Amy Sedaris

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Amy Louise Sedaris (born March 29, 1961) is an American actress, author, and comedian. She is known for playing the character Jerri Blank in the Comedy Central television series Strangers with Candy. Sedaris regularly collaborates with her older brother, humorist and author David Sedaris. She is a frequent guest on The Late Show with David Letterman.

Personal life

Sedaris was born in Endicott, New York, the daughter of Sharon (née Leonard) and Lou Sedaris,[1] and grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina, with her siblings, David, Lisa, Gretchen, Tiffany, and Paul ("The Rooster"). She is of half Greek descent; her father was Greek Orthodox and her mother was Protestant, and she remains Greek Orthodox.[2][3]

As a guest on the Late Show with David Letterman, she described two experiences with bosses. At age 16, she worked at the local Winn-Dixie supermarket. She would make fake announcements over the loudspeaker, which prompted the head cashier to confiscate the microphone. After work, she egged the cashier's car in protest. Later, as a cocktail waitress at Zanies, a comedy night club in Chicago, she was five minutes late for a shift with ice cream cone in hand. Fired that night, she took her revenge on her boss: "I took his keys and I threw them in the snow. I heard he found them in the spring."[4]

Sedaris and her Strangers with Candy co-star Paul Dinello dated for eight years. Though their relationship ended, they have remained very close friends.[5][6] She also dated actor Alan Tudyk in the early 2000s.[7]

Career

Television

A former member of Chicago-based Second City and Annoyance Theatre comedy troupes, her first major foray into television began in 1995 on the Comedy Central sketch show, Exit 57, which also starred Stephen Colbert and Paul Dinello.[8] The show was cancelled after three seasons.[8]

Beginning in 1999, Sedaris portrayed Jerri Blank in the Comedy Central series Strangers with Candy.[9] The show, which she co-wrote with Dinello and Colbert, was based on Sedaris's impression of 1970s motivational speaker Florrie Fisher.[10] The show ran for three seasons and would later inspire a full-length movie.[11]

Sedaris has made numerous guest appearances on a number of different TV programs, including Rescue Me, Monk, Wonder Showzen, Just Shoot Me!, Sex and the City, My Name Is Earl, The Closer, The Middle, The New Adventures of Old Christine, and Sesame Street.[11] Sedaris also hosted the series Film Fanatic on Trio.[11]

Sedaris has appeared on many talk shows, including The Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night With Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, The Daily Show , The Colbert Report , and WTF with Marc Maron.[11] In 2008 Sedaris appeared on Chelsea Lately during which she gave host Chelsea Handler a presentation concerning vaginal hygiene with the aid of a plush vagina created by fashion designer Todd Oldham.

In 2007, Sedaris was featured in Dolly Parton's first mainstream country music video in 14 years, "Better Get to Livin'."[12]

It was announced in October 2008 that Sedaris would be getting her own sitcom, produced by 20th Century Fox, which she will be creating, writing and starring in.[13] Also in late 2008, Sedaris did voiceovers in several commercials for the discount hair salon SuperCuts.[14][15]

In January 2009, Sedaris narrated the PBS special Make 'Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America, a six-hour documentary on comedians and comedy in American history.

In 2010, she appeared as a supporting character in the Canadian comedy series The Drunk and On Drugs Happy Fun Time Hour.[16] She also voiced Ms. Davis, the Woodview School's debate club teacher in the WordGirl episode "Cleanup on Aisle Eleven."

Sedaris can be seen with Paul Dinello in the "Mummified Hand" episode of the Science Channel show Oddities.

In 2011, she is appearing in a series of commercials for Downy.
Sedaris entertaining the audience and fellow author David Rakoff as she gives direction on making brownies at the 2006 Texas Book Festival.

Film

Sedaris has had small roles in a number of films, including Elf, School of Rock, Maid in Manhattan, Bewitched, Snow Angels, Full Grown Men, Old Dogs, Shrek the Third, and Chicken Little.[11] She also starred in the 2006 film adaptation of Strangers with Candy.[11] Sedaris also had a large role in the comedy, The Best and the Brightest with Neil Patrick Harris. She voiced Cinderella in Shrek the Third and reprised her role in Shrek Forever After. In 2008, Sedaris starred as principal Abby Hofman in Nickelodeon TV's Gym Teacher: The Movie, directed by her Strangers with Candy co-star Paul Dinello.[11]

Print and other work

She coauthored the text-and-picture novel Wigfield with Paul Dinello and Stephen Colbert, published in 2003. As of 2005, Sedaris writes a monthly advice column in The Believer. She has written a guide to entertaining titled I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, published in October 2006 by Warner Books. That light-hearted approach to cooking stayed on the New York Times best-seller list for more than 12 weeks, and currently has over 350,000 copies in print.

Her new book, Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People! (2010), includes a cover which can be easily made into a hat, as demonstrated, and worn, by David Letterman during her appearance on his Late Show in October 2010.

Along with her brother David Sedaris, Amy has co-authored several plays under the name "The Talent Family": Stump the Host (1993), Stitches (1994), One Woman Shoe (1995), Incident at Cobblers Knob (1997) and The Little Frieda Mysteries. She also co-authored the play The Book of Liz with him, which has gone on to productions at such regional theatres as No Name Players.[17]

Her theater work includes a role as the stage manager in Paul Rudnick's play The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told.

