H. Jon Benjamin
 | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (November 2019) |
H. Jon Benjamin | |
|---|---|
 Benjamin in 2022 | |
| Born | Harry Jon Benjamin May 23, 1966 Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Education | Connecticut College (BA) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Partner | Amy Beth Silver |
| Children | 1 |
Harry Jon Benjamin[1] (born May 23, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician.[2] He is known for his voice roles in adult animated series, including Sterling Archer in Archer, Bob Belcher in Bob's Burgers, Ben in Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, Kevin in O'Grady, Satan in Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil, and Coach McGuirk and Jason Penopolis in Home Movies, starring as the voice of Boy in the film Boy Kills World (2023) and the video game Super Dragon Punch Force 3 (2024). Benjamin was named 2014's male comedy performer of the year at Vulture's TV Awards for his work in Bob's Burgers and Archer. He also appeared in the 2001 satirical comedy film Wet Hot American Summer; its subsequent 2015 television series, Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp; and the final installment of the franchise, the 2017 miniseries Wet Hot American Summer: 10 Years Later.[3]
Early life
[edit]Benjamin was born on May 23, 1966, to a Jewish family in Worcester, Massachusetts.[4][5] His father, Howard, was CEO of an electric company, and his mother, Shirley, was a former ballet dancer who taught dance at a studio.[6] He graduated from Worcester Academy in 1984 and Connecticut College in 1988.[7]
Career
[edit]Benjamin's comedy career began in Boston, where he was in a comedy duo with Sam Seder, then a member of Cross Comedy, a comedy team led by David Cross. For the first seven years of his career, Benjamin almost exclusively worked in groups rather than independently. Afterward, his independent work remained more experimental, rejecting traditional styles of stand-up comedy.
Benjamin's live projects include the Midnight Pajama Jam, a show performed in New York City with Jon Glaser and Tinkle, a show combining stand-up comedy and live music, co-hosted by Todd Barry and David Cross. A Midnight Pajama Jam DVD is currently[when?] in production. Benjamin and Cross appear together on the album Invite Them Up.
He was the guest on Space Ghost Coast to Coast in its eighty-first episode, "King Dead" on December 17, 1999, where Zorak and Moltar kidnapped him. He has appeared in the television show Cheap Seats, on ESPN Classic, as "Gene Stapleton" and "Rabbi Marc Shalowitz". He co-starred in Todd Barry's short film Borrowing Saffron and portrayed a talking can of vegetables with a shameful habit of autofellatio in the film Wet Hot American Summer. He made short cameos in Not Another Teen Movie as the football trainer and on the FX Network comedy drama Rescue Me as the pimp "F-bomb" in season two. He can be seen in Turbocharge-the Unauthorized Story of the Cars, a comedy biopic about the '80s rock band The Cars, playing the role of Cars' manager Elliot Roberts in his usual deadpan comedic delivery.[8]
Benjamin has done extensive voice work in animated TV shows. His credits include starring roles in several Soup2Nuts cartoon shows, such as Science Court, Home Movies, O'Grady, Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist and Assy McGee. He co-created Freak Show with David Cross. Benjamin starred as the Devil and multiple other roles in Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil, which ran for one season on Adult Swim beginning September 9, 2007. Benjamin plays a recurring character on the PBS Kids series WordGirl and is the announcer for The Sam Seder Show and The Majority Report. He did the voice of "Shelly", Sam Seder's accountant, on Breakroom Live with Maron & Seder.
Benjamin has made guest appearances in several animated shows. He was in the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episodes "Bus of the Undead" and "The Last One" as Mothmonsterman, in "Broodwich" as Mr. Sticks, in "Bible Fruit" as Mortimer Mango and played the live-action role of Master Shake in "Last Last One Forever and Ever", credited as Capt. Turd Mahoy. He made a cameo appearance as a government agent in the film Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters alongside frequent collaborator Jon Glaser. He has appeared in Family Guy as Carl, a movie trivia obsessed convenience store clerk who portrayed Yoda in the Star Wars parody episode "Something, Something, Something, Dark Side".
