Greg Travis
Encyclopedia
Greg Travis is an American actor who has appeared in over 40 feature films and internationally recognised stand-up comedian. Based in the U.S. he created the comedy character David Sleaze, The Punk Magician, in which he puts on a punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...

-style wig and does a variety of bad magic tricks using audience participation.(28 August 1987). Television, Los Angeles Daily News
Los Angeles Daily News
The Los Angeles Daily News is the second-largest circulating daily newspaper of Los Angeles, California. It is the flagship of the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, a branch of Colorado-based MediaNews Group....

("nifty set by standup comedian Greg Travis, whose gallery of impressions and characters includes foul-mouthed "punk magician" David Sleaze")
This routine appeared on "Rodney Dangerfield
Rodney Dangerfield
Rodney Dangerfield , was an American comedian, and actor, known for the catchphrases "I don't get no respect!," "No respect, no respect at all... that's the story of my life" or "I get no respect, I tell ya" and his monologues on that theme...

's HBO Specials".

Early life

Travis was born July 31, 1958, in Dallas, Texas, the son of Gerald Travis and Elaine Dennehy-Travis, with one younger sister; actress Stacey Travis
Stacey Travis
Stacey Travis is an American actress whose films include Earth Girls Are Easy , Hardware , The Super , Traffic , and Ghost World . Travis starred on the comedy TV series Just Say Julie from 1989–1992 where she played a variety of characters...

 and is a distant relative of the Alamo hero William B. Travis
William B. Travis
William Barret Travis was a 19th-century American lawyer and soldier. At the age of 26, he was a lieutenant colonel in the Texas Army...

. At the age of twelve, Travis began performing as a magician and winning many school talent shows. In High school, he won the talent competition in the school talent shows and also won best comedy magician at the Texas Association of Magicians convention. In his senior year in high school, Travis became vice president of the Thespian Drama Club and made a feature-length film entitled "Joe Dynomite". Also he appeared in many of the school's play productions. After obtaining an Associate Arts degree at Richland College, Travis headed for Hollywood, where he attended Sherwood Oaks Experimental Film School.

Comedy career

While attending film school Greg began performing stand up comedy at The Improv
The Improv
The Improv is a comedy club franchise. Originally, it was a single venue founded in 1963 by Budd Friedman and located in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City on West 44th near the SE corner of 9th Ave. A second location was opened in 1974 at 8162 Melrose Avenue in the Fairfax District...

 and Comedy Store. Six months later he appeared on "America's Search For Tomorrow's Stars". This led to regular spots at "Bud Friedman's Improvisation
Improvisation
Improvisation is the practice of acting, singing, talking and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of one's immediate environment and inner feelings. This can result in the invention of new thought patterns, new practices, new structures or symbols, and/or...

". He began appearing as a regular guest on the talk show circuit, Dinah Shore
Dinah Shore
Dinah Shore was an American singer, actress, and television personality...

, Merv Griffin
Merv Griffin
Mervyn Edward "Merv" Griffin, Jr. was an American television host, musician, actor, and media mogul. He began his career as a radio and big band singer who went on to appear in movies and on Broadway. From 1965 to 1986 Griffin hosted his own talk show, The Merv Griffin Show on Group W Broadcasting...

, a Steve Allen Special and Evening at the Improv. The William Morris Agency
William Morris Agency
WME is the largest talent agency in the world, with offices in Beverly Hills, New York City, Nashville, London, and Miami. WME represents elite artists from all facets of the entertainment industry, including motion pictures, television, music, theatre, publishing, and physical production...

 signed Greg as his representation. He began landing small acting roles in film and TV, while developing a strong stand-up act, headlining at all the major comedy clubs across the country. In 1986 he worked for "Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...

" making short comedy films, appearing regularly on Evening at the Improv he was also the opening act for stars like James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...

, Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...

 and Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...

. In 1990 Greg appeared on a Rodney Dangerfield
Rodney Dangerfield
Rodney Dangerfield , was an American comedian, and actor, known for the catchphrases "I don't get no respect!," "No respect, no respect at all... that's the story of my life" or "I get no respect, I tell ya" and his monologues on that theme...

 HBO Special, which made his routine The Punk Magician famous. This led to him being the opening act for Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...

 on a long East Coast tour.

Greg has performed comedy on television shows such as: Surprise Surprise, Thick of the Night, Sunday Funnies, Showtime Comedy Night, Comedy Club Network, Comic Strip Live
Comic Strip Live
The Comic Strip Live is the oldest stand-up comedy showcase club in New York City and the world. Located at 1568 Second Avenue .-Beginnings:...

, Evening at the Improv, Into the Night, The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...

, Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....

, and Lewis Black
Lewis Black
Lewis Niles Black is an American stand-up comedian, author, playwright, social critic and actor. He is known for his comedy style, which often includes simulating a mental breakdown, or an increasingly angry rant, ridiculing history, politics, religion, trends and cultural phenomena...

's, “Root of all Evil
Lewis Black's Root of All Evil
Lewis Black's Root of All Evil is an American television series that premiered on March 12, 2008 on Comedy Central, and was hosted by comedian Lewis Black. The series producer was Scott Carter from Real Time With Bill Maher; and the writer was David Sacks from The Simpsons...


Acting career

A major breakthrough came when Greg was cast in the co-starring role of Phil Newkirk in Showgirls
Showgirls
Showgirls is a 1995 American drama film directed by Paul Verhoeven and starring former teen actress Elizabeth Berkley, Kyle MacLachlan, and Gina Gershon...

. Initially, not critically well received, Showgirls
Showgirls
Showgirls is a 1995 American drama film directed by Paul Verhoeven and starring former teen actress Elizabeth Berkley, Kyle MacLachlan, and Gina Gershon...

 has gone on to become a major cult classic. This film launched Greg's dramatic acting career which led to a string of films such as "Lost Highway", "Starship Troopers
Starship Troopers
Starship Troopers is a military science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein, first published as a serial in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction and published hardcover in December, 1959.The first-person narrative is about a young soldier from the Philippines named Juan "Johnnie" Rico and his...

", "Poodle Springs
Poodle Springs
Poodle Springs is the eighth Philip Marlowe novel. It was started in 1958 by Raymond Chandler, who left it unfinished at his death in 1959. The four chapters he had completed, which bore the working title "The Poodle Springs Story", were subsequently published in Raymond Chandler Speaking , a...

" and "Man on the Moon".

Travis also produced and starred in a theatrical production called "America the Bizarre" where he played seven different characters in full make-up and costume, ending with a dead on impression of Lord Buckley
Lord Buckley
Lord Richard Buckley was an American stage performer, recording artist, monologist, and hip poet/comic...

. He also received great reviews for his portrayal of Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol
Andrew Warhola , known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art...

 in the stage play "Girl of the Year". With a talent for both comedy and drama, Travis has starred on a long list of television shows, “CSI Miami”, “Strong Medicine
Strong Medicine
Strong Medicine is a medical drama with a focus on feminist politics, health issues and class conflict. The television series aired on the Lifetime network from 2000 to 2006. It is distributed by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The series was created and produced in part by comedienne and...

”, “Cold Case”.

As a dramatic actor, Travis has appeared in over thirty eight feature films. He has the chameleon like ability to play a wide range of characters. Travis has worked with such A-list directors as; Zach Snyder, David Lynch
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch is an American filmmaker, television director, visual artist, musician and occasional actor. Known for his surrealist films, he has developed his own unique cinematic style, which has been dubbed "Lynchian", and which is characterized by its dream imagery and meticulous sound...

 & Paul Verhoeven, Bob Rafelson
Bob Rafelson
Robert "Bob" Rafelson is an Emmy Award winning American film director, writer and producer. He was an early member of the New Hollywood movement in the 1970s and is most famous for directing and co-writing the film Five Easy Pieces, starring Jack Nicholson, as well as being one of the creators of...

 & Milos Forman
Miloš Forman
Jan Tomáš Forman , better known as Miloš Forman , is a Czech-American director, screenwriter, professor, and an emigrant from Czechoslovakia. Two of his films, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus, are among the most celebrated in the history of film, both gaining him the Academy Award for...

. His recent roles include Rob Zombie’s “Halloween 2,” and Zach Snyder’s “Watchmen” as Andy Warhol.
Night of the Living Dead 3D
Night of the Living Dead 3D
Night of the Living Dead 3D is a 2006 horror film made in 3D. It is the second remake of the 1968 horror classic Night of the Living Dead. The first was released in 1990 and was directed by Tom Savini from a revised screenplay by George A. Romero. Unlike the first remake, no one involved with the...

”, “Sex & Death 101”, & “Halloween 2”. Recently, Greg played starring roles in the Sci-fi Thriller “Alantis Down” and zombie comedy “Dug Up”.

Filmmaking career

After film school Greg began making short comedy videos with his New York City based friend David Daniel
David Daniel
David John Daniel was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Llanelli and international rugby for Wales.-Personal history:...

