Kevin Pollak
Kevin Elliot Pollak (born October 30, 1957) is an American actor, comedian, impressionist and podcast host. He has appeared in over 80 films; his roles include Sam Weinberg in Rob Reiner's legal film A Few Good Men, Jacob Goldman in Grumpy Old Men and its sequel Grumpier Old Men; Todd Hockney in The Usual Suspects, Phillip Green in Martin Scorsese's Casino, and Bobby Chicago in End of Days.
Kevin Pollak | |
|---|---|
Pollak in 2008 | |
| Born | Kevin Elliot Pollak October 30, 1957 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Spouse | |
From 2016 to 2022, the actor played a recurring role in Better Things. Since 2017, Pollak has been a regular cast member on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon.
Early life
Pollak was born on October 30, 1957 in San Francisco, California.[1] He is the younger son of Elaine Harlow and Robert Pollak. He has one older brother, Craig, who lives in San Jose, California.[2] He attended high school at Pioneer High School in San Jose. Pollak was raised in Reform Judaism.[3]
Career
Acting
As an actor, Pollak's roles include the best friend or confidant characters to the leading men, as he did in Ricochet (1991), A Few Good Men (1992), End of Days (1999), and The Wedding Planner (2001). However, he has also played a wide variety of parts, such as a comical brownie in Willow (1988), a criminal in The Usual Suspects (1995), the philandering brother of Sarah Jessica Parker in Miami Rhapsody (1995), and a gangster in The Whole Nine Yards (2000). He also briefly hosted Celebrity Poker Showdown in its first season. His most substantial role to date was in Deterrence (1999), in which he played the main character, a vice president who must take over for a deceased President and deal with a nuclear crisis.
In December 2006, he played Karl Kreutzfeld in the Sci Fi Channel miniseries The Lost Room. Through 2008, he had a recurring role as a district attorney on the television series Shark. In March 2008, Pollak played himself in the web series The Writers Room on Crackle.[4] In 2010, he portrayed Sheriff Tom Wagner in Choose.[5]
In January 2010, Pollak was scheduled to host Our Little Genius on FOX, but the series was pulled before it could air on television. Pollak was then seen hosting Million Dollar Money Drop for FOX at the end of 2010; the show ran for 12 episodes.
In 2014, Pollak began a recurring role as Alvin Biletnikoff on the CBS sitcom Mom. His time on the show ended with the death of his character.
Starting in 2016, Pollak played the role of Marion in the FX series Better Things. His character was recurring throughout all five seasons.
In 2017, Pollak joined the cast of the Golden Globe–winning The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, an original series from Amazon, as Moishe Maisel, the main character's father-in-law.
In 2019, Pollak appeared in five episodes of the fourth season on Showtime's Billions, as Douglas Mason.[6]
Directing
Pollak's directorial debut was on the horror web series Vamped Out, featured on the internet television platform Babelgum.[7] Jason Antoon, Seana Kofoed, Samm Levine and Pollak all acted in the ensemble cast. The screenbook was based on a simple joke that Antoon and Pollak had between them.[8] Most recently, Pollak's feature film directorial debut, the comedy documentary Misery Loves Comedy, premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. The film sold North American rights to Tribeca Film, a US distribution company.
Pollak directed the comedy film The Late Bloomer, starring Johnny Simmons, which was released in 2016.[9]
Stand-up
As a comedian, Pollak's most famous work was his 1991 HBO special Stop with the Kicking, directed by fellow comedian David Steinberg and produced by comedy writer Martin Olson. In July 2010, The Littlest Suspect, his most recent comedy special, was aired on Showtime. Comedy Central named Kevin one of the Top 100 Comedians of All Time.
Celebrity impressions
- Woody Allen
- Alan Arkin
- Albert Brooks
- Gabriel Byrne
- Johnny Carson
- Christopher Lloyd
- Robert De Niro
- Peter Falk
- Richard Kind
- Dudley Moore
- Eddie Murphy
- Liam Neeson
- Jack Nicholson
- Al Pacino
- Paul Reiser
- Arnold Schwarzenegger
- William Shatner
- Sylvester Stallone
- Jason Statham
- Christopher Walken
- Robin Williams
- Larry King
Podcasting
In April 2009, Pollak partnered with Jason Calacanis on a weekly Internet talk show, Kevin Pollak's Chat Show. Guests for the show include film directors Kevin Smith and Mike Binder, comedians Jimmy Pardo and Bill Burr, and actors Nia Vardalos, Illeana Douglas, Bryan Cranston, Dana Carvey, Matthew Perry, Jon Hamm, Paul Rudd, Adam Carolla, Anthony Cumia, Jason Alexander, Seth MacFarlane, Tom Hanks, Larry David and Jason Lee.
