Jerry Stiller

Gerald Isaac Stiller (June 8, 1927 – May 11, 2020) was an American comedian and actor. He spent many years as part of the comedy duo Stiller and Meara with his wife, Anne Meara, to whom he was married for over 60 years until her death in 2015. Stiller saw a late-career resurgence starting in 1993, playing Frank Costanza on the sitcom Seinfeld, a part which earned him an Emmy nomination. In 1998, Stiller began his role as Arthur Spooner on the CBS comedy series The King of Queens, another role that garnered widespread acclaim.<ref name="Bjorklund">Template:Cite book</ref>

Stiller appeared together with his son Ben Stiller in films such as Zoolander, Heavyweights, Hot Pursuit, The Heartbreak Kid, and Zoolander 2. He also performed voice-over work for films and television, including The Lion King 1½ and Planes: Fire and Rescue. In his later career, Stiller became known for portraying grumpy and eccentric characters who were nevertheless beloved.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Early life

The eldest of four children, Gerald Isaac Stiller was born on June 8, 1927, at Unity Hospital in New York City, to Bella (née Citron; 1902–1954) and William Stiller (1896–1999), a taxi and bus driver.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His family is Jewish. His paternal grandparents emigrated from Galicia (southeast Poland and western Ukraine), and his mother was born in Frampol, in modern-day eastern Poland.<ref name="Stiller2000">Template:Cite book</ref> He lived in the Williamsburg and East New York neighborhoods of Brooklyn before his family moved to the Lower East Side of Manhattan,<ref>Jerry Stiller's Own Private East Side</ref> where he attended Seward Park High School<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and played Adolf Hitler in a school production.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref>

Upon his return from service in the U.S. Army during World War II,<ref>"Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara Brought Us So Much More than Laughs". Country Living. Retrieved March 8, 2020.</ref><ref>"Comedian Jerry Stiller schleps to the Statler to give his shtick on Ithaca". Cornell Chronicle. Retrieved March 21, 2010.</ref> Stiller attended Syracuse University, earning a bachelor's degree in Speech and Drama in 1950.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He also studied drama at HB Studio in Greenwich Village.<ref name="Variety">Template:Cite news</ref> In the 1953 Phoenix Theater production of Coriolanus (produced by John Houseman), Stiller, along with Gene Saks and Jack Klugman, formed (as told by Houseman in the 1980 memoir Front and Center) "the best trio of Shakespearian clowns that I have ever seen on any stage".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Also in 1953, Stiller met actress-comedian Anne Meara, and they married in 1954. Until Stiller suggested it, Meara had never thought of doing comedy. "Jerry started us being a comedy team," she said. "He always thought I would be a great comedy partner."<ref name=NYT>Template:Cite news</ref> They joined the St. Louis improv company The Compass Players in 1959, directed by David Shepherd. After leaving, they began performing together. In 1961, they were performing in nightclubs in New York City and by the following year were considered a "national phenomenon", said the New York Times.<ref name=NYT/>

Stiller and Meara

File:Jerry Stiller - Anne Meara.JPG

Stiller and Meara publicity photo with an autograph, 1965

The comedy team Stiller and Meara, composed of Stiller and his wife, Anne Meara, was successful throughout the 1960s, with numerous appearances on television variety programs, primarily on The Ed Sullivan Show.<ref name="Ross2009">Template:Cite book</ref> In 1970, they broke up the live act before it broke up their marriage. They subsequently forged a career in radio commercials, notably the campaign for Blue Nun wine. They also starred in their own syndicated five-minute sketch comedy show on radio, Take Five with Stiller and Meara, from 1977 to 1978.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

From 1979 to 1982, Stiller and Meara hosted HBO Sneak Previews, a half-hour show produced monthly on which they described the movies and programs to be featured in the coming month. They also did some comedy sketches between show discussions. The duo had their own 1986 TV sitcom, The Stiller and Meara Show, in which Stiller played the deputy mayor of New York City and Meara portrayed his wife, a TV commercial actress.

