''
|-
|[[Pokemon: Ash Ketchum meets Bugs Bunny (2005 film)|Pokemon: Ash Ketchum meets Bugs Bunny]]
|2005
|''Henchmen'' (voice)
|-
|[[The Benchwarmers]]
|2006
|''Mel''
|-
|[[Southland Tales]]
|2007
|''Bart Bookman''
|-
|[[Farce of the Penguins]]
|2007
|''My eyes are up here Penguin'' (voice)
|-
|[[I Could Never Be Your Woman]]
|2007
|
|-
|}

===Television===
{|border = 1
! Show !! Years !! Role
|-
|''[[Saturday Night Live]]''
|1985-1990
|various
|-
|''[[Seinfeld]]''
|1989-1998
|'Gary Fogle' in [[The Scofflaw]]
|-
|''[[The Simpsons]]''
|1991-
|''[[List of one-time characters from The Simpsons#Llewellyn .26 Ms. Sinclair|Llewellyn Sinclair, Ms. Sinclair]], Professor Lombardo, Enrico Irritazio, [[List of recurring characters from The Simpsons#Artie Ziff|Artie Ziff]], [[List of one-time characters from The Simpsons#Aristotle Amadopoulos|Aristotle Amadopoulos]], and [[Jay Sherman]]''.
|-
|''[[Friends]]''
|1995 & 2003
|''Restaurant owner who interviews [[Monica Geller]] and later goes out on a date with [[Rachel Green]]''
|-
|''[[The Critic]]''
|1994-1995
|''[[Jay Sherman]]''
|-
|-
|''[[NewsRadio]]''
|1998-1999
|''[[Max Louis]]'', ''Fred'',<ref>http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001484/filmoseries#tt0112095</reF> and ''Mike Johnson''<ref>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newsradio#Cast</ref>
|-
|}

{{Simpsons Cast}}