Other appearances include The Venture Bros., in the episodes "Escape to the House of Mummies Part II", "I Know Why the Caged Bird Kills" and "The Better Man", in which he played Dr. Orpheus's master—who appears in the form of Cerberus, Catherine the Great's horse and, in "The Better Man", both Dr. Orpheus's ex-wife and a future Dean Venture, respectively. He appeared in the Stella short "Bar", which can be found as an easter egg on the Season 1 DVD. Benjamin appeared on the Comedy Central sketch/variety show Important Things with Demetri Martin.
In 2009, Benjamin and David Cross created and wrote for Paid Programming, a live-action pilot for Cartoon Network's late night programing block, Adult Swim. Paid Programming was not picked up for a full series and Benjamin referred to it as an "abject failure".[9]
Benjamin was featured in a Super Bowl XLIII Bud Light commercial with Conan O'Brien[10] and was responsible for the McCain Girls[11] videos on YouTube.[12] He voices Sterling Archer, a secret agent in the FX series Archer that first aired January 14, 2010.[13] He has appeared in several segments of the television show Human Giant and had a cameo in the American Dad! episode "License to Till" as a talking head of cabbage.
Benjamin starred in the Comedy Central series Jon Benjamin Has a Van, which he co-created with comedian Leo Allen.[14] The series debuted on May 14, 2011; a total of 10 episodes aired, the last on August 10, 2011.
Beginning in 2013, Benjamin's voice can be heard as the narrator of a series of TV commercials for Coke Zero, including some with tie-ins to ESPN's College Game Day program.[citation needed]
In 2014, Benjamin was named as the year's best male comedy performer for his work on Bob's Burgers and Archer by the Vulture TV Awards, a digital expansion of New York magazine.[15]
In 2015, despite not knowing how to play any instrument, Benjamin released his first jazz album, Well, I Should Have....[16] Benjamin "played" piano and was joined by Scott Kreitzer on sax, David Finck on bass, and Jonathan Preitz on drums.[17]
Benjamin wrote a comedic autobiography, Failure is an Option: An Attempted Memoir, which was published by Penguin Random House in May 2018.[1] He also narrated the audiobook.
Benjamin began appearing in commercials for Arby's restaurant chain in 2018 as their new spokesman.[18]
In March 2020, Benjamin was the voice of Saddam Hussein in Blowback, a podcast about the Iraq War created and hosted by Brendan James and Noah Kulwin.[19]
In 2024, Benjamin appears as the voice of a pigeon in the new Progressive Insurance commercials.
Personal life
[edit]Benjamin was named "Harry" after his paternal grandfather, but his family has always called him by his middle name "Jon";[1] in his early years, he was unaware of his actual first name.[20] He has said that the inclusion of his first initial in the credits on Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist was done without his consent by co-star Laura Silverman "just to make fun of me."[20]
Benjamin's longtime partner is set decorator Amy Beth Silver. They have a son and live in Brooklyn.[6]
Benjamin is an amateur ornithologist.[21]
In January 2020, Benjamin endorsed Bernie Sanders for president and narrated a series of videos on Sanders's health care proposals.[22] In September 2020, Benjamin voiced an animated version of himself to promote the launch video for the Gravel Institute's YouTube channel.[23]
Filmography
[edit]Film
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Who's the Caboose? | Ken Fold | |
| 1998 | Next Stop Wonderland | Eric | |
| 2000 | Happy Accidents | Reveler #1 | |
| 2001 | Wet Hot American Summer | Can of Vegetables (voice) | |
| Not Another Teen Movie | Trainer | ||
| 2002 | Martin & Orloff | Keith | |
| Borrowing Saffron | Ron | Short film | |
| 2003 | Temptation | Kevin | |
| 2004 | New York Minute | Vendor | |
| 2007 | Puberty: The Movie | The Torah / Uncle Irving | |
| Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters | CIA Agent #1 (voice) | ||
| The Ten | Lying Rhyno (voice) | ||
| 2008 | The Toe Tactic | Police Officer | |
| A Bad Situationist | Isaiah | ||
| Turbocharge: The Unauthorized Story of the Cars | Dance Instructor | ||
| 2014 | 22 Jump Street | MCS Coach | Uncredited[24] |
| Jason Nash Is Married | Dennis | ||
| 2015 | Creative Control | Gary Gass | |
| Limbo | Jim | Short film | |
| Hell and Back | The Tree (voice) | ||
| 2022 | The Bob's Burgers Movie | Bob Belcher (voice) | |
| 2024 | Boy Kills World | Boy's Inner Voice (voice) | |
| Familiar Touch | Steve |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Understanding | Quark | Episode: "Uncertainty" |