Career resurgence

Seinfeld

Late in his career, Stiller earned the part of the short-tempered Frank Costanza, father of George Costanza, on the sitcom Seinfeld. He played the role from 1993 until 1998.<ref name=Timeobituary/> Stiller's character as initially envisioned was a "meek" and "Thurberesque" character that required him to wear a bald cap. After a couple of days of rehearsal, Stiller realized the character was not working and asked Seinfeld co-creator Larry David if he could perform the character in a different way, which was more in line with his final characterization on the show.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> For his portrayal of Frank, Stiller gained widespread critical and popular acclaim, including being nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 1997 and winning an American Comedy Award for Funniest Male Guest Appearance in a TV Series in 1998.<ref name=Timeobituary>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The King of Queens

File:Jerry Stiller 2006.jpg

Stiller in 2006

After Seinfeld ended, Stiller had planned on retiring. However, Kevin James asked him to join the cast of The King of Queens. James, who played the leading role of Doug Heffernan, had told Stiller that he needed him to have a successful show. Stiller agreed and played the role of Arthur Spooner, the father of Carrie Heffernan, from 1998 until 2007. Stiller said that this role tested his acting ability more than any other had, and that, before being a part of The King of Queens, he only saw himself as a "decent actor".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Other appearances

Stiller played himself in filmed skits opening and closing Canadian rock band Rush's 30th Anniversary Tour concerts in 2004. These appearances are seen on the band's DVD R30: 30th Anniversary World Tour, released in 2005. Stiller later appeared in cameos for in-concert films for the band's 2007–08 Snakes & Arrows Tour. Stiller appeared on Dick Clark's $20,000 Pyramid show in the 1970s, and footage of the appearance was edited into an episode of The King of Queens to assist the storyline about his character being a contestant on the show, and, after losing, being bitter about the experience, as he never received his parting gift, a years supply of Rice-A-Roni.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> He also made several appearances on the game show Tattletales with his wife, Anne Meara.

In the late 1990s, Stiller appeared in a series of Nike television commercials as the ghost of deceased Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi. He also appeared in various motion pictures, most notably Hairspray (1988), Secret of the Andes (1999), Zoolander (2001) and Hairspray (2007). He appeared together with his son Ben Stiller in Zoolander, as well as films including Hot Pursuit (1987), Highway to Hell (1992), Heavyweights (1995), The Heartbreak Kid (2007), and Zoolander 2 (2016). He also performed voice work for films such as The Lion King 1½ and Planes: Fire and Rescue.

On February 9, 2007, Stiller and Meara were honored with a joint star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. On October 28, 2010, the couple appeared on an episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Stiller voiced the announcer on the children's educational show Crashbox. Starting in October 2010, Stiller and Meara began starring in Stiller & Meara, a Yahoo web series from Red Hour Digital in which they discussed current topics. Each episode was about two minutes long.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Stiller also worked as a spokesman for Xfinity.

Author

File:JerryStillerNYC05.jpg

Stiller at a book reading for Festivus in New York City in 2005

Stiller wrote the foreword to the 2005 book Festivus: The Holiday for the Rest of Us (Template:ISBN) by Allen Salkin. The book discussed Festivus, the fictional holiday promulgated by Stiller's Seinfeld character Frank Costanza.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Stiller also authored a memoir titled Married to Laughter: A Love Story Featuring Anne Meara, which was published by Simon & Schuster (Template:ISBN).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Personal life

Stiller was married to Anne Meara for over 60 years, from 1954 until her death on May 23, 2015.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The two met in an agent's office. Meara was upset about an interaction with the casting agent, so Stiller took her out for coffee — all he could afford — and they remained together thereafter. Meara was Irish Catholic and converted to Judaism before the couple's children were born.<ref name=":2" /> They had two children: actress Amy Stiller (born 1961) and actor-comedian Ben Stiller (born 1965).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He had two grandchildren through Ben.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="NP">Template:Cite news</ref>

Death

On May 11, 2020, Stiller died from natural causes at his home on the Upper West Side of Manhattan at the age of 92.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Many actors Stiller worked with paid tributes to him, including Seinfeld castmates Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and King of Queens castmates Kevin James and Leah Remini.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He is buried in Nantucket, Massachusetts.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Filmography

