David Hyde Pierce
Encyclopedia
David Hyde Pierce is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 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...

 and comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...

 best known for playing psychiatrist
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...

 Dr. Niles Crane
Niles Crane
Niles Crane, M.D., Ph.D., A.P.A. is a fictional character on the American sitcom Frasier, a spin-off of the popular show Cheers. He was portrayed by David Hyde Pierce. Niles is the younger brother of Dr. Frasier Crane, the son of Det. Martin Crane and Dr. Hester Crane, husband of Daphne Moon,...

 on the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...

 sitcom Frasier
Frasier
Frasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...

, for which he received many accolades including four 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...

s for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

Early life

Pierce, the youngest of four siblings, was born in Saratoga Springs, New York
Saratoga Springs, New York
Saratoga Springs, also known as simply Saratoga, is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 26,586 at the 2010 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area. While the word "Saratoga" is known to be a corruption of a Native American name, ...

, the son of Laura Marie (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....

 Hughes) and George Hyde Pierce, an insurance agent and aspiring actor. He has three older siblings: Barbara, Nancy, and Thomas.
He adapted his name as an adult.

As a child, Pierce became very interested in the piano and frequently played organ at the local Bethesda Episcopal Church in Saratoga Springs. He began acting in high school, earning recognition as best Dramatic Arts student. In 1977 he received the Yaddo Medal
Yaddo
Yaddo is an artists' community located on a 400 acre estate in Saratoga Springs, New York. Its mission is "to nurture the creative process by providing an opportunity for artists to work without interruption in a supportive environment."...

 for character and scholarship and worked in theater while a counselor at Camp Kabeyun
Camp Kabeyun
Camp Kabeyun is a summer camp for boys established in 1924 on Lake Winnipesaukee in Alton, New Hampshire, emphasizing individual, non-competitive outdoor activities.- History :...

, in New Hampshire. However, his love of music was still strong, so he decided to study classical piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

. However, Pierce soon grew bored with music history lessons and found that he wasn’t dedicated enough to practice the required number of hours to become a successful concert pianist. Instead, he graduated in 1981 with a double major in English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...

 and Theatre Arts.

While attending Yale, Pierce performed and directed student productions, appearing as Sir Joseph Porter, K.C.B., in the Yale Gilbert & Sullivan Society's production of H.M.S. Pinafore
H.M.S. Pinafore
H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, England, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which was the second-longest run of any musical...

. He also directed the Gilbert & Sullivan Society's operetta Princess Ida
Princess Ida
Princess Ida; or, Castle Adamant is a comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It was their eighth operatic collaboration of fourteen. Princess Ida opened at the Savoy Theatre on January 5, 1884, for a run of 246 performances...

and occasionally accompanied rehearsals on the piano. Among other roles he played at Yale were Vladimir in Waiting for Godot
Waiting for Godot
Waiting for Godot is an absurdist play by Samuel Beckett, in which two characters, Vladimir and Estragon, wait endlessly and in vain for someone named Godot to arrive. Godot's absence, as well as numerous other aspects of the play, have led to many different interpretations since the play's...

, Cauchon in Saint Joan
Saint Joan (play)
Saint Joan is a play by George Bernard Shaw, based on the life and trial of Joan of Arc. Published not long after the canonization of Joan of Arc by the Roman Catholic Church, the play dramatises what is known of her life based on the substantial records of her trial. Shaw studied the transcripts...

, and Nick in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a play by Edward Albee that opened on Broadway at the Billy Rose Theater on October 13, 1962. The original cast featured Uta Hagen as Martha, Arthur Hill as George, Melinda Dillon as Honey and George Grizzard as Nick. It was directed by Alan Schneider...

.

Career

After his graduation, Pierce moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, where during the 1980s and early 1990s he was employed in various jobs, such as selling ties at Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's is an American department store owned by Macy's, Inc. .Bloomingdale's started in 1861 when brothers Joseph and Lyman G. Bloomingdale started selling hoop-skirts in their Ladies Notions' Shop on Manhattan's Lower East Side...

 and working as a security guard, while pursuing an acting career and studying at Michael Howard Studios
Michael Howard Studios
The Michael Howard Studios is an acting studio for the performing arts located in Manhattan, New York; the studio was founded in 1953 by actor/director Michael Howard.-History:...

