It has been suggested that American comic book be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) Proposed since April 2012.

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Comic book

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A comic book or comicbook,^[1] also called comic paper or comic magazine (often shortened to simply comic or comics) is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog (usually in word balloons, emblematic of the comic book art form) as well as including brief descriptive prose. The first comic book appeared in the United States in 1933, reprinting the earlier newspaper comic strips, which established many of the story-telling devices used in comics. The term "comic book" arose because the first comic books reprinted humor comic strips. Despite their name, comic books are not necessarily humorous in tone; modern comic books tell stories in a variety of genres.

American comic books[link]

Rulah, Jungle Goddess No. 24 (March 1949): An example of a non-superhero jungle-girl character. Cover artist(s) unknown.

Adventures into Darkness: Horror stories

Since the introduction of the comic book format in 1933 with the publication of Famous Funnies, the United States has produced the most titles, with only the British comic and Japanese manga as close competitors in terms of quantity of titles, though manga has many more followers and dwarfs American comics in readership.^{[citation needed]}

Cultural historians divide the career of the comic book in the U.S. into several ages or historical eras:

• Proto-comic books and the Platinum Age
• Golden Age
• Silver Age
• Bronze Age
• Modern Age

Comic book historians continue to debate the exact boundaries of these eras, but they have come to an agreement, the terms for which originated in the fan press. Comics as a print medium have existed in America since the printing of The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck in 1842 in hardcover—making it the first known American prototype comic book. The introduction of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's Superman in 1938 turned comic books into a major industry,^[2] and is the start of the Golden Age of comics. Historians have proposed several names for the Age before Superman, most commonly dubbing it the Platinum Age.^[3]

While the Platinum Age saw the first use of the term "comic book" (The Yellow Kid in McFadden's Flats (1897)), the first known full-color comic (The Blackberries (1901)), and the first monthly comic book (Comics Monthly (1922)), it was not until the Golden Age that the archetype of the superhero would originate.

The Silver Age of comic books is generally considered to date from the first successful revival of the dormant superhero form—the debut of Robert Kanigher and Carmine Infantino's Flash in Showcase No. 4 (September/October 1956).^[4][5] The Silver Age lasted through the late 1960s or early 1970s, during which time Marvel Comics revolutionized the medium with such naturalistic superheroes as Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's Fantastic Four and Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's Spider-Man.

The precise beginnings of the Bronze and Copper Ages remain less well-defined. Suggested starting points for the Bronze Age of comics include Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith's Conan No. 1 (October 1970), Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams' Green Lantern/Green Arrow No. 76 (April 1970), or Stan Lee and Gil Kane's The Amazing Spider-Man No. 96 (May 1971; the non-Comics Code issue). The start of the Copper Age (apprx. 1984-2000) has even more potential starting points, but is generally agreed to be the publication of Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and Alan Moore's Watchmen by DC Comics in 1986, as well as the publication of DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths, written by Marv Wolfman with pencils by George Pérez. Another possible starting point is Marvel Super-Heroes Secret Wars, published in 1984.^{[citation needed]}

The Modern Age is generally accepted^{[by whom?]} as being from 2000 to the Present.^{[citation needed]}

A notable event in the history of the American comic book came with the psychiatrist Fredric Wertham's criticisms of the medium in his book Seduction of the Innocent (1954), which prompted the American Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency to investigate comic books. In response to attention from the government and from the media, the U.S. comic book industry set up the Comics Code Authority in 1954 and drafted the "Comics Code" in the same year.

Underground comic books[link]

In the late 1960s and early 1970s a surge of creativity emerged in what became known as underground comics. Published and distributed independently of the established comics industry, most of such comics reflected the youth counterculture and drug culture of the time. Many had an uninhibited, often irreverent style; their frank depictions of nudity, sex, profanity, and politics had no parallel outside their precursors, the pornographic and even more obscure "Tijuana bibles". Underground comics were almost never sold at news stands, but rather in such youth-oriented outlets as head shops and record stores, as well as by mail order.

Frank Stack's The Adventures of Jesus, published under the name Foolbert Sturgeon,^[6][7] has been credited as the first underground comic.^[6][7]

Alternative comics[link]

The rise of comic book specialty stores in the late 1970s created/paralleled a dedicated market for "independent" or "alternative comics" in the U.S. The first such comics included the anthology series Star Reach, published by comic book writer Mike Friedrich from 1974 to 1979, and Harvey Pekar's American Splendor, which continued sporadic publication into the 21st century and which Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini adapted into a 2003 film. Some independent comics continued in the tradition of underground comics, though their content was generally less explicit, and others resembled the output of mainstream publishers in format and genre but were published by smaller artist-owned companies or by single artists. A few (notably RAW) were experimental attempts to bring comics closer to the status of fine art.

During the 1970s the "small press" culture grew and diversified. By the 1980s, several independent publishers, such as Pacific, Eclipse, First, Comico, and Fantagraphics had started releasing a wide range of styles and formats—from color superhero, detective, and science fiction comic books to black-and-white magazine-format stories of Latin American magical realism.

A number of small publishers in the 1990s changed the format and distribution of their comics to more closely resemble non-comics publishing. The "minicomics" form, an extremely informal version of self-publishing, arose in the 1980s and became increasingly popular among artists in the 1990s, despite reaching an even more limited audience than the small press.

As of 2009^[update] small publishers regularly releasing titles include Avatar Comics, Hyperwerks, Raytoons, and Terminal Press, buoyed by such advances in printing technology as digital print-on-demand.

Graphic novels[link]

In 1964, Richard Kyle coined the term "graphic novel" to distinguish newly translated European works from genre-driven subject matter common in American comics. Precursors of the form existed by the 1920s, which saw a revival of the medieval woodcut tradition by Belgian Frans Masereel,^[8] American Lynd Ward and others. In 1950, St. John Publications produced the digest-sized, adult-oriented "picture novel" It Rhymes with Lust, a 128-page digest by pseudonymous writer "Drake Waller" (Arnold Drake and Leslie Waller), penciler Matt Baker and inker Ray Osrin, touted as "an original full-length novel" on its cover. In 1971, writer-artist Gil Kane and collaborators devised the paperback "comics novel" Blackmark. Will Eisner popularized the term "graphic novel" when he used it on the cover of the paperback edition of his work A Contract with God, and Other Tenement Stories in 1978.

Digital graphic novels[link]

Comic book collecting[link]

This section requires expansion.

