David Hyde Pierce
David Hyde Pierce (born April 3, 1959)[1] is an American actor and director. He is best known for playing psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom Frasier, for which he received 11 Primetime Emmy Awards nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and 4 wins during the show's run. He is also known for his appearances on The Good Wife (2014-2015).
David Hyde Pierce | |
|---|---|
 Pierce in New York City in 2010 | |
| Born | David Pierce April 3, 1959 |
| Alma mater | Yale University |
| Occupation | Actor, director |
| Years active | 1982–present |
Notable credit(s) | Niles Crane in Frasier Slim in A Bug's Life Professor Henry Newman in Wet Hot American Summer Lt. Frank Cioffi in Curtains |
| Spouse(s) | |
Pierce has played supporting roles in many films, including Terry Gilliam's The Fisher King (1991), Nora Ephron's Sleepless in Seattle (1993), Mike Nichols' Wolf (1994), and Oliver Stone's Nixon (1995). He has also starred in the cult comedies Wet Hot American Summer (2001), and Down with Love (2003), and the dark comedy film The Perfect Host (2010). He is also known for his voice performances in Disney Pixar's A Bug's Life (1998), Osmosis Jones (2001), and Treasure Planet (2002).
Pierce has also had a successful career on stage. His Broadway roles include Sir Robin in Monty Python's Spamalot, Vanya in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike and Horace Vandergelder in Hello, Dolly!. He won the 2007 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance in Curtains. In 2015, he directed the Broadway musical It Shoulda Been You.
Early life
David Pierce was born in Saratoga Springs, New York. His father, George Hyde Pierce,[2] was an aspiring actor, and his mother, Laura Marie Pierce (née Hughes),[2] was an insurance agent.[1] He adopted the middle name, Hyde, to avoid confusion with another actor named David Pierce.[3]
As a child, Pierce frequently played organ at the local Bethesda Episcopal Church.[4] Pierce graduated from Yale University in 1981 with a bachelor of arts degree. While attending Yale, Pierce performed in and directed student productions, appearing in the Yale Gilbert & Sullivan Society's production of H.M.S. Pinafore. He also directed the Gilbert & Sullivan Society's operetta Princess Ida.[5] Among other productions Pierce appeared in at Yale were Waiting for Godot, Saint Joan, and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Career
After his graduation, Pierce moved to New York City, where during the 1980s and early 1990s he was employed in various jobs, such as selling ties at Bloomingdale's and working as a security guard, while pursuing an acting career and studying at Michael Howard Studios. During this period he played Laertes in a popular off-Broadway production of Hamlet and made his Broadway debut in 1982 in Christopher Durang's Beyond Therapy.[6]
Pierce's first big television break came in the early 1990s with Norman Lear's political comedy, The Powers That Be, in which Pierce played Theodore, a Congressman.[7] Despite positive reviews from critics, the show was canceled after a brief run.
In part due to his close physical resemblance to Kelsey Grammer,[8] the producers of the Cheers spin-off Frasier created the role of Niles Crane (Frasier Crane's younger brother) for him.[7] Although prior to Frasier going into production, Pierce had petitioned the Screen Actors Guild to change his billing to David Pierce, the name he had used on the stage, the use of his middle name in the show's credits helped reinforce the actor's and the character's "snooty" image.[8] For his work on Frasier, Pierce was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Emmy a record eleven consecutive years, winning in 1995, 1998, 1999 and 2004.
Pierce also appeared alongside Jodie Foster in Little Man Tate, with Anthony Hopkins in Oliver Stone's Nixon, and with Ewan McGregor in Down With Love.[7] He provided the voice for Doctor Doppler in Disney's 42nd animated feature, Treasure Planet, Slim, a stick insect in Pixar's A Bug's Life and Abe Sapien in Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy. In his role in Sleepless in Seattle (1993), Pierce played the brother of Meg Ryan's character, a professor at Johns Hopkins University. The movie was released three months before the start of Frasier.[7] In 2001, he starred in the cult 1981-set summer camp comedy Wet Hot American Summer, as the befuddled astrophysicist, Prof. Henry Newman.