The guest interviews are very in-depth and typically longer than an hour in duration, sometimes exceeding two hours. Common topics include the guests' childhoods, how they got into the business they are in (typically show business), how they got inspired to start certain creative endeavors, and unique experiences they have had while working. Viewers can interact via chat room during the show, and sometimes questions for the guest posed in the chat room are answered live.
The show's self-described "Paul Shaffer" is actor Samm Levine.
Recurring segments and bits on the show include:
- "The Larry King Game", which requires the guest to do a bad Larry King impression, reveal something about oneself (in the persona of Larry King) and then go to the phones and say a funny-sounding city
- "Tweet Five," where Pollak reads the guest five questions from a Twitter user, usually in a this-or-that style
- "Who Tweeted", in which a host (typically Samm Levine) reads tweets from the Twitter accounts of three female celebrities (the list of actresses varies, but typically includes Demi Moore (or, more recently, Justin Bieber), Tyra Banks, and Paris Hilton) and Pollak and his guest compete against each other game-show-style to guess who authored each tweet.
- "You're Not Buffering", in which Pollak freezes mid-statement during his interview as though the show has paused due to internet lag, but he's actually still live. He then breaks his pause and says, "You're not buffering." .
In 2012, Pollak began a new podcast called Talkin Walkin in which he spends an hour or more with a new guest in character as Christopher Walken. After three episodes, the show was rated in the top 5 of all comedy podcasts by iTunes.[citation needed]
He is the only person to ever go "2 for 2" (two exact matches), as a guest on the Sklar Brothers/Daniel Van Kirk podcast Dumb People Town, in the "Guess the Age" game. The feat was completed on the episode released on April 2, 2018.[10]
In 2018,[11] Pollak began hosting a comedy improvisation podcast called Alchemy This, on the network iHeartRadio. It features a regular cast of 5 members, Craig Cackowski, James Heaney, Chris Alvarado, Vanessa Ragland, and Joey Greer, as well as several guests.[12]
Poker
Pollak is an avid poker player. He finished 134th out of 6,598 entrants in the 2012 World Series of Poker and won $52,718.[13] He also hosts weekly home games with Hollywood celebrities.
Personal life
In 1995, Pollak married comedian Lucy Webb. They separated in 2005 and divorced in 2008.[14]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | The Right Stuff | Dwight D. Eisenhower (voice) | Uncredited[15] |
| 1987 | Million Dollar Mystery | Officer Quinn | |
| 1988 | Willow | Rool | |
| 1990 | Avalon | Izzy Kirk | |
| 1991 | L.A. Story | Frank Swan | |
| 1991 | Another You | Phil | |
| 1991 | Ricochet | Lieutenant Larry Doyle | |
| 1992 | The Opposite Sex and How to Live with Them | Eli | |
| 1992 | A Few Good Men | LTJG Sam Weinberg, JAGC | |
| 1993 | Indian Summer | Brad Berman | |
| 1993 | Wayne's World 2 | Jerry Segel | |
| 1993 | Grumpy Old Men | Jake Goldman | |
| 1994 | Clean Slate | Rosenheim | |
| 1995 | The Usual Suspects | Todd Hockney | |
| 1995 | Miami Rhapsody | Jordan Marcus | |
| 1995 | Canadian Bacon | Stu Smiley | |
| 1995 | Casino | Phillip Green | |
| 1995 | Grumpier Old Men | Jake Goldman | |
| 1995 | Chameleon | Matt Gianni | |
| 1996 | House Arrest | Ned Beindorf | |
| 1996 | That Thing You Do! | Victor 'Boss Vic Koss' Kosslovich | |
| 1997 | Truth or Consequences, N.M. | Gordon Jacobson | |
| 1998 | Buffalo '66 | TV Sportscaster | |
| 1998 | Hoods | Rudy | |
| 1998 | Outside Ozona | Wit Roy | |
| 1999 | Deal of a Lifetime | Jerry | |
| 1999 | She's All That | Wayne Boggs | |
| 1999 | The Sex Monster | Jerry Berman | |
| 1999 | Deterrence | President Walter Emerson | |
| 1999 | End of Days | Bobby Chicago | |
| 2000 | The Whole Nine Yards | Janni Pytor Gogolak | |
| 2000 | Steal This Movie! | Gerry Lefcourt | |
| 2001 | The Wedding Planner | John Dojny | |
| 2001 | 3000 Miles to Graceland | US Marshal Damitry | |
| 2001 | Dr. Dolittle 2 | Riley / Alligator | |
| 2002 | Stolen Summer | Rabbi Jacobsen | |
| 2002 | Frank McKlusky, C.I. | Ronnie Rosengold | |
| 2002 | Juwanna Mann | Lorne Daniels | |
| 2002 | Mother Ghost | Dr. Norris | |
| 2002 | The Santa Clause 2 | Cupid | Cameo |