. Together they made “Last Tango in Poland”, “Carlos the Artist”, “1984 Now”, “Double Exposure”, “Complainer Vs. Complainer”, “Who’s Afraid Now”, “Hildegard” and “The Fine Line of Charlie James”. In 1984 Greg partnered with Steve Bishart and they co-wrote, co-produced with Greg Directing a 16mm feature length black and white film noir “DARK SEDUCTION”, starring Tyler Horn as detective Dic Jones and Victoria Hughie as Vera The Vampiress.
Greg continued to make short videos with fellow Texan and filmmaker Louis Roth such as “Dreamdate”, “The Last Date”, “Home Life”, “Ultra Dopes on Punk” and “Kaptain Komack on The Planet of Death”.

In 1986 Greg was hired to make short films for “Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...

” entitled “Andy Warhols 15 Second Workout” and a Nick Nolte
Nick Nolte
Nicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:...

 spoof “Never Get Out Of Bed”. Later Greg directed two music videos which aired on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 called "Immune System Breakdown" and "The Art of Noise". In 89/90 Greg directed two Independent pilots “GT Ink” for CBS and “The Decadants” for Playboy Cable.

As a screen writer Greg has written twenty feature film screen plays. Three of which were for Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...

, Disney and HBO. In 2003 Greg wrote, directed a feature length psychological thriller entitled “Night Creep”. Recently Greg wrote and directed a web series entitled Drama Kings www.dramakings.net. He continues to make short films, like “Eat The Rich”, “Super Spy Love” and “Hot Soup”. He is currently developing two feature length films for production, “Bofugly” and “The Sinner”.

Selected filmography

  • The Bride of Frank (short) (2011) - Frank
  • White T (2011) - Stage Manager
  • Dug Up (2011) - Sherriff Yates
  • Affecter
    Affecter
    The Affecter was an Attic black-figure vase painter, active in Athens around 550 to 530 BCE..His conventional name is derived from his artificial affected style of figural painting, on the basis of which about 135 vases can be ascribed to him. He was active as both potter and painter...

    (2011) - Mystery Man
  • Satin
    Satin
    Satin is a weave that typically has a glossy surface and a dull back. It is a warp-dominated weaving technique that forms a minimum number of interlacings in a fabric. If a fabric is formed with a satin weave using filament fibres such as silk, nylon, or polyester, the corresponding fabric is...

    (2011) - Jimmi Crete
  • The Trouble with Cali
    The Trouble with Cali
    The Trouble with Cali is an American drama film. The film was directed by Paul Sorvino and written by his daughter Amanda Sorvino. It stars Laurence Leboeuf, Glynnis O'Connor, Chris Meyer, Raviv Ullman and RZA.-Cast:* Laurence Leboeuf ... Cali Bluejones...

    (2010) - Tom Wilcox
  • Making of Sequestered (2010) - Casting Director
  • Atlantis Down (2010) - Pete Hendrix
  • World Full of Nothing (2009) - TV Preacher
  • Tender as Hellfire
    Tender as Hellfire
    Tender as Hellfire is a debut novel by Chicago author Joe Meno. Released by Punk Planet books in 1999. Meno limns a near-fantastical world of trailer park floozies, broken-down '76 Impalas, lost glass eyes, and the daily experiences of two boys trying to make sense of their random, sharp...

    (2009) - Mr. Deegan
  • Watchmen
    Watchmen
    Watchmen is a twelve-issue comic book limited series created by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colourist John Higgins. The series was published by DC Comics during 1986 and 1987, and has been subsequently reprinted in collected form...

    (2009) - Andy Warhol
  • Halloween 2 (2009) - Deputy Neale
  • The Last Stand
    The Last Stand
    The Last Stand is the third group album from Hip Hop collective Boot Camp Clik, released on July 18, 2006. The group consists of Black Moon's Buckshot, Smif-N-Wessun's Tek and Steele, Heltah Skeltah's Rock and Sean Price, and O.G.C.'s Starang Wondah, Louieville Sluggah and Top Dog. The album marks...

    (2008) - Buddy Linnow
  • Sin-Jin Smyth
    Sin-Jin Smyth
    Sin-Jin Smyth is an unreleased horror film written and directed by Ethan Dettenmaier, based on an old legend inspired by the Kansas Stull Cemetery...

    (2007)
  • Hot Baby (2007) - Tex
  • A Talent for Trouble (2007) - Frank Steiner
  • Sex & Death 101 (2007) - Magazine Stand man
  • Night of the Living Dead 3D
    Night of the Living Dead 3D
    Night of the Living Dead 3D is a 2006 horror film made in 3D. It is the second remake of the 1968 horror classic Night of the Living Dead. The first was released in 1990 and was directed by Tom Savini from a revised screenplay by George A. Romero. Unlike the first remake, no one involved with the...

