Will Ferrell
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Image:WillFerrell.jpg John William "Will" Ferrell (born July 16, 1967) is an American comedian, impressionist, and actor who first established himself as a cast member of Saturday Night Live.
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Biography
Ferrell was born in Irvine, California to Lee Ferrell (a keyboardist for The Righteous Brothers) and Kay Overman. He attended Rancho San Joaquin Middle School and University High School in Irvine and became interested in performing while making his school's daily morning announcements over the public address system in disguised voices. He then enrolled at the University of Southern California, where he studied Sports Broadcasting and was a member of Delta Tau Delta Fraternity. After graduating in 1989, Ferrell developed his improvisation skills as a member of the comedy group The Groundlings.
Saturday Night Live
Although never executed, Will Ferrell had planned a bit to win over the spot from SNL producer Lorne Michaels. It is a tradition of the show that prospective cast members sit down with Lorne and have a "final interview." It was Will's idea to arrive with a suitcase full of monopoly money and say, "I'm prepared to do anything to be on this show, Mr. Michaels." After bringing the suitcase to the audition and subsequent meetings, it became apparent that there would be no need for the suitcase bit and Will aborted such idea.
During his time on SNL, Ferrell made a name for himself with impersonations of
- U.S. President George W. Bush ("strategery" was one of several "Bushisms" created by Ferrell during skits about the 2000 campaign),
- announcer Harry Caray,
- singer Robert Goulet (crooning a cappella pieces of music by Sisqó, Baha Men, and Notorious B.I.G.),
- singer Neil Diamond,
- Inside the Actors Studio personality James Lipton,
- Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy,
- U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno,
- convicted Unabomber Ted Kaczynski,
- game show host Alex Trebek, and
- professional wrestler-turned-Governor of Minnesota Jesse Ventura.
His original characters included "Morning Latte" co-host Tom Wilkins, Ed the Horse's twin brother Ned, music teacher Marty Culp, Spartan cheerleader Craig Buchanan, Dale Sturtevant "Dissing Your Dog", and night clubber Steve Butabi in a sketch that became the 1998 film A Night at the Roxbury.
Image:Cowbell2.gif
Ferrell returned to Saturday Night Live as a guest host on May 14, 2005. In one sketch, he reprised his role as Robert Goulet, advertising a series of crooned ringtones. Also on the same episode, during the performance of the song "Little Sister" by musical guests Queens of the Stone Age, Ferrell came onstage playing the cowbell: this was in reference to a famous 2000 sketch in which he portrayed Gene Frenkle, a member of Blue Öyster Cult, who plays the cowbell in the sketch during the band's recording of (Don't Fear) The Reaper. (Eric Bloom has claimed credit as the band's cowbell player on the original track.) He also reprised his famous role as Alex Trebek in Celebrity Jeopardy! with Darrell Hammond also reprising his role as Sean Connery, Kenan Thompson as Bill Cosby, and Amy Poehler as Sharon Osbourne.
He hosted the USC School of Cinema-Television’s 75th Anniversary Gala [1], where his alma mater was recognized as the first educational institution of its kind in the country.
Death Hoax
Following a recent announcement on i-Newswire.com, it was believed that Ferrell had died in a paragliding accident. This later turned out to be a hoax, which came about as i-Newswire.com accepts press releases from users for publication on its website. A user submitted the aforementioned report, and it was published before anyone realised its factual inaccuracies. The story was further propagated when it appeared on Google News. [2]
The Frat Pack
Ferrell is part of the unofficial Frat Pack group that also includes Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, Vince Vaughn, and Jack Black. This group of actors has worked with one another numerous times in several collaborations from movies to show appearances to award shows. Ferrell's first official connection to the frat pack could be considered the 2001 release Zoolander, in which Ben Stiller starred and directed alongside Owen Wilson with Vince Vaughn in a cameo appearance.
Ferrell's frat pack filmography includes Old School, Starsky & Hutch (uncredited), Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Wake Up, Ron Burgundy, and Wedding Crashers
Awards and nominations
2005 Golden Raspberry Awards
Two nominations:
- Worst Actor (Bewitched & Kicking & Screaming)
- Worst Screen Couple (with Nicole Kidman, for Bewitched)
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Old School 2 | Frank Ricard | (pre-prodution) |
| Blades of Glory | Unknown | (filming) | |
| 2006 | Joan of Bark: The Dog That Saved France | Unknown | (pre-production) |
| Stranger Than Fiction | Harold Crick | (completed) | |
| Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby | Ricky Bobby | (post-production) | |
| Curious George | Ted/Man in the Yellow Hat | (voice only) | |
| 2005 | The Producers | Franz Liebkind | |
| Winter Passing | Corbit | ||
| Wedding Crashers | Chazz Reinhold | ||
| Bewitched | Jack Wyatt/Darrin | ||
| Kicking & Screaming | Phil Weston | ||
| The Wendell Baker Story | Dave Bix | ||
| 2004 | Melinda and Melinda | Hobie | |
| Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy | Ron Burgundy | (also writer) | |
| Starsky & Hutch | Big Earl | ||
| Oh, What a Lovely Tea Party | Himself | (documentary) | |
| 2003 | Elf | Buddy | |
| Old School | Frank Ricard | ||
| 2002 | Boat Trip | Brian's Boyfriend | |
| 2001 | Zoolander | Mugatu | |
| Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back | Federal Wildlife Marshal Willenholly | ||
| 2000 | The Ladies Man | Lance DeLune | |
| Drowning Mona | Cubby the Funeral Director | ||
| 1999 | Superstar | Sky Corrigan/Jesus | |
| Dick | Bob Woodward | ||
| Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me | Mustafa | ||
| The Suburbans | Gil | ||
| 1998 | A Night at the Roxbury | Steve Butabi | (also writer) |
| The Thin Pink Line | Darren Clark | ||
| 1997 | Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery | Mustafa | |
| Men Seeking Women | Al | ||
| 1995 | Bucket of Blood | Young Man | |
| Criminal Hearts | Newscaster |
Television Work
- Saturday Night Live (cast member from 1995-2002)
- Cow and Chicken (1997-2001) (voice in various episodes)
- Saturday Night Live: Presidential Bash 2000 (2000)
- The Oblongs (2001-2002) (voice)
- Family Guy (2000-2001) (voice in various episodes)