. During this period he played Laertes in a popular off-Broadway production of Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...

and made his Broadway debut in Christopher Durang
Christopher Durang
Christopher Ferdinand Durang is an American playwright known for works of outrageous and often absurd comedy. His work was especially popular in the 1980s.- Life :...

's Beyond Therapy
Beyond Therapy
Beyond Therapy is a play by Christopher Durang.The farcical comedy focuses on Prudence and Bruce, two Manhattanites who are seeking stable romantic relationships with the help of their psychiatrists, each of whom suggests the patient place a personal ad. Bruce is a highly emotional bisexual who...

in 1982.

Pierce's first big television break came in the early 1990s with Norman Lear
Norman Lear
Norman Milton Lear is an American television writer and producer who produced such 1970s sitcoms as All in the Family, Sanford and Son, One Day at a Time, The Jeffersons, Good Times and Maude...

's political comedy The Powers That Be
The Powers That Be (TV series)
The Powers That Be is a United States television sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman that aired briefly on NBC from 1992 to 1993. Norman Lear served as executive producer for the show.-Plot:...

,
in which Pierce played Theodore, a Congressman. Despite positive reviews from critics, the show was canceled after a brief run.

In part due to his close physical resemblance to Kelsey Grammer
Kelsey Grammer
Allen Kelsey Grammer is an American actor and comedian. He is most widely known for his two-decade portrayal of psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane on the sitcoms Cheers and Frasier...

, the producers of the Cheers
Cheers
Cheers is an American situation comedy television series that ran for 11 seasons from 1982 to 1993. It was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions, in association with Paramount Network Television for NBC, and was created by the team of James Burrows, Glen Charles, and Les Charles...

spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...

 Frasier
Frasier
Frasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...

created the role of Niles Crane (Frasier Crane
Frasier Crane
Frasier W. Crane, M.D., Ph.D., A.P.A. is a fictional character on the American television sitcoms Frasier and Cheers. He was played by Kelsey Grammer for 20 years, tying the record for the longest-running character on prime-time American television, which was set by James Arness, who played Marshal...

's younger brother) for him. Although prior to Frasier going into production, Pierce had petitioned the Screen Actors Guild
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...

 to change his billing to David Hyde 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. 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 appeared alongside Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....

 in Little Man Tate
Little Man Tate
Little Man Tate is a 1991 motion picture drama directed by and starring Jodie Foster.It tells the story of Fred Tate, a 7-year-old child prodigy who struggles to self-actualize in a social and psychological construct that largely fails to accommodate his intelligence...

, with Anthony Hopkins
Anthony Hopkins
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...

 in Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...

's Nixon
Nixon (film)
Nixon is a 1995 American biographical film directed by Oliver Stone for Cinergi Pictures that tells the story of the political and personal life of former US President Richard Nixon, played by Anthony Hopkins....

, and with Ewan McGregor
Ewan McGregor
Ewan Gordon McGregor is a Scottish actor. He has had success in mainstream, indie, and art house films. McGregor is perhaps best known for his roles as heroin addict Mark Renton in the drama Trainspotting , young Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy , and poet Christian in the...

 in Down With Love
Down with Love
Down with Love is a 2003 romantic comedy film directed by Peyton Reed and written by Eve Ahlert and Dennis Drake. It stars Renée Zellweger and Ewan McGregor, and is a pastiche of the romantic comedies of the early 1960s starring Doris Day, Rock Hudson and Tony Randall such as Pillow Talk and Lover...

. He provided the voice for Doctor Doppler in Disney's 42nd animated feature, Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet is a 2002 animated science fiction film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, and released by Walt Disney Pictures on November 27, 2002...

, Slim, a stick insect
Phasmatodea
The Phasmatodea are an order of insects, whose members are variously known as stick insects , walking sticks or stick-bugs , phasmids, ghost insects and leaf insects...

 in Pixar
Pixar
Pixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...

's A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life is a 1998 American computer animated adventure comedy film produced by Pixar and released by Walt Disney Pictures in the United States on November 25, 1998. A Bug's Life was the second Disney·Pixar feature film after Toy Story, and the third American computer-animated film after Toy...

and Abe Sapien
Abe Sapien
Abraham "Abe" Sapien is a fictional character in the comic book series Hellboy, created by Mike Mignola. He takes his name from "Icthyo sapiens," the fanciful species designation chosen for him by his colleagues in the 19th-century Oannes Club, and from Abraham Lincoln, on whose assassination date...

 in Guillermo del Toro
Guillermo del Toro
Guillermo del Toro is a Mexican director, producer, screenwriter, novelist and designer. He is mostly known for his acclaimed films, Blade II, Pan's Labyrinth and the Hellboy film franchise. He is a frequent collaborator with Ron Perlman, Federico Luppi and Doug Jones...

