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Michael Richards
Richards at the 45th Primetime Emmy Awards on September 19, 1993
Born
Michael Anthony Richards

(1949-07-24) July 24, 1949 (age 74)
Alma mater California Institute of the Arts
Evergreen State College (BA)
Occupation(s)Actor, comedian
Years active1979–2007 (Stand up)
1980–present (Acting)
Spouses
  • Cathleen Lyons
    ( m. 1974; div. 1993)
    [2] [3]
  • Beth Skipp
    ( m. 2010)
    [4] [5]
Children2
Military career
Allegiance  United States
Service/branch U.S. Army
Years of service1970–1972

Michael Anthony Richards (born July 24, 1949) is an American actor and former stand-up comedian. He achieved global recognition for starring as Cosmo Kramer on the NBC television sitcom Seinfeld from 1989 to 1998. He began his career as a stand-up comedian, first entering the national spotlight when he was featured on Billy Crystal's first cable TV special, and went on to become a series regular on ABC's Fridays.

From 1989 to 1998, he played Cosmo Kramer on Seinfeld, three times receiving the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. During the run of Seinfeld, he made a guest appearance in Mad About You, reprising his role as Kramer. Richards also made numerous guest appearances on a variety of television shows, such as Cheers. His film credits include So I Married an Axe Murderer, Airheads, Young Doctors in Love, Problem Child, Coneheads, UHF, and Trial and Error, one of his few starring roles. In 2000, he starred in his own sitcom, The Michael Richards Show, which was canceled after only two months.

After that stint, Richards returned to stand-up. In 2006, he was filmed going on a racist tirade against hecklers while performing at the Laugh Factory in California. After the tape was obtained and released by TMZ, [6] significant backlash and media coverage led to Richards retiring from stand-up in early 2007. In 2009, he appeared as himself in the seventh season of Curb Your Enthusiasm alongside his fellow Seinfeld cast members for the first time since that show's finale. In 2013, he portrayed Frank in the sitcom Kirstie, which was canceled after one season. [7] He most recently played Daddy Hogwood in the 2019 romantic comedy Faith, Hope & Love.

Early life

Richards as a senior at Thousand Oaks High School in Thousand Oaks, California (1967)

Richards was born in Culver City, California, to a Catholic family. [8] He is the son of Phyllis (née Nardozzi), a medical records librarian, and William Richards, an electrical engineer. [9] His father died in a car crash when Michael was two, and his mother never remarried. [2]

Richards graduated from Thousand Oaks High School. In 1968, he appeared as a contestant on The Dating Game, but was not chosen for the date. He was drafted into the United States Army in 1970. He trained as a medic and was stationed in West Germany where he was a member of a theatrical group called The Training Road Show. [10] He became interested in performing after taking a theatrical class in seventh grade. [11]

After being honorably discharged, he used the benefits of the G.I. Bill to enroll in the California Institute of the Arts and received a BA degree in drama from The Evergreen State College in 1975. [12] He also had a short-lived improv act with Ed Begley Jr. During this period, he enrolled at Los Angeles Valley College and continued to appear in student productions.

Career

1979–1989: Career stardom

Richards in 1983

Richards got his big TV break in 1979, appearing in Billy Crystal's first cable TV special. In 1980, he began as one of the cast members on ABC's Fridays television show, where Larry David was a fellow cast member and writer. It included a famous instance where Andy Kaufman refused to deliver his scripted lines, leading Richards to bring the cue cards on screen to Kaufman, causing him to throw his drink into Richards's face before a small riot ensued (Richards later claimed he was in on the joke). [13] The film Man on the Moon featured a re-enactment of the Andy Kaufman incident where Richards was portrayed by actor Norm Macdonald (although he is never referred to by name, so he could be seen as a composite character taking the place of Richards). [14] [15]