The rarest^{[citation needed]} comic books include copies of the unreleased Motion Picture Funnies Weekly No. 1 from 1939. Eight copies, plus one without a cover, emerged in the estate of the deceased publisher in 1974. The "Pay Copy" of this book sold for $43,125 in a 2005 Heritage auction.^[9]

The most valuable American comics have combined rarity and quality with the first appearances of popular and enduring characters. Four comic books to have sold for over $1 million USD as of December 2010, including two examples of Action Comics No. 1, the first appearance of Superman,^[10][11] both sold privately through online dealer ComicConnect.com in 2010, and Detective Comics No. 27, the first appearance of Batman, via public auction.

Misprints, promotional comic-dealer incentive printings, and similar issues with extremely low distribution also generally have scarcity value. The rarest modern comic books include the original press run of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen No. 5, which DC executive Paul Levitz recalled and pulped due to the appearance of a vintage Victorian era advertisement for "Marvel Douche", which the publisher considered offensive;^[12] only 100 copies exist, most of which have been CGC graded. (See Recalled comics for more pulped, recalled, and erroneous comics.)

In 2000, a company named CGC began to "slab" comics, encasing them in a thick plastic and giving them a numeric grade.

European comics[link]

Franco-Belgian comics[link]

France and Belgium have a long tradition in comics and comic books, called BDs (an abbreviation of bande dessinées) in French and strips in Dutch. Belgian comic books originally written in Dutch show the influence of the Francophone "Franco-Belgian" comics, but have their own distinct style.

The name la bande dessinée derives from the original description of the art form as drawn strips (the phrase literally translates as "the drawn strip"), analogous to the sequence of images in a film strip. As in its English equivalent, the word "bande" can be applied to both film and comics. Significantly, the French-language term contains no indication of subject-matter, unlike the American terms "comics" and "funnies", which imply an art form not to be taken seriously. The distinction of comics as le neuvième art (literally, "the ninth art") is prevalent in French scholarship on the form, as is the concept of comics criticism and scholarship itself. Relative to the respective size of their populations, the innumerable authors in France and Belgium publish a high volume of comic books. In North America, the more serious Franco-Belgian comics are often seen as equivalent to graphic novels, but whether they are long or short, bound or in magazine format, in Europe there is no need for a more sophisticated term, as the art's name does not itself imply something frivolous.

In France, authors control the publication of most comics. The author works within a self-appointed time-frame, and it is common for readers to wait six months or as long as two years between installments. Most books first appear in print as a hardcover book, typically with 48, 56, or 64 pages.

British comics[link]

Originally the same size as a usual comic book in the U.S. (although lacking the glossy cover), the British comic has adopted a magazine size, with The Beano and The Dandy the last to adopt this size (in the 1980s). Although the British generally speak of "a comic" or of "a comic magazine", and they also historically spoke of "a comic paper". Some comics, such as Judge Dredd and other 2000 AD titles, have been published in a tabloid form.

Although Ally Sloper's Half Holiday (1884), the first comic published in Britain, was aimed at an adult market, publishers quickly targeted a younger market, which has led to most publications being for children and created an association in the public's mind of comics as somewhat juvenile.

Popular titles within the UK have included The Beano, The Dandy, The Eagle, 2000 AD, and Viz. Underground comics and "small press" titles have also been published within the UK, notably Oz and Escape Magazine.

The content of Action, another title aimed at children and launched in the mid-1970s, became the subject of discussion in the House of Commons. Although on a smaller scale than similar investigations in the U.S., such concerns led to a moderation of content published within British comics. Such moderation never became formalized to the extent of promulgating a code, nor did it last long.

The UK has also established a healthy market in the reprinting and repackaging of material, notably material originating in the U.S. The lack of reliable supplies of American comic books led to a variety of black-and-white reprints, including Marvel's monster comics of the 1950s, Fawcett's Captain Marvel, and other characters such as Sheena, Mandrake the Magician, and the Phantom. Several reprint companies were involved in repackaging American material for the British market, notably the importer and distributor Thorpe & Porter.

Marvel Comics established a UK office in 1972. DC Comics and Dark Horse Comics also opened offices in the 1990s. The repackaging of European material has occurred less frequently, although the Tintin and Asterix serials have been successfully translated and repackaged in softcover books.

At Christmas time, publishers repackage and commission material for comic annuals, printed and bound as hardcover A4-size books; Rupert supplies a famous example of the British comic annual. DC Thomson also repackages The Broons and Oor Wullie strips in softcover A4-size books for the holiday season.

On 19 March 2012, the British postal service, the Royal Mail, released a set of stamps depicting British comic-book characters and series.^[13] The collection featured The Beano, The Dandy, Eagle, The Topper, Roy of the Rovers, Bunty, Buster, Valiant, Twinkle and 2000 AD.

Italian comics[link]

In Italy, comics (known in Italian as fumetti) made their debut as humor strips at the end of the 19th century, and later evolved into adventure stories inspired by those coming from the U.S.^{[citation needed]} After World War II, however, artists like Hugo Pratt and Guido Crepax exposed Italian comics to an international audience. "Author" comics^{[clarification needed]} contain often strong erotic contents. Popular comic books such as Diabolik or the Bonelli line—namely Tex Willer or Dylan Dog—remain best-sellers.

Mainstream comics are usually published on a monthly basis, in a black-and-white digest size format, with approximately 100 to 132 pages. Collections of classic material for the most famous characters, usually with more than 200 pages, are also common. Author comics are published in the French BD format, with an example being Pratt's Corto Maltese.

Italian cartoonists show the influence of comics from other countries, including France, Belgium, Spain, and Argentina. Italy is also famous for being one of the foremost producers of Walt Disney comic stories outside the U.S. Donald Duck's superhero alter ego, Paperinik, known in English as Superduck, was created in Italy.

Japanese comics[link]

This article may not properly summarize the main article. Specific concerns can be found on the Talk page. Please improve this article if you can.

The first comic books in Japan appeared during the 18th century in the form of woodblock-printed booklets containing short stories drawn from folk tales, legends, and historical accounts, told in a simple visual-verbal idiom. Known as "red books" (赤本, akahon^?), "black books" (黒本, kurobon^?), and "blue books" (青本, aohon^?), these were written primarily for less literate readers. However, with the publication in 1775 of Koikawa Harumachi's comic book Master Flashgold's Splendiferous Dream (金々先生栄花の夢, Kinkin sensei eiga no yume^?), an adult form of comic book originated, which required greater literacy and cultural sophistication. This was known as the kibyōshi (黄表紙^?, lit. yellow cover). Published in thousands (possibly^{[original research?]} tens of thousands) of copies, the kibyōshi may have been the earliest fully realized comic book for adults in world literary history. Approximately 2,000 titles remain extant.