| 1995–1999; 2002 |
Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist | Ben, Various voices | 80 episodes Also writer |
| 1997 | The Chris Rock Show | Extra | 1 episode |
| The Jenny McCarthy Show | Various | 6 episodes | |
| 1997–2000 | Science Court | Prof. Nick Parsons (voice) | 29 episodes |
| 1998 | Sex and the City | Jeff | Episode: "Bay of Married Pigs" |
| Upright Citizens Brigade | Various | 10 episodes | |
| 1999 | Dick and Paula Celebrity Special | Various | 2 episodes Also writer |
| Space Ghost Coast to Coast | Himself | Episode: "King Dead" | |
| 1999–2004 | Home Movies | Coach John McGuirk, Jason Penopolis, Various voices | 52 episodes Also writer and producer |
| 2001–2009 | Aqua Teen Hunger Force | Various voices | 5 episodes |
| 2002 | Saddle Rash | Gummy, Tommy Morgan (voices) | Pilot Also writer |
| 2003 | Hey Monie! | Self-defense instructor | 1 episode |
| 2004 | Pilot Season | Ken Fold | 2 episodes |
| Say Uncle | Jonny | Failed pilot | |
| 2004–2006 | Cheap Seats: Without Ron Parker | Rabbi Marc Shalowitz, Gene Stapleton | 4 episodes |
| O'Grady | Kevin Harnisch, Iris, Philip (voices) | 19 episodes | |
| 2005 | Rescue Me | Gary | Episode: "Rebirth" |
| 2005–2006 | Sunday Pants | Bob the Log | Travel Logs shorts |
| 2005–2007 | Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil | Satan, Special Father #1 (voices) | 11 episodes Also writer |
| 2006 | Freak Show | Tuck, Various voices | 7 episodes Also co-creator, writer and executive producer |
| 2006–2008 | Assy McGee | The Mayor, Various voices | 19 episodes Also writer and consulting producer |
| 2006–2012 | The Venture Bros. | The Master (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 2006–present | Family Guy | Carl Graves, Bob Belcher, Various voices | 27 episodes |
| 2007–2008 | Human Giant | Various | 4 episodes Also consultant writer |
| 2007–2015 | WordGirl | Reginald the Jewelry Store Clerk, InvisiBill, Additional Voices | 31 episodes |
| 2009 | Michael & Michael Have Issues | Larry | Episode: "Frog Box" |
| Paid Programming | Various | Pilot Co-creator, writer and executive producer | |
| Parks and Recreation | Scott Braddock | Episode: "Kaboom" | |
| Titan Maximum | Tap Banister (voice) | Episode: "Dirty Lansbury" | |
| 2009–2010 | Important Things with Demetri Martin | Various | 7 episodes Also writer and co-producer |
| 2009–2023 | Archer | Sterling Archer (voice) | 145 episodes |
| 2011 | Jon Benjamin Has a Van | Host | 10 episodes Also co-creator, writer and executive producer |
| Soul Quest Overdrive | Mortimer (voice) | 6 episodes Also co-creator and co-writer | |
| American Dad! | Talking Cabbage (voice) | Episode: "License to Till" | |
| 2011–present | Bob's Burgers | Bob Belcher, Jimmy Pesto Jr., Various voices | Main role |
| 2012 | Suburgatory | Tabitha | Episode: "Ryan's Song" |
| Ugly Americans | Dick Maggotbone (voice) | Episode: "Mark Loves Dick" | |
| 2013 | Nathan for You | Himself | Episode: "Yogurt Shop/Pizzeria" |
| 2014–2021 | Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | Ben, Scientist, Defendant, Blank Void | 4 episodes |
| 2015 | Conan | Sterling Archer (voice) | Episode: "677" |
| Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp | Can of Vegetables, Mitch | 4 episodes | |
| The Jim Gaffigan Show | Kevin | Episode: "The Bible Story" | |
| The Adventures of Puss in Boots | Baltasar (voice) | Episode: "Luck" | |
| All Hail King Julien | Fred (voice) | 5 episodes | |
| 2015–2017 | Master of None | Benjamin | 4 episodes |
| 2016–2017 | People of Earth | Officer Glimmer | 8 episodes |
| 2017 | Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later | Can of Vegetables, Mitch | 5 episodes |
| Difficult People | Brian | Episode: "Fuzz Buddies" | |
| 2018 | The Who Was? Show | Narrator (voice) | 13 episodes |
| The Simpsons | Bob Belcher (voice) | Episode: "My Way or the Highway to Heaven" | |
| 2019 | Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas | Batman | Episode: "Inequality Problems" |
| Star Trek: Short Treks | Edward Larkin | Episode: "The Trouble with Edward" | |
| 2020–2022 | Central Park | Mayor Whitney Whitebottom (voice) | 7 episodes |
| 2021–2023 | Teenage Euthanasia | Various voices | Episode: "Adventures in Beetle Sitting" |
Video games
[edit]| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Destiny 2 | Radio voice, Scabretti |
| 2022 | Destiny 2: The Witch Queen | Scabretti |
| 2024 | Super Dragon Punch Force 3 | Boy's Inner Voice (voice) |
References
[edit]Notes
- ^ a b c Benjamin, H. Jon (2018). Failure Is an Option. Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN 9781524742171.
