Michael McKean

Michael McKean
McKean in 1999
Born	Michael John McKean (1947-10-17) October 17, 1947 (age 76) New York City, New York, U.S.
Education	Carnegie Mellon University (BFA) New York University (MFA)
Occupations	Actor comedian screenwriter director singer composer musician
Years active	1967–present
Spouses	Susan Russell ​ ​ (m. 1970; div. 1993)​ Annette O'Toole ​ (m. 1999)​
Children	2
Website	michaelmckean.com

Michael John McKean (/məˈkiːən/; born October 17, 1947) is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, composer, singer, and musician known for various roles in film and television such as Lenny Kosnowski in Laverne & Shirley, David St. Hubbins in This Is Spinal Tap, and Chuck McGill on Better Call Saul.

McKean's breakout role was annoying neighbor Lenny Kosnowski on the sitcom Laverne & Shirley. He played David St. Hubbins, lead vocalist and co-lead guitarist of the fictional rock band

McKean was born October 17, 1947, in New York City at Manhattan Women's Hospital.^[1] He is the son of Ruth Stewart McKean, a librarian, and Gilbert S. McKean, one of the founders of Decca Records,^[2][3] and was raised in Sea Cliff, New York, on Long Island.^[4] McKean is of Irish, English, Scottish, and some German and Dutch descent.^[5] He graduated from North Shore High School in 1965. In early 1967, he was briefly a member of the New York City "baroque pop" band the Left Banke and played on the "Ivy, Ivy" single (B-side: "And Suddenly").^[6][7]

Career

McKean began his career (as well as the characters of Lenny and Squiggy) in Pittsburgh while a student at

. The character appeared on the short-lived spin-off series in 2001, and then returned to The X-Files in its final season for an episode called "Jump the Shark."

McKean reunited with Christopher Guest in

Clerks: The Animated Series

that never aired but was included on the VHS and DVD versions of the series.

In 2003, he guest-starred on

Academy Award for Best Song

.

McKean performed in the Broadway production of

American Airlines Theatre in the first half of 2006. Also in 2006, McKean reunited with most of the cast of A Mighty Wind to film the comedy For Your Consideration and appeared in the play Love Song on the stage in London. His musical interests led him to a starring role in the 2008 comedy air-drumming film Adventures of Power, in which he was reunited with Jane Lynch, his co-star from For Your Consideration, in a story intended to honor the leaders and fighters of the 99% movement.^[10]

McKean acted in the pilot episode of a remake of the British series

Raul Esparza, Eve Best, and James Frain. The show opened on in 2007. In 2009, he starred in the Chicago-based Steppenwolf Theatre Company's production of Superior Donuts by playwright Tracy Letts

.

Employee of the Month

in 2016.

In 2010, McKean returned in an episode of Smallville alongside his wife[11] and won the Celebrity Jeopardy! tournament by defeating Jane Curtin and Cheech Marin. The earnings were donated to the International Myeloma Foundation in honor of McKean's friend Lee Grayson, who died of myeloma in 2004. In Summer 2010, McKean took over the role of the Stage Manager in Thornton Wilder's Our Town at the Barrow Street Playhouse in New York's Greenwich Village. In 2011, McKean appeared on an episode of Sesame Street as a rock star looking for "rocks" to be in an all ROCK-band.

In 2012, McKean began performing on Broadway in Gore Vidal's The Best Man. During the show's run, he was hit by a car in New York City, suffering a broken leg.^[12] He appeared in the HBO comedy series Family Tree in 2013.^[13] In 2014, McKean played J. Edgar Hoover in Broadway previews of Robert Schenkkan's Lyndon B. Johnson bio-play All the Way, starring Emmy winner Bryan Cranston as Lyndon B. Johnson.^[14]

In 2015, McKean began appearing as a regular cast member in the first three seasons of

sixth seasons. The same year, McKean began hosting the Cooking Channel television series Food: Fact or Fiction?

This lighthearted show takes a look at food urban legends and features him both as host and narrator to some segments within each episode.

