Armin Shimerman

Armin Shimerman (born November 5, 1949) is an American actor and voice actor. He is known for his work as the Ferengi bartender Quark on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Principal Snyder on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, voicing Doctor Nefarious in the Ratchet & Clank series and Andrew Ryan from BioShock.

Armin Shimerman
Shimerman at GalaxyCon Richmond in 2020
Born (1949-11-05) November 5, 1949
Lakewood, New Jersey, U.S.
OccupationActor, voice actor
Years active1979–present
Spouse(s)
(
m. 1981)

Early life

Shimerman was born to a Jewish family[1][2] in Lakewood, New Jersey, the son of Susan, an accountant, and Herbert Shimerman, a house painter.[3] When Shimerman was 15, his family moved to Los Angeles, where his mother enrolled him in a drama group in an effort to expand his social circle. Shimerman attended Santa Monica High School and was active in drama.[4] As a senior, he played leading roles in school productions of Hamlet, The Crucible and The Skin of Our Teeth before graduating in 1967.[5][6] After graduating from UCLA, Shimerman was selected to apprentice at the Old Globe Theater in San Diego. Shimerman began pursuing a dramatic career in theater, eventually moving to New York, where he was a member of the Impossible Ragtime Theater.[7] Returning to Los Angeles, Shimerman received roles in two CBS series, launching his television acting career.

Career

Acting

Television
Shimerman (center) with Deep Space 9 co-stars Marc Alaimo (left) and Colm Meaney (right)

Shimerman is known for his work as the Ferengi bar owner Quark in the long-running television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, though his involvement with the Star Trek franchise began with appearances as other Ferengi characters in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes "The Last Outpost" and "Peak Performance". As the character Quark, Shimerman became one of Star Trek's most widely known characters, and he appeared several times on the cover of TV Guide, either with other actors or alone as part of a collector's series. He says that his favorite episode of Deep Space Nine is "Little Green Men" as it was the only episode where he is shown captaining a ship.

Shimerman (left) and Max Grodénchik (right) played the characters of two Ferengi brothers, Quark and Rom, on Deep Space 9

Along with Marina Sirtis, Jonathan Frakes, John de Lancie, Michael Ansara, and Richard Poe, he is one of only a few actors to play the same character on three different Star Trek series. He played Quark in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager.

In addition to Star Trek, Shimerman has had roles as Pascal on Beauty and the Beast and as Principal Snyder in 19 episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He also has starred in Stargate SG-1 as one of the Nox, an evil wizard in Charmed, appeared as Stan the caddy in an episode of Seinfeld and as Dr. Patemkin on Leverage.

Shimerman has appeared as judge Brian Hooper in the third season of Boston Legal, joining fellow Star Trek actors William Shatner, René Auberjonois, and Ethan Phillips. His character even shared a scene with Auberjonois, with the strife between the two characters reminiscent of the conflict between Shimerman's Quark and Auberjonois's Odo.

He made an appearance as "The Terror" in the first The Tick live-action series.

He appeared in the series Numb3rs episode "Provenance" as an art expert. He had a small cameo in the episode "Posse Comitatus" of The West Wing as Richard III and another in the film What the Bleep Do We Know!?.

He has made appearances in television series such as Married... with Children, Warehouse 13, Tremors, Castle and Red Bird.

Voice work

He has voiced several video game villains, including Toad in X-Men Legends, Andrew Ryan in the BioShock series, Razputin's father in Psychonauts, and General Skarr from Evil Con Carne and The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy. He lent his voice talent to BioWare for their games Jade Empire (as Emperor Sun Hai) and Mass Effect (as the original Salarian Councilor). He also voices Emil Narud and Mohandar in StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty and the expansion StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm.

In 2008, he voiced the character of Wilmer in an audio dramatization of The Maltese Falcon that also featured Michael Madsen, Sandra Oh, and Edward Herrmann. In addition, he also voiced the character of Mr. Phillips in Focus on the Family Radio Theatre's production of Anne of Green Gables. He also voiced Raanu in the straight-to-DVD animated film Bionicle: The Legend Reborn. He also voices Green Goblin in the video game Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2.

In 2011, he provided additional voices for the MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic.

In 2012, he also provided additional voice talent for the MMORPG The Secret World.

His most well known voice work is that of Doctor Nefarious in the Ratchet & Clank franchise, a role he received much praise for.

He reprised his roles as Dr. Nefarious and Andrew Ryan in the crossover fighting game PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale.