Modern comic books in Japan developed from a mixture of these earlier comic books and of woodblock prints ukiyo-e (浮世絵^?) with Western styles of drawing. They took their current^[update] form shortly after World War II. They are usually published in black-and-white, except for the covers, which are usually printed in four colors, although occasionally, the first few pages may also be printed in full color. The term manga means "random (or whimsical) pictures", and first came into common usage in the late 18th century with the publication of such works as Santō Kyōden's picturebook Shiji no yukikai (四時交加^?) (1798) and Aikawa Minwa's Comic Sketches of a Hundred Women (1798).

Development of this form occurred as a result of Japan's attempts to modernize itself^{[citation needed]}, a desire awakened by trade with the U.S.^{[citation needed]} Western artists were brought over to teach their students such concepts as line, form, and color; things which had not been regarded as conceptually important in ukiyo-e, as the idea behind the picture was of paramount importance. Manga at this time was referred to as Ponchi-e (Punch-picture) and, like its British counterpart Punch magazine, mainly depicted humor and political satire in short one- or four-picture format.

Dr. Osamu Tezuka (1928–1989), widely acknowledged^{[by whom?]} as the father of narrative manga, further developed this form. Seeing an animated war propaganda film titled Momotaro's Divine Sea Warriors (桃太郎 海の神兵, Momotarō Umi no Shinpei^?) inspired Tezuka to become a comic artist. He introduced episodic storytelling and character development in comic format, in which each story is part of larger story arc. The only text in Tezuka's comics was the characters' dialogue and this further lent his comics a cinematic quality. Inspired by the work of Walt Disney, Tezuka also adopted a style of drawing facial features in which a character's eyes, nose, and mouth are drawn in an extremely exaggerated manner. This style created immediately recognizable expressions using very few lines, and the simplicity of this style allowed Tezuka to be prolific. Tezuka's work generated new interest in the ukiyo-e tradition, in which the image is a representation of an idea, rather than a depiction of reality.

Though a close equivalent to the American comic book, manga has historically held a more important place in Japanese culture than comics have in American culture. Japanese society shows a wide respect for manga, both as an art form and as a form of popular literature. Many manga become television shows or short films. As with its American counterpart, some manga has been criticized for its sexuality and violence, although in the absence of official or even industry restrictions on content, artists have freely created manga for every age group and for every topic.

Manga magazines—also known as "anthologies", or colloquially, "phone books"^{[citation needed]}—often run several series concurrently, with approximately 20 to 40 pages allocated to each series per issue. These magazines are usually printed^{[by whom?]} on low-quality newsprint and range from 200 to more than 850 pages each. Manga magazines also contain one-shot comics and a variety of four-panel yonkoma (equivalent to comic strips). Manga series may continue for many years if they are successful, with stories often collected and reprinted in book-sized volumes called tankōbon (単行本^?, lit. stand-alone book), the equivalent of the American trade paperbacks. These volumes use higher-quality paper and are useful to readers who want to be brought up to date with a series, or to readers who find the cost of the weekly or monthly publications to be prohibitive. Deluxe versions are printed as commemorative or collectible editions. Conversely, old manga titles are also reprinted using lower-quality paper and sold for 120 ¥ (approximately $1 USD) each.

Doujinshi[link]

Doujinshi (同人誌^?, lit. fan magazine), fan-made Japanese comics operate in a far larger market in Japan than the American "underground comics" market; the largest doujinshi fair, Comic Market, attracts 500,000 visitors twice a year.

See also[link]

Comics portal

• Cartoon
• Comics Studies
• Comics vocabulary
• Webcomic
• Digital comics

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Kern, Adam L. (18 December 2006). Manga from the Floating World: Comic book Culture and the Kibyôshi of Edo Japan. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Asia Center. ISBN 978-0-674-02266-9. 
• Inge, M. Thomas (1979). "Comics as Culture". Journal of Popular Culture 12 (631). 
• Martin, Tim (2 April 2009). "How Comic Books Became Part of the Literary Establishment". Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookreviews/5094231/How-Comic-Books-became-part-of-the-literary-establishment.html. 

External links[link]

• Grand Comics Database
• The Comic Book Database
• Comic book Reference Bibliographic Datafile
• Sequart Research & Literacy Organization
• Comic Book Resources
• The Comics Ninja
• Comic Art Collection at the University of Missouri
• The Comics Journal
• The Comics Reporter

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Bill Hader
Hader at the Adventureland premiere in 2009
Birth name	William Hader
Born	(1978-06-07) June 7, 1978 (age 34) Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S.
Nationality	American
Years active	1998–present
Spouse	Maggie Carey (2006-present; 1 child)
Notable works and roles	Saturday Night Live, Superbad, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Doogal, Adventureland

William "Bill" Hader (born June 7, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, producer and writer. He is best known for his work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live and for his supporting roles in comedy films such as Superbad, Hot Rod, Tropic Thunder, Adventureland, Paul, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.

Early life[link]

Hader was born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the son of Sherri and Bill Hader.^[1] He has two sisters, Katie and Kara.^[1] Hader attended Patrick Henry Elementary School, Edison Junior High, and Cascia Hall Preparatory School,^[2][3] before attending The Art Institute of Phoenix and Scottsdale Community College.^[4]

Early career[link]

Hader's comedic aspirations eventually led him to Los Angeles where he joined the Second City, a comedy troupe that has been a training ground for many SNL cast members since the 1970s. He performed at iO West in Los Angeles. During his time at Second City and iO West, Hader worked as a production assistant on the DVD Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy and Collateral Damage, as well as an assistant on VH1's The Surreal Life.

[edit] Saturday Night Live

Bill Hader was "discovered" by Megan Mullally of Will & Grace while working with the Los Angeles-based comedy troupe "Animals from the Future." Mullally brought him to the attention of SNL producer Lorne Michaels. Hader was hired as a "featured player" and made his debut on the show on October 1, 2005. His first role was as a psychologist giving his views about life and death during the emergency landing of JetBlue Airways Flight 292. Hader is known for his impressions of famous people, such as Vincent Price in the Variety Vault sketches, Al Pacino, Brian Grazer, Rick Perry, John Malkovich, James Carville, Julian Assange, Eliot Spitzer, Alan Alda and Charlie Sheen.