's Hellboy
Hellboy (film)
Hellboy is a 2004 supernatural superhero film, starring Ron Perlman, John Hurt and Selma Blair, directed by Guillermo del Toro. The film is based on the Dark Horse Comics work Hellboy: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola. It was produced by Revolution Studios, and distributed by Columbia Pictures...

. In 2001, he starred in the cult '80s summer camp comedy Wet Hot American Summer
Wet Hot American Summer
Wet Hot American Summer is a 2001 satirical comedy film written by David Wain and Michael Showalter, and directed by Wain. The film takes place during the last day at a fictional Jewish summer camp in 1981, before closing for the summer...

as the befuddled astrophysicist, Prof. Henry Newman. In his role in Sleepless in Seattle
Sleepless in Seattle
The film was originally to have been scored by John Barry, but when he was given a list of 20 songs he had to put in the film, he quit.#As Time Goes By - Jimmy Durante #A Kiss to Build a Dream on - Louis Armstrong #Stardust - Nat King Cole...

, Pierce played the brother of Meg Ryan's character, a professor at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...

. The movie was released just three months before the start of Frasier.

In 2005, Pierce joined Tim Curry
Tim Curry
Timothy James "Tim" Curry is a British actor, singer, composer and voice actor, known for his work in a diverse range of theatre, film and television productions. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California....

 and others in the stage production of Spamalot
Spamalot
Monty Python's Spamalot is a musical comedy "lovingly ripped off from" the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Like the film, it is a highly irreverent parody of the Arthurian Legend, but it differs from the film in many ways, especially in its parodies of Broadway theatre...

. In August/September 2006, he starred as Lieutenant Frank Cioffi in Curtains
Curtains (musical)
Curtains is a musical with a book by Rupert Holmes, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and music by John Kander, with additional lyrics by Kander and Holmes....

, a new Kander and Ebb musical staged at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

. In March 2007, Curtains opened on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...

 and on June 10, 2007 Pierce won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical
Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical
The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical is awarded to the actor who was voted as the best actor in a musical play, whether a new production or a revival...

 at the 61st Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...

s for his performance. In his acceptance speech, David said the first words he spoke on a Broadway stage were, "I'm sorry, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

On November 19, 2007, Pierce was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts
Doctor of Fine Arts
Doctor of Fine Arts is doctoral degree in fine arts, typically given as an honorary degree . The degree is typically conferred to honor the recipient who has made a contribution to society in the arts...

 Degree from Niagara University
Niagara University
Niagara University is a Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition, located in the Town of Lewiston in Niagara County, New York. Originally founded by the Congregation of the Mission in 1856 as Our Lady of Angels Seminary, it became Niagara University in 1883. The University is still run by...

 in Lewiston, New York
Lewiston, New York
Lewiston is a village in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 2,781 at the 2000 census. The village is named after Morgan Lewis, an early 19th-century governor of New York. It is part of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area.The Village of Lewiston,...

. (In 1999, Pierce was awarded an Honorary Degree from Skidmore College, located in Saratoga Springs, NY.)
In 2010, Pierce appeared in a revival of David Hirson
David Hirson
David Hirson is an American dramatist, best known for his award winning Broadway comedies, La Bête and Wrong Mountain.-Biography:Hirson was born in New York City to actress, Alice, and playwright, Roger O. Hirson...

's play La Bête
La Bête
La Bête is a comedy by American playwright, David Hirson. Written in rhymed couplets of iambic pentameter, the Molière-inspired story, set in 17th century France, pits dignified, stuffy Elomire, the head of the royal court-sponsored theatre troupe, against the foppish, frivolous street entertainer...

directed by Matthew Warchus
Matthew Warchus
-Life:Warchus studied music and drama at Bristol University. He has directed for the National Youth Theatre, Bristol Old Vic, Donmar Warehouse, Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal National Theatre, Opera North, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Welsh National Opera, English National Opera and in the West...

. The production debuted on London's West End before moving to New York.