| 2003 | Rolling Kansas | Agent Brinkley | Uncredited |
| 2003 | Blizzard | Archimedes | |
| 2004 | Seven Times Lucky | Harlan | |
| 2004 | The Whole Ten Yards | Lazlo Gogolak | |
| 2004 | Our Time is Up | Dr. Stern | |
| 2004 | Shark Tale | Willie (voice) | |
| 2005 | Hostage | Walter Smith | |
| 2005 | Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D | Director (voice) | |
| 2005 | The Aristocrats | Himself | |
| 2006 | The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause | Cupid | |
| 2006 | Niagara Motel | Michael | |
| 2007 | Numb | Tom | |
| 2008 | Otis | Eli | |
| 2008 | Tortured | Dr. Shaw | Straight to DVD |
| 2009 | 2:13 | Dr. Simmons | |
| 2009 | Middle Men | Curt Allmans | |
| 2010 | Cop Out | Hunsaker | |
| 2010 | Hoods | Rudy | |
| 2011 | Choose | Sheriff Tom Wagner | |
| 2011 | Red State | ATF Agent Brooks | |
| 2011 | The Big Year | Eli | |
| 2012 | Columbus Circle | Klandermann | Also co-writer and co-executive producer |
| 2012 | The Magic of Belle Isle | Joe Viola | |
| 2013 | Chez Upshaw | Heaton Upshaw | Also producer |
| 2013 | 3 Geezers! | Kevin | |
| 2013 | A Country Christmas | Max Schmucker | |
| 2013 | Grace Unplugged | Frank 'Mossy' Mostin | |
| 2014 | The One I Wrote for You | Mickey | |
| 2015 | Borealis | 'Tubby' | |
| 2015 | Camino | Donald | |
| 2015 | The Night Is Young | Producer | |
| 2015 | Misery Loves Comedy | Co-writer/director | |
| 2016 | Max Rose | Christopher Rose | |
| 2016 | Compadres | 'Tex The Banker' | |
| 2016 | Special Correspondents | Geoffrey Mallard | |
| 2016 | The Tiger Hunter | Frank Womack | |
| 2016 | War Dogs | Ralph Slutzky | |
| 2016 | The Late Bloomer | Director | |
| 2017 | Axis | Cru (voice) | |
| 2017 | Three Christs | Dr. Orbus | |
| 2018 | Lez Bomb | George | |
| 2018 | Benjamin | Rick | |
| 2018 | The Front Runner | Bob Martindale | |
| 2019 | Goalie | Jack Adams | |
| 2019 | Teacher | Bernard Cooper | |
| 2019 | Apparition | Warden White | |
| 2021 | Injustice | The Joker / Jonathan Kent (voice)[16] | |
| 2023 | Sweetwater | Abe Saperstein | Post-production[17] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Ewoks: The Battle for Endor | Voice Characterization | Television film |
| 1987 | Amen | Photographer | Episode: "Thelma's Choice" |
| 1987 | Thirtysomething | Walter, the Bookstore Guy | Episode: "But Not for Me" |
| 1987 | Who's the Boss? | Scott | Episode: "Yellow Submarine" |
| 1988–89 | Coming of Age | Brian Brinker | 15 episodes |
| 1990 | Partners in Life | Eddie Hayes | Television film |
| 1991 | Morton & Hayes | Chick Morton | 6 episodes |
| 1995–96 | The Drew Carey Show | Mr. Bell | 9 episodes |
| 1997 | Perversions of Science | Pilot | Episode: "Boxed In" |
| 1997 | The Don's Analyst | Dr. Julian Riceputo | Television film |
| 1998 | Ruby Bridges | Dr. Robert Coles | Television film |
| 1998 | From the Earth to the Moon | Joe Shea | Episode: "Apollo One" |
| 1999–2000 | Work with Me | Jordan Better | 5 episodes; also co-executive producer |
| 2000 | Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child | Grasshopper / Mouse (voice) | Episode: "Aesop's Fables: A Whodunnit Musical" |
| 2001 | Ed | William Johnson | Episode: "Live Deliberately" |
| 2002 | Life with Bonnie | Sidney Portinbody | Episode: "Duets" |
| 2006 | The Lost Room | Karl Kreutzfeld | Miniseries; 3 episodes |
| 2007 | The Staircase Murders | David Rudolf | Television film |
| 2007–08 | Shark | D.A. Leo Cutler | 8 episodes |
| 2008 | Picture This | Tom Gilbert | Television film |
| 2008 | Entourage | Mr. Bob Levine | Episode: "The All Out Fall Out" |
| 2008–12 | Easy to Assemble | Kevin | 4 episodes |
| 2010 | Our Little Genius | Host | |
| 2010 | Vamped Out | Elliot Finke | Web series; also director, creator, writer, and producer |
| 2010 | Million Dollar Money Drop | Host | |
| 2012 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Judge Gerald Crane | Episode: "Theatre Tricks" |
| 2012 | Men at Work | Pavel | Episode: "Toilet of Eden" |
| 2012 | Childrens Hospital | Kevin Pollak | Episode: "Eulogy" |
| 2013 | Family Tree | Marty Schmelff | Episode: "Indians" |
| 2014 | Garfunkel and Oates | Andrew | Episode: "Road Warriors" |
| 2014–15 | Comedy Bang! Bang! | Various | 2 episodes |
| 2014–15, 2020 | Mom | Alvin Biletnikoff[18] | 15 episodes |
| 2015 | House of Lies | Joe Gideon | Season 4 - Episode 11 |