In 1981, in the episode "Desperate Hours" Season 3 Episode 4 [16] on the show It's a Living, Richards played the lead rebel of the peoples party to overthrow the Republic of Plankow. His mission was to uphold unnamed injustices against the ambassador by holding him and the restaurant hostage asking for Mike Wallace on the phone. In 1986, Richards had a minor role in the cult satirical TV miniseries Fresno, playing one of a pair of inept criminal henchmen. That same year he auditioned to play Al Bundy in the upcoming TV series Married... with Children, but he was passed over for Ed O'Neill. [17] In 1989, Richards had a supporting role in "Weird Al" Yankovic's comedy film UHF as janitor Stanley Spadowski. On television, he appeared in Miami Vice as an unscrupulous bookie; in St. Elsewhere as a television producer making a documentary about Dr. Mark Craig; in Cheers as a character trying to collect on an old bet with Sam Malone; and made several guest appearances with Jay Leno as an accident-prone fitness expert.

According to an interview with executive producer David Hoberman, ABC first conceived the series Monk as a procedural police comedy with an Inspector Clouseau-like character suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder. Hoberman said ABC wanted Richards to play Adrian Monk, but he turned it down. [18]

1989–2005: Seinfeld and rise to prominence

Richards with Jerry Seinfeld at the 44th Primetime Emmy Awards in 1992

In 1989, Richards was cast as Cosmo Kramer in the NBC television series Seinfeld, created by fellow Fridays cast member Larry David and comedian Jerry Seinfeld. Although it got off to a slow start, by the mid-1990s it had become one of the most popular sitcoms in television history. It ended its nine-year run in 1998 at No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings. In Seinfeld, Kramer is the across the hall neighbor of the show's eponymous character, and is usually referred to only by his last name. His first name, Cosmo, was revealed in the sixth-season episode " The Switch".

Richards won more Emmys than any other Seinfeld cast member, taking home the award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 1993, 1994, and 1997 for his role as Kramer. When referring to speculation that he would launch a spin-off to Seinfeld about Kramer, Richards said he was not interested in doing so. [19] During the run of Seinfeld, Richards made cameo appearances in several TV shows; he played himself in Episode 2 of Season 1 "The Flirt Episode" (1992) of the HBO series The Larry Sanders Show. He also had a cameo role in the comedy thriller film So I Married an Axe Murderer, credited as "insensitive man". In 1996, Richards made a cameo in Epcot's Ellen's Energy Adventure, where he portrayed a caveman discovering fire. He played radio station employee Doug Beech in Airheads, and co-starred with Jeff Daniels as an actor pretending to be a lawyer in 1997's Trial and Error. He also made guest appearances on Miami Vice, Night Court and Cheers.

In 2000, two years after the end of Seinfeld, Richards began work on a new series for NBC, his first major project since Seinfeld's finale. The Michael Richards Show, for which Richards received co-writer and co- executive producer credits, was conceived as a comedy/mystery starring Richards as a bumbling private investigator. When the first pilot failed with test audiences, NBC ordered that the show be retooled into a more conventional, office-based sitcom before its premiere. After a few weeks of poor ratings and negative reviews, it was canceled. Critics said the show was too "Kramer-esque" and Richards invoked the so-called " Seinfeld curse" as to why the show failed. [19]

Starting in 2004, he and his fellow Seinfeld cast members provided interviews and audio commentaries for the Seinfeld DVDs. Richards stepped down from providing audio commentary after Season 5, though he continued to provide interviews.

2006–2012: Laugh Factory incident and aftermath

During a performance on November 17, 2006, at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood, California, Richards launched into a racist rant in response to repeated heckling and interruptions from a small group of Black and Hispanic audience members. Richards was recorded shouting "He's a nigger!" several times and making references to lynching and the Jim Crow laws. [6] [20] [21] [22] [23] Kyle Doss, a member of the group that Richards addressed, said the group had arrived in the middle of the performance and were "being a little loud". According to Doss:

[Richards] said, "Look at the stupid Mexicans and blacks being loud up there." That's the first thing he said. And then he kept on with his bit. And, then, after a while, I told him, "My friend doesn't think you're funny." And then when I told him that, that's when he flipped me off and said, "F-you N-word." And that's how it all started.