    (2006) - Henry Cooper
  • Edmond (short) (2006) - Edmond
  • Star Party
    Star party
    A star party is a gathering of amateur astronomers for the purpose of observing the sky. Local star parties may be one night affairs, but larger events can last up to a week or longer and attract hundreds or even thousands of participants. Many regional star parties are now held annually and are an...

    (2005) - Booker
  • Mortuary (2005) - Eliot Cook
  • Toolbox Murders
    Toolbox Murders
    Toolbox Murders is a remake of the 1978 film The Toolbox Murders. In spring of 2003, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Poltergeist director Tobe Hooper announced he had plans to direct the remake. Hooper announced his cast as Angela Bettis from the cult hit May, and Juliet Landau, from the Buffy the...

    (2004) - Byron McLieb
  • Night Creep (2003) - Lee Howard, also Director
  • Paper Soldiers
    Paper Soldiers
    Paper Soldiers is an urban crime comedy released in 2002. It stars Kevin Hart, Beanie Sigel, Stacey Dash, Kamal Ahmed, and rapper Jay-Z appears in a cameo role...

    (2002) - Travis
  • Landspeed
    Landspeed
    Landspeed is a 2002 film starring Billy Zane and Paul Butcher in his film debut.It is about an American team trying to break the Land Speed Record....

    (2002) - Clayton Winfree
  • Bar Hopping
    Bar Hopping
    Bar Hopping is a 2002 comedy film directed by Steve Cohen starring Tom Arnold, Linda Favila, Nicole Sullivan, John Henson, Anson Downes, Romy Windsor, Scott Baio and Kevin Nealon....

    (2000) - Agent
  • Man on the Moon (1999) - ABC Executive
  • Blood Type
    Blood type
    A blood type is a classification of blood based on the presence or absence of inherited antigenic substances on the surface of red blood cells . These antigens may be proteins, carbohydrates, glycoproteins, or glycolipids, depending on the blood group system...

    (1999) - Donnie
  • Letters from a Killer
    Letters from a Killer
    Letters from a Killer is a 1998 film about a man who is falsely convicted of the murder of his wife. During his time in jail, he finds comfort from four women with whom he corresponds...

    (1998) - State Trooper
  • Poodle Springs
    Poodle Springs
    Poodle Springs is the eighth Philip Marlowe novel. It was started in 1958 by Raymond Chandler, who left it unfinished at his death in 1959. The four chapters he had completed, which bore the working title "The Poodle Springs Story", were subsequently published in Raymond Chandler Speaking , a...

    (1998) - Leonard
  • Lost Highway (1997) - Tail Gate Driver
  • Starship Troopers
    Starship Troopers
    Starship Troopers is a military science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein, first published as a serial in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction and published hardcover in December, 1959.The first-person narrative is about a young soldier from the Philippines named Juan "Johnnie" Rico and his...

    (1997) - Network Correspondent
  • Showgirls
    Showgirls
    Showgirls is a 1995 American drama film directed by Paul Verhoeven and starring former teen actress Elizabeth Berkley, Kyle MacLachlan, and Gina Gershon...

    (1995) - Phil Newkirk
  • Shakes the Clown
    Shakes the Clown
    Shakes the Clown is a 1992 American movie directed and written by Bobcat Goldthwait, who performs the title role. It also features Julie Brown, Blake Clark, Paul Dooley, Kathy Griffin, Florence Henderson, Tom Kenny, Adam Sandler, Scott Herriott, LaWanda Page, Jack Gallagher, and a cameo by Robin...

    (1991) - Randi the Rodeo Clown
  • Paradise
    Paradise
    Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...

    (1991) - Earl McCoy
  • True Identity
    True Identity
    True Identity is a 1991 American comedy film directed by Charles Lane and starring Lenny Henry, Frank Langella and Anne-Marie Johnson. The plot revolves around a black man , who disguises himself as a white man to escape the mob....

    (1991) - Orlando Ticket Agent
  • Million Dollar Mystery
    Million Dollar Mystery
    Million Dollar Mystery is a 1987 American film released with a promotional tie-in for Glad-Lock brand bags. While performing a routine stunt for this film, legendary stuntman Dar Robinson lost his life on November 21, 1986...

    (1987) - Actor
  • Humanoids from the Deep
    Humanoids from the Deep
    Humanoids from the Deep is a 1980 science fiction monster movie, starring Doug McClure, Ann Turkel, and Vic Morrow. Roger Corman served as the film's Executive Producer, and the film was distributed by his New World Pictures. It was directed by Barbara Peeters...

    (1980) - Mike Michaels, Radio Announcer

External links

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