Also in 2010, Pierce has his first starring film role as Warwick Wilson in the dark comedy/psychological thriller The Perfect Host
The Perfect Host
The Perfect Host is a 2010 dark comedy / thriller written and directed by Nick Tomnay. The film stars David Hyde Pierce and Clayne Crawford. Filming took place in Los Angeles, California. It was photographed in 17 days. Editing took place in New York....

.

Voice acting

Pierce is known for his distinctive voice and, like his Frasier
Frasier
Frasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...

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
The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human
The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human is a 1999 American mockumentary directed and written by Jeff Abugov, and starring David Hyde Pierce, Carmen Electra, Lucy Liu, and Mackenzie Astin.-Plot summary:...

" in 1999, walking stick insect
Phasmatodea
The Phasmatodea are an order of insects, whose members are variously known as stick insects , walking sticks or stick-bugs , phasmids, ghost insects and leaf insects...

 Slim in A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life is a 1998 American computer animated adventure comedy film produced by Pixar and released by Walt Disney Pictures in the United States on November 25, 1998. A Bug's Life was the second Disney·Pixar feature film after Toy Story, and the third American computer-animated film after Toy...

, Doctor Delbert Doppler in Disney's film Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet is a 2002 animated science fiction film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, and released by Walt Disney Pictures on November 27, 2002...

, and the amphibian Abe Sapien
Abe Sapien
Abraham "Abe" Sapien is a fictional character in the comic book series Hellboy, created by Mike Mignola. He takes his name from "Icthyo sapiens," the fanciful species designation chosen for him by his colleagues in the 19th-century Oannes Club, and from Abraham Lincoln, on whose assassination date...

 in Hellboy
Hellboy (film)
Hellboy is a 2004 supernatural superhero film, starring Ron Perlman, John Hurt and Selma Blair, directed by Guillermo del Toro. The film is based on the Dark Horse Comics work Hellboy: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola. It was produced by Revolution Studios, and distributed by Columbia Pictures...

. Pierce refused credit for his Hellboy role because he felt it was the performance of Doug Jones
Doug Jones (actor)
Doug Jones is an American film and television actor best known to science fiction, fantasy, and horror fans for his various roles playing non-human characters, often in heavy makeup, in films and television series such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth and Fantastic Four: Rise...

, and not his own voice, which ultimately brought the character of Abe Sapien to life. He was the voice for Drix, a cold pill in the animated comedy Osmosis Jones
Osmosis Jones
Osmosis Jones is a 2001 live-action/animated comedy film directed by Tom Sito and Piet Kroon for the animated segments and the Farrelly brothers for the live-action segments...

.

In a deliberate in-joke
In-joke
An in-joke, also known as an inside joke or in joke, is a joke whose humour is clear only to people who are in a particular social group, occupation, or other community of common understanding...

, he voiced Cecil, the brother of Kelsey Grammer-voiced Sideshow Bob
Sideshow Bob
Robert Underdunk Terwilliger, better known as Sideshow Bob, is a recurring character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Kelsey Grammer and first appeared briefly in the episode "The Telltale Head". Bob is a self-proclaimed genius who is a graduate of Yale, a member of...

, in The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...

episode "Brother from Another Series
Brother from Another Series
"Brother from Another Series" is the sixteenth episode of The Simpsons eighth season and originally aired February 23, 1997. Sideshow Bob is released from prison into the care of his brother Cecil and claims to be a changed man. However, Bart does not believe him and tries to find out what Bob is...

", 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
Funeral for a Fiend
"Funeral for a Fiend" is the eighth episode of The Simpsons nineteenth season and first aired on November 25, 2007. It was written by Michael Price and was directed by Rob Oliver. It features Kelsey Grammer in his tenth appearance as Sideshow Bob, as well as David Hyde Pierce in his second...

". In 2006, he co-starred in the animated pilot for The Amazing Screw-On Head
The Amazing Screw-On Head
The Amazing Screw-On Head is the title of a one-shot comic book written and drawn by Mike Mignola and published by Dark Horse Comics in 2002, starring the character of the same name....

as the Screw-On Head's arch-nemesis Emperor Zombie; however, the series was not picked up. His commercial voiceover work includes ads for the Tassimo
Tassimo
The Tassimo Hot Beverage System is a consumer coffee machine that prepares one-cup servings of espresso, regular coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and various other coffee drinks, notably those including milk such as latte or cappuccino....

 coffee system and home furnishings retailer IKEA
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...

 Canada.