— Kyle Doss, Interview on The Situation Room [24]

The incident remained unknown for three days until a cellphone video filmed by a member of the audience was obtained and released by TMZ. On November 20, after the video made rounds around the news, Jerry Seinfeld invited Richards via satellite during a broadcast of the Late Show with David Letterman, where Richards was recorded saying: "For me to be at a comedy club and to flip out and say this crap, I'm deeply, deeply sorry. I'm not a racist, that's what's so insane about this." [25] Many studio audience members laughed as Richards began his unscripted explanation and apology, thinking it was a bit, leading Seinfeld to reprimand them, saying: "Stop laughing. It's not funny." Richards said he had been trying to defuse the heckling by being even more outrageous, but it had backfired. He later called civil rights leaders Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson to apologize. [24] [26] He also appeared as a guest on Jackson's syndicated radio show. [27] Doss stated that he did not accept Richards's apology, saying: "If he wanted to apologize, he could have contacted ... one of us out of the group. But, he didn't. He apologized on camera just because the tape got out." [26] [28]

A Gallup poll conducted in late November found that Richards was now the most unpopular Seinfeld cast member, with just 41 percent viewing him positively; by contrast, other Seinfeld cast members' favorability ratings were in the 60s and 70s. [29] The same poll also found that 45 percent of non-whites expressed a negative view of Richards due to the incident. [29] The incident was parodied on several TV shows, including Mad TV, Family Guy, South Park, Extras, and Monday Night Raw. In an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, Richards appeared as himself and poked fun at the incident. In 2008, rapper Wale referenced the incident and used recordings of the incident, as well as Richard's apology, in the song "The Kramer" on The Mixtape About Nothing album.

One year following the incident, Richards voiced character Bud Ditchwater in the animated film Bee Movie, which starred and was produced by Jerry Seinfeld. In 2009, Richards and the other main Seinfeld cast members appeared in the seventh season of Curb Your Enthusiasm. [30] In 2012, he appeared in the comedy web series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, hosted by Seinfeld, in which he remarked on the 2006 incident. [31] In the episode, Richards explained that the outburst still haunted him, and was a major reason for his retirement from stand-up. [32]

2013–present: Recent years

In 2013, Richards was cast to play Frank in the sitcom Kirstie, costarring Kirstie Alley and Rhea Perlman. It premiered on TV Land on December 4, 2013 [7] and was canceled after one season. [33] In 2014, Richards appeared as the president of Crackle in a trailer for Season 5 of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. Seinfeld said the trailer's storyline would be expanded on in one of the episodes. In the comedy book SuperMega Saves the Troops written by Matt Watson and Ryan Magee, Michael Richards was a key character as an undercover spy.

In 2019, Richards played Daddy Hogwood in the romantic comedy Faith, Hope & Love starring Peta Murgatroyd and Robert Krantz. [34]

In November 2023, Richards announced he would be releasing a memoir entitled, Entrances and Exits. [35] The memoir is set to be released in June 2024. [36] [37]

Personal life

Richards was married to Cathleen Lyons, a family therapist, for 18 years. They have one daughter, Sophia. They separated in 1992 and divorced the following year. [2] [3]

In 2010, Richards married his girlfriend Beth Skipp. They have been together since 2002 and have one son. [4]

Richards is a Freemason. [38]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1982 Young Doctors in Love Malamud Callahan
1984 The House of God Dr. Pinkus
The Ratings Game Sal
1985 Transylvania 6-5000 Fejos
1986 Whoops Apocalypse Lacrobat
1987 Choice Chance and Control Victor Loudon Driver's Ed video
1989 UHF Stanley Spadowski
1990 Problem Child Martin Beck
1993 Coneheads Motel Clerk
So I Married an Axe Murderer Insensitive Man
1994 Airheads Doug Beech
1995 Unstrung Heroes Danny Lidz Nominated— American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture
1997 Redux Riding Hood The Wolf Voice
Short film
Trial and Error Richard "Ricky" Rietti
2007 Bee Movie Bud Ditchwater Voice [39]
2013 Walk the Light Lester Short film
2019 Faith, Hope & Love Daddy Hogwood