Hader recently finished his 7th season on SNL.

Recurring characters[link]

• Stefon, Weekend Update's flamboyant New York City Correspondent, whose recommendations consist solely of bizarre nightclubs involving nightmarish characters. He is in love with Seth Meyers. Writer John Mulaney often changes some jokes to the sketch right before it airs and many of the lines catch Hader off guard, leading him to burst into laughter.
• Usually the game show host in game show sketches.
• Vinny Vedecci, the Italian talk-show host who chain-smokes, insults his crew (Fred Armisen and Will Forte, later replaced by Paul Brittain), has a son (Bobby Moynihan), and speaks little English, even though his guests (played by the guest hosts as themselves) are English speakers.
• Greg the Alien, the co-host of a sports talk show who appears to be an alien despite co-host Randy Dukes (Kenan Thompson's) constant claims that Greg is not an alien.
• Nitro, in the SNL Digital Short Laser Cats
• One of the four guys (the others being Will Forte [later replaced by Andy Samberg], Jason Sudeikis and the host) who reveal crazy aspects about themselves while singing a song in the Song Memories sketches
• Lindsey Buckingham, from the skit "What's Up with That?"
• One half of the "2 Gay Guys from New Jersey." Is the only one whose real name was revealed. His real name is Tony DiNato.
• DJ Frontal Assault on Deep House Dish
• Danny, a guy who has the mutant "Kuato" (played by Andy Samberg) living in his stomach
• Mr. Triggs, the father of an ugly, socially inept girl named Stacia (played by Kristen Wiig)
• Jerry, a sleazy businessman who works with Carl (Will Forte). Both are often drunk and insulting to their co-workers
• One of the "Scared Straight" kids, three young trouble-makers (along with Andy Samberg and Bobby Moynihan) who are lectured by convict Lorenzo McIntosh (played by Kenan Thompson) and a fellow inmate played by the host
• Dwayne Vogelcheck: the brother in Kissing Family (his parents are played by Kristen Wiig and Fred Armisen) where another sibling, usually played by the celebrity host, brings a friend or girlfriend home to their overly affectionate family
• Brady Trunk: co-host of "Hollywood Dish", with Kristen Wiig
• Herb Welch: a senile, on-the-scene news reporter who keeps hitting his interviewees in the face with his microphone.
• One of the Merryville Brothers robots (along with Taran Killam; the third member has been played by Jim Carrey and Justin Timberlake)
• Leonard, the production assistant on advice shows produced by Roger Brush (Fred Armisen)
• Lyle Round, host of the 1960s game show, "Secret Word." He often gets annoyed with his celebrity contestants, particularly Mindy Gracin (Kristen Wiig)
• Vince Blight, the host for the game show, "What's That Name?" On the Alec Baldwin/Radiohead episode, Blight was the host of a game show called "Who's On Top?" and on the episode hosted by Anna Faris (with musical guest Drake), Blight hosted a Lifetime-based game show called "What's Wrong With Tanya?"

Impersonations[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2012)

Bill Hader has said that he performed impersonations of teachers and friends when he was growing up, but did not do impersonations of famous people until his Saturday Night Live audition.^[5] His Al Pacino impersonation came after watching the actor's Emmy acceptance speech for Angels in America. Hader's Vincent Price impersonation came from his love of Price's Edgar Allan Poe films, such as The Fall of the House of Usher. His Peter O'Toole impersonation came partly from O'Toole in My Favorite Year and Jack Lemmon's drunken Prince Hapnick from The Great Race and Cher from Burlesque.

Another one of Hader's impersonations from Saturday Night Live is his impersonation of former governor Eliot Spitzer. Hader has also impersonated Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, Michael "The Situation" Sorrentino from MTV's Jersey Shore, Pearl Jam's frontman Eddie Vedder, Dave Matthews, John Boehner, Ben Mankiewicz, John Mayer, Conan O'Brien, Alan Alda, Dr. Oz, Rick Perry, Charlie Sheen, political strategist James Carville, Clint Eastwood and Tim Burton.

Hader is known^[where?] for his uncanny impression of Dateline NBC 's Keith Morrison, parodying his reporting style of being overly interested in horrific tales of tragedy and/or murder, and asking inane questions. After discovering that Morrison works at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, where both Dateline and Saturday Night Live are filmed, Hader half-jestingly said on the March 30, 2009, episode of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that he lived in fear of getting into the same elevator as Morrison at 30 Rock.

In December 2010, he portrayed Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, who interrupts the broadcast from a British prison. In this sketch he hacks commercials for companies that are apologizing about WikiLeaks (such as MasterCard) and informs America about his status. He also performed a parody of TMZ with Assange playing the role of Harvey Levin.

Film roles[link]

He first appeared alongside Owen Wilson and Matt Dillon in You, Me and Dupree. Since then he's had a wide range of roles such as Katherine Heigl's editor at E! in Knocked Up, the acid-taking mechanic Dave in Hot Rod (alongside SNL castmate Andy Samberg), a recumbent biker in The Brothers Solomon (which featured SNL castmate Will Forte in one of the film's co-leading roles) and, most famously, as Officer Slater in the Judd Apatow produced Superbad. His role in Superbad helped boost his public awareness and allowed him to appear on mainstream programs like Total Request Live, The Tonight Show, and MTV's Video Music Awards.

Hader appeared in two other Apatow projects: Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Pineapple Express (with Seth Rogen). He appeared alongside Ben Stiller, Brandon T. Jackson, Jack Black, Robert Downey, Jr., Matthew McConaughey, Steve Coogan, Jay Baruchel, Tom Cruise, and Nick Nolte in Tropic Thunder.

He teamed back up with Superbad director Greg Mottola for the film Adventureland. He also appears in Mottola's feature Paul.

In addition to these films, Hader has made several short films, including Back in the Day, Sounds Good to Me: Remastering the Sting, and The Jeannie Tate Show with SNL writer Liz Cackowski and wife Maggie Carey.

Hader makes a small appearance in the 2009 film Year One with Jack Black and Michael Cera.

Hader lent his voice to the critically acclaimed^[6] 2009 Sony Pictures Animation film Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, playing the lead role of Flint Lockwood. He voiced a gazelle in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.