Personal life

After years of speculation about his sexuality, his relationship with long-time partner, television writer, director and producer, Brian Hargrove
Brian Hargrove
David Brian Hargrove is an American television writer and producer.He earned his BFA degree from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and studied acting at the Juilliard School...

, became public in 2007. Pierce later confirmed through his publicist that he and Hargrove were indeed a couple. When accepting his Tony Award for Curtains
Curtains (musical)
Curtains is a musical with a book by Rupert Holmes, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and music by John Kander, with additional lyrics by Kander and Holmes....

, Pierce thanked "my partner, Brian, because it's 24 years of listening to your damn notes — that's why I'm up here tonight." They married in California on October 24, 2008, just days before Proposition 8
California Proposition 8 (2008)
Proposition 8 was a ballot proposition and constitutional amendment passed in the November 2008 state elections...

 was adopted as law, banning same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....

s in the state.

On May 28, 2009, while a guest on The View, he publicly announced his marriage to Hargrove and expressed his anger over the approval of Proposition 8. Pierce and Hargrove divide their time between New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

.

He and Frasier
Frasier
Frasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...

costar John Mahoney
John Mahoney
John Mahoney is a British born American actor, known for playing Martin "Marty" Crane, the retired police officer, father of Kelsey Grammer's Dr...

 are godparents to former Frasier
Frasier
Frasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...

co-star Jane Leeves
Jane Leeves
Jane Leeves is an English film, stage, and television actress, comedienne and dancer.Leeves made her screen debut with a small role in the 1983 popular British comedy television show The Benny Hill Show. Leeves moved to the United States, where she performed in small roles until she secured a...

's son Finn.
Pierce is also active in the Alzheimer's Association.

Filmography

{| class="wikitable sortable" | border="2" cellpadding="4" background: #f9f9f9;
|- style="text-align:center;"
! colspan=4 style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Film appearances
|-
! style="background:#ccc;"|Year
! style="background:#ccc;"|Title
! style="background:#ccc;"|Role
! class="unsortable" ! style="background:#ccc;"|Notes
|-
| 1988
| The Appointments of Dennis Jennings
The Appointments of Dennis Jennings
The Appointments of Dennis Jennings is a 1988 American short comedy film, starring and co-written by Steven Wright, which won the Academy Award for Live Action Short Film at the 61st Academy Awards in 1988.-Plot:...


| Businessman
| Short
|-
| 1988
| Bright Lights, Big City
Bright Lights, Big City (film)
Bright Lights, Big City is a 1988 drama film starring Michael J. Fox, Kiefer Sutherland and Phoebe Cates, based on the novel of the same name by Jay McInerney. It was the last film directed by James Bridges before his death in 1993.-Plot:...


| Bartender at Fashion Show
|
|-
| 1988
| Crossing Delancey
Crossing Delancey
Crossing Delancey is a romantic comedy film starring Amy Irving and Peter Riegert released in 1988. It is directed by Joan Micklin Silver and based on a play by Susan Sandler, who also wrote the screenplay...


| Mark
|
|-
| 1988
| Rocket Gibraltar
Rocket Gibraltar
Rocket Gibraltar is an American film released in 1988, directed by Daniel Petrie and starring Burt Lancaster and Patricia Clarkson. In the movie, an aging patriarch reunites his entire family for his birthday, but personal and social problems abound.-Cast:...


| Monsieur Henri
|
|-
| 1989
| Vampire's Kiss
Vampire's Kiss
Vampire's Kiss is a 1989 American dark comedy/psychological horror film. It was written by Joseph Minion, who also penned Martin Scorsese's darkly humorous After Hours, and stars actors Nicolas Cage, María Conchita Alonso, Jennifer Beals and Elizabeth Ashley.- Plot summary :Vampire's Kiss is the...


| Theater Guy
|
|-
| 1990
| Across Five Aprils
Across Five Aprils
Across Five Aprils is a novel by Irene Hunt, set in the Civil War era. Jethro Creighton, the main character, was Irene Hunt's real grandfather. He told her the stories, and she incorporated them into Across Five Aprils.-Plot summary:...


| Union Soldier
|
|-
| 1991
| Little Man Tate
Little Man Tate
Little Man Tate is a 1991 motion picture drama directed by and starring Jodie Foster.It tells the story of Fred Tate, a 7-year-old child prodigy who struggles to self-actualize in a social and psychological construct that largely fails to accommodate his intelligence...