In 2018, McKean played Doug Forcett in the NBC sitcom The Good Place,^[16] a former stoner from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, who had a mushroom-induced hallucination in the 1970s and correctly guessed 92% of the afterlife. While Doug Forcett is mentioned multiple times in the show, McKean only portrayed him in one episode. McKean played Sgt. Shadwell in the 2019 television mini-series adaptation of the novel Good Omens.^[17]

Personal life

McKean married Susan Russell in 1970, and they had two sons, Colin and Fletcher. In 1999 he married Annette O'Toole, who also had two children from a previous marriage. McKean's son Colin died in 2012.^[18]

Characters on SNL

Recurring characters

• Anthony, the weatherman from Good Morning, Brooklyn

Celebrity impersonations

• Bill Clinton (after Phil Hartman left at the end of season 19)
• Jimmy Carter
• Robert Evans
• John Tesh
• Robert Shapiro
• Spalding Gray
• Tom Skerritt
• Vincent Price
• Richard Gephardt
• Jeffrey Dahmer
• Howard Stern
• Donald E. Belfi
• Adam West
• Elvis Costello
• George F. Will
• Gary Busey
• Patrick Stewart

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1977	Cracking Up	Dr. Edward O'Mazuraski	Also co-writer (as a member of The Credibility Gap)
1979	1941	Willy
1980	Used Cars	Eddie Winslow
1982	Young Doctors in Love	Dr. Simon August
1984	This Is Spinal Tap	David St. Hubbins	Also co-writer
1985	D.A.R.Y.L.	Andy Richardson
	Clue	Mr. Green
1986	Jumpin' Jack Flash	Leslie	Uncredited
1987	Light of Day	Bu Montgomery
	Planes, Trains and Automobiles	State Trooper
1988	Portrait of a White Marriage	Rev. Prufrock
	Short Circuit 2	Fred Ritter
	Earth Girls Are Easy	Woody
1989	Hider in the House	Phil Dreyer
	The Big Picture	Emmett Summer	Also co-writer
1990	Flashback	Hal
	Book of Love	Adult Jack Twiller
1991	True Identity	Harvey Cooper
1992	Memoirs of an Invisible Man	George Talbot
	Man Trouble	Eddy Revere
1993	Coneheads	Gorman Seedling
1994	Airheads	Milo Jackson
	Radioland Murders	Rick Rochester
1995	The Brady Bunch Movie	Mr. Larry Dittmeyer
	Across the Moon	Frank
1996	Edie & Pen	Rick
	The Pompatus of Love	Sitcom Star
	Jack	Paulie
1997	No Strings Attached	Elliot Lewis
	Casper: A Spirited Beginning	Bill Case	Direct-to-video
	That Darn Cat	Peter Randall
	Nothing to Lose	Phillip "P.B" Barrow
	Still Breathing	New Mark
1998	The Man Who Counted	Reverend Hooper	Short film
	Spinal Tap: The Final Tour	David St. Hubbins	Short film
	The Pass	Willie L.
	Small Soldiers	Insaniac, Freakenstein	Voice[19]
	Archibald the Rainbow Painter	J.P. Bigelow
	With Friends Like These...	Dr. Maxwell Hersh
	Sugar: The Fall of the West	Head of Sex Clinic
1999	Masters of Horror and Suspense	Will Masters
	Kill the Man	Mr. Livingston
	True Crime	Reverend Shillerman
	Teaching Mrs. Tingle	Principal Potter
	Mystery, Alaska	Mr. Walsh
2000	Best in Show	Stefan Vanderhoof
	Beautiful	Lance DeSalvo
	Little Nicky	Chief of Police
2001	My First Mister	Bob Benson
	Never Again	Alex The Transvestite
	Dr. Dolittle 2	Bird 1	Voice[19]
2002	Slap Her... She's French	Monsieur Duke
	The Hunchback of Notre Dame II	Sarousch	Voice, direct-to-video[19]
	Teddy Bears' Picnic	Porterfield "Porty" Pendleton
	The Guru	Dwain
	Auto Focus	Video Executive
	100 Mile Rule	Howard
2003	A Mighty Wind	Jerry Palter
2005	The Producers	Prison Trustee
2006	Relative Strangers	Ken Hyman
	For Your Consideration	Lane Iverson
2007	Joshua	Chester Jenkins
	The Grand	Steve Lavisch
2008	Adventures of Power	Harlan
2009	Whatever Works	Joe
2010	Pure Country 2: The Gift	Peter
2012	The Words	Nelson Wylie
	Batman: The Dark Knight Returns	Dr. Bartholomew Wolper	Voice, direct-to-video[19]
2013	10 Rules for Sleeping Around	Jeffrey Fields
2014	Sesame Street: Learning Rocks	Virgil Von Vivaldi	Direct-to-video
2015	The Meddler	Mark
2020	Pink Skies Ahead	Richard
2021	Playing God	Frank
	My Little Pony: A New Generation	Argyle Starshine	Voice[19]
2022	Jerry & Marge Go Large	Howard
	Weird: The Al Yankovic Story	Sleazy MC
TBA	Spinal Tap II	David St. Hubbins	Filming, also co-writer