Writing

Deep Space Nine

Shimerman co-authored a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine novel, The 34th Rule, with David R. George III, published January 1, 1999. It focuses on his character Quark, who loses his bar and is imprisoned as a result of a diplomatic crisis between the Bajoran and Ferengi governments. The novel is an allegory for the internment of Japanese Americans during the Second World War.[8]

The Merchant Prince series

Shimerman has co-written a series of books in which he provides a science fictional basis for the life of Dr. John Dee. The first novel in the series, The Merchant Prince, was co-written with Irish author Michael Scott, known for his Nicholas Flamel series. Published in 2000, it features the historical figure John Dee being placed in suspended animation in 1575 by an alien race known as the Roc and awakening in 2099. The cover features Shimerman in Elizabethan garb. Shimerman commented: "John Dee really did exist. We're pretty sure he was a member of Queen Elizabeth's secret service, which put it in his purview to kill if he needed to. The Elizabethan period was a much more perilous time; you had to be quick with a dagger and nefarious in order to survive".[9] Shimerman thought there were aspects of both himself and his Star Trek: Deep Space Nine character, Quark, in the novel's interpretation of John Dee. Shimerman commented: "There are aspects of Quark similar to Dr. Dee, and undoubtedly there are aspects of Dr. Dee similar to Armin Shimerman, which would make him seem like Quark as well".[9]

The other novels in the series are Outrageous Fortune (2002), co-written with Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, known for her historical horror novels, and Capital Offense (2003).

Personal life

Shimerman is married to actress Kitty Swink.

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1980 Stardust Memories Eulogy Audience Member
1986 The Hitcher Interrogation Sergeant
1986 Stoogemania Larry II
1987 Blind Date French Waiter
1987 Like Father Like Son Trigger's Dad
1988 Dangerous Curves Boggs
1989 Big Man on Campus Dr. Oberlander
1989 Arena Weezil
1990 Death Warrant Dr. Gottesman
1991 And You Thought Your Parents Were Weird Contest Judge
1993 Slaughter of the Innocents Dr. Mort Seger
1996 Eye for an Eye Judge Arthur Younger
1997 Snide and Prejudice Eckart
1997 Looking for Lola Maitre'd
1998 Star Trek: Insurrection Quark Deleted scenes
1999 The Auteur Theory Detective Blank
2001 Breathing Hard Conrad
2004 What the Bleep Do We Know!? Man Cameo
2005 The Works Gerald
2005 Geppetto's Secret Leonardo the Paintbrush (voice)
2006 What the Bleep!?: Down the Rabbit Hole Old Man
2008 The Urn Fiester
2008 Delgo Nohrin Merchant (voice)
2008 Insanitarium Hawthorne Direct-to-video
2009 Bionicle: The Legend Reborn Raanu (voice) Direct-to-video
2010 For Christ's Sake The Pope
2011 Atlas Shrugged: Part I Dr. Potter
2012 Dropping Evil CEO / "Boss Man"
2014 The Sublime and Beautiful Lee Westin
2016 Ratchet & Clank Doctor Nefarious (voice)
2016 Diani & Devine Meet the Apocalypse Thomas
2017 5th Passenger Myers
2018 Porthole Dr. Hans Meeker
2019 Golden Boy Cagan
2020 Unbelievable!!!!! Male Moesha