Film

Year	Film	Role	Notes	Ref(s)
1970	Lovers and Other Strangers	Jim	Uncredited	<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
1974	Template:Sort	Lt. Rico Patrone		<ref name=":0" />
	Airport 1975	Sam		<ref name=":0" />
1976	Template:Sort	Carmine Vespucci		<ref name=":0" />
1977	Nasty Habits	P.R. Priest		<ref name=":0" />
1980	Those Lips, Those Eyes	Mr. Shoemaker		<ref name=":0" />
1986	Seize the Day	Dr. Tamkin		<ref name=":0" />
1987	Hot Pursuit	Victor Honeywell		<ref name=":0" />
	Nadine	Raymond Escobar		<ref name=":0" />
1988	Hairspray	Wilbur Turnblad		<ref name=":0" />
1989	That's Adequate	Sid Lane		<ref name=":0" />
1990	Little Vegas	Sam		<ref name=":0" />
1992	Highway to Hell	The Desk Cop		<ref name=":0" />
	Freefall	Emily's Father	Short
1993	Template:Sort	Phil Hirsch		<ref name=":0" />
1995	Heavyweights	Harvey Bushkin		<ref name=":0" />
1997	A Rat's Tale	Prof. Plumpingham		<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref>
	Camp Stories	Schlomo		<ref name=":0" />
	Stag	Ted		<ref name=":0" />
	The Deli	Petey Cheesecake		<ref name=":0" />
1999	Template:Sort	Sam Kaplan		<ref name=":0" />
	Secret of the Andes	Dr. Golfisch		<ref name=":0" />
	Template:Sort	Speedo Silverburg		<ref name=":0" />
2000	Template:Sort	Monty Fineman		<ref name=":0" />
	My 5 Wives	Don Giovani		<ref name=":0" />
	Chump Change	The Colonel		<ref name=":0" />
2001	Zoolander	Maury Ballstein		<ref name=":0" />
	On the Line	Nathan		<ref name=":0" />
2002	Serving Sara	Milton the Cop		<ref name=":0" />
2004	Teacher's Pet	Pretty Boy	Voice	<ref>Template:Citation</ref>
	Template:Sort	Uncle Max	Voice; Direct-to-DVD	<ref name=":0" />
	Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy	Man in Bar	Uncredited	<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
2005	R30: 30th Anniversary World Tour	Himself		<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2007	Hairspray	Mr. Pinky		<ref name=":0" />
	Template:Sort	Doc		<ref name=":0" />
2008	Snakes & Arrows Live	Heidi		<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
2011	Swinging with the Finkels	Mr. Winters		<ref name=":0" />
2012	Foodfight!	General X	Voice	<ref name=":0" />
	Excuse Me for Living	Morty		<ref name=":0" />
2014	Planes: Fire & Rescue	Harvey	Voice	<ref name=":1" />
	Simpler Times	Harry	Short
2016	Zoolander 2	Maury Ballstein	Cameo	<ref name="cnn">Template:Cite web</ref>