- ^ Comedian Jon Benjamin's Jazz Album is Full of 'Real Untapped Un-Talent', retrieved April 3, 2022
- ^ Chaney, Jen (August 4, 2017). "A Solute to Mitch, the Can of Vegetables from Wet Hot American Summer". Vulture. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
- ^ Rock 'n Roll Ghost. "H. Jon Benjamin Talks FX's Archer Season Finale". Rocknrollghost.com. Archived from the original on September 9, 2013. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
- ^ "H. Jon Benjamin". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
- ^ a b Semon, Craig. "Flipping barbs with Mass. native H. Jon Benjamin of 'Bob's Burgers'". The Patriot Ledger. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
- ^ "Class Notes" Archived April 25, 2012, at the Wayback Machine The Worcester Academy Hilltopper (Spring 2011) p.28
- ^ "Welcome to Turbocharge The Movie". Turbochargethemovie.com. Archived from the original on September 22, 2017. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ Heisler, Steve (February 4, 2011). "Random Roles H. Jon Benjamin". The A.V. Club. Retrieved February 5, 2011.
- ^ "Super Bowl 43 ad: Budweiser Bud Light - Conan O'Brien 'Vroom Vroom Party Starter'" (Video). YouTube.com. Retrieved February 15, 2009.
- ^ "McCaingirls's Channel". YouTube.com. March 14, 2008. Retrieved February 15, 2009.
- ^ "Just because". SamSederShow.com. Archived from the original on November 21, 2008. Retrieved February 15, 2009.
- ^ "Archer reviews at". Metacritic.com. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ "Interview with Jon Benjamin". SanDiego.com. Archived from the original on June 12, 2011. Retrieved June 9, 2011.
- ^ Seitz, Matt (June 17, 2014). "Vulture TV Awards: The Year's Best Male Comedy Performer Is H. Jon Benjamin". Vulture. New York. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
- ^ Bradley, Laura (November 23, 2015). "Watch H. Jon Benjamin Record a Whole Jazz Album on the Piano Even Though He Can't Play the Piano". Slate. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
- ^ "H. Jon Benjamin Discusses Why He Recorded Jazz Album in Recently Surfaced Interview". Classicalite. January 20, 2016. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
- ^ "Arby's Wants You To Know It Does More Than Just Roast Beef". Forbes. September 10, 2018. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
- ^ "Blowback". blowback.show. Retrieved November 1, 2021.
- ^ a b The Verge (July 5, 2013), On The Verge: interview with voice actor H Jon Benjamin (Archer, Bob's Burgers), retrieved May 4, 2019
- ^ Bittel, Jason (April 14, 2021). "H. Jon Benjamin's 'Morning Bird Reports' Have Brought Joy to Many in Dark Times". Audubon. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
- ^ Budryk, Zack (January 22, 2020). "Sanders campaign releases video series hosted by voice actor H. Jon Benjamin". The Hill. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
- ^ Jackson, Gita (October 1, 2020). "The Gravel Institute Is Trying to Make PragerU, But Good". Vice News. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
- ^ McCarthy, Erin (June 13, 2014). "10 Things to Know About '22 Jump Street'". MentalFloss.com. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
External links
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| Artists | |
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