In addition to acting and writing, she runs a cupcake and cheese ball business, Dusty Food Cupcakes, out of her home kitchen.[18]

She was the host at the Annual Microsoft Company Meeting held at Safeco field in Seattle on September 28, 2010.

Bibliography

Sedaris, Colbert, Dinello. Wigfield: The Can-Do Town That Just May Not (Hyperion, May 19, 2004) ISBN 0-7868-8696-X
I Like You : Hospitality Under The Influence (Warner Books, October 16, 2006) ISBN 0-446-57884-3
"Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People" (Grand Central Publishing, November 2, 2010)

Filmography

Film
Year Film Role Notes
1991 Big Deals (TV movie) Topaz Radulavitch
1997 Bad Bosses Go to Hell Trendy Boss
Commandments Scholar
1998 Wheels of Fury Pepper Mills
Strangers with Candy: Retardation, a Celebration (TV short) Jerri Blank
Six Days Seven Nights Robin's Secretary
2001 Jump Tomorrow Other Student in Class
2002 Maid in Manhattan Rachel Hoffberg
2003 Untitled New York Pilot (TV movie) Connie
School of Rock Mrs. Haynish
Elf Deb
2004 Neurotica Renee
My Baby's Daddy Annabelle
2005 Strangers with Candy Jerri Blank
Bewitched Gladys Kravitz
Romance & Cigarettes Frances
Stay Toni
Chicken Little Foxy Loxy (voice)
2006 Full Grown Men Trina
I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With School Therapist - Ms. Clark
2007 Snow Angels Barb Petite
Dedication Cassidy's Mom
Shrek the Third Cinderella (voice)
Puberty: The Movie Paulie the Penis (voice)
2008 Gym Teacher: The Movie (TV movie) Principal Hoffman
2009 Space Buddies Gravity (voice)
Dance Flick Ms. Cameltoé
Jennifer's Body Needy's Mom
Tanner Hall Mrs. Middlewood
Old Dogs Condo Woman
2010 Beware the Gonzo Diane Gilman
The Best and the Brightest Sue Lemon
2011 Puss in Boots Jill (voice)
[edit] Television
Year(s) Show Role Notes
1995-1996 Exit 57 Various 12 episodes
1999-2000 Strangers with Candy Jerri Blank / Geraldine 'Jerri' Antonia Blank 30 episodes
2001 Fling The Receptionist 2 episodes
Just Shoot Me! Betsy Frayne 2 episodes
2002-2003 Sex and the City Courtney Masterson 4 episodes
Monk Gail Fleming 2 episodes
2004 Ed Kate McCormick 2 episodes
The Wrong Coast Various Celebrity Voices
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Charlie Donato
2005 Wonder Showzen Miss Amy
2006 The Colbert Report Abraxxia (segment "Tek Jansen") (voice)
Sesame Street Snow White
My Name Is Earl Judy
2007 Andy Barker, P.I. Rita Spaulding
Rescue Me (TV series) Beth 2 episodes
2008 Yo Gabba Gabba! Tooth Fairy
2009 The Closer Claire Howard 2 episodes
American Dad! Dr. Meg Penner
The New Adventures of Old Christine Frances 'Frankenstein' Stein
2010 The Middle Abby Michaels
2011 Royal Pains Nan
Raising Hope Delilah 2 episodes
Bob's Burgers Samantha (voice)
Hot In Cleveland Heather / Heather Shaw 2 episodes

References

^ Heard, Alex. "This American Lie: A midget guitar teacher, a Macy's elf, and the truth about David Sedaris.". The New Republic. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
^ "Amazon.com: Me Talk Pretty One Day: Books: David Sedaris".
^ "Amy Sedaris Interview".
^ "Amy Sedaris - The Best and the Brightest *Interview (June 21/11)".
^ "Paul Dinello dot net :: biography". Pauldinello.net. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
^ "Blank Generation - Screens". The Austin Chronicle. 2006-07-21. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
^ "Amy Sedaris Biography - Yahoo! Movies". Movies.yahoo.com. 1961-03-29. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
^ a b IMDB entry for Exit 57
^ IMDB entry for Strangers With Candy
^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0194624/trivia
^ a b c d e f g IMDB entry for Amy Sedaris
^ by BuzzSugar (2007-11-28). "Music Video: Dolly Parton, "Better Get to Livin'" (With Amy Sedaris!)". Buzzsugar.com. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
^ "Amy Sedaris Inks Sitcom Deal, Guest Gig on The Closer". TV Guide. October 15, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
^ Zachary Paul Sire (2008-01-09). "Sire Says 2.0: As If Today Couldn't Get Any More Weird". Siresays.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
^ "‪SuperCuts Commercial‬‏". YouTube. 2008-07-03. Retrieved 2011-05-23.
^ "The Boys are back and on drugs". The Globe and Mail, July 12, 2010.
^ http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A96587
^ TV Guide: Amy Sedaris Sells Movie "Candy" Retrieved 2011-06-26.

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