Billy Van Zandt
Encyclopedia
William "Billy" Van Zandt (born December 13, 1957) is an American playwright
and actor
.
.
Van Zandt is the half-brother of musician/actor Steven Van Zandt
and brother-in-law of his wife, actress Maureen Van Zandt
. He married actress Adrienne Barbeau
December 31, 1992. The couple met in 1991 during the west coast premiere of Billy's play Drop Dead! They have twin sons, William and Walker (born March 17, 1997).
Van Zandt was nominated for an Emmy Award
for his television special I Love Lucy: The Very First Show, and won People's Choice and NAACP Image Awards for his work on the Martin Lawrence
comedy Martin and a Prism Multi-Cultural Award for his work on TV's The Hughleys.
Along with partner Jane Milmore, he created and/or developed television's The Wayans Bros. for Shawn Wayans and Marlon Wayans
, Suddenly Susan for Brooke Shields
, Bless This House for Andrew Dice Clay
, and Daddy Dearest for Don Rickles
and Richard Lewis
.
In addition to starring in his own plays, he has had roles as an alien Starfleet
ensign in Star Trek: The Motion Picture
, a military school cadet in the 1981 movie Taps
, teenage shark-bait in Jaws 2
, and a mobster wannabe in the 1999 film A Wake in Providence, which he also co-wrote.
On television, Billy was a regular cast member on the second season of ABC's Anything but Love
and usually does small cameo roles within his own writing-producing television work, notably acting as writer, creative consultant and guest star on the 1990 Valerie Bertinelli
series Sydney
. Most recently, he wrote and produced Jack and Janet Save the Planet with Jane Milmore for the Disney Channel.
He is currently starring Off-Broadway in You've Got Hate Mail at the Triad Theater on W. 72nd Street.
The plays are published with Samuel French, Inc. and performed worldwide.
World premieres of the Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore comedies take place every May and June in New Jersey.
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
Personal life
Van Zandt was born in Red Bank, New Jersey, the son of Mary H. Lento and William Brewster Van Zandt. He is of Italian and Dutch descent. He grew up in Middletown Township, New JerseyMiddletown Township, New Jersey
Middletown Township is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township had a total population of 66,522...
.
Van Zandt is the half-brother of musician/actor Steven Van Zandt
Steven Van Zandt
Steven Van Zandt is an Italian-American musician, songwriter, arranger, record producer, actor, and radio disc jockey, who frequently goes by the stage names Little Steven or Miami Steve...
and brother-in-law of his wife, actress Maureen Van Zandt
Maureen Van Zandt
Maureen Van Zandt is an Italian-American television actress best known for her small role Gabriella Dante, a close friend to Carmela Soprano on the HBO series, The Sopranos....
. He married actress Adrienne Barbeau
Adrienne Barbeau
Adrienne Jo Barbeau is an American actress and the author of three books. Barbeau came to prominence in the 1970s as Broadway's original Rizzo in the musical Grease, and as Carol Traynor, the divorced daughter of Maude Findlay in the sitcom Maude...
December 31, 1992. The couple met in 1991 during the west coast premiere of Billy's play Drop Dead! They have twin sons, William and Walker (born March 17, 1997).
Career
Van Zandt is the author of the Off-Broadway play The Property Known as Garland and coauthor and star of 23 other theatrical plays written with Jane Milmore, including the Off-Broadway comedies You've Got Hate Mail, Silent Laughter, A Night at the Nutcracker, Drop Dead, and summer stock perennial Love, Sex, and the I.R.S. He is known for his mixture of broad slapstick-style comedy and adult humor.Van Zandt was nominated for an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for his television special I Love Lucy: The Very First Show, and won People's Choice and NAACP Image Awards for his work on the Martin Lawrence
Martin Lawrence
Martin Fitzgerald Lawrence is an American actor, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and stand up comedian. He came to fame during the 1990s, establishing a Hollywood career as a leading actor, most notably the films Bad Boys, Blue Streak, and Big Momma's House...
comedy Martin and a Prism Multi-Cultural Award for his work on TV's The Hughleys.
Along with partner Jane Milmore, he created and/or developed television's The Wayans Bros. for Shawn Wayans and Marlon Wayans
Marlon Wayans
Marlon L. Wayans is an American actor, model producer, comedian, writer, and director of movies, beginning with his role as a pedestrian in I'm Gonna Git You Sucka in 1988...