In 2005, Pierce joined Tim Curry and others in the stage production of Spamalot.[7] In August and September 2006, he starred as Lieutenant Frank Cioffi in Curtains, a new Kander and Ebb musical staged at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles. In March 2007, Curtains opened on Broadway[7] and on June 10, 2007, Pierce won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical at the 61st Tony Awards for his performance.[7] In his acceptance speech, Pierce said the first words he spoke on a Broadway stage were, "I'm sorry, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."[9]
On November 19, 2007, Pierce was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts Degree from Niagara University in Lewiston, New York. In 1999 he was awarded an Honorary Degree from Skidmore College, located in his native Saratoga Springs. In 2010, Pierce appeared in a revival of David Hirson's play La Bête directed by Matthew Warchus. The production debuted on London's West End before moving to New York.[10] Also in 2010, Pierce had his first starring film role as Warwick Wilson in the dark comedy/psychological thriller The Perfect Host.
Pierce directed the Broadway production of the musical It Shoulda Been You. In 2015 he directed the Manhattan Theater Club production of David Lindsay-Abaire's play Ripcord Off-Broadway at City Center.[11]
Pierce appeared in the Off-Broadway limited engagement of A Life by Adam Bock. The play premiered at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater on October 24, 2016, directed by Anne Kaufman, and closed on November 27.[12]
Pierce co-starred with Bette Midler in the Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly!. The musical opened on April 20, 2017 at the Shubert Theatre. The show was a critical and box office hit. Pierce himself received a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical for his performance.[13] Pierce received a 2017 Drama League award nomination for Hello, Dolly! and A Life.[14]
Voice acting
Pierce is known for his distinctive voice and, like his Frasier co-star, Kelsey Grammer, is often called upon to provide voice work. His notable roles include the narrator of the movie The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human in 1999, the walking stick insect "Slim" in A Bug's Life, Dr. Delbert Doppler in Disney's film Treasure Planet, and amphibian Abe Sapien in Hellboy.[7] Pierce declined to be credited for his Hellboy role because he felt it was the performance of Doug Jones, and not his own voice, which ultimately brought the character of Abe Sapien to life.[15] He was the voice for "Drix", a cold pill, in the animated comedy Osmosis Jones.
In a deliberate in-joke, he voiced Cecil, the brother of Kelsey Grammer-voiced Sideshow Bob, in The Simpsons episode "Brother from Another Series", in which the two characters parallel the Frasier-Niles relationship. At one point in the episode, Cecil mistakes Bart for Maris, the unseen wife of Niles on Frasier. He returned as Cecil in the Season 19 episode "Funeral for a Fiend" where Frasier co-star John Mahoney voices Dr. Robert Terwilliger, Sr., the father of Cecil and Sideshow Bob.
Pierce provided the voice of Mr. Daedalus in the 1998 Disney show Hercules: The Animated Series. In 2006, he co-starred in the animated pilot for The Amazing Screw-On Head as the Screw-On Head's nemesis Emperor Zombie; however, the series was not picked up. His commercial voiceover work included ads for the Tassimo coffee system, Seattle's Metro Transit, and home furnishings retailer Ikea Canada.[16]
Pierce narrated an audio tour guide, Napa Uncorked, in 2002.[17]
Personal life
After years of media speculation about his sexuality, Pierce revealed that he is gay in 2007 and later confirmed through his publicist that he and television writer, director and producer Brian Hargrove were a couple.[18][19] When accepting his Tony Award for Curtains, Pierce thanked "my partner, Brian, because it's 24 years of listening to your damn notes—that's why I'm up here tonight."[20] They married in California on October 24, 2008, just days before Proposition 8 was adopted as law, banning same-sex marriages in the state.[21] On May 28, 2009, while a guest on The View, he publicly announced his marriage to Hargrove and expressed his anger about the approval of Proposition 8.[22]