| Garth Emmerick
|
|-
| 1991
| The Fisher King
The Fisher King (film)
The Fisher King is a 1991 American comedy-drama film written by Richard LaGravenese and directed by Terry Gilliam. It stars Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer and Michael Jeter...


| Lou Rosen
|
|-
| 1993
| Sleepless in Seattle
Sleepless in Seattle
The film was originally to have been scored by John Barry, but when he was given a list of 20 songs he had to put in the film, he quit.#As Time Goes By - Jimmy Durante #A Kiss to Build a Dream on - Louis Armstrong #Stardust - Nat King Cole...


| Dennis Reed
|
|-
| 1993
| Addams Family Values
Addams Family Values
Addams Family Values is a 1993 sequel to the 1991 comedy The Addams Family. The film was written by Paul Rudnick and directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, and many cast members from the original returned for the sequel, including Raúl Juliá, Anjelica Huston, Christopher Lloyd, and Christina Ricci...


| Delivery Room Doctor
|
|-
| 1994
| Wolf
Wolf (film)
Wolf is a 1994 American horror film directed by Mike Nichols and written by Jim Harrison, Wesley Strick, and an uncredited Elaine May, with music by Ennio Morricone and cinematography by Giuseppe Rotunno....


| Roy
|
|-
| 1995
| Ripple
| Peter
| Short
|-
| 1995
| Nixon
Nixon (film)
Nixon is a 1995 American biographical film directed by Oliver Stone for Cinergi Pictures that tells the story of the political and personal life of former US President Richard Nixon, played by Anthony Hopkins....


| John Dean
| Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

|-
| 1998
| A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life
A Bug's Life is a 1998 American computer animated adventure comedy film produced by Pixar and released by Walt Disney Pictures in the United States on November 25, 1998. A Bug's Life was the second Disney·Pixar feature film after Toy Story, and the third American computer-animated film after Toy...


| Slim (voice)
|
|-
| 1999
| The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human
The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human
The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human is a 1999 American mockumentary directed and written by Jeff Abugov, and starring David Hyde Pierce, Carmen Electra, Lucy Liu, and Mackenzie Astin.-Plot summary:...


| Narrator (voice)
|
|-
| 2000
| Isn't She Great
Isn't She Great
Isn't She Great is a 2000 American biographical film.A highly fictionalized account of the life and career of best-selling author Jacqueline Susann, the Universal Pictures release focuses on her early struggles as an aspiring actress relentlessly hungry for fame, her relationship with press agent...


| Michael Hastings
|
|-
| 2000
| Chain of Fools
| Mr. Kerner
|
|-
| 2000
| The Tangerine Bear
The Tangerine Bear
The Tangerine Bear is an animated 48-minute feature film for children. It was directed by Bert Ring. The voice cast include Tom Bosley, Jenna Elfman, Howie Mandel, David Hyde Pierce, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, and Marlon Wayans. The story was narrated and sung by country singer Trisha Yearwood...


| Bird (voice)
|
|-
| 2001
| Wet Hot American Summer
Wet Hot American Summer
Wet Hot American Summer is a 2001 satirical comedy film written by David Wain and Michael Showalter, and directed by Wain. The film takes place during the last day at a fictional Jewish summer camp in 1981, before closing for the summer...


| Henry Newman
|
|-
| 2001
| Happy Birthday
| Barney
| Short
|-
| 2001
| Osmosis Jones
Osmosis Jones
Osmosis Jones is a 2001 live-action/animated comedy film directed by Tom Sito and Piet Kroon for the animated segments and the Farrelly brothers for the live-action segments...


| Drix (voice)
|
|-
| 2001
| Laud Weiner
Laud Weiner
Laud Weiner is a short film written and directed by Philip Euling, starring David Hyde Pierce.The cast also includes Marisol Nichols, Jake Muxworthy, and James Oliver.-Plot:...


| Laud Weiner
| Short
|-
| 2002
| Full Frontal
Full Frontal (film)
Full Frontal is a 2002 film by Steven Soderbergh, about a day in the life of people in Hollywood. The film, starring Catherine Keener, David Duchovny, Julia Roberts, Mary McCormack and David Hyde Pierce was shot on digital video in under a month using the Canon XL-1s...


| Carl
|
|-
| 2002
| Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet
Treasure Planet is a 2002 animated science fiction film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, and released by Walt Disney Pictures on November 27, 2002...