, Suddenly Susan for Brooke Shields
Brooke Shields
Brooke Christa Shields is an American actress and model. Some of her better-known movies include Pretty Baby and The Blue Lagoon, as well as TV shows such as Suddenly Susan, That '70s Show and Lipstick Jungle....
, Bless This House for Andrew Dice Clay
Andrew Dice Clay
Andrew Dice Clay is an American comedian and actor who played the lead role in the film The Adventures of Ford Fairlane.Clay has been in several movies and has released a number of stand-up albums...
, and Daddy Dearest for Don Rickles
Don Rickles
Donald Jay "Don" Rickles is an American stand-up comedian and actor. A frequent guest on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, Rickles has acted in comedic and dramatic roles, but is best known as an insult comic....
and Richard Lewis
Richard Lewis (comedian)
-Early life:Lewis was born in Brooklyn, New York City and was raised in Englewood, New Jersey. His father worked as a caterer and his mother was an actress. Lewis is Jewish. He later attended Ohio State University and was a member of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity....
.
In addition to starring in his own plays, he has had roles as an alien Starfleet
Starfleet
In the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
ensign in Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a 1979 American science fiction film released by Paramount Pictures. It is the first film based on the Star Trek television series. The film is set in the twenty-third century, when a mysterious and immensely powerful alien cloud called V'Ger approaches the Earth,...
, a military school cadet in the 1981 movie Taps
Taps (film)
Taps is a 1981 drama film starring George C. Scott, Timothy Hutton, Ronny Cox, as well as then up-and-comers Tom Cruise and Sean Penn. Hutton was nominated for a Golden Globe award in 1982 for his role in the film. The film was directed by Harold Becker. The screenplay by Robert Mark Kamen, James...
, teenage shark-bait in Jaws 2
Jaws 2
Jaws 2 is a 1978 thriller film and the first sequel to Steven Spielberg's Jaws , which is based on Peter Benchley's novel of the same name...
, and a mobster wannabe in the 1999 film A Wake in Providence, which he also co-wrote.
On television, Billy was a regular cast member on the second season of ABC's Anything but Love
Anything but Love
Anything But Love was an American television sitcom, which aired on ABC from March 7, 1989 to June 3, 1992, spanning four seasons and 56 episodes. The show starred Richard Lewis as Marty Gold and Jamie Lee Curtis as Hannah Miller, coworkers at a Chicago magazine with a mutual romantic attraction to...
and usually does small cameo roles within his own writing-producing television work, notably acting as writer, creative consultant and guest star on the 1990 Valerie Bertinelli
Valerie Bertinelli
Valerie Anne Bertinelli is an American actress, best known for her roles as Barbara Cooper Royer on the television series One Day at a Time , Gloria on the television series Touched by an Angel and Melanie Moretti on the sitcom Hot in Cleveland .- Early years :Bertinelli was born in Wilmington,...
series Sydney
Sydney (TV series)
Sydney is an American situation comedy series that aired on CBS in 1990. It was created and written by Michael J. Wilson and Douglas Wyman and starred Valerie Bertinelli, Matthew Perry and Craig Bierko.-Synopsis:...
. Most recently, he wrote and produced Jack and Janet Save the Planet with Jane Milmore for the Disney Channel.
He is currently starring Off-Broadway in You've Got Hate Mail at the Triad Theater on W. 72nd Street.
Full-length plays
- Love, Sex, and the I.R.S.
- Suitehearts
- Lie, Cheat, and Genuflect
- Having a Wonderful Time, Wish You Were Her
- Playing Doctor
- A Little Quickie
- Drop Dead!
- Bathroom Humor
- Infidelities
- The Senator Wore Pantyhose
- Till Death Do Us Part
- Do Not Disturb
- What the Bellhop Saw
- Merrily We Dance and Sing
- What the Rabbi Saw
- Confessions of a Dirty Blonde
- Silent Laughter
- The Pennies
- The Property Known as Garland
- A Night at the Nutcracker
- You've Got Hate Mail
- Wrong Window
- High School Reunion: The Musical
The plays are published with Samuel French, Inc. and performed worldwide.
World premieres of the Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore comedies take place every May and June in New Jersey.