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1976–1983	Laverne & Shirley	Leonard "Lenny" Kosnowski	149 episodes
1979	Happy Days		Episode: "Fonzie's Funeral: Part 2"
1980	Goodtime Girls	Joey	Episode: "Internal Injury"
1984	Saturday Night Live	Himself / David St. Hubbins	2 episodes
1985	George Burns Comedy Week	Joey	Episode: "The Borrowing"
1986	Classified Love	Pete Newly	Television film
	Tall Tales & Legends	Mac Macintosh / Mr. Wallace	2 episodes
1987	Double Agent	Jason Starr / Warren Starbinder	Television film
	Daniel and the Towers	Wexler Hatch
1990	Grand	Tom Smithson	13 episodes
	Empty Nest	Dennis Adams	Episode: "Mad About the Boy"
	Murder, She Wrote	Ross McKay	Episode: "The Return of Preston Giles"
	The AFI Presents: TV or Not TV?	Principal Ford	Television special; segment: "Peak A Boo"
1991	Morton & Hayes	Dr. Mummenschvantz	Episode: "The Bride of Mummula"
	Murder in High Places	Pettibone	Television film
1991–1996	Dream On	Gibby Fiske	25 episodes
1992–1994	Dinosaurs	Various voices	12 episodes
1992, 1999	The Simpsons	David St. Hubbins , Jerry Rude	Voice, 2 episodes
1993–1994, 1998	Animaniacs	Spink, Jake, Neivel Nosenest	3 episodes[19]
1993	Family Album	Mr. Gordon	Episode: "Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall All You Gotta Do Is Call..."
1994	Getting By	Dirk Clearfield	Episode: "Sell It Like It Is"
	Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman	Dr. Fabian Leek	Episode: "Vatman"
	Duckman	Bob Hiney	Voice, episode: "A Civil War"
1994–1995	Saturday Night Live	Various Roles	25 episodes
1995	The Nanny	Prof. Noel Babcock PhD	Episode: "Franny and the Professor"
	Friends	Leon Rastatter	Episode: " The One with the List "
1996	The Sunshine Boys	Scott Grogan	Television film
	Star Trek: Voyager	The Clown	Episode: "The Thaw"
	Secret Service Guy	Frank McClellan	7 episodes
	Caroline in the City	Father Damian	Episode: "Caroline and the Wedding"
1996–1998	Jungle Cubs	Cecil	Voice, 20 episodes
	Pinky and the Brain	Toll Collector, Ponytail, Schneiderlander, Mel Anoma	Voice, 4 episodes[19]
1996–1999	Tracey Takes On...	Barrington "Barry" LeTissier	6 episodes
1997	Road Rovers	Dr. Jeffrey Otitus	Voice, episode: "Reigning Cats and Dogs"[19]
	Johnny Bravo	Various voices	3 episodes
	The Weird Al Show	Miner	Episode: "Mining Accident"
	Space Ghost Coast to Coast	Himself	Episode: "BooBooKitty"
1997–1998	101 Dalmatians: The Series	Jasper Badun	Voice, 27 episodes
1998	The Closer	Arthur Willhaven	2 episodes
	LateLine	Dick Obermeyer	Episode: "Pearce's New Buddy"
	Murphy Brown	Dennis Page	Episode: "Second Time Around"
	The Angry Beavers	L.G. Algae, Raccoon	Voice, episode: "Pond Scum"[19]
	Final Justice	Merle Hammond	Television film
	The New Batman Adventures	1950s Joker	Voice, episode: "Legends of the Dark Knight"[19]
	Mr. Show with Bob and David	Professor Peens	Episode: "Life Is Precious and God and the Bible"
	Recess	Mr. Bream	Voice, episode: "Yes, Mikey, Santa Does Shave"
1998–1999	Maggie Winters	Lewis Stickley	2 episodes
1998–2002	The X-Files	Morris Fletcher	4 episodes
1999	Providence	Sherman Smith	Episode: "Blind Faith"
	Boy Meets World	Jedediah Lawrence	Episode: "State of the Unions"
	Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain	Grocer	Voice, episode: "The Mask of Braino"[19]
1999–2003	Hey Arnold!	Johnny Stitches, Pinkerton, Earthflower	Voice, 2 episodes[19]
2000	Batman Beyond	Ian Peek	Voice, episode: "Sneak Peek"[19]
2000–2001	The Huntress	Lt. Praeger / Ralph Thorson	Voice, 3 episodes
	Clerks: The Animated Series	Various voices	2 episodes
2000, 2002	Family Guy	Various voices	2 episodes
2000, 2008	Law & Order	Elias Grace / Bill Nolan	2 episodes
2001	Strip Mall	Psycho-Vivor Host	2 episodes
	The Lone Gunmen	Morris Fletcher	Episode: "All About Yves"
2001–2002	Oswald	Maestro Bingo / Louie	Voice, 5 episodes[19]
2001–2003	Primetime Glick	Adrien Van Voorhees	30 episodes
2002	Teamo Supremo	Mean Thumb / Lo-Fi	Voice, 2 episodes
	As Told by Ginger	Bobby Lightfoot	Voice, episode: "Family Therapy"
	Justice League	Sportsman	Voice, episode: "Legends"[19]
	The Zeta Project	Dr. Marcus Edmunds	Voice, episode: "The Hologram Man"[19]
2002–2005	Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law	Evelyn Spyro Throckmorton	Voice, 4 episodes[19]
2003	And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself	William Christy Cabanne	Television film
2003, 2010–2011	Smallville	Perry White	3 episodes
2005	Alias	Dr. Atticus Liddell	2 episodes
	Hopeless Pictures	Mel Wax	Voice, 9 episodes
	Boston Legal	Dwight Biddle	Episode: "Truly, Madly, Deeply"
2006	Catscratch	Groink	Voice, episode: "Love Jackal"[19]
	Help Me Help You	Dr. Howard "J." Hubbins	Episode: "Pink Feud"
	The Year Without a Santa Claus	Snow Miser	Television film
2007	The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy	Kalgoron	Voice, episode: "Wrath of the Spider Queen"[19]
2007, 2011	Curb Your Enthusiasm	Matt Tessler	2 episodes
2008	The Unit	Dr. Donald Metz	2 episodes
2010	Glory Daze	Stu	Episode: "Why Shant This Be Love?"
	Sesame Street	Virgil Von Vivaldi	Episode: "Rock, Rock Band"
2011	Off the Map	Ed Greenman	Episode: "Saved by the Great White Hope"
	Castle	Victor Baron	Episode: "Pretty Dead"
	Childrens Hospital	Death	Episode: "Munch by Proxy"
	Glenn Martin, DDS	Eye-Hawk / Sarge	Voice, episode: "Heist"
	Homeland	Judge Jeffrey Turner	Episode: "Grace"
2012–2013	Happy Endings	Big Dave	2 episodes
2012	Thundercats	Vultaire	Voice, 2 episodes[19]
	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Fred Sandow	Episode: "Father's Shadow"
2012, 2016	SpongeBob SquarePants	Captain Frosty Mug, Lonnie the Shark	Voice, 2 episodes[19]
2013	Family Tree	Keith Chadwick	4 episodes
	American Dad!	Emperor Zing	Voice, episode: "Lost in Space"
2014	The 7D	Uncle Humidor	Voice, 2 episodes[19]
2015–2018; 2022	Better Call Saul	Chuck McGill	28 episodes
2015–2019	Food: Fact or Fiction?	Himself (host)	65 episodes
2015	Comedy Bang! Bang!	Zeus	Episode: "Stephen Merchant Wears a Checkered Shirt and Rolled Up Jeans"
2015–2016	Drunk History	Carl Laemmle / Arthur Jell	2 episodes
2016–2018	Goldie & Bear	Mr. Locks	Voice, 6 episodes
2017	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	Warren G. Harding counselor	Segment: "Harding"
2018	The Good Place	Doug Forcett	Episode: "Don't Let the Good Life Pass You By"
2019	Veep	Governor Ballentine	Episode: "Oslo"
	Good Omens	Witchfinder Sgt. Shadwell	5 episodes
	Delilah	Tom Childs Sr.	Pilot
2020–2022	Grace and Frankie	Jack Ayres	6 episodes
2020	Breeders	Michael	5 episodes
	At Home with Amy Sedaris	Guy Lombardi	Episode: "New Year's"
	Helpsters	Roy	Episode: "Billy Bug/Cody Rides a Bike"
2021–present	Rugrats	Lou Pickles	Voice, main role[19]
2022	Billions	Melville Revere	Episode: "Cannonade"
2023	The Diplomat	President William Rayburn	3 episodes
	Dead Ringers	Marion	Episode: "Five"