Television
Year Title Role Notes
1982 Hill Street Blues Phone Man Episode: "Heat Rash"
1983 Oh Madeline Norman Episode: "Chances Are"
1984 Cagney & Lacey Officer Green Episode: "Matinee"
1984 The Paper Chase Asphalt Expert Witness Episode: "Tempest in a Pothole"
1984 Remington Steele Nestor Bartholomew Episode: "Lofty Steele"
1985 Alice Man at Auction Episode: "Kiss the Grill Goodbye"
1985 I Had Three Wives Herb Episode: "You and I Know"
1985 The Facts of Life Mr. Smith Episode: "Out of the Fire"
1986 It's Garry Shandling's Show The Doctor Episode: "Garry Throws a Surprise Party"
1986 You Again? Jim Episode: "The Grad"
1987 What's Happening Now!! Frank Episode: "Mad Money"
1987 Easy Street Mr. Klinestabber Episode: "Frames and Dames"
1987 Crime Story Treasurer Episode: "The Pinnacle"
1987 Sledge Hammer! Malcolm Dench Episode: "Hammeroid"
1987–90 Beauty and the Beast Pascal 16 episodes
1987–94 Star Trek: The Next Generation Quark, DaiMon Bractor, Gift-Box Face, Letek 4 episodes
1989 Hooperman Dr. Wexler Episode: "Nightmare in Apartment One"
1989 Duet Dr. Jordan Episode: "The New and Improved Linda"
1989, 1994 L.A. Law Timothy Wiseboro, Ernie Frye 2 episodes
1990 Miracle Landing Rick Television film
1990 Grand Dr. Kasmurski, Man at Funeral 2 episodes
1990 Who's the Boss? Mr. Warner Episode: "Road Scholar"
1990 Alien Nation Cyril Roman Episode: "Gimme, Gimme"
1990 Cop Rock Mersky Episode: "Pilot"
1990 Good Grief Stinky Episode: "Cub Scouts and Horses & Whiskers on Kittens"
1991 Married... with Children Mr. Lovejoy Episode: "Buck the Stud"
1991 Pros and Cons Harvey Episode: "Fire and Ice"
1991–92 Brooklyn Bridge Bernard 4 episodes
1992 Civil Wars Victor Sofransky Episode: "Mob Psychology"
1993–99 Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Quark, Herbert Rossoff, Audrid Dax 172 episodes
1995 Star Trek: Voyager Quark Episode: "Caretaker"
1996 Seinfeld Stan Episode: "The Caddy"
1996 The Tonight Show with Jay Leno Quark 1 episode
1996 The Lazarus Man Henry Munroe Episode: "Jehovah and Son, Inc."
1997 Stargate SG-1 Anteaus Episode: "The Nox"
1997 Ally McBeal Judge Walworth Episode: "Boy to the World"
1997–98 The Practice Judge Garth Moskin 2 episodes
1997–2000 Buffy the Vampire Slayer Principal Snyder 19 episodes
1998 The Lost World Professor George Edward Challenger Television film
1999 Martial Law Daniel Darius Episode: "Slammo Blammo"
1999–2000 Rocket Power Ben Robbins, Shopkeeper (voices) 2 episodes
2001 Judging Amy Anthony Cara Episode: "The Undertow"
2001 The Invisible Man Tommy Walker / Augustin Gaither 3 episodes
2001 The Guardian Judge Smitrovich Episode: "The Men from the Boys"
2001 Citizen Baines Robert Udelwitz Episode: "The Appraisal"
2001 The Agency Dr. Oliver Episode: "Nocturne"
2001–07 The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy General Skarr, Stomach, Skarr's Mom, Janitor, Baby Spider, Mann (voices) 23 episodes
2002 The Tick The Terror Episode: "The Terror"
2002 Charmed The Wizard Episode: "We're Off to See the Wizard"
2002 Boston Public Judge Semel Episode: "Chapter Forty-Four"
2002 The West Wing Richard III Episode: "Posse Comitatus"
2002 For the People Dr. O'Neill 2 episodes
2002 Thieves Professor Conrad Haglar Episode: "Home Is Where the Heist Is"
2002 Girls Club Edmund Graves 3 episodes
2003 Tremors Cecil Carr Episode: "A Little Paranoia Among Friends"
2003 The Handler Maxwell Rosenheim 2 episodes
2003–04 Evil Con Carne General Skarr, Stomach, Dude #1, Skarrbot (voices) 9 episodes
2004 Single Santa Seeks Mrs. Claus Ernest Television film
2004 Crossing Jordan Dr. McCain Episode: "Slam Dunk"
2004 ER Levine Episode: "Where There's Smoke"
2004 Nip/Tuck Ocularist Episode: "Natasha Charles"
2005 Committed Super Episode: "The Snow Episode"
2005 Justice League Unlimited Dr. Achilles Milo (voice) Episode: "The Doomsday Sanction"
2005 Joan of Arcadia Ronald Harbison Episode: "Trial and Error"
2005 Invasion Josh Breims 2 episodes
2005 Meet the Santas Ernest Television film
2006 Ben 10 Slix Vigma (voice) Episode: "Grudge Match"
2006 Dr. Vegas Clown Episode: "Heal thyself"
2006 Numbers The Art-Authentication Board Member Episode: "Provenance"
2006 Boston Legal Judge Brian Hooper 7 episodes
2006 South of Nowhere Dr. Crawford Episode: "That's the Way the World Crumbles"
2006 Dead and Deader Coroner Flutie Television film
2007 Billy & Mandy's Big Boogey Adventure General Skarr, Pirate #7 (voices) Television film
2007 The Young and the Restless Judge Graham Roberts 1 episode
2008 Underfist: Halloween Bash General Skarr, Candy Skeleton, Rat, Creepy Gnome (voices) Television special
2009 Leverage Dr. Patemkin Episode: "The Juror #6 Job"
2009–10 Batman: The Brave and the Bold Calculator, Psycho-Pirate, Walter Mark "Prof" Haley (voices) 3 episodes
2010 Warehouse 13 Charlie Martin Episode: "Where and When"
2012 Perception Dr. Cutler Episode: "86'd"
2012 Castle Benjamin Donnelly Episode: "The Final Frontier"
2012–16 Regular Show Dr. Henry, Nightmare Alien, Waiter, Gopher Person, Guy, Guy 1, Zingo 3, Mr. Murphy, Buttonwillow McButtonwillow (voices) 8 episodes
2013 Bad Samaritans Judge 2 episodes
2013 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Oscar Episode: "Check In and Check Out"
2014 Franklin & Bash Stu Weston Episode: "Falcon's Nest"
2016 Red Bird Max 2 episodes
2016 Timeless David Rittenhouse Episode: "The Capture of Benedict Arnold"
2016 Uncle Grandpa Additional Voices Episode: "The Phone Call"
2017 Justice League Action Zilius Zox (voice) Episode: "Rage of the Red Lanterns"
2018 We Bare Bears Additional Voices Episode: "Best Bears"