| Doctor Doppler (voice)
|
|-
| 2003
| Down with Love
Down with Love
Down with Love is a 2003 romantic comedy film directed by Peyton Reed and written by Eve Ahlert and Dennis Drake. It stars Renée Zellweger and Ewan McGregor, and is a pastiche of the romantic comedies of the early 1960s starring Doris Day, Rock Hudson and Tony Randall such as Pillow Talk and Lover...


| Peter MacMannus
|
|-
| 2004
| Hellboy
Hellboy (film)
Hellboy is a 2004 supernatural superhero film, starring Ron Perlman, John Hurt and Selma Blair, directed by Guillermo del Toro. The film is based on the Dark Horse Comics work Hellboy: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola. It was produced by Revolution Studios, and distributed by Columbia Pictures...


| Abe Sapien (voice)
| Uncredited
|-
| 2008
| Forever Plaid: The Movie
Forever Plaid: The Movie
Forever Plaid: The Movie is a 2009 American musical film, a recording of a live performance of a revival to the 1990 off-Broadway musical comedy Forever Plaid. Directed and written by Stuart Ross, this film was released on July 9, 2009...


| Narrator (voice)
|
|-
| 2009
| Stingray Sam
Stingray Sam
Stingray Sam is a 2009 space-western/musical serial film, directed by and starring Cory McAbee. The film premiered on January 20, 2009 at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival as part of the New Frontier program...


| Narrator (voice)
|
|-
| 2010
| The Perfect Host
The Perfect Host
The Perfect Host is a 2010 dark comedy / thriller written and directed by Nick Tomnay. The film stars David Hyde Pierce and Clayne Crawford. Filming took place in Los Angeles, California. It was photographed in 17 days. Editing took place in New York....


| Warwick Wilson
|
|-
{| class="wikitable sortable" | border="2" cellpadding="4" background: #f9f9f9;
|- style="text-align:center;"
! colspan=4 style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Television appearances
|-
! style="background:#ccc;"|Year
! style="background:#ccc;"|Title
! style="background:#ccc;"|Role
! class="unsortable" ! style="background:#ccc;"|Notes
|-
| 1987
| Spenser: For Hire
Spenser: For Hire
Spenser: For Hire is a mystery television series based on Robert B. Parker's Spenser novels. The series, developed for TV by John Wilder, differs from the novels, mostly in its lesser degree of detail....


| O'Neill
| 1 episode
|-
| 1992
| Dream On
Dream On (TV series)
Dream On is an American adult-themed situation comedy about single New Yorker, Martin Tupper. The show used a gimmick where old black and white clips were used to punctuate the main character's feelings or thoughts...


| Jerry Dorfer
| 1 episode
|-
| 1992-1993
| The Powers That Be
The Powers That Be (TV series)
The Powers That Be is a United States television sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman that aired briefly on NBC from 1992 to 1993. Norman Lear served as executive producer for the show.-Plot:...


| Theodore Van Horne
| 20 episodes
|-
| 1993-2004
| Frasier
Frasier
Frasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...


| Niles Crane
Niles Crane
Niles Crane, M.D., Ph.D., A.P.A. is a fictional character on the American sitcom Frasier, a spin-off of the popular show Cheers. He was portrayed by David Hyde Pierce. Niles is the younger brother of Dr. Frasier Crane, the son of Det. Martin Crane and Dr. Hester Crane, husband of Daphne Moon,...


| Series Regular

Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (1995, 1998, 1999, 2004)
Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (2000)
Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series (1996)
Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy
TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy
The TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy is an award given by the Television Critics Association.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-External links:*...

 (1997, 1998)


Nominated—Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003)
Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001)
Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy (1999)

Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Television Series
Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Television Series
The Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor - Television Series Drama and Musical/Comedy was an award given in 2002 and 2003.-2000s:Television Series – Drama 2002: Victor Garber – Alias*Dennis Haysbert – 24*Anthony Heald – Boston Public...