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Venue
2004	Hairspray	Edna Turnblad	Neil Simon Theatre
2004–2005	A Second Hand Memory	Phil Wellman	Linda Gross Theater
2006	The Pajama Game	Hines	American Airlines Theatre
2006	Love Song	Harry	Ambassadors Theatre
2007–2008	The Homecoming	Sam	Cort Theatre
2009	Our Town	Stage Manager	Barrow Street Theatre
2009–2010	Superior Donuts	Arthur Przybyszewski	Music Box Theatre
2011	King Lear	Earl of Gloucester	The Public Theatre
2012	The Best Man	Dick Jensen	Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre
2014	All the Way	J. Edgar Hoover	American Repertory Theatre
2017	The Little Foxes	Ben Hubbard	Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
2018	The True	Erastus Corning II	Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work	Result
2004	Academy Award	Best Original Song	"A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow", from A Mighty Wind	Nominated
2004	Broadcast Film Critics Association Award	Best Original Song		Won
2004	Satellite Award	Best Original Song		Nominated
2004	Grammy Award	Best Song Written for Visual Media	"A Mighty Wind", from A Mighty Wind	Won
2004	Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award	Best Music	A Mighty Wind	Nominated
2004	Florida Film Critics Association Award	Best Ensemble Cast		Won
2004	Phoenix Film Critics Society Award	Best Ensemble Acting		Nominated
2004	Seattle Film Critics Award	Best Music		Won
2006	Gotham Award	Best Ensemble Performance	For Your Consideration	Nominated
2016	Critics' Choice Television Award	Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series	Better Call Saul	Nominated
2017				Nominated
2018	Satellite Awards	Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film		Won
	Saturn Awards	Best Supporting Actor on Television		Won
2019	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series		Nominated