Hader appeared in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian as Major General George Armstrong Custer.

He provided a voiceover in the 2010 film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. He portrayed The Voice, the disembodied voice that pops up during certain moments of the film's video game-inspired fight scenes.

Hader has written a slasher film to be produced by Judd Apatow,^[7] which he will star in if the film is produced.^[8]

In April 2009, Hader was a part of Vanity Fair's list of "Comedy's New Legends".^[9]

Other work[link]

Hader was a creative consultant on the 12th season of South Park. He was a producer on the 13th season, which premiered March 11, 2009.^[10] Hader is among the series producers to win the 2009 Emmy Award for Best Animated Series. He also appeared on the commentary recorded for the 2009 Blu-ray edition of South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut, and the Comedy Central special "South Park: 6 Days to Air", a documentary filmed during production of the 2011 South Park episode HumancentiPad.

Hader won a Peabody Award for his participation in Saturday Night Live Political Satire, 2008

Hader voiced an array of different characters on the second season of the Adult Swim show Xavier: Renegade Angel.

Hader and SNL castmate Seth Meyers penned a Spider-Man one-shot, "The Short Halloween," the title of which is a reference to the Batman story arc "The Long Halloween." It was drawn by Kevin Maguire and came out May 29, 2009, to positive reviews.

Jackson Publick announced on his blog that Hader will be the new voice for Professor Impossible on the fourth season of The Venture Brothers The part was originated by Stephen Colbert.

In the game Grand Theft Auto IV he played Wilson Taylor Sr (On in-game radio show: Pacemaker)

Hader appeared on Tim and Eric Awesome Show impersonating the recurring character James Quall on the episode "Jazz."

In July 2008, Hader starred in, and co-wrote with Simon Rich, the web series The Line on Crackle.^[11]

Hader lent his voice to the audiobook of Sarah Vowell's The Wordy Shipmates.

Hader voiced the Pod in the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode "IAMAPOD" as well as Hitler in the episode "Der Inflatable Fuhrer."

Hader played Kevin, Matt Damon's co-pilot, in the live episode of 30 Rock, recorded October 14, 2010.

Hader is hosting the 2011 season of Essentials, Jr. on Turner Classic Movies.

Personal life[link]

This section requires expansion.

In 2006, Hader married writer-director Maggie Carey.^[12] They have a daughter named Hannah Kathryn, born October 6, 2009.

Filmography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Bill Hader at the Internet Movie Database
• Interview with New York Times

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (August 2008)

Kevin Conroy
Born	(1955-11-30) November 30, 1955 (age 56) Westbury, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1980–present

Kevin Conroy (born November 30, 1955) is an American stage, screen, and voice actor, known for his acclaimed voice role as Batman in the Emmy Award-winning 1990s Fox television show Batman: The Animated Series, as well as its various spin-off TV series and feature films that made up the DC Animated Universe.^[1] More recently, he has voiced Batman in the acclaimed video games Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City, as well as various films under the DC Universe Animated Original Movies banner.

Early life[link]

Born in Westbury, New York, Conroy moved to Westport, Connecticut when he was about 11 years old. He moved to New York in 1973 when he earned a full scholarship to attend Juilliard's famous drama division, where he studied under actor John Houseman. While there, he almost ended up living with future Superman actor Christopher Reeve, but ended up rooming with Robin Williams who was in the same group as both Conroy and Kelsey Grammer.^[2] In 1978, after graduating from Juilliard, he toured with The Acting Company, Houseman's acting group, and, in 1979, he went on the national tour of Ira Levin's Deathtrap.^[3]

Career[link]

In 1980, he decided to try his hand in television, and moved out to California. He landed a role in the daytime soap opera Another World. He became associated with the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, California, where he performed in productions of Hamlet and A Midsummer Night's Dream. From 1980 to 1985, he acted in a variety of contemporary and classic theatre pieces, including the Broadway productions of Eastern Standard and Edward Albee's adaptation of Lolita. In 1984, he played the title role in Hamlet in the New York Shakespeare Festival. He returned to television in the 1985 TV movie Covenant, and had a role on another daytime soap drama, Search For Tomorrow. He was a series regular on Ohara in 1987, and on Tour of Duty from 1987 to 1988, before starring in a series of television movies. He has also guest starred on shows such as Cheers, Dynasty, Search For Tomorrow, and Matlock.^[4]

He almost landed the part of Joe Hackett on the NBC sitcom Wings, but lost out to Tim Daly (who coincidentally, as a voice actor, later portrayed Superman in The WB's Superman: The Animated Series). He was confirmed to be performing on the fourth season of The Venture Bros. as Captain Sunshine, a caricature of Batman and Superman.^[4]

Batman[link]

Vocally, Kevin Conroy is well known to audiences for his lead role in Batman: The Animated Series (1992–1995). In 1991, Conroy was told by his agent that Warner Bros. was producing a new animated TV series and asked him if he would like to try out for the voice of Batman. Believing it would be like the 1960s Batman TV series, Conroy went in to audition. He was one of 150 actors who auditioned for the role. When asked about the character, the series producer Bruce Timm explained to Conroy that this interpretation of Batman would not be like the 1960s TV version, but rather based on a much more gothic story line similar to Tim Burton's 1989 Batman film. Conroy walked into the booth and ultimately won the audition. He continued to voice-play Batman in the subsequent spin-off series The New Batman Adventures (1997–1999), Batman Beyond (1999–2001), Justice League (2001–2004), and Justice League Unlimited (2004–2006), all of which take place in what is commonly referred to as the DC Animated Universe (DCAU). His tenure in the role also includes the DCAU films Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993), Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998), Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (2000), and Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman (2003). He also voiced Batman for the character's guest appearances in the DCAU's Superman: The Animated Series, Static Shock, and The Zeta Project.