Television

Year	Show	Role	Notes	Ref(s)
1956–1957	Studio One in Hollywood	Sergeant Joe Capriotti / Hugh	2 episodes	<ref name="Variety"/>
1957	Template:Sort	Tyler	Episode: "The Hoax"
1959	Armstrong Circle Theatre	Pfc. Elwood Johnson	Episode: "Thunder Over Berlin"
1962	Template:Sort	Sergeant Wysenski	Episode: "The Empty Chute"
	General Electric Theater	Harold	Episode: "Acres and Pains"
1964	Brenner	Chris Zelco	Episode: "The Plain Truth"
1964–1965	Linus the Lionhearted		3 episodes	<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
1966–1978	The Mike Douglas Show	Himself	40 episodes
1967–1973	The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson		14 episodes
1969	That's Life		Episode: "Our First Fight"
1971–1972	Template:Sort	Mr. Landon / Paul Sterling	2 episodes	<ref name=":1"/>
1971–1973	Love, American Style	Leonard Ferguson / Harry	2 episodes	<ref name=":1"/>
1972	Template:Sort	Himself	Episode: "#6.8"
1972–1973	Template:Sort	Barney Dickerson	4 episodes	<ref name=":1"/>
1975–1976	Joe and Sons	Gus Duzik	14 episodes	<ref name=":1"/>
1976	Phyllis	Burt Hillman	Episode: "Phyllis and the Jumper"	<ref name="Variety"/>
	Rhoda	Lloyd Zimmer	Episode: "A Touch of Classy"	<ref name="Variety"/>
1979	Time Express	Edward Chernoff	Episode: "Garbage Man/Doctor's Wife"
1979–1983	Template:Sort	Harlan Weatherly / Tony Vitelli / Bud Hanrahan	3 episodes	<ref name=":1"/>
1980–1982	Archie Bunker's Place	Carmine	2 episodes	<ref name=":1"/>
1981	Madame X	Burt Orland	Television film
	Hart to Hart	Myron Finkle	Episode: "Murder Takes a Bow"	<ref name="Variety"/>
	Private Benjamin	Sgt. Muldoon	Episode: "So Long, Sergeant Ross"
1982	Simon & Simon	Harold Traxler	Episode: "The Uncivil Servant"	<ref name=":1"/>
	Alice	Gordy	Episode: "Do You Take This Waitress"	<ref name=":1"/>
1983	Reading Rainbow	Dinosaur Comic	Episode: "Digging Up Dinosaurs"	<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
	Amanda's	Sal	Episode: "You Were Meant for Me"
	Template:Sort	Mel Binns	Television film
1984	Trapper John, M.D.	Artie Merrow	Episode: "Where There's a Will"	<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref>
1985	Template:Sort	Brahms	Episode: "The Equalizer" Template:Small
	Tales from the Darkside	Luther Mandrake	Episode: "The Devil's Advocate"
1986	Screen Two	Marty de Reske	Episode: "The McGuffin"	<ref name=":1"/>
1987	Saturday Night Live	Stu	Episode: "Charlton Heston/Wynton Marsalis"
1988–1989	Tattingers	Sid Wilbur	14 episodes	<ref name="Variety"/>
1989	Murder, She Wrote	SFPD Lt. Birnbaum	Episode: "When the Fat Lady Sings"	<ref name=":0" />
1990	Monsters	Victor	Episode: "One Wolf's Family"	<ref name=":1"/>
	Sweet 15	Waterman	Television film	<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
1991	American Playhouse	Sam / Seymour Shapir	2 episodes	<ref name=":0" />
	Women & Men 2	Irving	Television film
1992–1996	Law & Order	Michael Tobis / Sam Pokras	2 episodes	<ref name=":0" />
1993–1998	Seinfeld	Frank Costanza	26 episodes	<ref name=":0" />
1993	L.A. Law	Nat Pincus	Episode: "Rhyme and Punishment"	<ref name="Variety"/>
1994	In the Heat of the Night	Rabbi Feldman	Episode: "The Rabbi"	<ref name=":1" />
1995	Homicide: Life on the Street	McGonnigal	Episode: "In Search of Crimes Past"	<ref name=":0" />
1996	Deadly Games	Phil Cullen	Episode: "Dr. Kramer"
1997	Subway Stories	Old Man	Television film	<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
1998	Touched by an Angel	Maury Salt	Episode: "Cry and You Cry Alone"	<ref name=":0" />
	Template:Sort	Himself	Episode: "I Buried Sid"	<ref name=":0" />
	Hercules	Eagle	Voice; Episode: "Hercules and the Promethus Affair"
1998–2007	Template:Sort	Arthur Spooner	195 episodes	<ref name=":0" />
2000–2002	Teacher's Pet	Pretty Boy	Voice; 11 episodes	<ref name=":0" />
2003	Odd Job Jack	Jim McDonald	Episode: "A Candidacy of Dunces"	<ref name=":1" />
	Sex and the City	Mr. Brady	Episode: "One"	<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2009	Wonder Pets!	Bernie	Voice; Episode: Save the Old White Mouse	<ref name=":1" />
	Mercy	Joe Thalberg	Episode: "The Last Thing I Said Was"	<ref name=":0" />
2010	Ice Dreams	Skipper	Television film	<ref name=":1" />
2010–2011	Fish Hooks	Principal Stickler	Voice; 21 episodes	<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2011	Template:Sort	Judge Felix Afterman	Episode: "Silver Bullet"	<ref name=":0" />
2014	How Murray Saved Christmas	Murray Weiner	Voice; Television film	<ref name=":1" />
2016	Zoolander: Super Model	Maury Ballstein	Voice; Television film (final film role)

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Theatre	Ref(s)
1954	Template:Sort	Mayor Juniper	Alvin Theatre	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway">Template:Cite web</ref>
1955	Template:Sort	The Propertyman	Phoenix Theatre, Broadway	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1956	Diary of a Scoundrel	Styopka		<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
	Template:Sort	Policeman		<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1957	Measure for Measure	Barnadine		<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
	Template:Sort	Biondello		<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1958	Template:Sort	Mestizo		<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1975	Template:Sort	Carmen Vespucci	Longacre Theatre, Broadway	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1977	Template:Sort	Harry Mullin	Little Theatre, Broadway	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1980	Passione	Berto	Morosco Theatre, Broadway	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1984	Hurlyburly	Artie	Ethel Barrymore Theatre, Broadway	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1993	Template:Sort	Charlie	Lyceum Theatre, Broadway	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1994	What's Wrong with This Picture?	Sid	Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Broadway	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />
1997	Template:Sort	Chebutykin	Criterion Center Stage Right, Broadway	<ref name="Jerry Stiller Broadway" />

Books

• Template:Cite book

• Template:Cite book (forward)

Accolades

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominees	Result
1997	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series	Seinfeld	Template:Nom
2001	Grammy Awards	Best Spoken Word Album	Married to Laughter: A Love Story	Template:Nom
2007	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture	Hairspray	Template:Nom

Other

• In 2007, Stiller and his wife Anne Meara received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

External links

• Template:IMDb name
• Template:IBDB name
• Template:Iobdb name
• Template:Discogs artist
• Jerry Stiller at the Comedy Hall of Fame
• Template:EmmyTVLegends name