Video games
Year Title Role
1996 Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Harbinger Quark
2000 Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: The Fallen
2004 Onimusha 3: Demon Siege Hideyoshi Hashiba
2004 X-Men Legends Toad, Male Prisoner #5
2004 Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal Doctor Nefarious
2005 Jade Empire Emperor Sun Hai, Abbot Song, The Keeper
2005 Psychonauts Raz's Father
2005 X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse Toad, Zealot
2005 Ratchet: Deadlocked Doctor Nefarious
2006 The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy General Skarr
2006 Gothic 3 Additional Voices
2006 Resistance: Fall of Man
2007 God of War II Translator
2007 BioShock Andrew Ryan
2007 Mass Effect Fai Dan, Salarian Councilor
2008 Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath Additional Voices
2008 Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest for Booty Doctor Nefarious
2009 Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 Green Goblin
2009 Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time Doctor Nefarious
2010 Mass Effect 2 Salarian Councilor
2010 BioShock 2 Andrew Ryan
2010 StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty Dr. Narud, Mohandar
2010 BioShock 2: Minerva's Den Andrew Ryan
2010 Star Trek Online Quark
2011 Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One Doctor Nefarious
2011 Star Wars: The Old Republic Archduke Kailur, Councillor Belos, Councillor Delquis, Dal-Rin,
Darshyn, General Uchang, Governor Chornarov, Jorr-Da, Scientist, Trader
2012 Mass Effect 3 Councilor Valern
2012 Diablo III Additional Voices
2012 The Secret World Chief Garcia Hansson, Old Joseph Cajiais
2012 World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria Additional Voices
2012 PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale Doctor Nefarious, Andrew Ryan, Vox Populi
2013 StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm Dr. Emil Narud (Human Form)
2014 Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Additional Voices
2014 BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea Andrew Ryan
2016 Ratchet & Clank Doctor Nefarious
2018 Lego DC Super-Villains Psycho-Pirate, Condiment King
2019 Death Stranding Elder

Bibliography

Deep Space Nine

Merchant Prince series
gollark: It's inconvenient and thus impossible.
gollark: You might need to set its mode or something?
gollark: It is why I only made 8 or something.
gollark: As if that can help you in any way.
gollark: So we actually made them self-powered and impossible to disable.

References
  1. Jewish Journal: "Top 5 Jewish moments in ‘Trek’" by Adam Wills May 7, 2009
  2. Jewish Journal: "Jews Get Geek on at Comic-Con" by Adam Wills July 22, 2009
  3. "Armin Shimerman Biography (1949–)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved August 2, 2012.
  4. "Classmates - Find your school, yearbooks and alumni online". Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  5. "Classmates - Find your school, yearbooks and alumni online". Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  6. http://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/352?page=75
  7. "Quark from Deep Space Nine - Part 2". www.startrek.com. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  8. "Recalling "Yesterday's Enterprise" with Eric Stillwell - Part 2". Star Trek.com. February 18, 2011. Retrieved August 11, 2013.
  9. Dilmore, Kevin (2001). "Star Trek Communicator issue 130". Fantastic Media. Denver Colorado: 59.
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