About Me
Jonathan Lovitz was born on July 21, 1957, in Tarzana, California. He is the only son out of a total of five children, including Jon's twin sister. His father was a doctor who enjoyed the opera and had hopes that his only son would become an opera singer.Lovitz attended the University of California at Irvine and graduated with his bachelor’s degree in 1979. By that time he had decided he wanted to pursue acting as a career and studied at the Film Actors Workshop with Tony Barr. To support himself, Lovitz had a variety of odd jobs including waiting tables, working as a messenger, working at a clothing store, working as a hospital orderly, and working at a Xerox store.Jon’s first gig in entertainment was as a member of the comedy troupe The Groundlings in 1984. Working with the group, Jon met and befriended Phil Hartman and Paul Reubens. Hartman suggested that Lovitz audition for the popular comedy show, Saturday Night Live.Lovitz worked as a cast member on the show from 1985 to 1990, becoming a secondary member of the Bad Boys of SNL. One of his most popular characters was the Master Thespian, whom he based on a professor he knew at University of California, Irvine. Others characters include Tonto, Satan, and Hanukkah Harry. The show was Jon’s first big break, and he reportedly signed a contract for $500,000. During his first two years with the show Lovitz was nominated for an Emmy award.Following his run on Saturday Night Live, Lovitz starred in the Broadway play The Dinner Party, replacing Henry Winkler as the lead role. He also proved his great vocal ability, by giving three performances at Carnegie Hall. Lovitz has also sung the national anthem at Dodger Stadium and at the U.S. Open.Jon’s vocal abilities have made him a success with animated series like The Critic in 1994, where he played the main character, Jay Sherman. He has also made several guest appearances on the animated show, The Simpsons.Lovitz has been a popular guest performer on the show Friends, appearing once in first season and once in the ninth season. Both times he played a stoned guy named Steve, but they were different characters. He also encouraged actress Lisa Kudrow to get into acting and co-hosted the 1995 MTV Movie Awards with Courteney Cox.Lovitz has also been a popular choice for advertising campaigns. In the late 90s, Jon did several advertisements for the Yellow Pages Publishers Association. Most recently he signed on as the spokesperson for Subway in 2005.In 2005 Lovitz returned to film with a role in The Producers, starring Uma Thurman, Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, and Will Ferrell.