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1980–1982 Fridays Various roles 54 episodes; also writer
1982 Faerie Tale Theatre King Geoffeey Episode: "The Tale of the Frog Prince"
1983 Herndon Dr. Herndon P. Stool Television film
1984 Faerie Tale Theatre Vince Episode: "Pinocchio"
At Your Service Rick the gardener Television film
Night Court Eugene Sleighbough Episode: "Take My Wife, Please"
The Ratings Game Sal Television film
1984–1985 St. Elsewhere Bill Wolf 5 episodes
1985 Tall Tales & Legends Sneaky Pete Episode: "My Darlin' Clementine"
Cheers Eddie Gordon Episode: "Bar Bet"
Scarecrow and Mrs. King Petronus Episode: "Car Wars"
Slickers Mike Blade Television film
It's a Living Hager Episode: "Desperate Hours"
Hill Street Blues Special Agent Durpe Episode: "An Oy for an Oy"
1986 Miami Vice Pagone Episode: "The Fix"
A Year in the Life Ronnie 3 episodes
Fresno 2nd henchman 5 episodes
1987 Jonathan Winters: On the Ledge Various roles Television special
1987–1988 Marblehead Manor Rick 11 episodes
1989 Camp MTV Stanley Spadowski Television film
1989–1998 Seinfeld Cosmo Kramer
1992 Dinosaurs Director Voice
Episode: "Wesayso Knows Best"
Mad About You Cosmo Kramer Episode: "The Apartment"
The Larry Sanders Show Himself Episode: "The Flirt Episode"
1996 London Suite Mark Ferris Television film
2000 David Copperfield Mr. Wilkins Micawber Television film
The Michael Richards Show Vic Nardozza 7 episodes; also co-creator and executive producer
2009 Curb Your Enthusiasm Michael Richards 3 episodes [40]
2012 Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee Michael Richards
Dick Corcoran
3 episodes
2013–2014 Kirstie Frank 12 episodes