He is a godparent to Frasier co-star Jane Leeves' son, Finn, as was his late Frasier co-star John Mahoney. Pierce has spent years working with the Alzheimer's Association on behalf of Americans with Alzheimer's disease. He has appeared in Washington, D.C., to testify in support of expanding funding for treatment, and he publicly campaigned for the National Alzheimer's Project Act. Pierce told MSNBC in 2011, "it is up to us, to all of us, to the American people and to their representatives about whether we face the challenges and make all the effort necessary or if we ignore it and just let this sort of tidal wave crash over us."[23]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | The Appointments of Dennis Jennings | Businessman | Short film |
| 1988 | Bright Lights, Big City | Bartender at Fashion Show | |
| 1988 | Rocket Gibraltar | Monsieur Henri | |
| 1989 | Vampire's Kiss | Theater Guy | |
| 1990 | Across Five Aprils | Union Soldier | |
| 1991 | Little Man Tate | Garth Emmerick | |
| 1991 | The Fisher King | Lou Rosen | |
| 1993 | Sleepless in Seattle | Dennis Reed | |
| 1993 | Addams Family Values | Delivery Room Doctor | |
| 1994 | Wolf | Roy | |
| 1995 | Ripple | Peter | Short film |
| 1995 | Nixon | John Dean | |
| 1998 | A Bug's Life | Slim | Voice |
| 1999 | The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human | Narrator | Voice |
| 2000 | Isn't She Great | Michael Hastings | |
| 2000 | Chain of Fools | Mr. Kerner | |
| 2000 | The Tangerine Bear | Bird | Voice |
| 2001 | Wet Hot American Summer | Henry Newman | |
| 2001 | Happy Birthday | Barney | Short film |
| 2001 | Osmosis Jones | Drix | Voice |
| 2001 | Laud Weiner | Laud Weiner | Short film |
| 2002 | Full Frontal | Carl | |
| 2002 | Treasure Planet | Doctor Doppler | Voice |
| 2003 | Down with Love | Peter MacMannus | |
| 2004 | Hellboy | Abe Sapien | Voice/Uncredited |
| 2008 | Forever Plaid: The Movie | Narrator | Voice |
| 2009 | Stingray Sam | Narrator | Voice |
| 2010 | The Perfect Host | Warwick Wilson | |
| TBA | The Georgetown Project | Father Conor | Post-production |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Spenser: For Hire | O'Neill | Episode: "The Man Who Wasn't There" |
| 1987 | Crime Story | NSA Agent Carruthers | Episode: "Mig 21" |
| 1988 | Knightwatch | Gibson | Episode: "Friday Knight" |
| 1992 | Dream On | Jerry Dorfer | Episode: "The Guilty Party" |
| 1992–1993 | The Powers That Be | Theodore Van Horne | 21 episodes |
| 1993–2004 | Frasier | Dr. Niles Crane | 264 episodes |
| 1995 | Saturday Night Live | Himself (host) | Episode: "David Hyde Pierce/Live" |
| 1995 | Caroline in the City | Dr. Niles Crane | Episode: "Caroline and the Bad Back" |
| 1996 | The Outer Limits | Dr. Jack Henson | Episode: "The Sentence" |
| 1996 | Mighty Ducks | Baron von Lichtenstamp | Voice; 3 episodes |
| 1996 | Caroline in the City | Jimmy Callahan | Episode: "Caroline and the Cat Dancer" |
| 1997 | Happily Every After | Puss | Voice; Episode: "Puss in Boots" |
| 1997–2007 | The Simpsons | Cecil Terwilliger | Voice; 2 episodes |
| 1999 | Jackie's Back | Perry | Television film |
| 2001 | Titus | Jerry October | Episode: "Life Forward" |
| 2001 | On the Edge | Barney | Television film |
| 2003 | Gary the Rat | Addison | Voice; Episode: "Strange Bedfellows" |
| 2006 | The Amazing Screw-On Head | Emperor Zombie | Voice; Television film |
| 2012 | Sesame Street | Commander Chiphead | Episode: "Get Lost, Mr. Chips" |
| 2014 | The Simpsons | Felix | Voice; Episode: "Clown in the Dumps" |
| 2014–2015 | The Good Wife | Frank Prady | 8 episodes |
| 2015 | Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp | Henry Newman | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later | Henry Newman | Episode: "End Summer Night's Dream" |
| 2017 | When We Rise | Dr. Jones | 3 episodes |
| 2017 | Julie's Greenroom | Himself | 2 episodes |
Theatre
Awards and Nominations
References
- "David Hyde Pierce profile". Rootsweb. 2008. Retrieved June 11, 2008.