Conroy is well remembered by fans for being the first person in animation to use two distinct voices to portray Bruce Wayne and Batman, which was Conroy's idea.^[3] In a tally of performances that include every episode, movie, and guest appearance made as Batman, Conroy has portrayed the character longer than any other actor in either live-action or animation. Apart from the DCAU, Conroy has also portrayed Batman in the DC Universe Animated Original Movies Batman: Gotham Knight (2008), Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009), Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010), and Justice League: Doom (2012).^[4][5]

Additionally, he portrayed Batman in the video games The Adventures of Batman & Robin (1994), Batman: Vengeance (2001), Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu (2003), Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009) and Batman: Arkham City (2011), as well as the 2001 revamp of Batman Adventure - The Ride, at the Warner Bros. Movie World theme park in Queensland, Australia. Conroy also voiced Batman alongside his DCAU co-star Mark Hamill as the Joker and Jason Hillhouse as Dick Grayson in a feature of a storyboard scene included in the 2005 Special Edition DVD of the 1989 Batman film. This scene depicted the origin of Robin, which wasn't filmed because the filmmakers ultimately felt it was out of place with the rest of the film. In the season four premiere of The Batman, an animated series unrelated to the DCAU, Conroy portrayed Robin's father, John Grayson. Conroy also voiced the Phantom Stranger and an alternate Batman in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, another animated series unrelated to the DCAU.^[6]

He also portrays Batman in the online video game DC Universe Online.

Personal life[link]

After the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York City, Conroy participated in relief efforts by volunteering to do cooking duties for officers and firefighters. During an audio commentary on Batman: Gotham Knight Conroy expressed his surprise at the reaction of the emergency service workers to his presence. At the behest of another cook, Conroy called out from the kitchen to the dining area in his "Batman voice", reciting a few lines, which were greeted by cheers and applause from emergency service personnel, many of whom had been fans of Batman: The Animated Series during its airing in the 1990s. Conroy confessed to being humbled and deeply flattered by the reaction.^[7]

Credits[link]

• How to Pick Up Girls! (1978; TV movie) - Bartender
• Another World (1980–1981; TV series) - Jerry Grove #2
• Born Beautiful (1982; TV movie) - Stan
• Kennedy (1983; TV mini-series) - Ted Kennedy
• George Washington (1984; TV mini-series) - John Laurens
• Search for Tomorrow (1984–1985; TV series) - Chase Kendall
• Covenant (1985; TV movie) - Stephen
• Dynasty (1985–1986; TV series) - Bart Fallmont
• Ohara (1987; TV series) - Capt. Lloyd Hamilton
• Tour of Duty (1987–1988; TV series) - Capt. Rusty Wallace
• Killer Instinct (1988; TV movie) - Dr. Steven Nelson
• So Proudly We Hail (1990; TV movie) - Francis Crosby
• The Face of Fear (1990; TV movie) - Frank Dwight Bollinger
• Hi Honey - I'm Dead (1991; TV Movie) - Brad Stadler
• Battle in the Errogenous Zone (1992; TV movie) - Mondo Ray
• The Secret Passion of Robert Clayton (1992; TV movie) - Hunter Roy Evans
• Chain of Desire (1992) - Joe
• Rachel Gunn, R.N. (1992; TV series) - Dr. David Dunkle
• Batman: The Animated Series (1992–1995; TV series) - Bruce Wayne/Batman and Dr. Thomas Wayne
• Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993; theatrical film) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• The Adventures of Batman & Robin (1994; video game) - Batman (Sega CD version only)
• Island City (1994; TV movie) - Col. Tom Valdoon
• The Office (1995; TV series) - Steve Gillman
• Superman: The Animated Series (1997-1999; TV series) - Bruce Wayne/Batman (guest star; episodes: "World's Finest," "Knight Time," and "The Demon Reborn")
• The New Batman Adventures (1997–1999; TV series) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998; DTV film) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• Crusaders of Might and Magic (1999; video game) - Drake
• Batman Beyond (1999–2001; TV series) - Bruce Wayne
• Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (2000; DTV film) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• The Zeta Project (2001; TV series) - Bruce Wayne (guest star; episode: "Shadows")
• Batman: Vengeance (2001; video game) - Batman
• Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (2001; video game) - Fisherman
• Justice League (2001–2004; TV series) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• Static Shock (2002-2004; TV series) - Bruce Wayne/Batman (guest star; episodes: "The Big Leagues," "Hard as Nails," "A League of Their Own," and "Future Shock")
• Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne (2003; video game) - Lord Jack/Cleaner/Commando
• Lords of EverQuest (2003; video game) - Lord Palasa
• Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu (2003; video game) - Batman
• Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman (2003; DTV film) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• Justice League Unlimited (2004–2006; TV series) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• The Batman (2006; TV series) - John Grayson (guest star; episode: "A Matter of Family")
• Batman: Gotham Knight (2008; DTV film) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• Ben 10: Alien Force (2008; TV series) - Alien X (Bellicus)
• Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009; video game) - Bruce Wayne/Batman and Thomas Wayne
• Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009; DTV film) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• The Venture Bros (2009; TV series) - Captain Sunshine (guest star; episode: "Handsome Ransom")
• Batman: The Brave and the Bold (2010; TV series) - Batman of Zur-En-Arrh, Phantom Stranger
• Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010; DTV film) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• DC Universe Online (2011; online video game) - Batman
• Batman: Arkham City (2011; video game) - Bruce Wayne/Batman, Dr. Thomas Elliot/Hush
• Justice League: Doom (2012; DTV film) - Bruce Wayne/Batman
• Transformers: Prime (2012; TV series) -

Stage plays[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Kevin Conroy

• Kevin Conroy talks life, Batman and video games
• Kevin Conroy at the Internet Movie Database
• Audio Interview w/ The Rafferty/Mills Connection Podcast (2009)
• HoboTrashcan - One on One with Kevin Conroy (2009)

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (August 2011)

For music video, film, and commercial director Jonathan Glazer, see Jonathan Glazer.

Jonathan Daniel "Jon" Glaser (born June 20, 1968) is an American actor, comedian and television writer based out of New York City. He is best known for his work as a writer and sketch performer for many years on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, as well as for creating and starring in the Adult Swim series Delocated.

Life and career[link]

Glaser was born in Chicago, Illinois on June 20, 1968. Glaser is a graduate of the University of Michigan, where he performed in the sketch comedy troupes Comedy Company and Just Kidding with Jon Hein, he is a five-time Emmy nominee with the writing staff of Late Night with Conan O'Brien. He has appeared in the movies Pootie Tang, School for Scoundrels, and Be Kind Rewind, and he has guest-starred on comedy programs such as Curb Your Enthusiasm, Wonder Showzen, Bob's Burgers and Aqua Teen Hunger Force. He was also a lead voice actor in several animated comedy programs such as Stroker and Hoop, Freak Show, and Lucy the Daughter of The Devil.