 (2002, 2003)

Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004)
Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series (1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002)

|-
| 1995
| Caroline in the City
Caroline in the City
Caroline in the City is an American situation comedy that ran from September 21, 1995 to April 26, 1999 on the NBC television network. It starred Lea Thompson as cartoonist Caroline Duffy. The series premiered in the two-hour Thursday night block led by Friends.-Premise:Caroline Duffy is a...


| Niles Crane
| 1 episode
|-
| 1996
| Caroline in the City
Caroline in the City
Caroline in the City is an American situation comedy that ran from September 21, 1995 to April 26, 1999 on the NBC television network. It starred Lea Thompson as cartoonist Caroline Duffy. The series premiered in the two-hour Thursday night block led by Friends.-Premise:Caroline Duffy is a...


| Jimmy Callahan
| 1 episode
|-
| 1996
| Mighty Ducks
| Baron von Lichtenstamp
| 3 episodes
|-
| 1996
| The Outer Limits
The Sentence (episode)
"The Sentence" is an episode of The Outer Limits television series. It first aired on 4 August 1996, and is the final episode of the second season.-Introduction:Dr...


| Dr. Jack Henson
| 1 episode
|-
| 1997
| Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child is an American animated television series that premiered March 26, 1995, on HBO. Narrated by Robert Guillaume, the series aired 39 episodes from 1995 to 2000, and is currently airing on the HBO Family digital cable television channel in the United...


| Puss (voice)
| 1 episode: Puss in Boots
|-
| 1997 & 2007
| The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...


| Cecil Terwilliger
| 2 episodes
|-
| 1999
| Jackie's Back
Jackie's Back
Jackie's Back is a 1999 television movie directed by Robert Townsend. It premiered on the Lifetime Television Network on June 14, 1999.-Plot:...


| Perry (The Deaf Rehearsal Pianist)
| TV Movie
|-
| 2001
| Titus
Titus (TV series)
Titus is an American dark comedy sitcom that debuted on Fox in 2000. The series was created by its star, Christopher Titus, Jack Kenny, and Brian Hargrove...


| Jerry October
| 1 episode
|-
| 2001
| On the Edge
| Barney
| TV Movie
|-
| 2003
| Gary the Rat
Gary the Rat
Gary the Rat is an American television program adult-oriented animated series animated by Spike Animation Studios, produced by Grammnet Productions and distributed by Cheyenne Enterprises that was originally broadcast on Spike in 2003. The program lasted one season before cancellation...


| Addison (voice)
| 1 episode
|-
| 2006
| The Amazing Screw-On Head
The Amazing Screw-On Head
The Amazing Screw-On Head is the title of a one-shot comic book written and drawn by Mike Mignola and published by Dark Horse Comics in 2002, starring the character of the same name....


| Emperor Zombie (voice)
| 1 episode
|}

Theatre

  • Beyond Therapy
    Beyond Therapy
    Beyond Therapy is a play by Christopher Durang.The farcical comedy focuses on Prudence and Bruce, two Manhattanites who are seeking stable romantic relationships with the help of their psychiatrists, each of whom suggests the patient place a personal ad. Bruce is a highly emotional bisexual who...

    (1982)
  • The Heidi Chronicles
    The Heidi Chronicles
    The Heidi Chronicles is a 1988 play by Wendy Wasserstein. The play won the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.-Production history:A workshop production at Seattle Repertory Theatre was held in April 1988, directed by Daniel J. Sullivan....

    (1990)
  • A Wonderful Life
    A Wonderful Life (musical)
    A Wonderful Life is a musical with a book and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick and music by Joe Raposo.Based on the classic Frank Capra film starring James Stewart, the story closely follows the original plot, set in 1945, telling the story of a suicidal man whose guardian angel reveals to him how...

    (2005)
  • Children and Art (2005)
  • Spamalot
    Spamalot
    Monty Python's Spamalot is a musical comedy "lovingly ripped off from" the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Like the film, it is a highly irreverent parody of the Arthurian Legend, but it differs from the film in many ways, especially in its parodies of Broadway theatre...

    (2005)
  • Curtains
    Curtains (musical)
    Curtains is a musical with a book by Rupert Holmes, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and music by John Kander, with additional lyrics by Kander and Holmes....

    (2007)
  • Accent on Youth
    Accent on Youth
    Accent on Youth is a Broadway play written by Samson Raphaelson which debuted on Christmas Day, 1934. The plot concerns a lazy, middle-aged playwright who is spurred to write by his new young secretary. The original cast included Nicholas Hannen as playwright Steven Gaye and Constance Cummings as...

    (2009)
  • La Bête
    La Bête
    La Bête is a comedy by American playwright, David Hirson. Written in rhymed couplets of iambic pentameter, the Molière-inspired story, set in 17th century France, pits dignified, stuffy Elomire, the head of the royal court-sponsored theatre troupe, against the foppish, frivolous street entertainer...

    (2010 - 2011)

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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