References

1. ^ "A Biographical Snippet". 21 April 2016.
2. ^ "It's Lenny & Squiggy". people.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24.
3. ^ "Michael McKean Biography (1947–)". FilmReference.com. Archived from the original on August 1, 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
4. ^ Henderson, Kathy (October 26, 2009). "Michael McKean Savors the Taste of Superior Donuts". Broadway.com. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
5. ^ "Michael John McKean". geni_family_tree. 17 October 1947. Archived from the original on 17 September 2017. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
6. ^ Castillo, Arielle (April 24, 2009). "Q&A With Michael McKean of Spinal Tap, Appearing at the Fillmore Miami Beach on May 5!". Miami New Times. Archived from the original on May 18, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
7. ^ Wink, Roger (March 21, 2015). "R.I.P. Michael Brown of The Left Banke 1949-2015". The Noise Network. Archived from the original on March 2, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
8. ^ "Comedy for the Cure". Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Archived from the original on December 18, 2014. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
9. ^ Wright, Megh (July 9, 2013). "Saturday Night's Children: Michael McKean (1994-1995) | Splitsider". Splitsider. Archived from the original on December 18, 2014. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
10. YouTube
    . Retrieved May 11, 2012.
11. ^ "Michael McKean Returns to Smallville". TVGuide.com. Archived from the original on 2010-01-23.
12. ^ Carlson, Erin (May 31, 2012). "Michael McKean released from hospital to begin physical rehab". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on May 31, 2012.
13. ^ "Injury forces Michael McKean out of Broadway show". ap.org. Retrieved May 23, 2012.
14. ^ "Lyndon B. Johnson Bio-Play All the Way, Starring Bryan Cranston, Begins Performances on Broadway". Broadway.com. Archived from the original on 2014-03-05.
15. ^ "Michael McKean Cast in the Breaking Bad Prequel Better Call Saul: Find Out Who He's Playing". E! Online. May 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-05-02.
16. ^ "Don't Let the Good Life Pass You by". IMDb. 15 November 2018.
17. ^ Pedersen, Erik (September 15, 2017). "'Good Omens': Jack Whitehall, Michael McKean, Miranda Richardson & Adria Arjona Join Amazon Series". Deadline.com.
18. ^ NJeri, Esther (April 3, 2022). "Michael McKean & wife Annette share a blended family". AmoMama. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
19. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w} "Michael McKean (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved November 26, 2023. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Michael McKean.

• Official website
• Michael McKean at
  IMDb 
• Michael McKean at the Internet Broadway Database
• Michael McKean at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• Michael McKean discography at Discogs
• Michael McKean – Downstage Center interview at American Theatre Wing.org