Glaser is the creator and star of the live-action Adult Swim series Delocated, about "Jon", a man in the witness protection program with his own reality show. The show finished its third season on April 5, 2012. Glaser's Delocated character, "Jon" was also featured as a DJ on an Adult Swim-themed radio station in the video game Saints Row: The Third.^[1] In February 2012, Glaser appeared as the spokesman in a series of Subway commercials playing his Delocated character.

Glaser was a member of the mainstage cast of The Second City during the mid-1990s, performing alongside future Saturday Night Live head writer Adam McKay and cast member Rachel Dratch, as well as future Mr. Show and 30 Rock cast member Scott Adsit. In Second City's award-winning revue Pinata Full of Bees, which was directed by Tom Gianas, Glaser sang about the importance of not betraying a friendship by pretending not to have legs in order to play in a wheelchair basketball league. He also provided musical accompaniment for the show's climax by drumming in a demonic pig mask, and appeared onstage throughout the show to pass judgement on audience members for laughing at jokes he considered socially irresponsible.

Early in his television career, Glaser wrote and occasionally performed on the short-lived sketch comedy programs The Jenny McCarthy Show on MTV and The Dana Carvey Show. He also made one appearance as a correspondent on The Daily Show in 2004. Glaser is also known for his comedic partnership with H. Jon Benjamin. For a number of years they hosted a live sketch show together in New York City called Midnight Pajama Jam, and have also performed stand-up comedy together for many years, often playing characters who bicker and argue with each other while on stage. Glaser created and starred in the Comedy Central web-series Tiny Hands, which has been shown on the channel's short film series Atom TV a number of times. More recently Glaser worked as a contributing writer and occasional performer on the sketch comedy programs Human Giant, Jon Benjamin Has a Van and Nick Swardson's Pretend Time, as well as providing voices in the animated film Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters. In 2009, Glaser worked as the head writer and segment producer on the HBO sports program Joe Buck Live. Glaser also appeared on the ESPN classic show Cheap Seats, providing such roles as "Beamy" and the "Score Settler".

Glaser is currently a voice actor for the animated version of the cartoon strip Get Your War On and appearing as "Video Cowboy" in ESPN's Mayne Street starring Kenny Mayne. Glaser was also the lead singer in the New York City-based comedy band "Detroit Octane", they performed their song "Barack Obama-sistible" (sung to the tune of the Robert Palmer song "Simply Irresistible") on Late Night with Conan O'Brien on June 17, 2008.^[2] He was also the bass player in "A Matter of Trust", another comedy music project he was involved in with comedians H. Jon Benjamin, Todd Barry and Tom Shillue. The band's gimmick was that they only played the Billy Joel song "A Matter of Trust" over and over again, and refused to play any other songs.^[3] They performed as an opening act for The New Pornographers in 2006.

Glaser's first published book My Dead Dad Was in ZZ Top, was released on February 8, 2011.

[edit] Characters on Late Night with Conan O'Brien

• Ehud Henkleman, a Shofar player often hired to play with the band every Rosh Hashanah, though he is not himself religious. He is also known to show off his various Shofar albums, which will always have obnoxious cover art and even more obnoxious Shofar-themed puns as the album titles.
• Awareness Del, an excited man who hits the streets of the city, trying to spread awareness about the virtues of Delaware. His themesong would play throughout the sketch: "He's Awareness Del. Making people aware. Aware of Delaware!"
• A-hole Ronald, an obnoxious and abusive gum-chewing jerk dressed like Ronald McDonald who goes around slapping people eating fast food not from McDonalds. He'll usually slap around the McDonalds eaters as well, just because he's such a jerk. Was also once spun off into a sketch called "A-holes Throughout History", with Glaser playing the "A-hole" character slapping people around in various periods of history: Pre-historic Caveman times, Ancient Greece, etc.
• Jeremy (of Jeremy & Ira), performed with Late Night writer Brian Stack (as Ira), as two bizarre men from another dimension dressed in black hoods, who would visit Conan & Andy from time-to-time, always appearing in the corner of the TV screen. They never speak, and only communicate through nodding and other gestures.
• One of the Slipnutz (also known as They Might be Slipnutz), a comedy group of three men (Glaser, Andy Blitz, Brian Stack) that was inconveniently booked on the same show with Slipknot, (and later with They Might Be Giants). Their routine involves the three of them slipping and sliding on nuts scattered on the floor. The Slipnutz also appeared on the program to promote their greatest hits album, which included songs like "Old West Cowboys Slipping on Nuts" and "Viking Raiders Slipping on Nuts".
• Gorton's Fisherman, an obnoxious and ill-tempered version of the frozen food mascot. Each sketch would end with the Gorton's Fisherman getting angry at Conan and throwing a box of fishsticks at him before storming off.
• The Wrist Hulk, a man with Incredible Hulk-like powers, but only in his wrist.
• Segue Sam, the master of talk show segues. Conan would often turn to Sam for help when he needed the perfect segue.
• Commercial Jingle Writer, performed with Late Night writer Brian McCann as two bickering jingle writers in Conan's studio audience. They would usually fight with each other about who was the better jingle writer, until Conan would settle it by having the two fight each other in a steel cage battle.
• Dave "Tiny Hands" Gordon, a seemingly average man who has difficulty trying to live a normal life because of his infant-sized hands.
• Jon the Stair Climber, a self-proclaimed expert at talk show stair climbing. Armed with only his stair climbing equipment and his sherpa "Lakpa", Jon has made several attempts to brave the climb up the staircase in Conan's studio, only to fail miserably every time.
• Kim the Witness Protection Comedian, a stand-up comedian who specalizes in celebrity impressions, but because he is in the witness protection program he has to wear a ski-mask and have his voice digitally scrambled, making all his impressions sound the same. Glaser would later bring back a variation of this character for his Adult Swim series Delocated.
• Terrible Bill Clinton Puppet, Glaser provided the voice of the "Terrible Bill Clinton Puppet" perched from behind Conan's desk, usually telling really unfunny jokes and making awkward chit-chat with Conan.
• Pubes, a man who would ruin any moment by saying the word pubes, wearing an all-black outfit with the word on his shirt.
• Impressions on Late Night included Bill Cosby, Billy Joel, Martin Bashir, Michael McDonald (in the "Camp Michael McDonald" sketch), Bob Ross and Bob Seger.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Jon Glaser at the Internet Movie Database
• Interview with Jon Glaser

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2011)