| 2015 | Transformers: Robots in Disguise | Fracture (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 2016 | Angel from Hell | Marv Fuller, M.D. | 13 episodes |
| 2016 | Angie Tribeca | Lieutenant Weinberg | Episode: "Beach Blanket Sting-O" |
| 2016 | Drunk History | Ciro Terranova | Episode: "Food" |
| 2017 | The Good Fight | Judge Kyle Gallo | Episode: "Not So Grand Jury" |
| 2017 | Hot Date | Father | Episode: "Double Standards" |
| 2017–22 | Better Things | Marion | 8 episodes |
| 2017–present | The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel | Moishe Maisel | Main cast |
| 2018 | NCIS | Albert Hathaway | Episode: "Keep Your Friends Close" |
| 2018 | The Simpsons | Ross (voice) | Episode: "3 Scenes Plus a Tag from a Marriage" |
| 2018 | The Comedy Central Roast | Himself | Episode: “Bruce Willis” |
| 2019 | Billions | Douglas Mason | 5 episodes |
| 2021 | Impeachment: American Crime Story | Bernie Nussbaum | Episode: “Exiles” |
| 2022 | Willow | Rool |
Web
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009–2019 | Kevin Pollak's Chat Show | Himself/host | Podcast |
| 2018-2020 | “Alchemy This” | Himself/host | Podcast |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | National Board of Review | Best Acting by an Ensemble | The Usual Suspects | Won | [19] |
| 1999 | Satellite Award | Best Actor - Miniseries/Television Film | From the Earth to the Moon | Nominated | |
| 2015 | Edinburgh International Film Festival | Best Documentary Feature | Misery Loves Comedy | Nominated | |
| 2018 | Screen Actors Guild Award | Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series | The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel | Won | |
| 2019 | Won |
Book
- Pollak, Kevin; Goldsher, Alan (2012). How I Slept My Way to the Middle: Secrets And Stories From Stage, Screen, And Interwebs.
References
- ^ "JUF : Tweens : Celebrities : Kevin Pollak". Juf.org. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
- ^ "Mercury News: Search Results". Nl.newsbank.com. from the original on 14 October 2017. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
- ^ Miller, Gerri (21 November 2018). "'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' Is Back in Time for Hanukkah". Jewish Journal. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
- ^ "Fresh Chicken and Roadents Populate New Comedy Site". TV Guide. 2008-03-31. Retrieved 2009-03-02.
- ^ "You Have 60 Seconds to 'Choose' Who Dies: Your Mom or Dad?". Bloody Disgusting. 5 February 2010. from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
- ^ "Kevin Pollak (I)". IMDb. from the original on 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
- ^ . Babelgum.com. Archived from the original on 6 April 2010. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
- ^ "Maniac (2012) - Dread Central". Dreadcentral.com. 29 August 2012. from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
- ^ Kilday, Gregg (August 25, 2015). "Johnny Simmons Starring in Kevin Pollak's 'The Late Bloomer'". Hollywoodreporter.com. from the original on August 26, 2015. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
- ^ "Dumb People Town: Kevin Pollak - Hold On Loosely". Art19. Retrieved April 4, 2018.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Introducing Alchemy This". Alchemy This. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
- ^ "Meet the Fab 5". Alchemy This. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
- ^ "KEVIN POLLAK - WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA, United States - WSOP.com". World Series of Poker. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
- ^ "Kevin Pollak files for divorce". Yahoo! News India. August 10, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-24.[dead link]
- ^ . Archived from the original on 2012-03-19. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "DC's 'Injustice' Sets Cast for Animated Movie (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. 21 July 2021.
- ^ Lang, Brent (2022-10-11). "Briarcliff Entertainment Buys Sweetwater, Drama About Pioneering African American NBA Player (Exclusive)". Variety. from the original on December 30, 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
- ^ "Kevin Pollak to Play Anna Faris' Father on CBS' 'Mom' (Exclusive)". TV Guide. 2013-12-10. from the original on 2013-12-13. Retrieved 2013-12-16.
- ^ "Kevin Pollak - Awards". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved April 8, 2020.