- "David Hyde Pierce". IMDb.
- "Hyde in a sort of Jekyll role". New York Post. June 29, 2011. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
I did not come out of the womb with the name 'Hyde'. It was my middle name from my dad's side of the family. His mom's maiden name. So when our film union said there was already a David Pierce, I added the name 'Hyde'
- Barbara S. Wilson, Arlene Flancher, and Susan T. Erdey, The Episcopal Handbook (Moorhouse [Church] Publishing 2008), pp. 106-07; ISBN 978-0-8192-2329-6
- Rizzo, Frank. "David Hyde Pierce Directs Comedy At Williamstown" courant.com, July 8, 2012
- The Broadway League. "Profile at IBDb". Ibdb.com. Retrieved October 28, 2011.
- "Showperson; the DHP Website". Archived from the original on June 2, 2008. Retrieved June 19, 2008.
- Newman, Bruce (March 1, 1998). "All In Their Family". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 20, 2009.
- "David Hyde Pierce Acceptance Speech Tony Award". YouTube. 2007. Retrieved June 3, 2010.
- "Rylance, Lumley and Hyde Pierce bring La Bête to West End". London, UK. 2010. Retrieved July 27, 2010.
- Stasio, Marilyn. "Off Broadway Review: ‘Ripcord’ by David Lindsay-Abaire", Variety, October 20, 2015
- " 'A Life', Starring David Hyde Pierce, Extends Before Off-Broadway Opening", broadwayworld.com, September 27, 2016
- McPhee, Ryan; Clement, Olivia. "Read the Reviews for Bette Midler in 'Hello, Dolly!'" Playbill, April 20, 2017
- McPhee, Ryan. "Ben Platt, Sutton Foster, and Josh Groban Among 2017 Drama League Award Nominees" Playbill, April 19, 2017
- Jones, Doug (May 11, 2007). "Doug Jones – Exclusive Interview". Horror.com (transcript). Interviewed by Staci Layne. Retrieved June 11, 2008.
- "IKEA Pax: Our Pre-Wedding Photographer Lives in Advertising". Youtube.com. June 8, 2011. Retrieved October 28, 2011.
- DeBord, Matthew (December 7, 2002). "Frasier's David Hyde Pierce Leads CD Tour of Napa Wine Country". WineSpectator.com. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
- "'Frasier' brother finds home on stage". CNN. Associated Press. May 30, 2007. Archived from the original on June 29, 2007. Retrieved June 11, 2008.
- "David Hyde Pierce joins list of out gay actors". AfterElton. May 30, 2007. Archived from the original on May 17, 2008. Retrieved June 11, 2008.
- "Rants & Raves". The Advocate. July 17, 2007. pp. 26, issue 989.
- "Frasier Star Reveals He Wed Boyfriend". US Magazine. May 29, 2009. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
- "David Hyde Pierce reveals he's been secretly married to partner of 25 years". New York Daily News. May 29, 2009. Archived from the original on June 1, 2009. Retrieved May 30, 2009.
- "David Hyde Pierce: Don't forget Alzheimer's". NBC News. October 19, 2011. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
- Oxman, Steven (June 10, 2001). "Review: 'Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks'". Variety. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
- "David Hyde Pierce". Playbill.com. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
- "David Hyde Pierce - Emmy Awards, Nominations, and Wins". emmys.com. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
- "David Hyde-Pierce". goldenglobes.com. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
- "David Hyde Pierce". sagawards.org. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to David Hyde Pierce. |
- David Hyde Pierce on IMDb
- David Hyde Pierce at the Internet Broadway Database
- David Hyde Pierce at Internet off-Broadway Database
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