Chris Hardwick
Hardwick at the Louisville Palace in Louisville, Kentucky on June 19, 2009
Birth name	Christopher Ryan Hardwick
Born	(1971-11-23) November 23, 1971 (age 40) Louisville, Kentucky, USA
Medium	Stand-up, music, television, film, podcasting
Nationality	American
Years active	1991–present
Genres	Observational comedy, sarcasm, musical comedy
Subject(s)	Human behavior, self-deprecation, pop culture, nerd culture
Notable works and roles	Hard 'n Phirm Host of Singled Out Host of Wired Science Host of Web Soup Host of The Nerdist Podcast Otis in the Back at the Barnyard series Host of Talking Dead Host of BBC America's Ministry of Laughs
Website	http://www.nerdist.com/

Christopher Ryan "Chris" "Big C" Hardwick (born November 23, 1971) is an American stand-up comedian, emcee, actor, writer, musician, podcaster, television personality, and voice artist. He is best known for performing with Mike Phirman in Hard 'n Phirm, hosting Singled Out, Wired Science, Web Soup, and The Nerdist Podcast, and the current voice of Otis in Back at the Barnyard. In 2011 he began doing intros and outros for a new BBC America Britcom block, and hosting a live half-hour talk show on the AMC network, Talking Dead.

Early life[link]

Hardwick was born in Louisville, Kentucky, the son of former professional bowler Billy Hardwick and Sharon Hills, a real estate agent in Pasadena, California.^[1] He was named after American sportscaster Chris Schenkel.^[2] He grew up in Tennessee, attending St. Benedict at Auburndale K-12 School, then attended Regis Jesuit High School in Colorado, and then Loyola High School for his senior year.^[3]

Hardwick studied philosophy at UCLA, where he was a member of the Chi Phi Fraternity during his freshman year.^[3][4] Hardwick was roommates with Wil Wheaton for some time.^[5][6] They met at a showing of Arachnophobia in Burbank, California.^[5]

Career[link]

Hardwick was a DJ on influential Los Angeles radio station KROQ-FM during the mid-1990s.^[3] In the fall of 1998, he starred in the UPN comedy Guys Like Us; the show aired 12 episodes before it was cancelled in January 1999.

He appeared in Rob Zombie's horror films House of 1000 Corpses and Halloween 2.^[3] He also made a small appearance in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. In 2010 he was featured in the film The Mother of Invention. Hardwick was in episodes of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Married... with Children,^[3] Boy Meets World^[3] and Zoey 101. He was also a guest commentator on VH1's I Love the 90s series which aired in 2005.^[3]

He appeared as a television host on hip hop group Little Brother's 2005 album The Minstrel Show.

Hardwick plays the melodica, notably as part of Hard 'n Phirm.^[7]

Currently, Hardwick is a contributing writer for Wired magazine (since 2007), writes for Web Soup and Back at the Barnyard,^[3] and makes regular appearances on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Chelsea Lately. As part what Hardwick calls his "nerd media empire", he runs Nerdist Theater, an entertainment space at Meltdown Comics in Los Angeles.^[8]

He entered into an equity partnership with GeekChicDaily in June 2011^[9] to form Nerdist Industries.^[10]

In February 2012, GeekChicDaily fully merged with Nerdist Industries and became Nerdist News with Hardwick operating as Chief Creative Officer.^[11]

Voiceover work[link]

Hardwick voiced Alexander Hamilton in The Radio Adventures of Dr. Floyd and Otis in the Barnyard series (the character was originally voiced by actor Kevin James in the movie Barnyard: The Original Party Animals). He also provided the voice for Green Arrow/Oliver Queen on The Batman and was the voice of Glowface in The X's.^{[citation needed]}. Hardwick also did voice work for The Minstrel Show from the rap group Little Brother and narrated the introduction video for the flash game George Plimpton's Video Falconry.

Hosting[link]

Hardwick was first known as the host of MTV's Singled Out. While working on Singled Out, he met Jacinda Barrett, to whom he was engaged but never married. Later, he hosted the syndicated dating show Shipmates. As of October 2007^[update], he has been hosting Wired Science on PBS, writing for Wired, and works as a reviewer on Attack of the Show's "Gadget Pr0n".

On June 7, 2009, he became the host of G4's Web Soup, a spinoff of E!'s The Soup. Hardwick had previously guest hosted The Soup's predecessor, Talk Soup.^[12]

Since February 2010, he has been producing the "Nerdist" podcast, which he hosts with Jonah Ray and Matt Mira.^[13] The podcast was named one of 2010's best by The A.V. Club^[14] and one of the 10 best comedy podcasts by Rolling Stone.^[15]

In May 2011, Hardwick signed a deal with BBC America to host a pilot of a panel talk show for the network based on the podcast. The deal also included Hardwick doing intros and outros for BBC America's new Saturday night Ministry of Laughs comedy block of Britcoms.^[16]

Hardwick also hosted the 2011 SXSW Interactive Awards show in Austin, Texas.

Since 2011, Hardwick has been hosting Talking Dead, a live half-hour talk show companion series to AMC's hit series The Walking Dead. Hardwick interviews celebrity fans of The Walking Dead as well as members of its cast and crew, interacts with the studio audience, re-airs clips of the episode, plays games with and polls the viewers via the Internet, and offers exclusive clips of the next episode. The first season of Talking Dead ended on March 18, 2012.

On December 24, 2011, BBC America aired The Nerdist: The Year in Review, a comedy special hosted by Hardwick. Celebrity guests included David Tennant and Simon Pegg with Hardwick in London; and Nathan Fillion, Wil Wheaton, and Weird Al Yankovic in Los Angeles.

In May 2012, Hardwick became the spokesperson for WIRED LIVE Expo.^[17]

Stand-up comedy[link]

Hardwick in July 2011

Hardwick is also a stand-up comedian and performs with Mike Phirman in the music comedy duo Hard 'n Phirm, whose half-hour comedy special Comedy Central Presents: Hard 'n Phirm premiered in January 2008.^[18]

In 2004, Comedy Central used some of his material for an animated series called Shorties Watchin' Shorties.^[19]

In 2007, both his solo standup and duo act were featured on the comedy compilation CD Comedy Death Ray. Hard 'n Phirm completed several songs for the 2009 Rob Zombie animated movie The Haunted World of El Superbeasto. Hardwick has announced plans to do a live stand-up album from his 2009 tour. He has toured as a featured comedian for Joel McHale.^{[citation needed]}