References

  1. ^ McDermid, Charles (July 13, 2007). "Richards finds solace in Cambodia". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c "Michael Richards Tv's Top Jive-talking Hipster-doofus Fell for His Audience, and Vice Versa. Farewell, Cosmo, and Giddyup!". People. May 14, 1998. Retrieved December 27, 2012.
  3. ^ a b Lipton, Michael A. (March 8, 1993). "Man Overboard!". People. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
  4. ^ a b Lacher, Irene (December 1, 2013). "Michael Richards goes for a drive". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  5. ^ Falls, Michelle (December 6, 2013). "First Look at Michael Richards' Adorable Son Antonio—See the Precious Pics!". E!. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
  6. ^ a b TMZ Staff (2006). ""Kramer's" Racist Tirade – Caught on Tape". In The Zone. TMZ.com. Retrieved November 20, 2006.
  7. ^ a b Goldberg, Lesely (February 15, 2013). "TV Land Orders Kirstie Alley-Michael Richards Comedy to Series". The Hollywood Reporter.
  8. ^ "Michael Richards is not Jewish (Not that there's anything wrong with that)". HuffPost. November 23, 2006.
  9. ^ "Michael Richards Biography (1949?-)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
  10. ^ Barbara DeMarco Barrett (June 1997). "The Spaz at Home". Orange Coat Magazine. p. 34.
  11. ^ "Michael Richards Net Worth (Updated 2023), Height, Income Source And Biography - NetWorthDekho". September 28, 2022. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  12. ^ "NewsLibrary.com – newspaper archive, clipping service – newspapers and other news sources". April 30, 1995.
  13. ^ Michael Richards 'Speaking Freely' transcript via First Amendment Center, Recorded February 28, 2002, in Aspen, Colorado Archived March 31, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ Andy Kaufman on Fridays from FridaysFan. Funnyordie.com. February 11, 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2010.
  15. ^ "Michael Richards – First Amendment Center – news, commentary, analysis on free speech, press, religion, assembly, petition". Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved August 29, 2014.
  16. ^ "Desperate Hours". YouTube.
  17. ^ "Michael Richards". TVGuide.com. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  18. ^ from "Mr Monk and His Origins," a special feature packaged with the Season One DVDs.
  19. ^ a b Davis, Ivor (May 30, 1997). Fame is a 'Trial' for Michael Richards. Ventura County Star.
  20. ^ Mariel Concepción (2006). "Comedian Michael "Kramer" Richards Goes into Racial Tirade, Banned From Laugh Factory". News wire. VIBE.com. Archived from the original on December 31, 2006. Retrieved November 21, 2006.
  21. ^ ""Seinfeld" Comic Richards Apologizes for Racial Rant". Washingtonpost.com. November 21, 2006. Retrieved October 12, 2010.
  22. ^ "Richards 'deeply, deeply sorry' for racial slurs". CBC arts. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. November 20, 2006. Retrieved November 20, 2006.
  23. ^ ""Seinfeld" Star Richards Under Fire For Racial Outburst". News wire. Reuters. November 20, 2006. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  24. ^ a b "The Situation Room transcript". The Situation Room. CNN. 2006. Retrieved December 4, 2006.
  25. ^ "CNN Newsroom". CNN.com. 2006. Retrieved February 16, 2007.
  26. ^ a b "Sharpton: Comedian's apology not enough". CNN. November 23, 2006. Retrieved April 22, 2007.
  27. ^ "Jesse Jackson Talks To Michael Richards: Jackson Says Apology For Actor's Racist Rant Is Only A Beginning Before Healing". News wire. CBS. November 25, 2006. Retrieved April 23, 2007.
  28. ^ Kyle Doss wants reparations for Kramer calling him a nigger at YouTube
  29. ^ a b Newport, Frank (December 1, 2006). Gauging the Impact of the Michael Richards Incident. Gallup Inc..
  30. ^ "'Curb Your Enthusiasm' hosts a 'Seinfeld' reunion". Zap2It.com. March 6, 2009. Archived from the original on July 14, 2009. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
  31. ^ "Richards appears on Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee". Archived from the original on October 2, 2012. Retrieved October 7, 2012.
  32. ^ "Michael Richards It's Bubbly Time, Jerry – Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee by Jerry Seinfeld". Comediansincarsgettingcoffee.com. Archived from the original on May 11, 2014. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  33. ^ "TV Land cancels 'Kirstie'". Entertainment Weekly and Time Inc. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
  34. ^ "Seinfeld's Kramer (Michael Richards) meets @DancingABC's @PetaMurgatroyd ! It's all laughs behind the scenes of Faith, Hope, & Love. Follow us to stay updated! #fhlmovie". twitter.com.
  35. ^ "'Seinfeld' star Michael Richards addresses outburst that led to 'lifelong spiritual quest'". www.foxnews.com.
  36. ^ "Seinfeld's Michael Richards to Release New Memoir in 2024 (Exclusive)". people.com.
  37. ^ "Seinfeld star Michael Richards to release memoir". www.gjsentinel.com.
  38. ^ "Today in Masonic History - Michael Anthony Richards is Born".
  39. ^ "Jerry Seinfeld Might Have Been The Only Person Who Stood By Michael Richards After His Outburst". www.thethings.com.
  40. ^ "'Curb Your Enthusiasm' EP Says He Hasn't Heard Anything About a 'Seinfeld' Revival, Says 'We Did It in Season 7 of 'Curb"". www.thewrap.com.

External links